Queer cult classic Nimona finally made it from graphic novel to movie, hitting our screens on the last day of Pride month and making fans go exactly as feral as we all warned you we’d be. N.D. Stevenson’s highly relatable—dare we say universal—tale of an anti-authoritarian shapeshifter high in her villain era and her sad gay dad as they quest/rampage for truth, justice, and (in Nimona’s case) chaos, comes to life brilliantly in animated form. The art is on point of course, capturing the spirit of the original comic to a tee, and the voice actors are stellar, coming together with the animation to really embody the characters Stevenson put on the page (even if they did make a few—or, in the case of Sir Goldenloin, more than a few—changes).
In particular it’s Nimona herself whose film incarnation has really resonated with fans, despite the not insignificant alterations to her backstory, primarily made to reshape Stevenson’s longform storytelling to fit into the two-hour structure of a movie. A big part of what makes this version of Nimona work for fans of the original is how well both the artwork and the voice actress really grasp the core of who she is as a character, and the sheer energy and emotional power they brought to the role.
Who plays Nimona?
The titular Nimona is played by Chloë Grace Moretz. Best known for her roles in The Peripheral, Kick-Ass, and The Miseducation of Cameron Post, Moretz has been acting since childhood. She kicked off her career with a role in 2005’s The Amityville Horror and went on to star in a wide range of projects, from the post-apocalyptic Mother/Android to Tom & Jerry: The Movie. The multi-talented Moretz’s career spans horror, sci-fi, comedy, and children’s media, and she’s been the recipient of multiple awards and nominations over the years, including a BFCA award in 2011 for Best Young Actress for her role as a child vampire in the English-language remake of Let Me In, three MTV awards for her work in Kick-Ass (in which she played a brainwashed 11-year-old vigilante), and a Saturn Award for playing the titular role in the 2013 version of Carrie.
Moretz has recently chosen to expand to voice acting, and her expressive, energetic style makes her the ideal choice for everyone’s favorite shape-shifting nightmare, Nimona. Bringing an intense chaotic energy to the part, Moretz also manages to fully embody Nimona’s pain and turmoil—a balance that’s not easy to strike. The tragedy at the heart of Nimona, and the one that shapes her into the person we meet on screen (which might actually be more heartbreaking than her original comic’s backstory), required a massive tonal shift that would give a lot of performers whiplash, but Moretz pulls it off with upsetting plausibility.
An avowed feminist and LGBTQ+ advocate, Moretz has a policy of turning down parts she considers overly sexualized or which otherwise reduce women to an object or a plot device, as well as championing and participating in projects that benefit the queer community. In 2021, she executive produced the Snapchat series Coming Out, with the hopes that it would reach young LGBTQ+ people and show them there’s no one path to coming out and existing as a queer person.
Sir Ballister Boldheart and Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin
Coming in just after Nimona in terms of fan favorites is Sir Ballister Boldheart (renamed from Blackheart in the graphic novel), the disenfranchised scapegoat of a powerful institution and walking cautionary tale. Watching his internal paradigm shift until he reaches out to Nimona with the words so many queer people, othered as they often are, long to hear—”I’m sorry. I see you, Nimona, and you’re not alone”—well, it was emotional. And it wouldn’t have hit so hard without the skills of British Pakistani actor Riz Ahmed as the voice of Boldheart. Best known for playing Bodhi Rook in Rogue One, Ahmed also has a music career and has done voice work on several podcasts, including The Sandman, in which he plays the Corinthian.
Ballister’s estranged lover Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin, made into a much more sympathetic character in the film, is played by the inimitable Eugene Lee Yang. Probably best known for being part of the Try Guys, Yang is also a producer, with a series of videos and short films ranging from Buzzfeed parody pieces to serious explorations of queerness, identity, and the historic abuse of Korean women by Japanese forces in the second world war. Famous for his advocacy as well as his creative output, Yang has worked with the Human Rights Campaign and the Trevor Project, talking about his own experiences as a young gay, Asian man, and working to further more and better queer and Asian representation in the media.
Other notable voices
Nimona just has a fabulous cast overall, with notable voices including Lorraine Toussaint as Queen Valerin, RuPaul as Nate Knight, and Sarah Sherman as Cadaverish. So if you’re still somehow on the fence about watching it, you should give it a try just for them.
(featured image: Netflix)
