Horror gets skewered in The Blackening, the new comedy from director Tim Story (Fantastic Four, Tom & Jerry). The familiar premise of “a bunch of people at a cabin in the woods get hunted by a masked killer” gets turned on its side by a simple twist that plays with the racial politics of the horror genre: the cast is entirely comprised of Black talent. Thus, the old horror adage of, “the Black person always dies first” gets put to the test, with hilarious and unpredictable results.
Based on the short film by comedy troupe 3Peat, The Blackening may present itself as a horror movie, but it’s very much a comedy, driven by its script and performances from comedy professionals. Screen Rant got the chance to speak with several of those incredible individuals.
While promoting the release of The Blackening, actors Antoinette Robertson, Sinqua Walls, and Grace Byers spoke to Screen Rant about their work on the film. They discussed their current status, returning to the world of The Blackening over a year and a half after shooting the film back in 2021. They also spoke about filming in a real-life creepy cabin, and how they were somehow able to complete the film on schedule despite spending so much time having fun between takes.
Antoinette Robertson, Grace Byers & Sinqua Walls on Comedy & Terror in The Blackening
Screen Rant: Your movie is hilarious. When did you shoot this?
Antoinette Robertson: November 2021.
Grace Byers: I love how we both looked at Antoinette!
Sinqua Walls: We both looked at Antoinette, she’s good with time!
Antoinette Robertson: October to the end of November, right before Thanksgiving. It’s been a while, yeah.
Screen Rant: So, you’ve done the festivals and you’ve gotten so much early buzz. Now that it’s finally going to be given to the public, and the critics, do you feel like you’re doing a victory lap? Or did it already pay off because you made a friggin’ awesome movie?
Sinqua Walls: I think both, man. I think you hit the nail on the head. We’ve said this several times, I think it’s the culmination of gratitude for us. You do something in November 2021, and now it’s 2023, and it’s actually coming out. And you know, it was an indie originally. To have success, to have legs, to have distribution, is a gift.
Shout-out to one of our TV icons; I ran into Henry Winkler a while ago. It’s not a name drop! Genuinely, he came to me and said, “congrats, man.” He said, “Making a movie is like pushing a boulder up a hill. When you finally get to the top, you look around and you’re like, ‘I did it!'” So, I think, for all of us, we did it. From top to bottom. Not just in front of the camera, but also behind the camera, as well.
Screen Rant: Is the house a house, or is it one of those sets that breaks apart and each room is a different thing?
All: It was a house!
Sinqua Walls: It was a house that broke apart! (Laughs)
Grace Byers: It’s like, a legit house!
Antoinette Robertson: Very creepy normally, by itself. It needed no help.
Grace Byers: Yes, especially at night time!
Screen Rant: It’s such a great location. This is very much a comedy movie first, before being a horror movie, but so much of the horror is just in that location. All those corners of the house, it’s like, “Oh god, someone’s back there, isn’t there?!”
Antoinette Robertson: The house was its own character!
Grace Byers: It was!
Sinqua Walls: For real. The house… You know, when you set a great backdrop, you just kinda play in the circumstances. It was that.
Screen Rant: Okay, you’re doing a scene. Tim says “Cut! Back to one!” That’s a thing directors say, I guess. And you’ve got ten-fifteen minutes while they’re resetting. What do you do?
Antoinette Robertson: It becomes a comedy show, because Jermaine Fowler, Melvin Gregg, and X Mayo are telling jokes and figuring out different bits and how to punch up some of the jokes. It legitimately felt like Summer camp, to be perfectly honest. It was a joy to get up and go to work every single day with these people. We kind of all chilled out with each other. I think at first, we were all like, “I’m going back to my trailer,” and then after a while we were like, “I wanna be around them all the time!”
Grace Byers: Actually, like, that never happened with me and Antoinette. Day one, Antoinette flinged open my trailer door and was like, “Hey girl, whatcha doing?”
Antoinette Robertson: That is so true. (Laughs)
Grace Byers: No, but I love what you said. I think, you know, doing a horror film, and this was my first horror film… Was this your first horror film?
Antoinette Robertson: Yes.
Sinqua Walls: I think so, yes.
Grace Byers: So I feel like, the adrenaline… So, you’re in a scene, you’re (screams) all of that, you shoot all the way up with your adrenaline, and then you crash. You shoot up, and then there’s a big crash. It can get really exhausting. I think one of the things that really propelled us forward, day by day, was how we were there for each other. In the in-between moments, it’s keeping the jokes alive, it’s keeping the energy up. I don’t know how we made it through 12-14 hour days. With all the energy that we had!
Sinqua Walls: On time! We would finish our days on time. And we took so many comedy breaks.
Grace Byers: It’s true! We were just laughing in between, it was great.
About The Blackening
The Blackening centers around a group of Black friends who reunite for a Juneteenth weekend getaway only to find themselves trapped in a remote cabin with a twisted killer. Forced to play by his rules, the friends soon realize this ain’t no motherf****** game.
Directed by Tim Story (Ride Along, Think Like A Man, Barbershop) and screenplay and screen story by Tracy Oliver (Girls Trip, Harlem) & Dewayne Perkins (The Amber Ruffin Show, Brooklyn Nine-Nine), The Blackening skewers genre tropes and poses the sardonic question: if the entire cast of a horror movie is Black, who dies first?
Check out our other interviews with:
- Tracy Oliver & Tim Story
- Jay Pharoah & Melvin Gregg
- Jermaine Fowler, X Mayo, & Dewayne Perkins
The Blackening releases in theaters on June 16.
