Jordan Peele’s upcoming movie, Us, is one of the most anticipated films of the year. The follow-up to his 2017 thriller Get Out, Us is the second in a planned series of four social commentary films by the Oscar award-winning director. The December release of the Us trailer was conspicuously mysterious. But in true Jordan Peele style, the trailer contains key information about the movie’s main themes — you just have to know where to look.
Peele’s previous project, Get Out, is a good place to start. Like Get Out, the trailer for Us is littered with clues and symbolism. And armed the power of hindsight, we can decipher what Us has in store for audiences by looking back at the trailer for Peele’s masterful thriller.
The Tethered Aren’t Doppelgängers
It appears that “the Tethered,” the antagonistic family seen in the trailer, are the Wilson family’s doppelgängers. But there’s a very telling scene that suggests this may not be the case. In the clip, the Wilsons attempt to make sense of their newly arrived “doubles.” As they sit in fear, Jason (the youngest Wilson) comes to a realisation: “It’s us.”
His words perfectly encapsulate the plot of the movie. The Tethered are not the Wilson family’s evil counterparts, they are the Wilson family. Peele uses this same technique in the Get Out trailer, when Rose‘s mad scientist father, Dean, tells our protagonist, Chris: “We hired Georgina and Walter to help care for my parents. When they died, I couldn’t bear to let ‘em go.”
Without watching the movie, you naturally assume Dean is talking about Georgina and Walter. But it later becomes clear that he meant this quite plainly. He couldn’t bear losing his parents. So, he kept them alive by co-opting the bodies of his Black staff members.
In the Us trailer, Jason isn’t merely commenting on the Tethered family’s appearance. He’s literally stating that they are them. The Tethered Wilsons represent a part of the “real” Wilsons that they would rather forget. Consequently, in the trailer, when the Wilsons finally come face to face with themselves (the Tethered), they’re terrified by what they see.
The Tethered Aren’t Haunting the Wilsons
The Wilsons have good reason to be frightened. It appears they’re being haunted by a dark past full of loss. Adelaide’s hysterical reaction to her son’s disappearance in the trailer hints at this fact. As the promo continues, it builds the impression that the Wilsons aren’t what they seem. We see this in the opening car scene when the kids’ father, Gabe, discusses the meaning of Luniz’ “I Got 5 On It,” telling them it’s not about drugs while simultaneously calling it a “dope” song. At the same time, Adelaide instructs her son to “get in rhythm,” and proceeds to snap her fingers off-beat. Something is definitely amiss.
Whatever lies hidden in the family’s past, Peele plans to have them explore it. The words “creep on it,” taken from the opening song, repeat throughout the trailer, likely foreshadowing the Wilsons’ past catching up with them.
Get Out’s tune served the same purpose. While it wasn’t directly present in the trailer, Peele used the phrase “stay woke” from Childish Gambino’s “Redbone” to the same effect, warning viewers — and Get Out’s protagonist, to stay aware of the societal issues around them.
There’s Something About Adelaide
Lupita Nyongo’s character, Adelaide, was so prominent in the Us trailer that many of its early reviews concentrated squarely on her performance. If Get Out is anything to go by, whatever the Wilsons are running from, Adelaide has something to do with it.
Get Out‘s trailer focuses on the interactions between Andre, Walter, Georgina, and Chris — the movie’s four main Black characters. Peele draws specific attention to the awkwardness of these interactions, indicating that they will be relevant later. In one scene, Chris attempts to confide in kidnap victim Andre, telling him he feels more comfortable in the presence of another Black person.
Andre quickly dissuades Chris’ confidence, clumsily clasping his fist bump and divulging details of their private conversation to his middle-aged white wife. Later in the trailer, Chris has a similar interaction with the housekeeper, Georgina, who offers an ominously creepy response when Chris suggests he feels nervous around large groups of white people.
Adelaide’s obvious fearfulness is similarly a sign of things to come. Her Tether almost mockingly utters “be careful,” suggesting that both of them know something the others don’t. There’s also a third child in the trailer whose existence is not explained. The girl could be a child that Gabe and Adelaide lost, or a younger version of Adelaide herself.
It’s About Us
Peele has stated that Us is part of a series of social thrillers, each of which will analyse a different aspect of society. As the first in the series, Get Out examined the dangers of “the other,” specifically relating it to the Black experience in America under the white gaze. This was evident from Get Out’s trailer, and while the trailer for Us offers less of a sense of its overarching themes, it’s still possible to make some deductions.
If Peele follows the same formula, we can expect Us to turn this watchful eye inwards. The film will not only analyse the darker side of ourselves, but also the “us” we refuse to recognise.
The Wilsons and their terrestrial equals are depicted as “the norm.” Comfortable, happy, and well-adjusted. By contrast, their Tethers are gaunt, sickly, and awkward — and though they may haunt them, they are still a part of them.
The trailer makes frequent references to parts that make a whole. There’s the overlay graphics of the Rorschach test — one image comprised of two identical parts — and the Tether Adelaide’s golden scissors, which resemble two bodies standing back to back.
Almost every second scene in the Us promo features some reference to hand-holding, conjuring up images of people standing together in solidarity. We see other characters with their own Tethers, indicating that the Wilson’s aren’t the only ones being terrorised. Whatever Us has in store for fans, we’re likely to get Peele’s take on the bonds we have with ourselves, how these are broken, and what we owe to each.
