From an acclaimed 2022 short film to having its world premiere at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival to a theatrical release on September 18, 2026, Walter Thompson-Hernández’s If I Go Will They Miss Me looks like one of the more important films to hit theaters in 2026.
Today, Complex has the official full-length trailer, dropping not too long after the preview got proper cinephiles ready for this visually stunning film.
If I Go Will They Miss Me follows Big Ant (P-Valley and Lanterns star J. Alphonse Nicholson), Lozita (Danielle Brooks, star of Peacemaker and The Color Purple), and 12-year-old Lil Ant (Bodhi Dell), or as Lil Ant puts it in the trailer, Poseidon, Medusa, and Pegasus. It’s the story of their relationship as a family, with its ups and downs. Lil Ant needs guidance from parents who, as Lozita says in the trailer, are works in progress. There’s a lot of beauty that’s wrapped up in all of that pain, and If I Go Will They Miss Me captures that in this touching coming-of-age story set in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles.
Much has been said about the film’s visuals; Rich Spirit acquired it after its world premiere at Sundance earlier this year. “If I Go Will They Miss Me was such a labor of love from start to finish,” Thompson-Hernández 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.”
In the year of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, it’s dope to see a modern tale reflect the same sentiments. Truly shows how timeless those stories are, and how much they apply to all walks of life.
If I Go Will They Miss Me hits theaters nationwide on September 18, 2026, following a special opening on September 11 in Los Angeles.
