Sinkhole: Issa Rae And Jordan Peele Are Teaming Up On a Sci-Fi Horror Film Tackling The Idea Of Female Perfection!

TheRoot.com, By Tonya Renee Stidhum, Posted September 21st 2020

Imagine a world riddled with insecurity and a mysterious abyss that seems to go on forever, perhaps starring the creator-star of a hit TV show named Insecure and produced by the man who wrote and directed Get Out (and invented the Sunken Place)?

Well, you don’t just have to imagine, because Issa Rae and Jordan Peele are actually teaming up for a new project called Sinkhole, based on Leyna Krow’s short story. According to Deadline, the upcoming film, which “engages with questions of female perfection and identity,” was scooped by Universal in a low seven-figure deal that consisted of 10 studio bidders. Krow’s short story follows a young family that moves into their dream home, despite a mysterious sinkhole that somehow fixes broken and destroyed things.

Clearly, this project will catapult Rae’s current leading lady status, which has already been exacerbated by her recent Emmy noms, including Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. Rae will also join Peele’s Monkeypaw in producing with Universal, via Issa Rae Productions.

Deadline provides more background info on how this project came to be:

Writer Krow is from Spokane, WA, and the story is set on the street she lives on. She was initially inspired to write the piece when a group of local writers were asked to write short fairytales on the theme “I Married A Monster.” She wanted to explore the notion of female perfection and was particularly interested in the ways society and cultures can promote the concept of women as imperfect or broken. Her story has the trappings of a grounded, psychological sci-fi/horror, but the subplot is a commentary on the human condition through the lens of female identity.

Well, that is pretty damn intriguing. I mean, we’ve already expressed how perfect we think Rae is, but this could certainly be an important conversation on beauty standards, gender identity and more. The possibilities are endless—kind of like that sinkhole.

No word yet on whether a director or screenwriter to adapt (unless it’s Krow) has been attached and a shoot date hasn’t been announced yet. Either way, I’ll be tuned in.

Tonja Renée Stidhum