Today, Jordan Peele shared a teaser image of his upcoming film, Nope.
— Jordan Peele (@JordanPeele) July 22, 2021
And that’s it.
That’s all we know.
I’m sure it’s fine.
Now me being in touch with the powers that be (PR) I thought that this email I got about the film would give me the opportunity to share more details. Well, it turns out … this email is almost as scarce as that cloud emoji Jordan Peele used.
Here’s what we know.
Nope will star Daniel Kaluuya, Keke Palmer, Steven Yeun, Barbie Ferreira and Brandon Perea.
Before this, the only news we really had about the film was that Steven Yeun was being eyed to star in it. “Though the premise — even the genre — is being kept under wraps, the cast is also set to include Keke Palmer and Daniel Kaluuya. Peele is writing and directing the movie, which is expected to debut on July 22, 2022.”
Well, we at least know it’s a new terror.
Since that’s all we know, I have no choice but to overanalyze what the heck this could be about, so let’s go!
Now is the poster implying that something has been sucked into that ominous cloud? Or is the cloud itself attached to a sort of string and can be pulled down like a loose balloon or kite? Since there is such a focus on this cloud, is the cloud itself alive, or is there something … extraterrestrial within it?
Is that a circus we see in the distance? Similar to how Us had the funhouse that would lead to total disaster? Did the cloud suck up something from the circus, or is the cloud escaping from the circus?
Does the release date mean anything? 7.22.22 has a lot of twos in it. Is that intentional? Is it written out like that for a reason? Is that a code I need to put in somewhere?!
More importantly, is the title FINALLY acknowledging the fact that Black folks are NOT going to investigate whatever the hell is going on and are, instead, going to nope out of the situation?
“Nope”- Black people turning away from that mysterious sound in the middle of the night
— That girl. (@_jasminwats) July 22, 2021
Like. If I see a huge cloud in the sky that is the focal point of a Jordan Peele production, I’m not sticking around to find out why it’s there.
I love this because a firm “NOPE” is definitely one of my sincere responses to happening on something scary. https://t.co/PrnbiToPdq
— Saeed Jones (@theferocity) July 22, 2021
Strange noise coming from the attic? Cat meowing suspiciously in the distance? Ice maker from the freezer choosing that moment to make a sound?
Nope.
It’s the NOPE for me! I can already tell this movie is going to be excellent because I know what that ‘nope’ is. That’s the ‘nope’ you say when it’s midnight and you hear a weird noise outside, but you shake your head and pretend you can’t hear it because you value your life. https://t.co/ozmxByq6rS
— Nancy Adimora (@NancAdimora) July 22, 2021
It would line up neatly with the rest of Peele’s horror movie catalog. We’ve been told to Get Out because white people who “would’ve voted for Obama a third-time” host auctions where the highest bidder gets to nest inside our bodies. We’ve learned that there are murderous duplicates of Us that make us question our own mothers.
Now it’s time to just pull the covers over our heads and go back to bed, remaining oblivious to the horror that’s headed our way via brain swapping white people, killer body snatchers, or … whatever it is that Peele is planning.
Wait.
Has it really been two back-to-back films where the antagonists were out to take the place of Black people?
Yeah, um, NOPE.
(We’re not gonna be able to Nope out of this, though, are we? We’re gonna have to face it head-on, aren’t we?)
(Image: Universal Pictures)
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