Wunmi Mosaku Reveals How Sinners Role Transformed Her Life
Oscar-nominated actress Wunmi Mosaku has opened up about how her role in the blockbuster vampire film Sinners fundamentally changed her perspective on life, heritage, and spirituality. The Manchester-raised star of Yoruba descent played Annie, a Hoodoo priestess and healer in Ryan Coogler's period horror-drama set in 1932 Mississippi.
A Career-Defining Opportunity
Mosaku recalls the electrifying moment when her agent informed her that director Ryan Coogler wanted to speak with her about a potential role. "I was as excited as a child at a fairground," she remembers. "My immediate response was, 'Whatever it is I'm in, if he'll have me!'" What began as what she expected to be a brief thirty-minute Zoom conversation stretched into a ninety-minute discussion that would alter the course of her career.
The actress, who moved from Nigeria to Manchester at just one year old, needed only seven pages of script to recognize that Annie was a character she desperately wanted to portray. "I read those seven pages featuring Smoke and Annie's first scene in the shop, and I was completely blown away by the quality of the writing," Mosaku explains. Her audition with co-star Michael B. Jordan proved equally remarkable, with the role being offered to her immediately in the room.
Unprecedented Critical Success
Sinners has achieved extraordinary recognition within the film industry, making Oscars history with sixteen nominations while securing thirteen BAFTA nominations. Mosaku herself has been nominated for Best Supporting Actress at both prestigious award ceremonies. The film's director, Ryan Coogler, has received nominations for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay at both the BAFTAs and Oscars, where the film also contends for Best Picture.
"The momentum has continued to gather at an unstoppable pace," Mosaku observes, noting how the role of Annie has elevated her already considerable profile within the entertainment industry.
Rediscovering Cultural Roots
Perhaps most significantly, playing Annie led Mosaku on a journey of cultural rediscovery. As a Hoodoo practitioner in the film, Annie employs spiritual practices derived from African traditions to protect her community from vampire threats. This required intensive research that unexpectedly connected Mosaku to her own Yoruba heritage.
"Learning about Annie, I felt like I learned a lot about myself and my own heritage," the actress reveals. "She's a Hoodoo practitioner, and Hoodoo is this spiritual practice involving roots, herbs, connection to ancestors, the divine, and the earth. It actually derives from the spirituality of Ifá, which was particularly interesting since I am a Yoruba woman who previously knew nothing about Ifá."
Challenging Preconceptions
Mosaku admits to having held "preconceived ideas" about indigenous religions like Hoodoo before joining the Sinners cast. "I've always thought of them as quite scary," she confesses. "You think of Voodoo and you think of James Bond or The Crucible. But actually, I met these practitioners and priestesses, and they were so loving and devoted to their ancestry and purpose. It was truly enlightening."
The actress, who won a BAFTA for her role in 2016's Damilola, Our Loved Boy, describes the experience as "unlearning preconceived ideas" about traditional indigenous religions. "It was more about decolonising my mind and opening up my heart to other ways, traditions, and belief systems," she explains.
Personal Transformation
For Mosaku, who rose to prominence through roles in BBC2's Moses Jones, ITV's Vera, and more recently Lovecraft Country and Deadpool & Wolverine, the vampire film provided unexpected personal grounding. "I didn't expect to find a part of myself and feel more grounded in my actual lineage while playing this fictional character," she reflects.
The mother of one, who is expecting her second child with American entertainment industry husband Tash Moseley, particularly admires Annie's maternal qualities and capacity for love. "Annie as a mum, as a partner, her capacity to love and understand and forgive and move forward without needing apologies or explanations—that's really Annie," Mosaku says with evident admiration.
A Lasting Impact
Reflecting on the profound effect the role has had on her life, Mosaku concludes: "Every character changes you. You learn more, you understand more about someone else's experience. But this was amazing. I feel like I've been changed forever through Annie."
The spiritual healer she portrayed in Sinners has provided both immense professional satisfaction and deep personal revelation for the down-to-earth star, proving that sometimes the most transformative journeys begin with just seven pages of script and an open heart.
