How The ‘Sinners' Movie Delivered On Authenticity

Forbes

2 days ago

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 03: (L-R) Li Jun Li, Jayme Lawson, Hailee Steinfeld, Delroy Lindo, ... More Michael B. Jordan, Wunmi Mosaku, Omar Benson Miller, Ryan Coogler, Miles Caton and Jack O'Connell attend the Warner Bros Pictures "Sinners" New York Premiere at AMC Lincoln Square Theater on April 03, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by)
Ryan Coogler's Sinners' movie just crossed another milestone, with domestic box office sales passing the $250 million mark. It is now the third highest-grossing horror movie of all time in the U.S., and the highest grossing original horror movie of all time in North America.
The representation the film showcased both on screen with the diversity of actors shown, and behind the screen with the director, cinematographer, and other key talent were a big reason why people, including those from underrepresented and underserved communities went to see the film.
I recently saw Sinners' for the first time, and then spent a good amount of time going through a bunch of fan commentaries on TikTok and YouTube.
The sheer number of commentaries from a broad diversity of people are a signal at how connected people are to the work and the craft. But one aspect of the discussion around the Sinners' movie that is relevant to marketers comes from how so many people referenced the authenticity of it. Ultimately, people from different communities represented in the film, felt that is was an authentic portrayal of cultural elements of their culture.
Consumers are increasingly demanding more authenticity from brands, especially as more of them engage in inclusive marketing. But one study showed that many consumers feel brands struggle to deliver authentic marketing, especially when they are trying to engage consumers from underrepresented and underserved communities.
Let's look at how Ryan Coogler, who wrote and directed the film, was able to achieve this noteworthy degree of authenticity, especially for the communities and cultures that are not his own.
The main vampire in Sinners' is of Irish descent. I saw one TikTok video that went into great detail to connect the historical tales dating back hundreds of years to what we saw on screen.
Another woman of Irish descent talked about how moving it was to hear songs she grew up hearing as part of her culture featured in the film.
Other commentary came from the inclusion of Asian characters. Many people who saw the film did not know the history of Chinese settlers in the Mississippi Delta during this time period, nor their relationships to the local communities there.
And perhaps the commentary that really reeled me in was about the Choctaw Nation, and although their role in the film was brief, it was full of cultural intelligence and left such a lasting impression on the audience, that enough of them are saying they'd love to see a prequel or spinoff movie just about the tribe and their reputation as vampire hunters.
All that nuanced and deep history were woven into the story in a way that showed a deep degree of research, cultural intelligence, and storytelling, so as to not tokenize the communities, but to make them feel seen and as a critical pieces of the story in the film.
Each of these cultures' presence were intentional, rather than afterthoughts. Their stories, even though not fully told, had depth and complexity to them. There isn't enough of that in media and marketing for people from underrepresented and underserved communities, which is what made this so refreshing.
When speaking on The Director's Cut podcast, Ryan Coogler shared 'we had a lot of consultants on this movie, but I tend to work with a lot of them, but it's all an effort to try to get as much right as we could.'
He went on to walk through an extensive list of the types of consultants he engaged for Sinners, including twin consultants, Choctaw consultants, musical cultural consultants, a Chinese cultural consultant, a Mississippi Delta historical consultant, and more.
Coogler explained, 'it's all these different aspects to it that we wanted to try to nail.'
Fans have mentioned that the details elevated the movie for them and allowed them to connect on a deeper level.
Coogler's commitment to getting everything right is one that marketers should aspire to. He worked with consultants who hold and or were experts in identities being represented in film.
Working collaboratively with these consultants helped Coogler and his team embrace the inclusive marketing principal of 'nothing about us without us.'
Because many marketing and advertising teams are often not representative of the broad diversity reflected as end consumers, teams will often find themselves in a position of working to engage a community that isn't represented by lived experiences on the team.
As such, to increase your effectiveness (and reduce the likelihood of making mistakes and causing harm), it is recommended that you seek out talent to collaborate and co-create with you who are part of the communities you want to reach. If you don't have the talent on your team who are experts in and or have lived experiences as a part of the communities you are trying to serve, cultural consultants can go a long way in helping you make your communications authentic.
The visual imagery your brand uses tells a story. When done well, the imagery you use can help make the stories you are telling and the messages you communicate feel more authentic.
For instance, in the Sinners' movie, there was a scene where the characters were negotiating pricing for a sign for their juke joint. The Chinese shop keepers mentioned that the only paint color they had was red, and that impacted the price.
One commenter on social media pointed out the significance of the color red in Chinese culture, and how that color was intentionally used as a symbol for some of the events that took place later in the film.
Intentionality in ensuring the elements you choose to incorporate in your visual imagery will give it more meaning to people from underrepresented and underserved communities who get the significance of your choices. Doing so will go a long way toward helping them feel seen by you.
When it comes to doing inclusive marketing well, don't reinvent the wheel. Follow best practices that have been proven to work to make more of the people you want to serve feel sesen, supported, and like they belong with you.
As you commit to excellence in engaging these communities, you'll quickly find that the more you lean into it, the more they will reward you with their loyalty.