TIFF 2014: Keira Knightley, Andrew Garfield and more hang at the Variety Studio at Holt Renfrew

by Anne T. Donahue September 9, 2014

tiff 2014 variety studio day 4 — Photography courtesy of Holt Renfrew

See all the pics from the Variety Studio at Holt Renfrew »

You’d think that with four days of TIFF behind us, we’d already be tired of talking about who went where, who saw what, and who wore that dress we want. But nope! Wrong. Not after a day at the Variety Studio at Holt Renfrew where some of the festival’s biggest names stopped in for photos, interviews, and snacks. (So many snacks.)

While Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, and Matthew Goode livened up the place in the a.m. (word has it that for a few short minutes it was just like a British pub), lunchtime delivered Jennifer Aniston and her hair (that hair) for a quick “no photos, please” photo op. And we get it: the woman’s got a job to do. And standing on the other side of a cell phone camera is absolutely not a part of it – which is something we learned when those who tried their hardest got the “don’t you even dare” eyes from her people the minute they held a phone slightly upright.

On the flipside, Wild’s Laura Dern, Reese Witherspoon and author Cheryl Strayed showed up in black (Dern and Strayed) and white (Witherspoon) to pose for as many photos as anyone could ever hope for. “That’s why we’re here!” a friend overheard Witherspoon saying. And if the actress was referring to us admiring Dern’s leather jacket/skirt combination, she’s right: Dern and those pieces are exactly why any of us are here. And why? Because that woman will inevitably inherit the earth (duh).

Unfortunately, before we could compliment Witherspoon’s Elle Woods-inspired lip colour or ask her to pronounce “Delevingne,” she slipped out the back entrance so quickly it was beyond. So much for a personal bend and snap lesson. (One day.)

After lunch, we found ourselves ordering water next to the heavily bearded Andrew Garfield who was telling our server how much he likes cities. Any city? This city? Owl City? We never found out because Jon Stewart wrapped up an interview and came over for a regular, fruit juice-fuelled bro-down (or more specifically: they talked, Garfield drank juice, and as this was happening, we told his pal how to smuggle cookies in his backpack). Stewart’s Rosewater star Gael Garcia Bernal soon joined the two, and before we could interject with our own witty anecdote, Garfield’s 99 Homes costar, Noah Lomax, was next to us, asking why the bar smelled like burnt wood. (We told him the building was on fire – thank goodness he laughed before we were escorted out/he found out it was to flavour the drinks.)

However, all of this was trumped by the eventual arrival of Patricia Clarkson who followed Dern’s lead with her all-black ensemble and personality so cool it was actually unfair. (You know that person you want to grow up to be? Congratulations: it’s Patricia Clarkson.) “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!” she called out to her October Gale co-star Scott Speedman as she left, turning down a drink so she could rest. (“Later, I’ll drink,” she assured.) Speedman, however, did the opposite: talking tequila with the bartender, he downed a drink and headed in for an interview before we had a chance to lecture him on disobeying Clarkson’s suggestion. Just kidding: we’d never do that. But we did regret not asking him about whether he considers himself a Noel or a Ben, which is really what TIFF is all about anyway.