Black Fem in Horror: Emerald Haywood and Kat Elliot
Agoraphobic Alien
2022 was a great year in media for Black girls and women in horror. Slowly, Black horror has been making a comeback and it’s been more popular than ever as we live in a time period that feels like, we ourselves, could be in a horror plot. While we typically see a lot of original Black media heralded by Black cishet men, whether in-story or through representation in the writers’ room, 2022 was a great year to be a Jordan Peele fan if you were looking for some different perspectives in the genre. We were gifted with NOPE and Wendell & Wild in that same year and honestly, both movies rocketed their way onto my favorite movies list.
NOPE was an internet breaking movie and I would be surprised if you were reading this without having some miniscule knowledge of it. It’s a movie you can’t speak too much about without spoiling it, so I will make sure to tread very carefully! If you haven't seen it in theaters, it was a great experience to share with the audience, but I definitely recommend seeing it any way you can. One of the highlights of this movie was the sibling interactions between Otis “OJ” Junior, played by Daniel Kaluuya and Emerald Haywood (Em) represented by Keke Palmer, as they navigate the obstacles of one of adulthood’s chapters. While I believe OJ was written to come across as the main character, I’d argue his sister, Em, was really the main protagonist. We see her move flawlessly from situation to situation in the movie, filling in those gaps from her childhood where she experienced gender bias at the hands of her father. She’s a powerhouse in this movie and provides the emotional strength and humor, which I believe, kept the audience captivated. Plus, we’re all pretty sure Keke Palmer was giving us great stud/stem energy (a stud being a masculine presenting Black lesbian and a stem being a more genderfluid lesbian) as well.
Emerald Haywood played by Keke Palmer
Wendell and Wild came out via Netflix during Halloween 2022. Although the hype leading up to the release was not as intense, perhaps due to the late announcement and advertising, it was still very groundbreaking for stop motion animation. Wendell and Wild is a Black fantasy story, which falls into the horror genre. If you’ve been vested into similar areas, you may have heard about the Tim Burton controversy about having Black folk in his films. This movie is a great comeback to that. Not only was this movie beautifully crafted, it was also written as a love letter to Black children, especially Black girls who have been adultified by life’s unfortunate circumstances. Here, our main protagonist, Kat Elliot, voiced by Lyric Ross, is very much the champion of her own story as she evades the Superwoman complex that’s often placed on Black women and girls and makes decisions that require the assistance of those around her as she comes to terms with her experiences. Here, we get a vision of healing and true community support in this movie through the characters, all without Kat sacrificing her personality for forced friendliness. Kat is a wonderful, well-rounded character that is easy to relate to and root for. We also get an older Black woman who acts as a safeguard of sorts to Kat in Sister Helly, voiced by Angela Bassett. In her, we see a representation of all the world saving Black women with no help, pushed into a role unwilling and at a great sacrifice.
Kat Elliot voiced by Lyric Ross
These movies are wonderful if you’re looking for something a little shocking, a little spooky and very much Black and proud. We’re starting to see more representation in fantasy in general, that isn’t trauma heavy, and finally, we’re starting to see more Black women included and leading the charge in films. Overall, whether it’s in stop motion or live action, we need more Black women in this genre, and I can’t wait to see what 2023 has to offer for the Black horror scene.
If you haven’t given either of these a viewing, I’d highly recommend it for a horrific movie night.
