Lil Nas X documentary premiere delayed by bomb threat; rapper has “absolutely zero expectations” for the film

Written by ABC AUDIO on September 11, 2023

The new documentary Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero premiered Saturday night at the Toronto Film Festival — but it was delayed due to a bomb threat, Variety reported.

Sources told Variety that as Lil Nas X pulled up to join the red carpet ahead of the screening, the festival’s organizers were informed that a bomb threat specifically targeting the artist for being Black and queer had been called in. A security sweep was conducted and nothing was found; Nas eventually joined the film’s directors on the red carpet and the screening started 30 minutes late.

The movie documents Lil Nas X’s debut 2022 tour, as well as his relationship with his family after he came out as gay. Speaking to Variety, Nas said, “This is one of the only times in my life where I am releasing something and I have absolutely zero expectations for it … But, you know, I hope everybody loves it.”

But he does say he hopes it makes an important statement as far as representation goes.

“I know in my lifetime, while I’m here, I’m going to do my best to make the ceiling unreachable to where we can go as Black queer people,” he said. “And I mean unreachable as, like, it can go above and beyond.”

“I feel like we live in a generation where Black queer people really control culture, and they’re helping really take the world to the next level,” he added. “And I think that’s going to have an effect on our youth watching us.”

Variety reports that in the movie, Nas suggests that his next album will be “less angsty and more escapist” than his debut album Montero was. But when asked if that’s still the plan, the rapper would only tell Variety, “Let’s just see when it comes out.”