W&L’s Department of English Presents a Film Screening of NOPE The March 1 screening of Jordan Peele’s film will be followed by a discussion facilitated by W&L English professors.

By Emily Innes
February 15, 2023

The Department of English at Washington and Lee University presents a public film screening of Jordan Peele’s “NOPE” on Wednesday, March 1, at 6 p.m. in Stackhouse Theater, followed by a discussion. The film screening, supported by a grant from the Dean’s Office, is free and open to the public and no tickets are required.

The horror film follows residents in a gulch in inland California as they witness and grapple with the appearance of an unidentified flying object. “NOPE” was written, directed and co-produced by Jordan Peele, and was designated as one of the top ten films of 2022 at the American Film Institute Awards.

The screening is designed to generate public programming that showcases the university’s Department of English and the type of critical thinking and dynamic conversations the major encourages. Assistant professor of English Diego Millan coordinated the screening and chose “NOPE” because of the rich imagery and themes that offer themselves well to a discussion, and he looks forward to seeing what will resonate with students, colleagues and community members during the post-film discussion.

“Much of what is exciting about studying English is the discussions that gathering over a text can provoke,” said Millan. “This event is meant to be such a gathering for the community to watch a film and discuss it as we might for a class.”

Millan anticipates the film’s themes, as well as the exploration of the history of Hollywood, to be relevant to many courses within the department, and the screening coincides with two of Millan’s own courses this term: Early African American Print Culture and Introduction to African American Literature.

The post-film discussion will present an opportunity for viewers to reflect on the themes of the film with Millan, as well as Edward Adams, John Lucian Smith, Jr. Professor of English, and Michael Berlin, director of the writing program and visiting assistant professor of English.