
By Shannon McGrew
Yesterday, Creepy Kingdom's Shannon McGrew participated in an exclusive virtual trailer preview event for the upcoming horror film SINNERS, featuring filmmaker Ryan Coogler. Moderated by local Disney influencer Straw Hat Goofy, Coogler delved into what fans can expect from his highly anticipated new film.
In SINNERS, which has an all-star cast featuring Michael B. Jordan (Black Panther, Creed), Hailee Steinfeld (Bumblebee), Wunmi Mosaku (Passenger), and Delroy Lindo (Da 5 Bloods), twin brothers (played by Jordan) return to their hometown to start again after trying to leave their troubled lives behind. However, they soon discover that an even greater evil is waiting to welcome them back.
As Coogler's first foray into horror, we were excited to get a sneak peek at what he's conjured. Here are six key takeaways from the press conference that will excite horror fans.
Coogler's Dive Into Horror
"It was my first time experimenting with the genre head-on," explained Cooger. "I got to dig into the films that I loved, and analyze why I loved them, what drew me to them, and try to lean on those influences and figure out a way to tell my story in that space. [Horror] is a genre that's for the popular consumers of film, but it's also a genre that comes up when people ask about great pieces of art. It feels ancient. It feels like the first story we probably told around a fire was a horror one."
SINNERS is a Genre-Bending Take on Vampires
" “SINNERS is unique and genre-bending. There are vampires in the film, but it’s really about a lot more than just that. I think we’re going to surprise people with it.”
BLENDING HORROR INFLUENCES
"A lot of Coen Brothers [films] influenced this, starting with Inside Llewyn Davis. Definitely Fargo. Robert Rodriguez is a big one. SINNERS is a lot closer to The Faculty, a remake of The Dean, one of my favorite horror movies. There’s also a lot of John Carpenter in the film as well. But the biggest influence, truthfully, is not the cinema but the novel "Salem’s Lot." That’s a massive influence on the film. Then there’s a real deep-cut influence. My favorite thing ever made is "The Twilight Zone" with Rod Serling. My favorite episode of that is an episode called "The Last Rites of Jeff Myrtlebank." That and "Salem’s Lot" are probably the biggest influences."
INTERWEAVING AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY WITH THE SUPERNATURAL
“This film was heavily researched. We went hard to ensure that the film's only 'make-believe' was supernatural. We wanted the world to be extremely tactile, the same way we approach our other films. I’m back at it with the same team - production designer Hannah Beachler. This is my fifth film with her, and this film is some of her best work. It’s as tactile as anything she’s made. We are working with Ruth Carter, who did both Black Panther films with me. This is some of the most fantastic work I’ve ever seen her do in terms of bringing us back to this time. I’m [also] working with my composer, Ludwig Göransson, again. He’s a guitarist because of his father, who taught him. His father was obsessed with the musicians from this era and region. We did the Blues Trail when we were researching the film and doing some early location scouting, and Ludwig Göransson’s dad came along. We went to B.B. King’s Club in Indianola, Mississippi, and played on the stage at this club. Regarding the supernatural elements and Hoodoo Culture, we made sure to get consultants there."
MICHAEL B. JORDAN: A LEADING MAN
"[We] grew up in the business together. Mike was a full-time actor as a child, so I got to meet him after he had already been in some great shows and movies, but in terms of being a leading man in feature films, his first time doing that was on my first feature film, Fruitvale Station. He’s got this incredible mix of talent and charisma. A lot of God-given stuff, but he is also a real craftsman. He really cares about the craft and is constantly trying to get better at it and challenge himself. It’s very unique to find that in somebody. We’ve become good friends and continue to challenge each other. It’s been a great working and personal relationship."
MICHAEL B. JORDAN'S DUAL ROLE
“What we are dealing with in the film is a lot of archetypical characters, and these are identical twins. But they also are that concept of, like… every neighborhood where I was from coming up if you said, hey man, where the twins at? They would have these guys who were a set of notorious twins and kind of local celebrities. So it was an exploration of that. It’s unique in that they are identical twins but two different people. It’s not as simple as two sides of the same coin. There’s a dynamic that exists with identical twins, as it’s kind of known. We had twin consultants on this movie, two friends of mine who are actually filmmakers as well, Logan and Noah Miller, whom I know from Northern California where I’m at. They consulted and worked with Mike on the mindset of sharing a womb with somebody and how unique of a dynamic that is, but at the same time not making it a caricature.”
SINNERS IS A PERSONAL STORY
“It’s very personal. It’s interesting because each time I make [something], it has [always] been the most personal thing I’ve made up to date, and this one is no different. My maternal grandfather is from Mississippi, and my Uncle James, who passed away while I was finishing up Creed, is also from Mississippi, and it was a place that I had never been to. My maternal grandfather passed before I was born, but we grew up in a house that he built in Oakland. I was fortunate enough to have a really, really close relationship with my Uncle. He would listen to Blues Music all the time and only talk about Mississippi when listening to that music. He profoundly affected my life, and I got to dig into my own ancestral history with this film, and it’s been extremely rewarding."
SINNERS arrives in theaters only nationwide on April 18, 2025, and internationally beginning on 16 April 2025.