This summer, Lionsgate is bringing a touching story to the screen with the release of its Wonder spin-off White Bird. Starring Helen Mirren, Bryce Gheisar, and Gillian Anderson, the film centers on Julian (Gheisar), who was expelled from his former school. Soon after, Julian learns about his grandmother's (Mirren) own experience with hate in Nazi-occupied France. Ahead of the premiere in August, Lionsgate released a new trailer.
Like the trailer before it, the new one gives us another look at the prominent 1940s setting in which Mirren's character was a young girl. As she tells her story to Julian, related moments in her life play out, including her first encounter with a new boy. While the two didn't yet know each other, they both experience some version of cruelty—her with anti-semitism and the boy with ableism. Additionally, while the story's setting focuses on an especially war-torn period, the trailer instead places a greater emphasis on how a little kindness can go a long way. It's something that brings the pair closer together and helps Mirren's character help Julian better understand the consequences of his actions.
How White Bird Connects to Wonder
White Bird brings a different story to the Wonder universe but maintains a couple of key connections to the first story. Character-wise, White Bird continues Julian's story, a character who was first introduced in Wonder. In the latter, Julian was the primary instigator of bullying towards Auggie Pullman (Jacob Tremblay), who had a facial deformity. Due to Julian's actions towards Auggie, he was expelled and enrolled in a new school in White Bird. In an ironic twist of fate, Julian experiences his own bullying. This leads into the second main connection: both stories' themes on kindness. As Julian struggles at his new school, he confronts his past actions and why others stood with Auggie.
White Bird is adapted from the R.J. Palacio graphic novel of the same name. Palacio also wrote the book from which Wonder was adapted. The screenplay was written by Mark Bomback and directed by Marc Forster, who previously worked on films such as Finding Neverland and A Man Called Otto. Palacio, Todd Lieberman, and David Hoberman produced.
White Bird opens in select theaters beginning August 18 and will have a wider release the following week on August 25. Check out the new trailer and synopsis below:
"In ‘White Bird,’ we follow Julian (Bryce Gheisar), who has struggled to belong ever since he was expelled from his former school for his treatment of Auggie Pullman. To transform his life, Julian’s grandmother (Helen Mirren) finally reveals to Julian her own story of courage — during her youth in Nazi-occupied France, a boy shelters her from mortal danger. They find first love in a stunning, magical world of their own creation, while the boy’s mother (Gillian Anderson) risks everything to keep her safe."