While Janelle Monáe has long been a big name in the music world, her move across to the big screen in recent years has been a real success. From the double whammy of Moonlight and Hidden Figures in 2016, she’s gone on to star in Robert Zemeckis’ Welcome To Marwen, Harriet Tubman biopic Harriet, and has lent her voice to Disney’s live-action streaming remake of Lady And The Tramp. Now she’s starring in a newly-announced project that looks especially intriguing: a where-did-that-come-from horror movie called Antebellum. The film has only just been announced alongside its first trailer, so concrete details for this one are scarce. But based on this initial teaser, there’s going to be a lot to dig into. Watch it here.
That’s JJ Abrams levels of 'what’s-going-on-here?', and also JJ Abrams levels of 'we-can’t-wait-to-find-out'. The trailer opens on what looks like a Civil War-era plantation, with an African-American woman running away from white men on horses – watched on by Monáe’s character, who appears to be held in slavery. And then a modern-day plane flies overhead. All is not what it seems. Next thing, it’s contemporary dinner-tables, Monáe and her daughter in a modern-looking home, and a creepy girl in a white dress who suddenly disappears.
What’s it all about? We have no idea – but considering it’s from Get Out and Us producer Sean McKittrick (also recently a producer on BlacKkKlansman), this is one to keep an eye on. A brief official synopsis is as follows: "Successful author Veronica Henley (Janelle Monáe) finds herself trapped in a horrifying reality and must uncover the mind-bending mystery before it’s too late.”
The film comes from writer-director duo Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz in their feature debut, having directed music videos for the likes of Jay-Z and Khalid. Antebellum has a US release date of 24 April 2020 – here’s hoping a UK release won’t be much further off.