When seasonal Vineyarder Theodus Crane walked on to the set of Sinners, he did not know it was a vampire movie, he thought it was a story about a juke joint. 

The film, directed by Ryan Coogler, follows Black twin brothers Smoke and Stack Moore (both played by Michael B. Jordan) as they return to Clarksdale, Miss. in 1932 with plans to open a juke joint after spending several years in Chicago. The two enlist a number of old friends, including their cousin Sammie (Miles Caton), an aspiring blues musician, and a sharecropper called Cornbread (Omar Miller), to help run the place. On opening night, the juke joint is attacked by three white vampires, two of which are members of the Klan.

The movie premiered in April and already has become a financial and critical success, with Oscar buzz in the air.

Mr. Crane, a longtime Vineyard summertime resident, was the stunt double for Cornbread, the field worker enlisted as bouncer for the juke joint. He also played the bouncer at Sammie’s blues club, located in Chicago 60 years after the fateful night.

Mr. Crane also was a stunt double for Omar Miller's Cornbread character. — Courtesy Theodus Crane

Mr. Crane splits his time between the Vineyard and New Orleans. He began in musical theatre before turning to film and television. His other roles include Big Tiny on The Walking Dead and Zeke in the period-drama Underground. While on Island, he teaches boxing at Strong Martha in West Tisbury.

On set, Mr. Crane spent a lot of time observing. In addition to being an actor and a stunt man, he is a screenwriter and musician. Mr. Crane said that being able to see how artists he admires work was a learning opportunity for him.

“There were people who I’ve been following their careers for years,” he said. “To be able to just observe somebody and it not be weird is a blessing. And I got to see that.”

Those artists include Buddy Guy, the legendary blues musician, Mr. Coogler and Mr. Miller, whose career has been an inspiration for Mr. Crane.

Mr. Crane said that beyond getting to work with so many talented artists, it was inspiring to work with so many Black creatives.

“It was about the artistry, but it’s not often that you get to work on a set where everybody in front of and behind the camera is somebody that you could relate to in that way,” he said.

This extended to hair and makeup. Sinners was the first set to accommodate the fact that Mr. Crane keeps his hair braided. The stylists were able to take his hair and work it into a wig instead of cutting it.

“It’s details like that. It’s like, oh right, I can do this without compromising too much,” Mr. Crane said. 

Mr. Crane added that he has seen many projects by Black creatives cut short or muddled by higher ups, so to be able to see a Black artist at the caliber of Mr. Coogler create freely was powerful.

“This is the one instance where we get to see the fulfilled vision and it is amazing,” Mr. Crane said.