Issa Rae Is Mad at Her Spider-Verse Character

Issa Rae has been busy lately.

Not only is she a business mogul in charge of a production company, a management company, a record company, and a coffee business, she is also an actress who has had a featured role in not one, but two of this summer’s biggest blockbusters.

One of these movies has not even come out yet: Rae plays one of the most prominent dolls in the upcoming Margot Robbie-led flick, Barbie. Though the film doesn’t premiere for a month, a select few who were involved have been given a chance to see the final cut ahead of time.

What Did Issa Rae Think of the ‘Barbie’ Movie?

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That select few obviously included President Barbie, who got to view the soon-to-be hit at the home of Margot Robbie and her husband, Tom Ackerley, in their small private theater – and if her review is any indication, we are all about to be blown away by this film.

It kinda left me speechless. It’s so well done and true to the script…It was amazing to see what Greta was able to accomplish visually, what an incredible performer Margot is, and to relive how the dance numbers played out, which I didn’t get to see up close. It was just a really, really satisfying watch and so fun. I was literally laughing out loud by myself in a dark room.

There weren’t as many surprises as there might have been in her viewing of the film, because as Rae testified, Greta Gerwig is the opposite of a controlling director. While some sets may be run by people who have very specific visions of exactly how they need their scenes to go, Rae says that Gerwig’s process is far more collaborative.

She’s so respectful not just of my opinion, but of everyone else’s opinions…she wants to make sure that she’s hearing everyone out. She’s so great about funneling those thoughts through her own vision and heightening and elevating them…Everyone had versions of how they wanted their Barbies or Kens to be, and I saw her take those ideas and make them her own in the best possible way.

This is a method that is also frequently employed on Broadway, in shows with large ensemble casts – because there are so many people with so many small things going on in the background, directors and actors will often work together to discuss their understanding of the character on the page, which in the end usually makes not only for more in-depth characters, but a more authentic-feeling story as a whole.

How Did It Compare to Working on ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse?’

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Of course, not all productions can function this way – and that’s not to say that less collaborative processes can’t also be excellent. In fact, in Issa Rae’s other big role this summer – playing Spider-Woman in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse – she didn’t even see the entire script before the film came out.

In fact, she knew so little about the film that she didn’t even know what side her character was on. She said she was “really disheartened” when she realized that Spider-Woman “was on the wrong side of things.”

Rae clarified that while she would never have hesitated to take the part, even if she had known beforehand, but even so, she said, “that was a shock to me…I was mad at her.”

That was more of a character critique, though – on a story level, Issa Rae has nothing but good things to say about Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

I am so happy it’s out in the world and people seem to love it as much as I do. I was so pleased to see that the sequel was everything I wanted it to be and more…I was just floored by how good it was and what an excellent job the filmmakers did by taking this world to another level.

The Spider-Verse is Under Scrutiny

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Across the Spider-Verse has made headlines recently in a more negative light, as it has come to the public’s attention how overworked the animators in the studios were during the four years it took to make the film.

While producers have brushed off he complaints as par for the course in terms of making a movie, fans have reacted with horror, with many demanding that studios delay their productions so that animators can have regular working hours.

With great power comes great responsibility, as they say – this applies to the people in charge of making movies as much as it does Spider-Men.

What do you think of the difference between how the two films are made? Which production would you rather act in? Weigh in in the comments below.