What are you willing to sacrifice to be a star? The haunting teaser for the Jordan Peele-produced “Him” shows the blood, sweat, tears, and religious imagery apparently required to give one’s body and soul as a professional athlete.
“Him” stars real-life former college wide-receiver Tyriq Withers as fictional rising-star quarterback Cameron Cade, whose career is sidelined after a violent attack. Cade’s only hope appears to be Isaiah White (Marlon Wayans), an NFL megastar who offers to train the recovering player. Yet, there is a price to pay for Isaiah’s help…
The official synopsis for the film reads: “Cameron Cade (Withers) is a rising-star quarterback who has devoted his life and identity to football. On the eve of professional football’s annual scouting Combine, Cam is attacked by an unhinged fan and suffers a potentially career-ending brain trauma. Just when all seems lost, Cam receives a lifeline when his hero, Isaiah White (Wayans), a legendary eight-time Championship quarterback and cultural megastar, offers to train Cam at Isaiah’s isolated compound that he shares with his celebrity influencer wife, Elsie White (Julia Fox). But as Cam’s training accelerates, Isaiah’s charisma begins to curdle into something darker, sending his protégé down a disorienting rabbit hole that may cost him more than he ever bargained for.”
Tim Heidecker, Jim Jefferies, MMA heavyweight fighter Maurice Greene, hip hop artist Guapdad 4000, and Grammy nominee Tierra Whack co-star. Justin Tipping directs from Zack Akers and Skip Bronkie’s Black List screenplay; Tipping is also credited as a co-writer on the final version.
Oscar winner Peele and his Monkeypaw Productions are producing “Him,” along with Ian Cooper, Win Rosenfeld, and Jamal M. Watson. David Kern and Monkeypaw’s Kate Oh executive produce. Universal announced a five-year deal with Peele and Monkeypaw in 2019.
Peele’s fourth feature is in the works, with the director teasing that it’s his “favorite movie” yet. “I do feel like my next project is clear to me,” Peele said during podcast “Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend” in 2024, “and I’m psyched that I have another film that, you know, could be my favorite movie if I make it right.”
Peele added that it’s key to have a “grounding character” in all of his horror films, as well as past comedy sketches. “Just like the comedy, the heightening, the pushing, the fantastical and the imagination, that becomes a certain type of project and exercise, but the exercise of grounding it is always what makes it work,” he said. “That to me, in horror especially, is the hardest part.”
“Him” will hit theaters on Friday, September 19 from Universal Pictures. Check out the teaser below.
