Behind the scenes of Jordan Peele’s latest sci-fi horror movie Nope, starring Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer, was almost as wild as the film itself.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for Jordan Peele’s Nope!
An auteur like Jordan Peele has signs of his unique vision as a filmmaker all over his movies, and a lot of care went into bringing his third movie, Nope, into being. The movie blends sci-fi, horror, satire, and drama to create an amalgamation of genres unlike either Get Out or Us before it, showing how much he continues to stretch his talents as a director, writer, and producer.
From specific actor motivation from the cast including Daniel Kaluuya, Keke Palmer, and Steven Yeun, to the research that went into the extra-terrestrial entity he chose to place at the center of his flying saucer film, what went on behind the scenes of Nope was as intriguing and mysterious as the film itself.
Nope Is Inspired By Spielberg And Shyamalan Movies
With its careful balancing act between wonderous and terrifying, Nope may feel familiar to audiences steeped in independent sci-fi and horror movies, but Peele’s scale is larger than his previous films. It’s not surprising then to learn through CBC News that Peele drew inspiration from both Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind as well as M. Night Shyamalan’s Signs, two directors known for giving sci-fi horror the blockbuster treatment.
It makes sense that a consummate filmmaker like Peele would “throw his hat in the ring” of visionary directors who also investigated UFOs, but with his own particular twist. By adding some context about Black performers in Hollywood and the history of film, he makes an extra-terrestrial blockbuster with its own mark that he’s uniquely suited to give.
Brandon Perea Created The Character Of Angel Torres
As part of the dynamic trio of young heroes, including Kuluuya’s OJ Haywood and Palmer’s Emerald Haywood, Brandon Perea’s surveillance tech Angel Torres functions as the comic relief. Where OJ is stoic he’s loquacious, and where Emerald is extroverted he’s cynical, but the characterization wasn’t on the page.
Speaking with Entertainment Weekly during an actors roundtable, Perea explained that Peele’s version of Torres was a happy-go-lucky tech eager to help, but after reflecting on the demeanor of burnt-out retail workers (Angel works at the now defunct electronics store Fry’s), Perea felt that he needed to capture Angel’s jaded disposition. It creates a natural character arc as Angel becomes more imaginative and alive helping the siblings get footage of the UFO.
Keke Palmer Drew On Her Experiences As A Child Actor
As part of a family in the entertainment industry, Emerald Haywood understands what it takes to get noticed in Hollywood. She’s after fame and fortune, and thinks that footage of a mysterious UFO near her family ranch will be the spectacle that brings money back into Haywood’s Hollywood Horses.
In the same roundtable discussion for Entertainment Weekly, Palmer explained how her experience as a child actor in movies like Akeelah and the Bee helped prepare her for Em’s unique mindset. Palmer has been part of a growing movement of Nickelodeon stars turning to horror movies, and Nope happens to examine the cost of fame.
Jordan Peele Made A Real Intro For Gordy’s Home!
Gordy’s Home!, the ’90s sitcom referenced in Ricky “Jupe” Park’s subplot might not have existed, but that didn’t stop Peele from making his own introduction to the series that perfectly captures similar shows of the time.
With the smiling family and Gordy’s lovable antics, the intro perfectly captures the magical feel-good moments of ’90s sitcoms, and makes it difficult to imagine the carnage the chimpanzee is capable of during the show’s birthday episode when a popped balloon suddenly sends him into a frenzy. It’s this sort of attention to detail that has gained Peele such praise in the industry, adding layer upon layer of depth to the world of his movies.
Jordan Peele Wanted Nope To Reflect An Exploitative Film Industry
Peele’s movies have always contained an element of social commentary, and he continues his process with Nope, which focuses partially on the narrow contribution of Black performers in the mythos of Hollywood, and the exploitative nature of the film industry at large for creators of all types.
In a behind the scenes featurette for Greenlight Filmmaking, Peele opened up about the importance of showcasing the legacy of Black performers in Hollywood going back to the earliest days of moving pictures, when an unknown Black jockey was filmed on horseback for just a few seconds, and continuing to today with the study of iconography, and “the addiction to spectacle” that is required by the industry but extracts a heavy toll on creatives (and consumers).
Jupiter’s Claim Was Entirely Fabricated
Nestled forty minutes outside of Los Angeles is the Agua Dulce ranch, home of the Haywood family horse wrangling business, and nearby it is Jupiter’s Claim, the family-owned Old West amusement park owned by Ricky “Jupe” Park. Neither of these sets existed before Peele and his set design team fabricated them from nothing.
According to Forbes, Jupiter’s Claim was built in the Santa Clarita Valley, and then rebuilt on the Universal backlot for guests to enjoy. It was not only incredibly immersive for the actors, but the theme park (which was based on Knott’s Berry farm and other family-operated parks) allows guests to engage in a way that places them right into the action of the movie.
Gordy Was Created With Motion Capture
One of the movie’s enigmatic subplots involves Steven Yeun’s Ricky “Jupe” Park, a former child actor and owner of Jupiter’s Claim Western amusement park with a dark past. A horrific massacre on the set of a ’90s sitcom involving a chimp named Gordy left him scarred for life, and the scene in question delivers one of the most chilling moments in all of Nope.
According to Slashfilm, Gordy’s movements were captured using the same motion capture technology used for the latest Planet of the Apes trilogy, and even used one of its actors, Terry Notary, who played Rocket. His performance as Gordy, a domesticated animal who is punished for reverting to its wild instincts, is both terrifying and touching.
Michael Wincott Shadowed The Film’s Cinematographer
Antlers Holst is the premier cinematographer of Hollywood but he’s stuck doing cheesy commercials when Nope begins. OJ Haywood and his sister Emerald might bungle the job that Holst is on, but their chance meeting gets them access to his contact information, and when it comes time to capture the “impossible shot” of the flying saucer above Agua Dulce ranch, the obsessive cinematographer is the one they call.
According to Variety, Michael Wincott shadowed Nope DP Hoyte Van Hoytema (whose sprawling vistas can be seen in every Christopher Nolan movie since Interstellar) and acquainted himself with his equipment, particularly his IMAX 65mm camera. Wincott’s performance thus comes across as authentic, genuine, and lived in, however small it is. He even wears Hoytema’s signature big black scarf, giving cinematographers what the DP calls “a lot of flair.”
A Special Camera Rig Was Created For The Night Shots
Night shots can be particularly tricky, especially since they tend to make scenes feel small and claustrophobic. In the same interview with Variety, Hoytema explained how he was able to capture the vastness that Peele wanted to convey even in the middle of the night.
At the moment when artificial light is removed from an expansive place like Agua Dulce ranch, and the naked eye sees the stars and the moon, the “claustrophobic space of darkness [becomes] big.” In order to capture that feeling of natural adjustment, Hoytema built a camera rig, “a combination of an infrared 65mm camera and a film camera [combined[ through a prism.” This unique approach helps the audience feel like they’re really there in the shot with the characters investigating the ranch at night.
It’s Called Nope For A Reason
Early on during the marketing campaign for Nope fans were curious about the title, with some believing that it stood for an acronym; Not Of Planet Earth. Appearing on The Tonight Show, Kaluuya set the record straight for Jimmy Fallon.
Kaluuya himself had asked Peele about the inspiration for the title, and the director simply responded that it was so called for the terrifying scenes in the movie that would have Black audiences collectively stating, “Nope.” It’s encouraging to know that Peele came up with a title that both has a certain connotation and yet many interpretations.
