“The Darkest Minds” is set in a very near future society where most of the nation’s children have
perished – victims of a terrible disease. The surviving children are considered to be dangerous Enemies of the State because they possess extraordinary powers and therefore pose a threat to the government. Amandla Stenberg (Hunger Games, Everything Everything) plays Ruby, who escapes from the authorities and teams up with a group of other kids, including Liam, played by Harris Dickinson. They go on the run, using their powers, wits, and friendship to stay alive.
“The whole movie is a quest for this ‘slip kids’ camp,” says producer Shawn Levy. “And for this camp where supposedly kids live free, the character of Clancy [played by Patrick Gibson] is pretty critical because he runs this utopian kind of what could be a ‘Lord Of The Flies’, ‘Maze Runner’, kid-only civilization or outpost, with order, with kindness, with charisma. Travelling on the quest to the slip kids camp with Ruby and Liam are two other characters: Zu, played by Miya Cech and Chubs, played by Skylan Brooks.
“Zu is a nine, ten-year-old girl and Miya is a revelation – she’s this young actress at an age where you rarely find a great actress,” says Levy. “When Miya auditioned, her face was so expressive. Her character doesn’t talk for ninety-five percent of the movie and that’s not easy. So you need someone who is articulate without words. And Miya, who is also crazily professional for such a young age, brings a heart achingly expressive quality to the character of Zu, who we learn, over the course of the movie, has been through real trauma – way more trauma than someone that age should ever have to go through.”