Special screenings of the hit film “Sinners,” which is set in Clarksdale, will be held at the Clarksdale Civic Auditorium from May 29-31, 2025. Residents advocated for the film to be shown in Clarksdale due to the fact that the city does not have a movie theater.

“The Delta is such a special place, and to see something so big and so major happen here, I wanted to be a part of history. I wanted to be a part of something amazing. I wanted to be a part of something that the world is taking a look at right here in Clarksdale, Mississippi,” said Katina Washington, who attended Thursday’s screening.

“Sinners” is Coogler’s first original film. It blends elements of supernatural horror, gangster drama, romance, blues music and action across one eventful day in Clarksdale, Mississippi, in 1932 in which a community opens a juke joint and then has to defend it from a vampire army growing outside.

The setting of the film was also inspired by his family’s ties to a Mississippi of the past. One was his maternal grandfather who originated from Merrill, Mississippi, and moved to Oakland, where the family remains. The other was the man who introduced him to blues music, his Uncle James, who died while Coogler was making “Creed.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.