In “Missing,” our protagonist is not a worried father (Cho) finding his online footing, but teenager June (Storm Reid), who launches an online investigation after her mother Grace (Nia Long) doesn’t return from her Colombian vacation. According to Chaganty, it was producer Sev Ohanian who initially thought of the angle to reverse the roles (via Cinema Daily US):
“We realized that there’s so much energy and excitement in that approach, because the way that a teenager uses a device is completely different from the way John Cho in ‘Searching’ would have done it. He was going into the foreign land that was the internet.”
The rhythm of “Missing” is much different from how it’s presented in “Searching,” as the new perspective allows for a greater scope. No longer are we solely attached to a computer screen, but to phones, apps, and news reports. It helps that Johnson and Merrick were editors during the first go, as they know how to push the aesthetic boundaries. Like any teenager using multiple devices, June’s online fluency presents more of an opportunity to keep up with so much all at once. She’s able to think on the fly. “Our protagonist is now a teenager, so everything is happening way quicker, we’re not teaching people anything,” says Chaganty.
By having Reid front and center, she becomes a much more relatable figure for a younger audience to latch onto. We come to know about June during her determined online search, in addition to what she doesn’t type, which makes her an interesting character to follow. In that case, “Missing” gives a new name to the digital footprint that most folks don’t get to see.
“Missing” is now playing in theaters nationwide.