After community leaders in Clarksdale, where Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners” was set but not filmed, asked for a public screening of the Jim Crow era vampire flick, it looks like their wish may come true.
Warner Bros. is in “active conversation” with Tyler Yarbough and others who recently sent an open letter to Coogler, Michael B. Jordan, and the rest of the cast and crew inviting them to visit Clarksdale and join the community for a tour of the Delta city and a public screening. The letter subsequently received backing from a large chunk of Clarksdale’s population.
“Thanks to you, we’ve gathered over 5,500 signatures and are now in active conversation with executives at Warner Brothers,” Yarbough wrote in a Facebook update.
Yarbough, who has spearheaded the efforts to bring “Sinners” to Clarksdale where there is no longer an operating movie theater, believes the simple presence of those who used the 13,850-person city as the setting of the box office smash could be enough to spark further creativity and even economic growth in the area.
“Nothing is set in stone – yet,” he added. “But this is about more than a screening. We believe ‘Sinners’ can be a springboard for powerful, homegrown conversations led by Mississippians – on our Creative Economy, our Blues economy, and the future of Food and Agriculture in our region, all themes that can be tied to the movie.”
If all comes to fruition, Yarbough would love to see panel discussions including Coogler, Jordan, and others who starred in “Sinners.” He said if they visit, the city needs to make it “feel like a festival and homecoming!”
What is ‘Sinners’ about?
“Sinners” follows twin brothers Smoke and Stack, both played by Jordan, as the duo returns to their Mississippi Delta hometown in 1932 to open a juke joint. The opening night shindig is met with unwelcome, bloodthirsty guests and members of the Ku Klux Klan trying to crash the party. Other members of the cast include Miles Caton, Hailee Steinfeld, Wunmi Mosaku, Delroy Lindo, and Li Jun Li.
How did Clarksdale help inspire ‘Sinners’?
Ryan Coogler is not from Mississippi but used his family’s ties to the state to help come up with the film’s basis. The director’s uncle was born in Mississippi and would often tell the now-filmmaker about the history of blues music and what he experienced living in a racially divided South. Adding a supernatural element to not only keep viewers on the edge of their seats but also to represent the challenges Black people faced in the 1930s, “Sinners” has sold out theaters worldwide and grossed nearly $250 million.
Although the flick was filmed in Louisiana, there was a physical connection to Mississippi at the end when Buddy Guy and Christone “Kingfish” Ingram appeared in the ending credits scene. Guy is honored on the Mississippi Blues Trail and Ingram is a Clarksdale-born guitarist who helped with the film’s soundtrack.
