Sinners star Wunmi Mosaku has said she’s found it “difficult” to celebrate her first-time Oscar nomination while the United States is experiencing ongoing political turmoil.
Alongside Mosaku’s nomination, Ryan Coogler’s bluesy vampire flick is also up for a record-breaking additional 15 nods, including in coveted categories Picture, Actor (Michael B. Jordan), Screenplay and Director (both for Coogler).
In a recent conversation with The Times, Mosaku said she nearly missed news of her own nomination after mixing up her schedule. “I heard my husband on the phone and asked him why he was up,” she laughed. “He said, ‘Baby, you just got nominated for an Oscar.’ I said, ‘No, the announcement’s at 8:30 a.m.”
The Supporting Actress nod for playing healer and spiritual leader Annie came at a politically charged time, which she said felt hard to reconcile. “I’ve not been able to celebrate because of what’s going on right now, with the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by ICE agents in Minnesota and the kidnapping of a five-year-old boy,” she said.
Her comments come as there has been widespread condemnation and protests against ICE in recent weeks – particularly as the agency has been connected with the deaths of at least eight people.
ICU nurse Pretti was killed by federal agents late last month, which happened not even three weeks after the fatal shooting of Renee Good, which took place a mile away. As for the five-year-old Moasku referenced, Liam Conejo Ramos and his father have since been released from custody after being held in a Texan detention facility.
“It’s difficult to hold both the nomination and the news because one feels beautiful and one is so dark and heavy; truly dystopian – how can I possibly go out and buy some drinks and enjoy the moment?”
She added that her US-born partner was “not as shocked” as she was at the news, which has spurned a series of protests across the country and dominated awards season speeches.
Other artists and celebrities who have spoken out about the actions of ICE include Billie Eilish, Sabrina Carpenter, Green Day, Neil Young, Moby, Zara Larsson, musician and Stranger Things star Joe Keery, Spider-Man actor Yuri Lowenthal, Duran Duran, Dave Matthews and more.
“There’s a very strange American psyche where terrible things happen and people still can go to work the next day, whereas I’m floored for a week and think, ‘How are people going to crowded places when this has just happened?’” Mosaku added. “I want a cocoon. My reaction reminds him that this is not normal.”
In a four-star review of Sinners, James Mottram wrote for NME: “Sinners really comes to life via the musical numbers… Coogler uses it to prove just how influential the genre is via a spellbinding sequence that tracks through the juke joint, whirling around Preacher Boy and showcasing a hip-hop DJ, an MC and an electric guitarist. Such anachronisms add to the film’s feeling of fantasy but Coogler also tackles serious themes such as the oppression of Black Americans by white folk during this period.”
Coogler and longtime creative partner and composer Ludwig Göransson have also opened up on the film and its music in NME‘s Friends Like These interview series – check out the full chat here.