Jordan Peele Explains Mythology of “The Tethered” Doppelgänger Creatures in US
No matter where you live, whether you’re rich or poor, if you’re a horror fan, Jordan Peele gave you a Christmas present in the form of a trailer for his latest socially-conscious horror movie: Us! An absolute mindfuck, the footage features a vacationing family attacked by another family that looks like alternate versions of themselves. It’s all much scarier than it sounds, so be sure to give the trailer a spin at the bottom of the article.
The trailer for Us hit the internet the same time as an extensive interview Peele gave with Entertainment Weekly where we explained the nature of this doppelgänger species known as The Tethered:
“We’re our own worst enemy, and that idea created this monster, The Tethered. I wanted to forge this new mythology that explored our duality and the duality of the characters. I think what was a fun challenge for actors, was finding the connections between the characters and their counterparts.”
As for the meaning of the golden scissors, an image that features prominently in the trailer and the poster (just released last week), Peele explains that it’s a subversion of norms, just like the rabbits:
“When we talk about the scissors and the rabbits, for every choice like that, there are several different reasons that clicked to me but the first test that anything passed was the genre test. So, does it conjure the horror genre to me, which is a limitation that I feel very dedicated to working within. I think rabbits and scissors, they’re both scary things to me, and both inane things, so I love subverting and bringing out the scariness in things you wouldn’t necessarily associate with that.”
Us arrives in US theaters on March 15th; the film stars Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Elisabeth Moss, and Anna Diop.
Synopsis:
Set in present day along the iconic
Northern California coastline, Us follows Lupita Nyong’o as Adelaide Wilson, a
woman returning to her beachside childhood home with her husband, Gabe (Black
Panther’s Winston Duke), and their two children (Shahadi Wright Joseph, Evan
Alex) for an idyllic summer getaway.
Haunted by an unexplainable and unresolved trauma from her past and compounded by a string of eerie coincidences, Adelaide feels her paranoia elevate to high-alert as she grows increasingly certain that something bad is going to befall her family.
After spending a tense beach day with their friends, the Tylers (Emmy winner Elisabeth Moss, Tim Heidecker, Cali Sheldon, Noelle Sheldon), Adelaide and her family return to their vacation home. When darkness falls, the Wilsons discover the silhouette of four figures holding hands as they stand in the driveway. Us pits an endearing American family against a terrifying and uncanny opponent: doppelgängers of themselves.
Are you excited to check out Us this March? What do you think about the elusive creatures known as The Tethered? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram!
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