By Ben Pearson/April 11, 2019 9:30 am EST
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Guava Island Teaser
You’re all invited to our staycation with @donaldglover and @rihanna. The new #ChildishGambino film #GuavaIsland will be available on Prime Video starting Saturday 4/13 at 12:01am PST. pic.twitter.com/rxXecJEfzp
— Prime Video (@PrimeVideo) April 11, 2019
The movie also stars Black Panther breakout Letitia Wright and Nonso Anozie, who played Xaro Xhoan Daxos in Game of Thrones season 2. The first footage for this film leaked back in November at the Pharos Festival, but it’s never been online in an official capacity until now.
Hiro Murai, the up-and-coming director of shows like Atlanta and Barry and the guy who made the “This is America” music video for Glover’s musician alter-ego Childish Gambino, is behind the camera on this film, which he calls a “crazy fever dream of a production.” Stephen Glover, Donald’s brother and frequent collaborator, wrote the script, and the film is based on a story by Royalty, a collective of artists that has helped shape and drive Glover’s career for the past several years.
But what is the film actually about? The short answer: we don’t know. As you can see in the footage, Glover gets kidnapped at one point and there’s a lot of lounging around and dancing against gorgeous backdrops, but in lieu of a traditional plot description, the press release simply refers to the movie as “an expansion of Glover’s idea of freedom. In creative and business terms.” IMDb refers to it as a comedy and a thriller, but that site doesn’t always have spot-on information during a film’s pre-release period.
Update: Vanity Fair confirms that the film is only one hour long, and they say it will also be streamed on Coachella’s YouTube page. The outlet describes the plot as “a tropical thriller” that’s inspired by films like City of God and Prince’s Purple Rain. Glover plays a musician living in Cuba who “is determined to throw a festival for his island community.” Our original article continues below.
“I’m really humbled having the opportunity to present something this timely and timeless. Between Rihanna and the people of Cuba, this is one of my favorite projects I’ve ever worked on,” Glover said. That’s a high bar considering some of the things he’s been involved with, and we’ll all be able to judge it for ourselves when it debuts just after midnight tomorrow.
