We’ve seen Jordan Peele tackle the horror subjects of doppelgängers and brain-swapping experiments, but the latest trailer for his forthcoming film, Nope, finally makes it explicit that the subject matter of his third directorial effort is an unidentified flying object — UFO — and what appears to be a duo of siblings, played by Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer, trying to capture it on film.
The final trailer is jaw-dropping. But more than that, it’s obvious from the overwhelmingly excited fan response that audiences may be ready for original auteur-driven genre movies as cinemas continue to be largely dominated by franchise flicks, such as Universal’s other major summer blockbuster, Jurassic World Dominion.
In fact, it was one fan’s assessment that the new Nope trailer, in and of itself, was even better than the entirety of the dinosaur actioner starring Chris Pratt that hit theaters Thursday.
Another Twitter user hypothesized the much anticipated reveal that the movie will center around a UFO isn’t necessarily a spoiler for the entire movie and that there will surely be more twists and turns in store.
“If he’s straight up confirming it’s aliens, then it isn’t JUST aliens. This movie is gonna surprise us all and it’s not what we’re thinking rn. I can’t f–king wait.”
In case you’re not familiar with Peele’s previous movies, he’s known for having twists in them that completely take the audience by surprise, a la The Twilight Zone. Because of that, movie fans were cooking up all kinds of theories as to what the “real twist” might be, from a plot revolving around transforming people into horses to a ranch owner secretly being a body snatcher to artificially have immortality.
Some people were simply over-joyed to see Kaluuya, Palmer, and Steven Yeun interacting in a scene together, for the first time, as previous teasers did not show the trio in the same scene.
The prospect of aliens and/or spaceships simply disguising themselves as clouds was enough to conjur up a terrified Stranger Things reaction GIF for one fan.
Not since perhaps M. Night Shyamalan’s Signs have we seen so much hype about a horror movie director known for his twist endings, at the peak of his powers, generating so much fan anticipation for a film centered around aliens.
We’re frankly excited to see what all unfolds in what is sure to be a mind-bending experience when Nope hits theaters July 22.