Whenever you sit down to watch one of Jordan Peele’s horror films, you know that the hair-raising thrills will be coupled with poignant commentary. The filmmaker’s debut picture, 2017’s Get Out, is a scathing exploration of how seemingly progressive people can still be instrumental in overarching systems of oppression. His most recent flick, 2022’s Nope, critiques the modern fixation on spectacle and how our insistence on documentation can have disastrous consequences. In many of Peele’s movies, the lens gets turned back on the audience, leaving us wondering if we are, in fact, the real villains.
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The 2019 film Us takes this idea quite literally. It follows a family who, while on vacation, winds up fighting for their lives against their doppelgangers. Arguably the most terrifying offering in Peele’s collection, Us may also be the most thought-provoking, leaving audiences with many unanswered questions. Here’s why Us needs a sequel.
Us Is a Modern Classic With a Fascinating Story
Universal Pictures
Undeniably, one of the best facets of Us was the crew of talented actors Jordan Peele managed to assemble. The film centers around the family’s matriarch, Lupita Nyong’o’s Addy Wilson. She delivers a powerful performance, fighting against her own childhood trauma as she desperately defends her family from their Tethered doppelgangers. However, it’s possible that the comedic performances in Us are what really cemented it as an instant classic.
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Winston Duke plays father Gabe Wilson, and his constant stream of corny dad jokes delighted audiences everywhere. Additionally, the film features comedian Tim Heidecker as Josh Tyler, the Wilsons’ family friend. Heidecker’s comedic chops shine through when he’s portraying the mute Tethered version of his character.
In a potential sequel, audiences can hope that the same cast (or at least those actors whose characters survived the murderous plot of the Tethered) will return. If the sequel is instead focused on another family and their harrowing evening at the hands of the Tethered, audiences can rest assured that the cast Peele finds will be every bit as talented as that of the original film.
We Know Almost Nothing About the Tethered
The Tethered may be one of the most terrifying horror movie villains of all time. They’re clad head to toe in red, and each of them wields a pair of razor-sharp scissors, which they use to mercilessly slaughter their aboveground alter egos.
Us does a bit of exploration in regards to the Tethered and their mysterious origins. We know that they came about as a result of an experiment to control their alter egos and that they subsist on a diet of lab rabbits while pantomiming their aboveground counterpart’s actions. However, we were left wondering a handful of things. Does everyone in the country have a doppelganger? After all, the text at the beginning of the film suggests that the sheer amount of unused underground space could be enough to house millions of them.
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More importantly, what was the Tethered’s primary objective during their well-orchestrated ascent to the surface? A potential sequel could address these questions.
The Film’s Final Twist Left Audiences Asking Questions
At the end of Us, Jordan Peele drops an absolute bomb of a twist on stunned audiences, and there is very little time left in the film’s run for the revelation to be explored. Throughout the film, there are flashbacks to Addy’s childhood and a traumatic event at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk that left her unable to speak. After spending the night battling the Tethered, a final flashback reveals what many audiences members had come to suspect: the version of Addy we’d been rooting for is, in fact, the Tethered version, having switched places with the aboveground Addy during that fateful night at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk.
This twist tells audiences that the film’s primary antagonist, Addy’s alter ego, was originally born into normal society and became ingrained in the Tethered’s society. A sequel film focusing on Addy grappling with this would be fascinating.
As of yet, there are no concrete plans for an Us sequel. Though unanswered questions and murky thematic elements seem to be an integral part of Peele’s style of filmmaking, he has suggested that the Us universe is rich enough to support another story. The film’s primary themes, which seem to center around the other, and how relegating certain subsets of people to the margins of society is a reflection of our own character, are as relevant as ever. A sequel could allow these themes to be fully fleshed out and let audiences learn more about the film’s fascinating characters.
If you’re feeling inspired by the prospect of an Us sequel, check out how to stream all three of Jordan Peele’s horror films.
