Entertainment

Warning: Jordan Peele's 'Us' Is Going To Be Way Scarier Than 'Get Out'

by Shannon Carlin

Be prepare to be truly horrified by Jordan Peele's latest film when it finally hits theaters next month. That's because Us will be way scarier than Get Out, according to producer Jason Blum. In fact, Blum swears that Us is actually "Get Out on steroids" and let's be honest, that kind of strength might result in a lot of people watching this one through the slits of their fingers.

On Wednesday (Feb. 6) at the African American Film Critics Association Awards, Blum talked to Variety about just how much he loves Peele, who he worked with as a producer on his Oscar-winning 2017 debut. “He’s incredibly generous and just wildly gifted," Blum said. "What’s really special about Jordan is, he didn’t have a big success in Get Out and jump out of horror. He doubled down on scary with Us, which obviously made me very happy.”

The fact that didn't ditch his horror roots might be obvious to anyone who watched that Us Super Bowl trailer and immediately got nightmares. Or, to those who were so creeped out, they just couldn't look away from that terrifying new Us poster featuring Lupita Nyong'o unmasking herself to reveal another petrified — and, based on the trailer, potentially murderous — version of herself.

In the new movie, Nyong'o stars alongside her Black Panther co-star Winston Duke as Adelaide and Gabe Wilson, parents who are trying to protect their two kids from mysterious attackers who happen to look just like them. The point being, our worst enemies are really ourselves. "I think the main idea that went into writing this film is that we’re our own worst enemy, and that idea created this monster, The Tethered," Peele told Entertainment Weekly back in December. "I wanted to forge this new mythology that explored our duality and the duality of the characters." Deep, right?

Well, it's also going to be deeply scary, too. Rolling Stone called Us "spill-your-soda scary" in its cover story with Peele noting that he's "taking some mischievous pleasure at the prospect of freaking out some of Get Out’s more genteel fans." Again, another sign that this one won't be for the faint of heart.

Though, it might be Peele comparing a scene in his movie to Silence Of The Lambs that is the most scary tease of all. In the trailer, there's a glimpse of the Tethered invading the Wilson's home that Peele promised will illicit some screams. Specifically because of how hard Nyong'o goes in it. “She carried this anticipatory gravity in that scene where you just know,” Peele said. “I feel like her performance is on par with Hannibal Lecter gravitas in this movie.”

And for those who think those gold scissors and rabbits in the Us trailer are creepy AF, don't worry you're not alone. "I think rabbits and scissors, they're both scary things to me, and both inane things," Peele told EW. "So I love subverting and bringing out the scariness in things you wouldn't necessarily associate with that."

So yes, in this movie it's not just the actual scary things that will scare you, like the fact that the Wilson's have their own creepy doppelgängers. Peele is fully intending on turning not-so-scary household items and cuddly pets into something to freak out about. Isn't that just great?

Clearly, Blum's latest comments are just another warning to those who are scare-averse to think about reading the Wiki before seeing this horror movie in theaters March 22.