The official trailer for Walter Thompson-Hernandez’s If I Go Will They Miss Me is here, offering the first full look following its “Best Feature Film” win at Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival ahead of its September 18 theatrical release.
The film follows Big Ant (Nicholson), Lozita (Brooks) and 12-year-old Lil Ant (Bodhi Dell), or as Lil Ant reframes them in the trailer, Poseidon, Medusa and Pegasus. Set in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, the story centers on a young boy trying to reconnect with his father following his release from prison, while his mother holds the household together. As Lil Ant begins experiencing mysterious visions of boys drifting through his neighborhood, those moments begin revealing deeper generational ties between father and son.
Also starring Myles Bullock, Bre-Z, Zaria Kelley, Mark Lane III, Nandi Nfr Ka, Kameron J Meadows and Jeremiah King.
The lyrical, surreal coming of age drama premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival to glowing reviews, currently holding a 96% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics have praised the film’s poetic, painterly framing of Los Angeles’ Watts neighborhood, with reviewers comparing its magical realist tone to Moonlight and Beasts of the Southern Wild. Performances from J. Alphonse Nicholson and Danielle Brooks have been described as spectacular, with the pair’s on-screen chemistry drawing particular attention.
Thompson-Hernandez expanded the film from his own Sundance-winning short of the same name. Rich Spirit acquired it following its world premiere earlier this year. “If I Go Will They Miss Me was such a labor of love from start to finish,” Thompson-Hernandez said. “I’ll never forget watching it on the big screen when we premiered at Sundance, and I can’t wait for audiences nationwide to also experience the film in theaters.”
If I Go Will They Miss Me hits theaters September 18, 2026.