One week after Universal released a new poster for Jordan Peele’s Us, two first look photos have arrived and tease a holiday from hell. In 2017, Peele released his directorial debut Get Out, a horror film that addresses racism and fear in America through satirical themes. Produced for only $4.5 million, Get Out ultimately earned over $250 million at the box office and earned Peele an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.
In recent months, Peele has made headlines by announcing reboot projects for both Candyman and The Twilight Zone, all the while being the central focus for continued speculation about a possible Get Out sequel. Last May, Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o confirmed her leading role in Peele’s second film Us, and Black Panther star Winston Duke was officially announced as the male lead in June.
Per Entertainment Weekly, Universal has released the first images for Us, a Blumhouse production about a family that comes to face to face with monster at a beach house. One still shows Nyong’o’s Adelaide Wilson clutching what seems to be a weapon, with her white top bloodied and torn ala The Walking Dead. While this particular still is set in a contained setting, the second image is more telling, albeit slightly cryptic, as the Wilson family - wearing all red and holding hands - looks towards the sky, with the youngest wearing a white mask. See the images below.
According to Nyong’o, Peele gave her 10 classic horror films to watch for “a shared language," with the titles ranging from Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 essential The Shining to Michael Haneke’s 1997 thriller Funny Games to Pascal Laugier’s 2008 French New Extremity film Martyrs.
Earlier this month, more plot details emerged for Us, most notably that “shocking visitors” would interrupt the Wilson family vacation. Per today’s EW report, Peele has named Us’ monsters “the Tethered.” In addition, Duke describes his character Gabe Wilson as a “Homer Simpson-esque patriarch” while discussing his chemistry with co-star and former Yale classmate Nyong’o. Alongside the two leads, Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men, The Handmaid’s Tale) and Tim Heidecker (Ant-Man and the Wasp) have supporting roles, with Shahadi Wright Joseph and Evan Alex playing the Wilson children.
Based on the Us posters that have been released thus far, there seems to be a duality theme in the film’s narrative thread. Now, with the release of the first look photos, audiences can likely expect Us’ Wilson family to not only battle with “the Tethered,” but to also engage with unresolved personal issues in the style of Get Out. We’ll know more when the first Us trailer premieres on Christmas Day.
More: Get Out’s Ending & Message Explained
Source: EW
- Us Release Date: 2019-03-22
