The Darkest Minds Trailer Sees Superpowered Teens Lead A Revolution
In The Darkest Minds, it's teenagers who hold the power — literally.
Directed by Kung Fu Panda 2 filmmaker Jennifer Yuh Nelson, The Darkest Minds is based on Alexandra Bracken's acclaimed young adult novel of the same name. The story takes place in a post-plague world in which children and teenagers are stricken by a mysterious illness that wipes out 98 percent of the youth population. Some manage to survive, but they don't emerge unscathed. Instead, they become more than mortal humans, equipped with otherworldly abilities that make them a force to be frightened of — or objects to be sequestered, exploited, and abused.
The first trailer for The Darkest Minds (above) shows the teens rising up to fight back against the system that labels them with different colors, just like terrorism threat levels, to mark how dangerous their powers are.
In the trailer, we're introduced to lead actress Amandla Stenberg as Ruby Daly, a 16-year-old girl who could be the most powerful individual in her generation. We watch as Ruby, labeled "orange" due to her ability to control people's minds, escapes from the government-controlled "rehabilitation camp" known as Camp Thurmond and teams up with a pack of fellow superpowered teens. There's Harris Dickinson's Liam, a "blue" who can move things (and people) telekinetically; Miya Cech's Zu, a "yellow" who's able to manipulate electricity and control anything that relies on it to function; and Skylan Brooks' Chubs, a hyper-intelligent "green" who acts as the group's strategist when they finally break free.
Together, the Ruby, Liam, Zu, and Chubs attempt to stay ahead of Gwendoline Christie's Lady Jane, a bounty hunter who's determined bring them back to camp. The trailer also gives us a peek at Mandy Moore's Cate, the kindly Camp Thurmond doctor who explains to Ruby just how potent her powers really are.
Alongside the trailer, 20th Century Fox unveiled the first poster for The Darkest Minds, which you can take a gander at below. The studio also released the official synopsis for the film: "When teens mysteriously develop powerful new abilities, they are declared a threat by the government and detained. Sixteen-year-old Ruby, one of the most powerful young people anyone has encountered, escapes her camp and joins a group of runaway teens seeking safe haven. Soon this newfound family realizes that, in a world in which the adults in power have betrayed them, running is not enough and they must wage a resistance, using their collective power to take back control of their future."
Executive produced by Stranger Things creative Shawn Levy, The Darkest Minds is scheduled for release on August 3.
