The Hub Entertainment Watch List: The Blackening
Juneteenth celebrations can easily bring people together as it is a day of rejoicing and freedom for the African American community. However, The Blackening, which is a new comedy-horror film released in theaters on June 16, puts a new spin on the highly celebrated holiday.
The Blackening tells the story of nine friends who come together for a Juneteenth weekend getaway. The friend group consists of Grace Byers as Allison, Jermaine Fowler as Clifton, Melvin Gregg as King, X Mayo as Shanika, Dewayne Perkins as Dewayne, Antoinette Robertson as Lisa, Sinqua Walls as Nnamdi, Jay Pharoah as Shawn and Yvonne Orji as Morgan. However, upon arrival at their remote rental cabin, two of the friends come across a board game titled, “The Blackening” and realize that they are dealing with something far more sinister than a game.
Like most horror films, the movie takes a turn for the worse when the friends find themselves forced into a game of life and death. They are trapped in the isolated cabin and discover that there is more than one person who is working to put an end to the group. The friend group will have to look within for answers and more importantly, they will have to play by the creator’s rules if they want to make it out of the house alive.
The 107-minute film began as a short sketch from the comedy group, 3Peat, with Dewayne Perkins. The viral production was later turned into a feature film with Tim Story serving as the director and Tracy Oliver serving as a screenwriter. While the film comes off as a horror movie parody, it also aims to tackle tropes that exist for Black actors playing a role in horror films. It ultimately explores the question: if the entire cast of a horror movie is Black, who dies first?
Film star, Antoinette Robertson, is aware of the barriers faced by Black talents who want to prove their versatility by acting in horror films. However, when presented with this opportunity she didn’t turn it down and Robertson told the Hollywood Reporter that she was “more than happy to participate.” Fellow actress Grace Byers shared similar sentiments on being cast in a horror film. The actress did not go out of her way for a role in a horror flick but after reading a script for The Blackening she had a change of heart. “It’s smart. It’s funny. It tackles the tropes in Black culture when it comes to horror films. It’s something that we haven’t really seen before,” Byer told Huff Post.
Although Juneteenth has passed you can still check out at The Blackening at a theater near you. The film is currently in theaters all across the nation and has grossed more than $8 million at the box office, according to Box Office Mojo.
