The second trailer for Antebellum has been released. Janelle Mon&áe stars in the upcoming horror thriller from the producer of Get Out and Us. Even though this is the second decent amount of footage we’ve seen from the movie, it’s hard to get a handle on what exactly is going on. Mon&áe has proven to be one of today’s most talented actresses and there are many looking forward to seeing what she has up her sleeves for Antebellum.
The tagline in the Antebellum trailer reads, “What if fate chose you to save us from our past?” We see Janelle Monae delivering a speech at a TED talk-type of event. All of a sudden she is back in time and sold into slavery in the deep south. The studio is keeping the story details under wraps, which is evident from the latest trailer. We do know that Mon&áe’s character is a successful writer, named Veronica Henley, who finds herself trapped in a nightmarish retread of the country’s original sin.
Janelle Mon&áe’s Veronica Henley is seen being taken away by a mysterious force after a night out with friends. From there, it appears that she is fighting to get back from the deep south and things look like they’re going to get pretty creepy. Though Antebellum is clearly different from Get Out and Us, it shares some of the same mystery that those movies had in their promotional material. Nobody really knew what to think about Jordan Peele’s Get Out until word of mouth started to spread. When it came time for Us, the director tried his hardest to keep the storyline under wraps.
Janelle Mon&áe spoke about Antebellum in a new interview. “I know that it’s about to open up another dimension in my life as an artist and as an actor, and this is definitely one of my most layered and toughest roles to date,” Mon&áe says. She also hopes the movie will leave audiences “understanding why ‘black women’ and ‘superhero’ should be one word.” She went on and had this to say.
“If people can walk away with a deeper appreciation for black women, with a deeper respect for black women, with a deeper admiration for black women, then my job is done. I think that this film will help you see the human experience in a totally different way, no matter what you look like, where you come from.”
Antebellum directed by Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz (Bush+Renz) and is produced by Sean McKittrick, who also produced both of Jordan Peele’s horror hits Get Out and Us, along with Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman. In addition to Janelle Mon&áe, the movie also stars Marque Richardson II, Eric Lang, Jack Huston, Kiersey Clemons, Tongayi Chirisa, Gabourey Sidibe, Rob Aramayo, Lily Cowles, and Jena Malone. You can check out the Antebellum trailer above, thanks to the Lionsgate Movies YouTube channel.
