The world will finally get to see what Childish Gambino’s mysterious Guava Island film is all about this weekend, as earlier this week, YouTube announced that they would be streaming the thriller through their Coachella festival channel.
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After a bidding war, Amazon Prime has acquired the exclusive rights to run the flick on their streaming platform starting on Saturday (April 13) at 12:01 a.m. PT. Guava Island will be free for everyone’s viewing pleasures until 6 p.m. PT, when it will then become restricted to Amazon Prime subscribers only. Twitch users also have access to publicly stream the film at 5 p.m. PT on Saturday (April 13) for free.
Ads for the project originally popped up on Spotify, hinting that Guava Island would be available in some form on April 13. Gambino is also slated to put a bow on the opening night of Coachella as Friday’s headlining performer. We’ll see if Glover provides any clues during his set as to what we can expect from the movie.
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Until then, here is everything we know about Guava Island so far:
The Film Was Shot in Havana, Cuba
Back in August, rumors began to swirl when Gambino was spotted down in Cuba shooting a project with Rihanna. Vistar Magazine confirmed that the footage would land in an upcoming film titled Guava Island. RiRi posed for a photo alongside the Atlanta creator, which found its way onto the Internet and sent fans into a frenzy. The Navy leader was even seen purchasing some Cuban cigars during her downtime in Havana.
“I’m really humbled having the opportunity to present something this timely and timeless,” Glover said in a statement. “Between Rihanna and the people of Cuba, this is one of my favorite projects I’ve ever worked on.” Gambino has said films such as 2003’s City of God and Prince’s Purple Rain have inspired his creativity leading to Guava Island.
Rihanna & Childish Gambino Are in a Relationship
As Pitchfork reports from a screening on Thursday night, RiRi’s character, Kofi, plays Donald’s love interest in the film. The first scenes explain how Rihanna fell for Dani, Glover’s character, who goes on to be a local celebrity in the town. Donald then attempts to chase the dream of actually living in paradise and not having to struggle just to get by week-to-week, but is eventually caught in a precarious predicament.
Rihanna on Set of Guava Island. I dont know. It looks more like a movie than for a MV tbh. pic.twitter.com/NAgIlHZDn0
— Den ?? (@DenTheRizzle) August 15, 2018
Hiro Murai Serves as Director, Letitia Wright & Nonso Anozie Co-Star
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right? Gambino connects with frequent collaborator Hiro Murai for Guava Island. The two worked together to bring Atlanta to life and he’s helmed Gambino’s “Sober” and epic “This Is America” videos in the past. Meanwhile emerging acting stars such as Letitia Wright (Black Panther) and Nonso Anozie (Game of Thrones) have also been cast for roles in the film.
Murai described the film as the “end result of four incredible weeks spent in Cuba with some of the most inspiring creative talents I’ve ever met. Designers, performers, musicians, and filmmakers came together from all over the world to create this crazy fever dream of a production.”
Music Plays a Major Role
According to Pitchfork‘s synopsis from Thursday’s premiere, music plays an integral role in the film, as Childish performs renditions of “This Is America” and “Feels Like Summer.” When Gambino’s character tries to put on a music festival for the town, he is faced with adversity after the government throws several obstacles in his way. The New York Times reports that the flick runs only 54 minutes long.
The protagonist shows he’s willing to risk it all in an effort to turn his dreams into a reality. “We live in paradise, but none of us actually have the time or the means to live here,” Gambino says in the leaked trailer from PHAROS Festival in November. Disaster strikes when Gambino looks to be kidnaped and held hostage, as RiRi launches a search party.
Here’s How To Watch It (Soon)
YouTube announced on Monday (April 8) that it would serve as the broadcast hub for a special live-stream of Guava Island following Saturday night’s dynamic lineup of performers. Amazon Prime is also hosting Guava Island, as their official Twitter account announced that the film is going to land on the streaming platform starting on Saturday (April 13) at 12:01 a.m. PT. Twitch also locked down a one-time broadcast to stream the film at 5 p.m. PT on Saturday (April 13) for free.
You’re all invited to our staycation with @donaldglover and @rihanna. The new #ChildishGambino film #GuavaIsland will be available on Prime Video starting Saturday 4/13 at 12:01am PST. pic.twitter.com/rxXecJEfzp
— Amazon Prime Video (@PrimeVideo) April 11, 2019