It did not take long for Marlon Wayans to respond to the backlash directed at him and his latest film, “Him,” which is currently sitting at a meager 28% on Rotten Tomatoes. The film takes a swing at American football, digging into the ritual, the obsession with chasing GOAT status, and the devastating costs hiding under all those bright stadium lights.
Directed by Justin Tipping and produced by Jordan Peele—who has carved out a decorated reputation in the psychological horror space—”Him” opened in second place at the domestic box office with a projected $13.4 million. The film follows the dream of Cameron “Cam” Cade, played by Tyriq Withers, a boy who grew up idolizing the San Antonio Saviors’ Quarterback, Isaiah White, played by Wayans. Cam’s father stokes that ambition with relentless pressure from a one-note philosophy: “That’s what real men do. They make sacrifices.” As Isaiah plays through injuries that should end his career, Cam’s father insists the lesson is clear—“No guts. No glory.” Translation: destroy your body to reach the goal. The story is about a boy doomed before he could read a playbook.
Buckle up, because “Him” has a lot to say, and its message isn’t easy for everyone to handle. Many critics don’t like where the film shines its light. It’s uncomfortable, yes, but there are pearls of truth nestled inside the story. This film isn’t out to comfort or coddle; it’s asking the audience to look twice at what we worship and the costs that are associated. The discomfort is the point. If “Him” rattles the viewer, it is because the realities of American sports—the deep exploitation and the sacrifice required of African American bodies—are not meant to be brushed away, and the film refuses to do so.
By the time we meet Cam, 14 years later, he’s a generational quarterback talent inching towards the draft. Then the story veers into something unnerving—his climb toward the NFL is derailed by a supernatural force that rattles him with a head injury. Isaiah resurfaces, now an eight-time champion, weighing retirement but eager to test if Cam has what it takes. He lures the young man into a week of training at his desert compound in Texas, and from there the film spirals into a strange, haunted-house horror.
At Isaiah’s compound, Cam is stripped of his phone and confronted with unsettling surroundings—a doctor who injects him with “painkillers” that feel more like a control medication, an influencer wife, played by Julia Fox, strutting through the mansion like a living billboard, and Isaiah himself, twitchy about the sacrifices required to be crowned the GOAT. The bullying Cam endures reeks of danger from start to finish. When Isaiah mounts an animal skull on his wall, the message could not be clearer: ‘I am a predator who kills for sport.’ Watching Cam unravel under these menacing rituals is where the film finds its chilling power.
Still, Tipping can’t resist leaning into the allegory. The six-chapter structure, one chapter for each day of training, forces the point: football is a stand-in for bigger life lessons. The lessons, unfortunately, don’t always land. Too often, the film shouts rather than whispers. What lingers most is the spectacle of hyper-masculinity—the repeated message that real men sacrifice everything—and the way it overlaps with religion. Football here is church, players exalted as gods while fans pour in faith and devotion. But the money, the real cathedral, belongs to the white men who own the teams. As “Him” reminds us again and again, African American athletes are the ones breaking their bodies for profit.
That echo of gladiators is intentional. In ancient Rome, men fought for survival before roaring crowds, some enslaved, some condemned, and some so desperate they volunteered. Today, athletes step onto the field in multibillion-dollar arenas that exude uncomfortably similar energies. “Him” pushes you to face that truth, even if the script isn’t always strong enough to hold it. Lines like Isaiah’s odd “locker room smells like brotherhood” pull you out, sounding more like ad-libs than revelation.
What keeps it steady are the performances. Wayans delivers Isaiah as unhinged and obsessive. More striking is Cam’s descent, his mental disintegration under pressure, which leaves you unsettled. This isn’t the Wayans most audiences know, and that’s the point. Withers gives a riveting performance as Cam, capturing the character’s vulnerability and unraveling psyche.
Flawed as it is, “Him” forces its audience to sit with some hard questions about professional sports and who truly profits. Monkeypaw Productions, under Peele, pushes into territory that feels both allegorical and painfully direct: African American athletes put their bodies on the line while white team-owners build empires. The film doesn’t resolve those tensions cleanly, but maybe that’s the truth—it’s not clean, it never has been.
See “Him” for yourself. You may cringe, you may get frustrated, but you may also find yourself rocked by its raw edges. I did. Flaws and all.
Loved the film! Marlon is brilliant the film is hard to watch at times, however it makes you think.
To me it looks like folks getting tired and start to seeing that the things they never asked for was not only not worth it for whom or what it was done for is not even of your liking…what the hell! And why folk that ain’t even got gigs doing sacrificing too & for whom tho and why.? blacks been sacrificing while building others so it’s just a part attacks on sects of people….so to fit in their world to be worshipped and famous what you expect ? and why you want others to pay your price when folks dealing with they own issues such as control, puppetry ,lots of stuff with lack of supports and representation . folks literally be knowing stuff don’t really help just talk around it riddles? How much folks expect people to pay when they paid already after a while you really start believing in hell – demons ?