Hailee Steinfeld sat down for an interview with People where she opened up about how deeply she connected to her role in Sinners.
Directed by Ryan Coogler and set to premiere on April 18, the actress explained, “It had such an impact on me personally. Therefore, I feel like the least it can do is make an impact on those that watch it. I think it affected all of us so personally and so deeply, and I do believe that you feel that and you see that when you watch this movie.”
Being part-Black and part-Filipino on her mother’s side, she portrays a multi-racial vampire living in the 1930s, “I’m so grateful for the deeply personal connection that each of us have [to the material], mine being with my family history, with my grandfather, who I wish was still here to answer all the questions that I have that this movie raised for me and making this movie raised.”
Coogler previously stated to Deadline that the flick came from a very personal place for him, “Look, it all started with my Uncle James, who was from Mississippi. He passed away while I was working on Creed. He was, for a long time, the oldest man in our family, and he lived in close proximity to me. And his house was close enough that I could walk to it as a kid. I spent a lot of time with him, man. And he would listen to blues music. That was his thing.”
He continued, “I would find myself listening to those blues records when I wanted to think about him, and I would feel like I was conjuring him, if the song was good enough and loud enough. If the room was dark enough, I would feel like he was right there listening with me.”
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