The theatrical movie event of the summer is here with the arrival of Jordan Peele’s Nope. And honestly? We can’t get to the cinema fast enough.
The sci-fi horror is Peele’s highly anticipated follow-up to 2019’s somewhat divisive (and, ultimately, under-appreciated—justice for Lupita Nyong’o!) Us and 2017’s zeitgeist-defining, Oscar-winning Get Out. The star of the latter, Daniel Kaluuya, reunites with the writer-director in Nope, and is joined by Keke “Queen of Memes” Palmer and Minari‘s Steve Yeun.
But there’s one more, lesser known star in Nope—one who’s already got fans raving, even before they’ve seen the film: Brandon Perea. It’s not hard to understand why.
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Now, Perea didn’t exactly come out of nowhere. The Chicago-born, 27 year-old Filipino actor has been working steadily for the past decade, most notably in Netflix‘s trippy series The OA (gone too soon—justice for Brit Marling!). He’s also shown up in projects like the YouTube original Dance Camp, DC superhero series Doom Patrol, and—apparently—a 2012 episode of Nickelodeon game show Figure It Out!
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(His secret talent on the show was that he could do “pops and locks on shoes with wheels.” Iconic. If there’s video of this out there, please let us know.)
Nope presents, without a doubt, his biggest role yet. In it, he plays Angel Torres, an employee at Fry’s Electronics who is hired by the Haywood siblings (Kaluuya, Palmer) to set up cameras at their home in hope of capturing footage of a UFO. That’s about all we know so far, and that’s quite alright—we prefer our Jordan Peele movies unspoiled!
Related: 17 Classic Sci-Fi Studs You Forgot Were Totally Hot
At any rate, we are thankful to Peele for (among many other reasons) reminding us of our crush on Perea. Don’t get us wrong, we’re also crushing hard on the dashing Kaluuya, the luminous Palmer, and the swoon-worthy Yeun, but we simply didn’t know about Perea’s Instagram until now… and that’s a travesty! Case in point:
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And of course we’re not the only ones to notice. From the moment the Nope press tour started, Gay Twitter™ lit up with thirst for Perea. Absolutely zero complaints here—keep’em coming, girls! Here’s just a few of our favorites:
Brandon Perea, how you like your eggs in the morning? pic.twitter.com/NmxMhzYRWK
— Costco Hotdog (@gayspud) July 20, 2022
we need to talk about nope (2022) star brandon perea pic.twitter.com/1hVkB8JIar
— ty (@ghostfacegay) July 18, 2022
NOPE is a HELL YES from me. A nail biter from the giddy up and get-go, with layers to unpack thanks to Jordan Peele's love of cinema. He's probing what is gained and lost by capturing images onscreen.
Keke Palmer is a star, and Brandon Perea will be the next big heartthrob.
— masc 4 mask (@jdry) July 21, 2022
I would like to talk about Brandon Perea pic.twitter.com/NUWBoV0X4m
— Erik Anderson (@awards_watch) July 17, 2022
My only other note regarding Nope at this time is that Brandon Perea is so freaking hot in this movie. pic.twitter.com/PgPKVnJScz
— Josh Parham (@JRParham) July 20, 2022
thinking about brandon perea pic.twitter.com/pNzv3rKgmN
— Jason (@NlGGALODE0N) July 16, 2022
I'm deeply invested in the world coming to know and appreciate Brandon Perea. #NopeMovie pic.twitter.com/j2XGKWkN95
— Wheeler (@Wheeler) July 18, 2022
Lots to like about NOPE. The whole cast is outstanding, but wanted to shout-out Brandon Perea ( ?? ??) who is hilarious as a tech savvy, broken-hearted guy who joins the protagonists in their quest. Hope to see him in more things soon. pic.twitter.com/gGliRg5YUG
— Carlos Aguilar (@Carlos_Film) July 20, 2022
seeing lots of brandon perea thirst on my tl. this is how i get y’all to watch the OA pic.twitter.com/hk1rqTBel7
— azhar bcs spoilers (@mcstardently) July 18, 2022
Is this what it takes for Netflix to bring The OA back? Let’s hope so!
Kangol2
He’s a beauty. Nope opens today and has gotten rave early reviews so I’m planning to see it!
ShiningSex
It sucked!
JeffBaker
Drool!
Preppy1000
The movie sucks–long, boring and pointless. However Perea was more than a little hot and gives out a great performance.
Res1
Gay men are never subtle with their lust. They don’t realize that is NOT how you get the boy. You have to play it cool, almost like you don’t notice him. Trust me, men like that. Forward is too easy, they like a challenge.
Major
Jordan Peele
That’s it. That’s my comment.
ShiningSex
Exactly, his films suck. Way better horror out there!
ShiningSex
Sorry but Peele’s horror films are boring as f*ck.
If you want a good black horror film director, try Chester Novell Turner. He’s a classic and his films are actually good.
NOPE was a NOPE.