The Difficulty of Playing Opposite Characters in A Film

Duke shares what it was like to play the male-lead and the villainous doppelgänger in the upcoming thriller.

Winston Duke stars as the male-lead in Jordan Peele’s highly anticipated thriller Us, the horror auteur’s follow-up film to his critically acclaimed Get Out. In our backstage interview, the actor details what it was like to portray two different characters, one of which is his doppelgänger.

“It was totally a great opportunity to distill two different point of views,” explained Duke. “I didn’t want to play Gabe and Abraham as the good version or bad version of anything. It’s really two different guys that were created by the world they come from.”

In the film, Duke stars as the patriarch (Gabe) of The Wilson’s, the all-American family who find their ideal beach holiday terrifyingly interrupted by another family who reveal themselves to be their doppelgängers. He also portrays his Tethered doppelgänger, Abraham.

“Gabe is defined by his possessions, and his comfort and his privilege,” he elaborated. “Abraham is defined by a world that doesn’t allow him to speak; doesn’t allow him to express himself.”

Us hits theaters March 22, 2019. Check out the full interview below!

Film synopsis:

Accompanied by her husband, son and daughter, Adelaide Wilson returns to the beachfront home where she grew up as a child. Haunted by a traumatic experience from the past, Adelaide grows increasingly concerned that something bad is going to happen to her family. Her worst fears soon become a reality when four masked strangers descend upon the house, forcing the Wilsons into a fight for survival. When the masks come off, each stranger takes the appearance of a different family member.