Talking Heads to reunite for Q&A at Toronto International Film Fest

16 August, 2023

Chris Frantz, Jerry Harrison, David Byrne, and Tina Weymouth of the Talking Heads pose for publicity shots in December 1977 in Hollywood, California. Credit: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty

Talking Heads have announced that they will be reuniting for a Q&A at the Toronto International Film Fest.

The Q&A with the iconic band – consisting of singer David Byrne, bassist Tina Weymouth, drummer Chris Frantz and guitarist Jerry Harrison – will be in celebration of the 40th anniversary of their legendary concert film, Stop Making Sense. It will take place on Monday September 11, after the debut of A24’s 4K restoration of the film.

Both Stop Making Sense‘s TIFF premiere and the Q&A will be broadcasted as a global theatrical event at IMAX cinemas around the country. The event will be held on the same  date and fans can visit here for tickets to showings near them. The film will then be screened in non-IMAX cinemas around the US on September 22.

The event will mark the band’s first public appearance in over 20 years.

The Talking Heads bandmates have had a complicated relationship since their breakup in 1991. They had previously reunited in 1999 to promote the 15th-anniversary reissue of the film. In 2002, they came together to perform four songs at the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony which marked their only live performance since 1984.

Byrne discussed the idea of a band reunion with WIRED last year, saying: “I think, in a nutshell, I could say that we came together more as friends than as, you know, incredible musicians. It was really a kind of shared musical taste. And then gradually, as you age and you grow and you explore, your musical tastes start to change. It became more work that we did, we didn’t hang out all the time anymore, so eventually you just kind of drift apart that way.”

Weymouth described Byrne as “insecure” in a series of essays in the Sunday Times earlier this year.

Photo of Talking Heads. Credit: Richard E. Aaron/GETTY
Photo of Talking Heads. Credit: Richard E. Aaron/GETTY

“He always seemed very insecure about himself and would often try to blame other people if things went wrong. Chris and I loved him dearly and we did our best to overlook these disastrous character flaws, but it seemed obvious that Talking Heads wasn’t going to last,” she said.

Her husband and the band’s drummer, Chris Frantz also described Byrne as “insecure” as well as “transactional” in his 2020 memoir. Speaking to The Guardian, he said Byrne’s “brain is wired in such a way that he doesn’t know where he ends and other people begin. He can’t imagine that anyone else would be important.”

Speaking to NME last year about a potential reunion, Frantz said: “I did try it a couple of times and the last time was about 20 years ago, and after that, David just said: ‘I never want you to ask me that question again. I’m not going to address that matter.’ It’s a shame and it is what it is.”

Eariler this year, Talking Heads honoured Sire Records co-founder Seymour Stein after his passing at the age of 80.

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