Sterling K. Brown is trading his lovable family-man energy for pure menace in Is God Is, and the Oscar nominee is taking on the role with enthusiasm.
In his sinister new role as the Monster, Brown stars in writer-director Aleshea Harris's feature debut thriller. According to Deadline Hollywood, the actor jumped at the chance to work with the Pulitzer-nominated playwright on her ambitious first film.
"I love seeing Black women win," Brown said when discussing what drew him to the project. He was captivated by Harris's "incredibly creative" vision and the rare opportunity to collaborate with a Black female filmmaker on her debut feature.
For Brown, it is about more than playing a villain—it is about using his platform to elevate emerging Black women storytellers. The move reflects a deliberate career choice: leveraging his A-list status for ambitious projects that might otherwise lack studio backing.
Harris, whose work has earned Pulitzer recognition as a playwright, brings that same theatrical boldness to her feature directorial debut. With Brown's star power in the cast, Is God Is is positioned as a thriller from a new directorial voice.
The film marks another chapter in Brown's post-This Is Us career—one focused on diverse, ambitious material that challenges him as an actor and the industry's conventional storytelling.
