The Obama Effect: How The Former President Shaped ‘Leave The World Behind’

Summary

• With Barack Obama’s advice on the script, the film adaptation of Leave the World Behind achieved a realistic and thrilling balance of apocalyptic tension.
• The ex-President’s family’s contribution enables the characters to engage with the intricate setting and delve into more profound topics.

Leave the World Behind is an electric concoction of realism and apocalyptic tension enhanced by Barack Obama’s contribution to the film. 

Based on Rumaan Alam’s 2020 novel, the psychological thriller focuses on two families whose lives become intertwined after an unexpected blackout. Besides the mind-bending plot, the film also has the help of a star-studded cast that elevates it to a whole other level. 

Moreover, the crisis helps bring out nuances like racial and class tensions in the film. The Obama family has been extremely helpful in bringing out these tensions with their invaluable contributions to the project.

1. Barack and Michelle Obama Produced Netflix’s Leave the World Behind

In Netflix’s Leave the World Behind, Barack and Michelle Obama played integral roles in bringing the story to life. Their production company, Higher Ground, signed the project in 2022 and has been instrumental in providing detailed insights to better the script.

Per Hollywood Reporter. Barack Obama was incredibly involved and provided handy insights so that the story stayed rooted in reality.

Director Sam Esmail revealed that he aimed to keep the movie as realistic as possible, and the former President was instrumental in helping him achieve that.

He would provide notes on character dynamics and help edit parts that seemed too unlikely or fictitious. 

Esmail further elaborated that Obama is a massive lover of the canon book. Thus, his judgment was further fueled by his love for the project.

2. Did Barack Obama’s Presidential Tenure Influence Leave The World Behind’s Plot?

According to USA Today, Obama’s experience at the White House was instrumental in fine-tuning some inner aspects of the technological disaster. The insights helped make Leave The World Behind as close to ground reality as possible. 

Obama informed Esmail about the parts of the film that looked more dystopian and unrealistic than the others, which made a world of difference. 

These inputs from Mr. Obama and his family helped make Leave The World Behind suspenseful, thrilling and grounded in reality. 

3. About Leave the World Behind

Leave the World Behind is a 2023 American apocalyptic psychological thriller film produced, written and directed by Sam Esmail. It is based on the 2020 novel of the same name by Rumaan Alam.

The film stars Julia Roberts, Mahershala Ali, Ethan Hawke, Myha’la, and Kevin Bacon as they attempt to make sense of the gradual breakdown in phones, television and technology which points to a potential cataclysm.

Leave the World Behind had its world premiere at the AFI Fest on October 25, 2023.

It was released in select theaters on November 22, 2023, before its streaming release by Netflix on December 8, 2023. Although the film was an instant commercial success, it has received mixed reviews from the public, but has received generally positive reviews from critics.