TIFF Review: Rosalind Eleazar in Misty Green

There is a real theme at TIFF this year of actors giving tremendous central performances only for the film around them to fall flat. Chris Rock’s latest directorial foray, Misty Green, is one such instance. The film, which Rock also wrote, follows down-on-her-luck actress Misty Green (Slow Horses’ Rosalind Eleazar) over the course of a critical week for her career and personal life. The film begins with Misty being kicked out of a lush beachfront apartment by her now deceased lover’s widow (Amy Landecker) and being given seven days to find somewhere else to live.

Misty is an Emmy-winning actress, but her career has stalled following a string of bad breaks and bad choices. During her momentous week, we meet several people—mostly men—who have influenced Misty’s career in one way or another. There is her former agent, Randy (Topher Grace), who agrees to try to help Misty, though he will not let her hide from her own responsibility in her career’s downward trajectory. Yes, as a Black woman a lot of cards are stacked against her in Hollywood, but she did win an Emmy. There was a moment when people were willing to believe and invest in her. It didn’t work out, and some of those reasons do belong to Misty and her choices.

The main issue is that she is a drug addict and sleeps with married men, which has caused problems for her in the past (and present). Misty espouses a non-monogamy outlook on life, but it feels more like ducking accountability for how these choices negatively impacted her career. But Rock does insert some layers around Misty’s reputation as “difficult”. In one scene, Misty barks at inattentive casting agents and producers while auditioning. She has been interrupted several times; all she wants is the benefit of their attention for a few minutes while she auditions. It’s not an unreasonable ask, and she is being disrespected.

Now, the casting agents and producers in question are already predisposed to dislike Misty because of previous negative dealings, but Rock does show how every little emotional expression from Misty can be interpreted unkindly by anyone looking to write her off, especially as a Black woman who is already primed to be seen as “difficult” if she stands up for herself.

Where Misty Green stumbles is in connecting all of Misty’s experiences across the week. Rock himself shows up as a director, Jordan, who is remaking Dreamgirls and urges Misty to audition. He previously fired her from a project because of her behavior, but he knows her talent and believes she can return to the top. The film itself, though, doesn’t have the same confidence. The main issue is that Misty isn’t just complicated, she is actively making harmful choices that derail her career, and she won’t take accountability for any of it, and that never fully connects in her maybe-comeback career arc.

Rock lays out all the forces stacked against Misty, from racism and misogyny to the stress of supporting her brother (Daniel Kaluuya, in his first role in four years), who has bipolar disorder. There are real factors that make the climb harder for Misty. But there’s also her numerous bad choices, none of which she takes accountability for, such as being unprepared for an audition because she was out late partying the night before. Eleazar imbues Misty with an indomitable will combined with an artistic sensitivity that is compelling, but the script falls short of her layered performance because it simply isn’t nuanced enough.

There are some great moments tucked into the film, such as the current state of Los Angeles, from its tent cities to the hustle economy that extends from Doordashers, to failed filmmakers who mostly act as pimps for the super-rich (Adam Driver pops in as one such specific Hollywood type), to celebrities who will go anywhere for a buck (trips to the Middle East come in for some very dark criticism). But Rock never gets anywhere with Misty’s complexity, the push-pull of the unfair elements of Hollywood she has to overcome and the consequences of her own actions.

Standing amidst all of it is Rosalind Eleazar, whose performance is riveting. She does seem to see the binary nature of Misty’s circumstances, and how much of her posturing is really down to an addict’s self-loathing and a delicate fear of seeking grace that, as yet, feels unearned. Eleazar does some truly great work with a mostly mediocre script, and while she can’t make Misty Green as insightful as Chris Rock probably intended it to be, she does at least make it watchable.

Misty Green will play exclusively in theaters from October 9, 2026.