After months of hype and anticipation, details about Jordan Peele’s next big horror film have started to sprout up as the movie nears its release date. Simply titled NOPE and set for release on July 22, 2022, the project has been shrouded in secrecy ever since its initial announcement.
Beyond the recently released official teaser trailer, information on NOPE is as sparse as can be. Luckily, that trailer provided an intriguing glimpse about the possible plot and what kind of tone audiences should expect. Today, we’re peeling back the veil on NOPE as we lay out the hard facts along with some of our favorite theories. Here’s everything you need to know about NOPE!
NOPE is Set for Success
While most audiences know him for his work on television shows like MAD TV and Key & Peele, Jordan Peele broke the mold as a comedian and veered into the horror genre for his first feature film. Released in 2017, Get Out was Peele’s directorial debut and told a deceptively disturbing story about Chris (Daniel Kaluuya), who takes a trip to visit his girlfriend’s parents.
The movie was a massive hit, establishing Jordan Peele as an impressive director with a talent for scaring movie-goers. Get Out was so well-received that it even garnered four nominations at the 2018 Academy Awards, an award show that is notorious for neglecting the horror genre. Ultimately, Jordan Peele won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, shooting down any naysayers in the process.
Peele released his second film, US, in 2019, which continued the director’s trend of quality psychological horror with subversive subtext. Featuring a group of red jumpsuit-wearing doppelgangers who terrorize a beach community, it struck a different tone than Get Out, offering deeper commentary on societal issues as well.
Although US didn’t receive any nods from the Academy Awards, the movie was widely celebrated, proving that Get Out was far from a fluke. Now, after co-writing and producing the 2021 remake of Candyman, Jordan Peele is ready to unleash his next terrifying film on eager audiences, but it might be different than you think.
What is NOPE About?
Until the teaser trailer was released in mid-February, any hard facts about NOPE were impossible to come across. Thankfully, this promotional push has revealed more than enough mystery to sink our teeth into. The official synopsis of NOPE gives us some vague clues, describing the film as so: “The residents of a lonely gulch in inland California bear witness to an uncanny and chilling discovery.”
The cast list includes an interesting mix of seasoned actors and newcomers, ranging from the likes of Daniel Kaluuya and Steven Yeun to Keke Palmer and Barbie Ferreira. Interestingly, many of these actors do not have listed character names, further fogging up the potential premise.
The official teaser trailer introduces us to James (Daniel Kaluuya) and Jill (Keke Palmer), two siblings who help run Haywood Ranch, the only black-owned horse training facility for Hollywood films. After a slow-roll credit reveal that directly pays homage to the 1980 horror classic The Shining, darkness grips the sleepy desert town as something ominous lurks out of sight.
Throughout the trailer, characters are seen looking skyward as a massive shadowy cloud slowly blots out the sun. During the climactic ending of the trailer, James Haywood hides in his truck from something in the sky, while Keke Palmer is ripped into the air by an unknown force.
Based on what was shown in the teaser trailer alone, we can most likely assume that NOPE will detail an alien abduction of sorts. The title itself supports this theory, as it could potentially be an acronym, similar to how US stood for “United States.” If the alien theory is true, it’s easy to see how NOPE could stand for “Not Of Planet Earth.” With that considered, it’s very likely that the abduction story acts as a vehicle for a deeper, more nuanced narrative, much like Get Out and Us.
Both of Peele’s previous movies have commented on societal issues in one way or another, often centered around race relations and the struggles of marginalized communities. NOPE will most likely continue this trend, possibly discussing Hollywood’s dark history or the recent political discourse surrounding immigration and refugees from “alien” nations.
Either way, with both, Get Out and Us sitting above 90% on RottenTomatoes, NOPE will likely be the must-see movie of 2022 if Peele strikes gold for a third time. We can’t wait to dig deeper into the movie and what it all means when NOPE hits theaters on July 22, 2022.
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