The Blackening (film)
The Blackening is a 2022 American horror-comedy directed by Tim Story and written by Tracy Oliver and Dewayne Perkins. It’s based on a 2018 short film by the comedy group 3Peat. The movie stars Dewayne Perkins, Grace Byers, Jermaine Fowler, Melvin Gregg, X Mayo, Antoinette Robertson, Sinqua Walls, Jay Pharoah, and Yvonne Orji. With a budget of about $5 million, it grossed roughly $18 million.
Set on Juneteenth, the story follows a group of Black friends who gather at a cabin for a celebration. In a game room, they find a board game called The Blackening that features a racist caricature. When the lights go out, a masked killer forces them to play. The first victim is Shawn, who is killed for answering a question wrong. The others must keep Morgan safe while the killer challenges them with questions about Black culture. They are told to identify “the blackest” person among them to be sacrificed, and tensions rise as the group argues over who fits that label.
As the night unfolds, the friends split up to look for help. Ranger White tries to assist them but is killed. The killer is eventually unmasked as the gas-station clerk that Shanika had seen earlier. The group then discovers that Clifton—who initially seemed to be on their side—was the mastermind behind the night, using a past grievance from college as motivation. Clifton is defeated and falls into a well, presumed dead. By morning, the friends are wary about contacting the police and instead call the fire department, which ends up spraying them with a hose.
Production on The Blackening began after its early development was announced in 2020, with filming taking place in Brentwood, California, in late 2021. Much of the dialogue was improvised by the cast. The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 16, 2022, and Lionsgate acquired distribution rights soon after. It opened in U.S. theaters on June 16, 2023, and was released in the United Kingdom on August 23, 2023 by Universal Pictures. It later arrived on digital platforms on July 7, 2023, and on Blu-ray and DVD on August 22, 2023.
The Blackening received generally positive reviews for its sharp satire of horror tropes and racial stereotypes, with audiences appreciating the humor and camaraderie among the friends. It earned about 87% positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score in the favorable range. There was a brief legal dispute over similar material, which a judge rejected.
In November 2023, reports indicated talks of a sequel, with the original writers and producer exploring a franchise that could follow a new mystery with a fresh cast each time.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 13:18 (CET).