Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Western Stars’ Film to Premiere in September
Bruce Springsteen’s new concert movie Western Stars will receive its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.
Directed by Thom Zimny, the movie features the Boss playing songs from his recently released solo album of the same name. Zimny and Springsteen have worked together for more than two decades, having previously collaborated on the films Wings for Wheels: The Making of Born to Run, The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town and the Netflix special Springsteen on Broadway.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer viewed the Western Stars film as a chance to bring his LP's music to a wider fan base. “We knew we weren’t going to tour,” Springsteen admitted on SiriusXM earlier this month. “So I was looking for a way to get some of the music live to an audience, and so we figured that was the best way to do it.”
Discussing fan reaction to the Western Stars album, Springsteen recalled that he "thought the record was a little off to the left and I really didn’t quite know what kind of response it was going to get. But just walking around and talking to the fans on the street and seeing how the record was received was very exciting. ... It made us look for how we can further that experience for the fans without going out and playing live right now, because I’m still working on some other things.”
The Toronto International Film Festival runs from Sept. 5 through Sept. 15. The exact night of Western Stars’ premiere will be revealed when the full schedule is released on Aug. 20.