Amandla Stenberg is bringing Everything, Everything to life on the big screen.
Everything, Everything sizzled at the top of The New York Times Best Seller List, and now it’s headed to the big screen. Directed by Stella Meghie, the story centers on a teenage girl named Maddy (Amandla Stenberg) whose rare disease means she has never been able to leave her house. Though her devoted mother (Anika Noni Rose) tends to her every need, Maddy finds herself yearning for more especially after a new boy moves in next door. Though a love story sits at the center of the film, author Nicola Yoon also uses her gift to highlight the relationships between teens and their parents.
Yoon recently spoke with Teen Vouge saying, “I think a lot of the times in YA books the parents are missing. But actually, the parents are the biggest influence on kids. They shape their entire world.” Her second novel, The Sun is Also A Star centers around immigration, love and the female protagonist’s relationship with her father.
Yoon explained,
“Children don’t see their parents quite as people, so I really wanted to have this dad that was flawed but not too flawed, a dad who had dreams that didn’t work out, right? I wanted to make a real person and maybe show teenagers that their parents are real people and they make mistakes too, and they don’t have to be like these big life changing mistakes, they are life changing mistakes, but sometimes people make mistakes, and they’re big compromises, and things just happen.”
Though she hadn’t read the book prior to receiving the script, Amandla Stenberg was drawn to Yoon’s story and its diversity. She told Teen Vouge,
“I was also really drawn to it because it was the first time I had seen a project like that that wanted to cast me as the lead. I think it’s important to have an accurate representation of what young people are like today and the fact that it’s a changing world and interracial couples exist and are valid. I think it’s important we have that representation as well as just have a story featuring a black girl as the lead.”
If you do pick up Yoon’s books (which you definitely should) make sure you grab some tissues, you’ll need them!
Everything, Everything premieres in theaters on May 19
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Photo Credit: Getty/Paras Griffin
