Despite the compelling nature of the Black Lives Matter movement, there’s no denying it’s become a polarizing topic in America. But the cast of upcoming book-to-film adaptation The Hate U Give is hoping to humanize the issue with the story they’re about to tell.

The film is based off of Angie Thomas’ New York Times Best-Selling young adult novel of the same name, and offers up a harrowing first-hand look at how police brutality can affect individuals on a multitude of levels.

Told through the eyes of a 16-year-old named Starr Carter, the story centers on what transpires after Starr witnesses her childhood friend Khalil (Algee Smith) die — unarmed — at the hands of a police officer.

The premise of Khalil’s death makes for a tragic tale, but not one that’s unfamiliar.

Turn on the news and it’s likely you’ll hear a story about another young black man who was gunned down by an officer.

It’s the frequency of these stories that make them truly horrifying, not just because of the loss of a life, but also because the more we see it on the news, the more likely we are to normalize it.

According to Amandla Stenberg, who portrays Starr in the film, that’s one of the biggest reasons why bringing The Hate U Give to the big screen is so important.

Hypable was lucky enough to visit the set of The Hate U Give in Atlanta, Georgia in October 2017, shortly before the film wrapped principal photography.

We caught up with Stenberg (plus a few other cast members) between takes being shot at a local high school. There, the actress went into detail about the significance of working on a film that tackles issues which are incredibly relevant to what’s happening in the real world.

“It’s so easy to become desensitized to what’s happening in America when the news is so saturated with it. I think it becomes easy for us to see topics such as Black Lives Matter as not pertinent to us,” said Stenberg. “What’s really powerful about putting it in a format like a film is that it becomes personal and it becomes real. You’re actually able to see it as a human story as opposed to just a headline. I think it can do a lot for the humanization of Black people, and the humanization of the families of the victims affected by police brutality.”

By telling the story through Starr, viewers will get to experience what happens in the aftermath — something we don’t often see when these stories fade away in real life.

Book readers will know that one of the most compelling aspects of Thomas’ novel is the way it delves into the idea of identity, and Starr offers up a wonderful depiction of that given her circumstances.

Over the course of the story we see Starr grapple with the idea of duality, something that very clearly manifests itself in the way her home life is so different from her school life. Though she lives in a predominantly Black neighborhood in a rougher part of town, Starr goes to a predominantly white prep school miles away from her home.

She’s always been careful to keep both parts of her life at arms length of each other, but separating those two worlds becomes near impossible after Khalil’s death.

The idea of portraying what it’s like for a Black individual to navigate different spaces is one of the aspects of the story Stenberg was most excited to explore in the film.

“I was talking to [author] Angie Thomas and she said, ‘You either get to see the Will or the Carlton — you never get to see someone who has to navigate both spaces,’” explained Stenberg. “That was something that I immediately connected to when I read the book.”

Perhaps one of the most interesting ways in which we see Starr grapple with the idea of her own identity manifests itself in the way her relationships change with her school friends over the course of the story.

One of the toughest relationships the story dives into concerns Starr and her best friend Hailey, played by Sabrina Carpenter in the film.

Disney Channel fans will likely recognize Carpenter from the Boy Meets World spinoff, Girl Meets World, where she plays Riley Matthews’ supportive BFF, Maya.

Carpenter may have been easy to love on Girl Meets World, but the same can’t be said for her character in this film.

Hailey and Starr may be besties, but Hailey’s insensitivity and lack of empathy for Khalil’s death quickly causes a riff in their friendship.

Playing a character that is as Carpenter describes, “the antithesis” of who she is as a person, was not a decision she made lightly.

In fact, when we caught up with her, the Disney Channel alum revealed that she had to think twice before even accepting the part because of what the character represents.

Much like Stenberg, however, Carpenter understands the importance of the story being told, and that ended up being a huge motivator for her in terms of signing on.

“When I first auditioned for The Hate U Give, it was one of those moments where I was like, ‘Ugh. I love this movie and I love this book. Do I even go in for this role, though? Because…no one’s going to like this character,’” explained Carpenter. “But to be part of something that could mean so much to so many people, and could hopefully change someone’s mind for the better? I wanted to be apart of that in any way that I could.”

Though unlikable, Carpenter explains that including a character like Hailey into the fold is necessary because “everyone kind of knows someone like that.”

More importantly, Carpenter hopes that the way Hailey and Starr’s relationship plays out opens the floor for more dialogue to occur among friends in the real world.

“A lot of conversations that you’ll see that we do have on screen are conversations that aren’t necessarily always shown because they are the tougher conversations to have at this age. Sometimes when Hailey opens her mouth I’m just like, ‘Why would you not think before you speak in a situation like that?’…but Hailey also represents a lot of people,” said Carpenter. “I think having Hailey say the things that she says, and do the things that she does, will hopefully open that conversation and open that dialogue to the people that might not realize they’re not handling situations the way they’re supposed to be handled.”

Starr’s relationship with Hailey isn’t the only one that gets put through the wringer. Tensions also start rising between Starr and her prep school boyfriend, Chris.

When we visited the set of The Hate U Give to speak with the cast, the role of Chris was still being portrayed by actor and YouTube star Kian Lawley.

Lawley, however, was fired from the film after videos featuring the actor making racist remarks surfaced on the internet.

Lucky for everyone involved, 20th Century Fox found the perfect replacement in KJ Apa who officially joined the cast in April and jumped right into reshoots.

Though the Riverdale star had very little time to familiarize himself with the source material before jumping into reshoots, Apa said having the opportunity to talk with The Hate U Give author Angie Thomas about the character really helped him gain a better understanding of who Chris is.

Chris may be easier to like than someone like Hailey, but as Apa explained when we caught up with him toward the end of the summer, there’s no denying Starr’s boyfriend comes with his own set of issues.

“Chris as a character is a good example of white privilege and because of his privilege he may never be able to fully relate. Eventually he learns to really understand the world Starr comes from and her reality,” Apa told Hypable. “He also learns that he needs to embrace her background and where she comes from in order for their relationship to work.”

The idea of white privilege may be a hard subject to broach, but as with other tough topics, The Hate U Give plans to lean in to the discussion in an effort to open a dialogue amongst moviegoers.

It’s also a huge reason why Apa is particularly looking forward to seeing how fans react to a scene between Chris and Starr that takes place just before a major school event.

“Probably the most important scene for my character and the one I’m most excited for fans to see is the one that takes place with Chris and Starr talking in the limo outside prom,” teased Apa. “It’s the moment where Chris finally sees the light and starts to really understand. He’s pretty ignorant prior to that moment.”

As with the rest of his castmates, Apa sincerely hopes that The Hate U Give inspires people of all walks of life to have the tough conversations — even if it makes you uncomfortable.

“There are always going to be people that are maybe a little uncomfortable exploring the idea of race, but this film is really a film for everyone,” said Apa. “It’s a thought-provoking story of race and identity, and being true to yourself, and learning how to find your voice and use it. It forces you to imagine yourself in someone else’s shoes.”

Directed by George Tillman Jr. and adapted for the screen by Audrey Wells, the film also stars Regina Hall, Russell Hornsby, Anthony Mackie, Common, and Issa Rae.

The Hate U Give opens in limited release on Friday, October 5. The film opens nation-wide on Friday, October 19.