Ice Cube Speaks Out on Why His ‘War of the Worlds’ Was So Weird

Amazon Prime’s War of the Worlds arrived without fanfare on the streamer this summer—until viewers discovered it and realized how delightfully scorn-worthy it was. Whether it was the big hero moment given to an Amazon delivery drone, or the sheer oddness of seeing H.G. Wells’ dynamic sci-fi epic acted out entirely on computer screens, it attracted the wrong kind of attention while offering a reminder of how fun it can be to witness a creative misfire set free on one of the biggest platforms around.

Ice Cube stars as a Department of Homeland Security analyst who finds himself on the front lines of an alien invasion without ever having to leave his office or even stand up from his desk chair more than a couple times. Before he realizes what’s really going on, he’s also gently abusing his surveillance capabilities to keep tabs on his pregnant daughter while also poking into a group of hackers that end up having ties to the son he’s less interested in spying on.

On a recent episode of Kai Cenat Live (via Variety), Ice Cube explained what went on behind the scenes to guide his performance, which consists almost entirely of reaction shots ranging from mild irritation to freaking-out shock. And it turns out… not a lot?

“[War of the Worlds] was a movie I did in 2020 during the pandemic,” he said. “We shot it in 15 days, and it was during the pandemic. So the director wasn’t in there. None of the actors [were] there. This was the only way we could really shoot the movie.”

That explains some of the qualities that made the end product feel so stilted; another factor was apparently the time needed to compile footage not featuring Ice Cube, Eva Longoria, Clark Gregg, or any of the other actors featured in the film.

“All the footage is from real surveillance cameras all around the world,” he said.

As we know by now, the Amazon plot twist was in the movie from the start; it was originally a Universal production before Amazon picked it up for release. So there’s no explaining that corporate synergy away, other than it adds an extra guffaw-worthy quality to the film’s climax.

Have you checked out War of the Worlds yet? How do you think Ice Cube did essentially directing his own performance?

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.