The Blackening Cast Talks Breaking Down Horror Tropes and Centering Black Voices At Tribeca 2023
The Blackening made its Tribeca Festival debut at the historic Apollo Theater. The horror satire follows a group of best friends who go away for Juneteenth weekend, only to find themselves trapped in a cabin in the woods with a killer. Will they make it out in the end? Pop Culture Planet’s Kristen Maldonado spoke with the cast about breaking down horror tropes, centering Black voices, and manifested dreams come true at the Tribeca red carpet.
Actor Jermaine Fowler looked back on the first time he realized Black people were killed off first in horror movies and what it’s like to be in a film actively moving away from that trope. “It's funny, the first time I saw Scream 2, Jada Pinkett [Smith] and Omar Epps died, right? After I noticed that as a kid, I was like, that didn't feel right. Something’s wrong with that. There was just a continuous pattern of those moments in horror movies. It became an ongoing joke. You watch Def Comedy Jam [and] most comedians would talk about [it],” he told me. “To be a part of a movie like The Blackening, that would take that trope and spin it and flip it on its head, it just means the world to be a part of something like that. We don't get to be a part of a lot of black comedic, horror satires, you know what I'm saying? That's really a lane built for another group. I'm glad that I get to be a part of history.”
The feature was inspired by the Comedy Central sketch of the same name, written by Dewayne Perkins as a member of the comedy troupe 3Peat. “Something that's very interesting is that we wanted to put the sketch in the film. We expanded the film around the original premise of the sketch so that you can see, from the beginning to where we ended, how it started. Then the rest of it was just us expanding and creating these characters to make them real, make them people that we care about. The original sketch was 100% the blueprint for that,” shared Perkins. “One of our tasks was to take what people see as tropes, [what] they see as archetypes, and really imbue them with enough character and depth where we see them as real people.”
Stereotypically in a horror film, there is only one Black character and that person is often one of the first people killed. The Blackening introduces us a fully realized group of friends. “Hopefully people of our community feel seen and represented in the way that they haven’t been in horror films before this one and, for everyone else, [that[ they get a chance to see an array of Black folks,” said actor Melvin Gregg. “Typically in these movies there's only one of us and you really don't get to see the nuances of that person and who he or she is and what makes them tick. In this, we have seven [or] eight different archetypes of Black people all in one movie. You get a chance to know all of them.”
The cast gave major kudos to the creative team for telling a story bound to open up more opportunities for Black creatives. “Shout out to the beautiful mind that is Dewayne Perkins, to the creative mind that is Tracy Oliver, for them wanting to create a story where we could […] debunk tropes, change the progression of culture and representation in film, and do it under the satire and the backdrop of horror and comedy,” said actor Sinqua Walls. “I think it's intelligent, […] I think it's something that is needed. I know it's going to do more to, not only just create platforms and lane for all of us in this film, but future filmmakers and creatives after us.”
Walls also shared a very moving favorite moment on set: “I would honestly say our last day when I was able to hear a speech from Dewayne Perkins […] talking about the origination and curation of this idea. He shed a tear and we all cried with him because we saw someone's dreams come to life in the actualization of a vision. […] All my days [on set] were great, but that was one that you realize like you're living in someone’s manifested blessing and that was just a gift for me.”
Actress X Mayo is most excited for Black audiences to really enjoy The Blackening in all its glory. “Black people always kind of live in a horror comedy. We’ve experienced so much trauma, but then as a result we find so much joy in it. I feel like every day is a horror comedy for Black people because I think we're sometimes tired, yet resilient. The alternative to that is just giving up and I don't think we really are designed that way. I'm so excited because I think Black people will see an interactive experience,” she told me. “It’ll be so freeing for us as a community to be able to come in a theater and see a movie that demands us to talk back, that demands us to yell and scream and exude joy, when other times when we're in theaters [being told] be quiet, play small, the usher is coming. Not with this one. And I want to say this movie was made by us, but it's for everybody.”
The Blackening is currently playing in theaters. Looking for more with these actors? Catch our interview with Jay Pharoah and Sinqua Walls from their last project together Resort To Love, below:
