Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele stepped out of the movie theater after watching the film.
The two then parted ways in the parking lot, each driving home separately.
Along the way, Jordan Peele was lost in a whirlwind of thoughts.
For some reason, after watching Get Out, he couldn't shake this lingering sense of "emptiness" in his heart.
It felt as if something vital had vanished from his life.
But he couldn't figure out why this feeling had arisen.
As for the movie Get Out itself, he had this strangely familiar sensation—not the "resonance" Keegan had mentioned, but a persistent feeling that the film should have been directed by him.
That's right—Jordan Peele, who had always made his living as an actor, had developed the idea to become a director because of "that pile of crap."
Moreover, even though he'd received an elite education from a young age, the film he wanted to make was one that spoke up for Black people.
Not because he sympathized with or supported lower-class Black folks gaining more power, but... he knew it would sell tickets. Just like those other Black actors and directors in Hollywood, Black audiences were his core base.
The comedy sketch show Key & Peele had cashed in on appealing to Black viewers, with solid ratings that brought fame to him and his good friend Keegan.
Jordan Peele was the classic type: Black on the outside, white on the inside.
In February 1979, Jordan Peele was born in New York City, USA, to a Black father and a white mother named Lucinda Williams.
He attended I.S. 44 Computer School and then Calhoun School, both private institutions.
In 1997, Jordan Peele graduated from high school.
During that time, in 1995, Jordan Peele worked as a writer on the sketch comedy show MADtv in its first season.
That's right—this kid started getting involved in TV and film work back in high school, opportunities that regular kids in public schools could only dream of.
It was on that sketch show where he met his future collaborator for countless projects—Keegan-Michael Key.
In 2001, Jordan Peele enrolled at Sarah Lawrence College for further studies.
After graduating, he continued his acting career.
In 2003, the TV series Cops 911, in which he appeared, began airing its first season.
After that, Jordan Peele's acting career remained lukewarm; he mostly survived by doing voice work for TV and films.
In 2012, Jordan Peele teamed up with Keegan-Michael Key to form Key & Peele, and they produced a comedy series of the same name, along with plenty of hilarious short videos.
From then on, Jordan Peele's career entered a new phase, and he gradually became a familiar face.
But lately, Jordan Peele had started entertaining the idea of directing.
The trigger was an offer from Sony Pictures for voice work.
At the beginning of 2014, Sony Pictures began production on an animated project called The Emoji Movie, slated for release in 2017.
Sony Pictures asked Jordan Peele to voice one of the animated characters in the film. And what was the character?
Well, it was a pile of poop!
That's right—they wanted Jordan Peele to voice a pile of poop.
This job offer made Jordan Peele extremely uncomfortable; he felt insulted.
But after two rough nights, Jordan Peele thought it through and decided to take the gig anyway, because he didn't want to offend a big player like Sony Pictures, and at least it would earn him a decent paycheck.
Then, something even more frustrating happened.
He had his manager contact them and casually ask about the pay.
The response? "Sorry, the role has already gone to someone else."
That's right—our Mr. Jordan Peele didn't even get the chance to voice "poop," because Sony had given the opportunity to Patrick Stewart.
It was this incident that sparked Jordan Peele's strong desire to direct his own film.
In the original timeline, he directed Get Out and released it in February 2017, setting it up to go head-to-head with Sony's The Emoji Movie.
Unfortunately, The Emoji Movie got delayed to July, making Jordan Peele's revenge less than perfect.
Of course, imperfect or not, Jordan Peele still got to vent some frustration.
After the two films hit theaters in 2017, Get Out received endless praise and achieved the milestone of being "the first critically acclaimed R-rated horror film in film history."
Meanwhile, The Emoji Movie was slammed by countless people as a rotten film. At the 38th Golden Raspberry Awards on March 3, 2018, The Emoji Movie swept the categories for Worst Picture, Worst Screenplay, Worst Director, and Worst Screen Combo.
As a result, Jordan Peele once joked: "When a film is directed by a woman, we get to enjoy Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, Mudbound, and Wonder Woman. When it's directed by a man, we get a movie where the star is a pile of poop—The Emoji Movie."
The bad luck is that in this timeline, Get Out was preemptively directed by Martin, so who knows if Jordan Peele will still get the chance to blow off that steam.
So, could that unshakable strange emotion in his heart be... his destiny stolen?
Jordan Peele had no idea about any of this. He shook his head, finally pushing aside that odd feeling in his mind, and focused on driving.
On the other side, Keegan was calling director Peter Atencio.
"Hey, buddy, have you found the right actor for your Keanu yet?"
"No luck, huh?"
"No, no, no, I'm not acting in it, but I can pull in some investment for you, get my name on as a producer."
"I've got a great actor to recommend—my good friend Jordan Peele."
"Yeah, that's him. Give the role of Rell to Jordan; you won't regret it."
"What? You want me in it too?"
"Alright, alright, who do I play?"
"Rell's best friend Clarence? OK, I'm in. So about Rell's role..."
"Great, perfect. I'll let him know. Thanks—I owe you one."
Keegan knew his brother had been feeling down lately and wanted to help his friend move forward in his own way.
In Keanu, even though the main character is a cat, Rell's role is a substantial and important supporting part, full of comedic flair. He was sure his friend would love it.