Set in the 90s, Maria and Khalil are a successful mixed-race couple whose wedding is
coming up quickly. They agreed to be a part of a documentary called New People which
focuses on “mulattos”, but Maria isn’t entirely on board with it. Maria reflects on growing up
white passing and being raised by a single black adoptive mother. Her mother always thought
Maria was a little strange and detached. Maria also reflects on meeting Khalil in college and
being the one to introduce him to his black side. She regrets a time when she left him a racist
voicemail pretending to be a white boy and it became a campus issue. Maria becomes
obsessed with a poet that she meets while out with Khalil and his sister, LISA. He becomes all
she can think about and she manages to track down his address. Maria knocks on his
neighbor’s door and the neighbor mistakes her for her nanny and leaves Maria with her infant.
Maria spends the day with the baby and also spies on the poet. When he leaves, she takes the
baby and follows him but loses track of him. Maria returns the baby to the mother and goes to
Lisa’s birthday dinner, which she’s late for, and is delighted to see that the poet is also there as
he’s Lisa’s friend.
The poet leaves behind his beanie so Maria takes it and sniffs it whenever she gets the chance.
She waits a week before reaching out to him. The poet doesn’t care about the hat but Maria
demands they meet for drinks so she can return it to him. They have drinks and discover that
they have tons in common, but Maria is annoyed that he keeps returning the conversation to her
upcoming wedding with Khalil. The poet leaves for a date and Maria is sad and jealous. Maria
knows that she loves Khalil and they are good together but she hates having sex with him.
She’s okay with it because she know all married couples stop having good sex eventually so it
won’t matter. She thinks it’s ironic that the best sex she had was with a white boy she hated,
who is now queer and identifies as Latinx. Maria also works on her dissertation; she’s studying
Jonestown.
Maria and Khalil go to a circus to film for New People where it’s planned for them to run into
Lisa. Maria is shocked when Lisa shows up with the poet, clearly dating and in love. She’s
heartbroken and fakes sick, ending the filming. Maria uses a key she’d stolen from the poet’s
neighbor and breaks into her house. She tries to climb into the poet’s window from his
neighbor’s balcony but wakes up the baby. Maria shakes the baby and covers her mouth to stop
her from crying until the nanny shows up and snatches the baby away and calls the cops. Maria
climbs into the poet’s apartment and hides under his bed. She listens while he and Lisa have
sex in the shower. The police show up looking for her but the poet sends them away. He and
Lisa have sex and pillow talk on the bed while Maria hides underneath it. She falls asleep and
wakes up in the morning.
