Actress Amandla Stenberg has had an impressive rise as an actress. Her career began in 2011 when she landed her first gig in Colombiana. The very next year, Stenberg’s biggest break arrived when she portrayed Rue in The Hunger Games, a 12-year-old female tribute who was chosen to participate in the 74th Hunger Games. This part helped skyrocket Sternberg to superstardom, landing her several other different gigs in Hollywood. In addition to movies, she is also a musician, particularly a violinist and singer.
Her many talents attracted the eye of Beyoncé, who cast Stenberg in her award-winning “Lemonade” visual. Another of her biggest casting moments was announced in 2021 when she was announced as the focal point of the Star Wars spinoff series, The Acolyte. Though the eight-episode show was ultimately scrapped, Stenberg has plenty of other credits under her belt that you should check out during your next movie night. If you loved her in The Hunger Games and The Acoltye, here are six more movies with Amandla Stenberg to enjoy.
Everything, Everything (2017)
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 44%
Where to Watch: Tubi, Pluto TV, The Roku Channel, Amazon Prime, YouTube, Apple TV, Fandango at Home
Everything, Everything is a tearjerker that follows an ill teenager, Maddy Whittier (Stenberg). Her severe medical conditions prevent her from leaving her home. Thankfully, her neighbor Olly Bright, portrayed by Nick Robinson, offers her friendship. When a nurse allows Olly inside the home to visit with Maddy behind her mother’s back, their feelings for one another grow stronger. Eventually, a bold getaway exposes a stunning revelation about Maddy’s health and life, with Olly by her side every step of the way to grapple with the issues.
The Hate U Give (2018)
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 97%
Where to Watch: YouTube, Google Play, Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Fandango at Home
In one of Stenberg’s most dramatic roles, The Hate U Give follows her character, Starr Carter. Carter is a Black teenager who lives in a predominantly black neighborhood but attends a mostly white private school. Her life takes a drastic turn after a shooting at a party. As her friend, Khalil, drives her home, they are stopped by an angry white officer, who shoots and kills the Black young man after believing a hairbrush grabbed by Khalil was a weapon. This sets off a chain of events in the small town, with Starr and other residents calling for justice.
The Darkest Minds (2018)
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 15%
Where to Watch: YouTube, Google Play, Apple TV, Fandango at Home, Amazon Prime
The Darkest Minds is a sci-fi movie about a group of children who gain superpowers after a mysterious infection impacts most of the Earth’s youngsters. They are classified by color, and since they are the only survivors, the government begins hunting down these kids. Those classified as Red and Orange, which control fire and the human mind, are euthanized by officials, while the others are sentenced to camps. Stenberg portrays Ruby, an Orange, who escapes a camp and outsmarts those in charge.
Dear Evan Hansen (2021)
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 28%
Where to Watch: Peacock, Sling TV, YouTube, Google Play, Apple TV, Fandango at Home, Amazon Prime
Dear Evan Hansen follows the story of Seventeen-year-old Evan Hansen who struggles with social anxiety and depression. After a classmate, Connor, commits suicide, Evan must fabricate a friendship with his classmate’s parents, he then forges a true friendship with a fellow classmate Alana (Stenberg), who proposes “The Connor Project,” dedicated to their fallen student. When Alana starts having doubts about Evan’s relationship with Connor, she tries to get to the bottom of it.
Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022)
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 86%
Where to Watch: YouTube, Hulu, fuboTV, Sling TV, The Roku Channel, Amazon Prime Video, Paramount+, Google Play, Apple TV, Max, Fandago at Home
One for the thriller fans out there, 2022’s Bodies Bodies Bodies blends horror comedy with an interesting twist on the slasher genre, set in a remote mansion that’s currently experiencing a hurricane. When the film’s cast decides to play a ‘murder in the dark’ style game, they discover that this is no game – one of their own is an actual killer. Bodies Bodies Bodies sees Amandla Stenberg playing Sophie. Sophie is a former trust fund baby who’s been cut off from her family’s cash due to her acting out, even just getting out of rehab as the film begins.
The film is meant to critique Gen Z moral absolutism, but that message falls flat and even feels forced for some audiences. What there really is to enjoy in Bodies Bodies Bodies is the quick comedy, typical A24 stylization, and the ensemble cast of unique, interesting characters.
As You Are (2017)
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 63%
Where to Watch: Fandango at Home, YouTube, Google Play, Apple TV, Amazon Prime
A throwback drama that takes viewers back to the 1990s, As You Are is an Amandla Stenberg movie for fans who are looking for a gripping performance and an examination of adolescence, being a teenager in the 90s, and struggles with sexuality and identity. The story is framed around a police investigation, and it’s got an ambiguous ending that will leave you and fellow watchers talking for days. Shown at the U.S. Dramatic Competition section during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, it was awarded a Special Jury Award.
