John Boyega

In Attack the Block (2011), John Boyega gives the gang someone to gather round. His Moses has enough gravity to hold together an ensemble whose other members have plenty of energy of their own. Alex Esmail’s Pest, Franz Drameh’s Dennis and Leeon Jones’s Jerome seem to have a life together beyond the emergency, and Boyega helps make their place beside Moses convincing. We believe in this group before we need to worry about it. That matters in a siege film, where caring who gets through the next encounter is a substantial part of the job.

We laughed at their exchanges, then felt anxious when the shaggy-haired creatures came after them, because the actors had made the gang worth caring about. Boyega helps the film change from comedy to fear without stopping for a solemn announcement. Joe Cornish directs the action clearly, although the social lessons sometimes arrive too heavily underlined. The cast has already made these young people worth our attention. Boyega supplies the weight that lets the film take them seriously without making their company a chore.

The debut led to Finn in Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) and international recognition across the sequel trilogy. But Detroit (2017), with Boyega as Melvin Dismukes, shows that his dramatic work was developing during those franchise years. Finn’s limited development is a reason to be wary of judging Boyega by how much those films gave him to do.

Steve McQueen’s Small Axe: Red, White and Blue (2020), with Boyega as Leroy Logan, makes room for swagger and tenderness together. That combination offers more to watch than authority alone. They Cloned Tyrone (2023), in which he plays Fontaine, keeps science-fiction comedy among his choices. We would like more parts that ask for both his force and his vulnerability, rather than settling for one. Start with Attack the Block, particularly if you like your science fiction funny as well as frightening.