Jordan Peele has certainly earned a place amongst the best horror directors of the last decade, but a fan comment calling him the best horror director of all time saw Peele stepping in to stop the thread “slandering” his own horror hero; John Carpenter. Having produced huge hits with Get Out and Us, and his new movie Nope getting a lot of praise in initial reviews, it is not surprising that there is a lot of love out there for the director; however, he isn’t about to the take all the praise he has been given.
In a Twitter post, Adam Ellis shared an opinion that said, “I know this is a hot take but at what point do we declare Jordan Peele the best horror director of all time? Can you think of another horror director that had 3 great films, let alone 3 in a row? I can’t.”
While this is the type of comment that will instantly cause a massive debate about who is the best horror director, Peele decided that he would add his own thoughts on the matter, dispelling the belief that he is better than veteran filmmaker Carpenter. In his reply, Peele said:
“Sir, please put the phone down I beg you. Sorry. I love your enthusiasm but I will just not tolerate any John Carpenter slander!”
Jordan Peele Has Made Himself a Name As a Great Horror Director
When it comes to horror movies, there have been some really good ones and a lot of really bad ones. With the genre often lending itself to money-spinning franchises, such as A Nightmare on Elm Street, Paranormal Activity and John Carpenter’s own Halloween, Jordan Peele has yet to be pulled into the world of repetitive sequels, having so far produced a solid series of stand-alone stories that have produced three audience and critic pleasing films.
Following the release of Get Out, which currently holds an approval rating of 98% on Rotten Tomatoes, there was a lot of speculation about whether Peele had done something similar to M. Night Shyamalan and produced a debut feature so good that he would struggle to match it. However, while Us and now Nope have not quite reached the same heights, his output has certainly been consistent enough to prove him as a new dominant voice in horror cinema.
When it comes to public opinion, while Peele offered his choice of whom the greatest horror director of all time is, there were plenty who offered up some other options. Names included Wes Craven, who constantly redefined the horror genre with movies like Wes Craven’s New Nightmare and Scream, David Cronenberg, whose body horror movies stand in a league of their own, David Lynch, who brought unparalleled surrealism to the genre, and Alfred Hitchcock, who often trod a line between suspense and horror with a very subtle eye for detail.
While Peele may not be above all of these long-standing icons of the genre, to simply be named among them after releasing just three movies is an achievement that speaks volumes for the director’s future. In time, there is no reason to think that he will not find himself besting his idols on many people’s greatest directors lists.