As if we weren’t excited enough for the release of Sinners next weekend, Hailee Steinfeld has shared the personal reason why Ryan Coogler's movie was important to her. Along with it being one of April’s exciting upcoming horror movies, it also allowed the Hawkeye and Across The Spider-Verse actress to explore her African American roots.
The 28-year-old actress has a Jewish father and a mother with Filipino and African American among her mixed heritage. Since Steinfeld’s character in Sinners also has a half-Black grandfather written into her character, the actress got the chance to explore her own family history further. In her words:
It sparked a lot of questions for me. The research for the job is always the best part, right? One of the best parts. And a lot of times you’re learning about something that you may know a little about or nothing about, and you make discoveries about yourself through those things, but it’s not about you, right? It’s about something that you’re learning, something else. And with this, it was my family. The research was my family and my family history. And ‘the best part of the job’ didn’t feel like part of the job. It felt like these amazing conversations that…it’s easy to say [that], I wish happened sooner, but I’m so grateful that they’re happening now.
Hailee Steinfeld has been starring in movies and television for almost 20 years now, but her career hasn’t really allowed her to explore her mixed heritage quite like Sinners.
During her interview with Blavity, she discussed further about what the movie means to her and her family:
After seeing the movie last night with just some family, it’s like the conversations about this movie are so important, but it brought me so much closer to my mom and to my grandfather. [With this role], my imagination ran wild with thoughts of what his life might’ve looked like growing up, what his parents’ life might’ve looked like. I’m just so honored to be a part of this story and of this world that, while it’s wild, and exciting, and fun, and there’s jump scares that’ll really get you, and the music is incredible– it’s so important. And this served me in a way that I didn’t know I needed so bad.
The role has allowed Hailee Steinfeld to feel “closer” to her relatives and ancestors after taking the time to learn more about them in preparation for her role. As she also told People, she does wish her grandfather was still living so he could “answer all the questions” that she’s amassed since starring in the movie. Overall, though, she appreciates the way the character “challenged” her.
Something particularly meaningful about the role is how Sinners takes place in the segregated American South in the 1930s, which was around the time Steinfeld’s grandfather was living.
Ahead of the film’s release, we don’t have a lot of context regarding what this all means for her role of Mary. However, based on what the first viewers of Sinners have said about it, it sounds like we’re in for a real treat from Ryan Coogler, who named Stephen King, the Coen Brothers and John Carpenter among his influences for this film.
People who have seen this movie have been “floored” by it, calling it the “best film of the year (so far),” with a “social commentary with a hell of a bite.” If that’s not enough, Spike Lee also called it the “greatest experience of watching a film in years.” Oh, and the movie's star, Michael B. Jordan, has also given Hailee Stenfield a shoutout for her performance, allowing her talents to be shown “in a new light.” Jordan said he’s really excited for the audiences to react to her role’s “depth.”
Sinners will be playing in theaters next Friday, April 18.
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Sarah El-Mahmoud
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Sarah El-Mahmoud has been with CinemaBlend since 2018 after graduating from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in Journalism. In college, she was the Managing Editor of the award-winning college paper, The Daily Titan, where she specialized in writing/editing long-form features, profiles and arts & entertainment coverage, including her first run-in with movie reporting, with a phone interview with Guillermo del Toro for Best Picture winner, The Shape of Water. Now she's into covering YA television and movies, and plenty of horror. Word webslinger. All her writing should be read in Sarah Connor’s Terminator 2 voice over.
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