5 fascinating female horror performances from 2019

2. Us

The actress: Lupita Nyong’o as Adelaide/Red

What the movie is about: Adelaide has never overcome the trauma she faced as a child. Even now that she’s settled down with a husband and two children, she lives with an impending unyielding sense of doom. She and her family go on vacation near where something terrible happened to her as a child.

While there, the palpable sense that something is amiss overwhelms her. Upon returning to their vacation home, they find the silhouette of a family waiting for them outside. But it’s not just a random group of four. They face the mirror images of themselves.

Performance: Lupita Nyong’o singlehandedly made me fear the concept of doppelgängers. Honestly, I don’t even know how to get into how layered, complex, and devastating Nyong’o is in this double role without falling into a repetitive heap of praise.

She’s just so good. Whether she’s portraying the eerie croak of Red, leader of the Tethered, (a voice she perfected herself), or trying desperately to protect her family without lapsing utter ferocity as Adelaide, Nyong’o demonstrates her seamless ability to sink her teeth into a role entirely.

What sucks is that her role is probably going to be overlooked by the Academy by the time awards season rolls around. It’s a damn shame. Toni Collette deserved a nominee last year for Hereditary and Lupita Nyong’o deserves the award this year. But given the Academy’s outdated and weird habit of undermining horror, I’m not going to hold my breath.

I just want Lupita to know, in my mind, she’s won every award out there for her work in this movie.