‘Master’ Trailer: Regina Hall Stars In Mariama Diallo’s Acclaimed Horror Film Coming To Amazon

Jordan Peele’s “Get Out” seems to be the new yardstick for measuring the quality of social commentary in horror. We’ve seen many filmmakers since Peele try to emulate that same sort of level of fright and intelligence, with few reaching that level. But judging by early reviews out of Sundance, Mariama Diallo’s “Master” might have actually done it.

READ MORE: ‘Master’ Review: Regina Hall Is Stellar In A Haunting Jordan Peele-Esque Social Horror [Sundance]

As seen in the trailer for “Master,” Diallo’s film follows three Black women struggling with various issues happening at a largely white university campus. One of the women has become the first Black woman to hold a time-honored position of Master, one is a professor dealing with a board review, and another is a college freshman just trying to avoid succumbing to an apparent curse that runs rampant in the school

The cast includes Regina Hall, Zoe Renee, Talia Ryder, Talia Balsam, and Amber Gray. “Master” marks the feature film debut for writer-director Mariama Diallo. Her most widely known work previously was episodes of “Random Acts of Flyness.” 

In our review of the film from this year’s Sundance, we said, “While there are shades of Jordan Peele’s ‘Get Out’ and even ‘The Shining’ in the film’s DNA, Diallo has crafted an incisive, intelligent, and stridently political horror film that is distinctly all her own.”

“Master” debuts in select theaters and on Amazon Prime Video on March 18. You can watch the trailer below.

Here’s the synopsis:

In writer-director Mariama Diallo’s debut feature, Master, three women strive to find their place at a prestigious New England university whose frosty elitism may disguise something more sinister. Professor Gail Bishop (Regina Hall) has recently been promoted to “Master” of a residence hall, the first time at storied Ancaster College that a Black woman has held the post. Determined to breathe new life into a centuries-old tradition, Gail soon finds herself wrapped up in the trials and tribulations of Jasmine Moore (Zoe Renee), an energetic and optimistic Black freshman. Jasmine’s time at Ancaster hits a snag early on when she’s assigned a dorm room that is rumored to be haunted. Things get worse when Jasmine clashes in the classroom with Liv Beckman (Amber Gray), a professor in the middle of her own racially charged tenure review. As Gail tries to maintain order and fulfill the duties of a Master, the cracks begin to show in Ancaster’s once-immaculate facade. After a career spent fighting to make it into Ancaster’s inner circle, Gail is confronted with the horrifying prospect of what lies beneath, her question ultimately becoming not whether the school is haunted, but by whom.