This time around I noticed when Emerald forgets the last “great” while talking about Alistair E. Haywood at the beginning of the film, it’s because the spiel she’s giving is not originally hers but Otis Sr.‘s (revealed later in the film when she watches a VHS tape of him speaking). In the post-film Q&A, Peele hinted that in his mind, Otis Sr. was a bit of a shyster, bending the truth especially when it came to the Haywood family connection to the original motion picture.

I think Emerald realizes this and has trouble deciding between rejecting or embracing the family business as her brother did. While Peele focalizes OJ for many of the most intense action scenes, to Kaluuya’s character it’s business as usual. There’s nothing for him to redeem… he’s selfless, he likes Oprah, he’s got bills to pay. Aliens intrigue him, but put a sparkle in his sister’s eye like he’s never seen before. And while he does end up saving her, I like to think it’s less a moment of self-satisfied heroism and more because he saw her realizing her own potential before she did herself. It’s what makes her conquering of Jean Jacket (named so by—who else?—OJ) all the more triumphant.