By Hanna Rantala
LONDON (Reuters) – Actor Michael B. Jordan says he needed no convincing to tackle two lead roles in supernatural action thriller “Sinners”, which reunites him with “Creed” and “Black Panther” director Ryan Coogler.
Set in Mississippi in 1932, “Sinners” sees identical twins Smoke and Stack (Jordan), return to their rural hometown after a seven-year stint in Chicago.
Equipped with cash, guns and liquor, the entrepreneurial duo sets out to open a juke joint in an old sawmill, swiftly hiring old acquaintances as its workers. Their talented cousin Sammie, played by newcomer Miles Caton, is tasked with performing for the patrons. But when unexpected visitors turn up at the club’s doors, the hedonistic opening night party turns into a bloodbath.
“Ryan wanted me to step outside my comfort zone and he challenged me a little bit. When he told me the roles and the storyline, it was an easy yes for me, even though I don’t really watch horrors like that,” Jordan said at the film’s London premiere on Monday.
“We had a twin double that I would work opposite, and I would walk him through a lot of my choices or what I was going to do when I became the other brother and then we just went from there,” Jordan said.
Oscar-nominated filmmaker Coogler, who wrote, directed and produced the movie, drew inspiration from Stephen King’s novel “Salem’s Lot” and films including Robert Rodriguez’s “From Dusk Till Dawn” and the Swedish horror “Let the Right One In”. But the spark for the story came from his blues-loving uncle James Emerson, who passed away in 2015.
“After he passed, I found myself listening to the blues records that I would listen to with him, as a way of processing. That transformative power of that music and the ritual of listening to music to trigger nostalgia for a loved one, was what gave me the idea for this movie,” Coogler said.
The film’s themes of community and roots resonated with its cast, including actress Hailee Steinfeld, whose grandfather was half Black and half Filipino.
“For me personally, this brought me closer to my family history. It started such a wonderful conversation for me and my family and I feel like it can be that for so many people, a conversation starter,” said Steinfeld, who plays one of the twins’ love interests, Mary.
“Sinners” begins its global cinematic rollout on April 16.
(Reporting by Hanna Rantala; Editing by Jamie Freed)
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