Gugu Mbatha-Raw Is the Leader We Deserve in ‘The Cloverfield Paradox’

This past Sunday evening our film lord and saviour Ava Duvernay tweeted out her support for a brand new prequel to 2008’s Cloverfield, a sci-fi thriller about a giant monster that attacks New York at a time when Earth is fresh out of butt-kicking mecha. A surprise trailer for the film premiered during the SuperBowl, but then Paramount decided to run a trick play of their own. They actually made the film available on Netflix immediately after the game, so if Patriots fans wanted to watch their world end a second time they could(lol jk). This J. J. Abrams produced film marks the mainstream directorial debut of Nigerian filmmaker Julius Onah, and stars David Oyelowo, John Ortiz and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as members of a global space coalition who travel to space to test out the Shepherd particle accelerator in an attempt to supply Earth with infinite energy. After almost two years of failed attempts, they’re finally able to sustain a beam of energy, but the consequences of their actions cause a ripple effect that they may not be able to reverse.

“It’s creepy and it’s kooky, mysterious and spooky…” Gugu-Mbatha Raw leads this film as Ava Hamilton, the British representative and the crew’s emotional center. The film is told mainly through the perspective of her and her husband Michael, her point of contact from Earth. Their connection is believable; you really feel the joy, the desperation, the resolve in every scene Mbatha-Raw is in. It’s very rare to see a woman of color, especially …