Prior to "Loving"'s public release, on September 8, 2016, the film screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it opened in the official sidebar section, Gala Presentations. "The Atlantic" hosted an early screening of "Loving" on September 28, 2016, in Washington, D.C., with a discussion of the case prior to the screening. On October 6, 2016, the film was chosen to open the Hamptons International Film Festival, followed by a private screening for students and faculty at Clark Atlanta University on October 9, and the Austin Film Festival on October 13, 2016. On October 13, an advanced screening was held at Landmark's E Street Cinema in Washington, DC, featuring a panel discussion with Philip Hirschkop. "Loving" was selected to screen at Festival do Rio in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on October 10, until October 17, 2016. The film was selected as the closing-night film of the Mill Valley Film Festival on October 16, and on October 20, it held its L.A. premiere at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Beverly Hills, California. On October 23, the film was screened as the Sunday Morning Spotlight section of the Middleburg Film Festival in Middleburg, Virginia. Subsequent showings were held at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., on October 24, the Landmark Sunshine Cinema in downtown New York, on October 27, a private screening for the Writers Guild of America, East, at the AMC Lincoln Square, Broadway, on October 27, and on October 29, at the American Film Festival in Wrocław, Poland. Additionally, on November 2, 2016, a private screening of the film was held for the cast and crew at the Byrd Theatre in Richmond, Virginia.