For this episode of So, You Like Horror?, Jake is joined by Sarah to discuss the 2023 horror-comedy The Blackening. Directed by Tim Story and written by Tracy Oliver and Dewayne Perkins, the film follows a group of college friends whose Juneteenth weekend reunion turns deadly when they discover a disturbing board game and become targets of a masked killer.

Jake and Sarah break down the movie’s central question: if the Black character is usually the first to die in a horror movie, what happens when the entire cast is Black? They discuss the film’s mix of slasher horror, ensemble comedy, cultural references, friendship drama, and social commentary, along with the way it challenges stereotypes about Black identity and representation.

The conversation also explores the cast chemistry, the “Blackest” debate, the Juneteenth setting, the effectiveness of the killer and board-game concept, and whether The Blackening works better as a horror film, comedy, or social satire. They also compare it to films such as Scream, Scary Movie, Get Out, Candyman, and The Cabin in the Woods.

Does The Blackening successfully flip one of horror’s oldest stereotypes? Is it scary enough to work as a slasher? And does it belong in the larger conversation around modern Black horror?

Listen now and let us know where The Blackening ranks among your favorite horror-comedies.