Professional sports is an intense career. All the training and responsibility, it's a lifestyle not everyone can manage. Him, an upcoming movie produced by Jordan Peele, focuses on an American football player who discovers through recovery from a career-threatening injury, he mightn't want this path as much as he thought.
In the film, Cameron Cade is a young up-and-comer hoping to be scouted by the NFL, until an incident with a fan leaves him with head trauma. His future in doubt, a second chance emerges in Isaiah White, Cameron's idol and a decorated quarterback, who offers a special rehab at his secret island training ground.
Cameron accepts, but, as you might have gathered, it turns into a particular kind of hell. The workout regimen is intense, but something altogether more sinister appears to be afoot as well, orchestrated by Isaiah and his wife, Elsie White, forcing Cameron to really question what he wants, and how far he’s willing to go to get it.
The first trailer gives us a glimpse at what's shaping up to be a true psychological thriller. After Cameron gets hurt, there’s a spiral into the sweaty, broiling depths of Isaiah’s compound. Drills after drills with other players, as Isaiah yells at Cameron through his helmet and people get pummeled in the face by footballs.
Beyond the on-field activities, if you can call them that, there's a whole cultist element to proceedings. One scene has erotic dancers, and eerie costumed figures and dimly lit hallways suggest this’ll be an unpredictable and intense watch indeed. Some of it holds a dream-like quality as well, no doubt contributing to a blurring of what’s real for Cameron.
It bears some resemblance to Whiplash, as everything teeters on the torturous process these rookies are being pulled through in the name of excellence. The setting is a little more turgid than jazz school, though that may depend on where you study.
Him is directed by Justin Tipping, who previously made Kicks back in 2016, and has since developed a reputation in television, thanks to work on Twenties, Run the World, Joe vs. Carole, and more. He co-wrote the script with Skip Bronkie and Zak Akers.
Marlon Wayans heads up the cast as Isaiah, the over-the-top, fictitious NFL legend, to Tyriq Withers's Cameron. Withers is a former football player, and after roles in Atlanta, Legacies and Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead, he's going to be familiar to horror fans, as he's also in I Know What You Did Last Summer, due July 18, 2025.
Him arrives a little bit afterward, on September 19, 2025. Have a look at our list of the best horror movies for scares you should watch in the meantime.
