Warning: SPOILERS lie ahead for Sinners!Sinners star Wunmi Mosaku reveals how a key moment with Michael B. Jordan’s Smoke ultimately sealed his fate following his horrific ordeal at night. Ryan Coogler’s 2025 period vampire horror saw twin brothers Smoke and Stack return to their home in the Mississippi Delta to set up their dream business, only to find themselves and their guests and loved ones accosted by terrifying creatures. In Sinners‘ cast, Mosaku portrays Smoke’s estranged wife Annie, the spiritual guide whose recognition of the occult and supernatural gives the group their best chance against the vampires.

As Mosaku sat down with The Hollywood Reporter, the actor dove into the bond that persevered between Annie and Smoke throughout all the horrors they faced in life. Explaining how the pair’s close bond was quickly established even in their earliest moments, Mosaku stated that the moment that Smoke let go of the mojo bag Annie gifted her was an intentional choice, partly out of guilt and partly as he felt he no longer needed the protection she had offered him all those years ago to carry on. Check out Mosaku’s full explanation below:

Your chemistry read with Michael B. Jordan revolved around Annie and Smoke’s 7-page reunion, and it went so well that you were offered the role on the spot. And you’ve since stated that Annie is Elijah’s protector, teacher, mother, lover and friend. That reunion scene really does have all those roles on display, doesn’t it?

100%. I don’t know how Ryan did it. In the beginning of the scene, one of the young girls is seven years old, and that’s the same age that Annie and Smoke’s daughter would’ve been. All that kind of imagery and reflection, I just don’t know how he did it. The thing that I keep thinking about is that Smoke’s mojo bag worked. It’s worked through all the years Annie and Smoke have known each other, and their love is so powerful and so connected that her spell worked. She gave everything to his mojo bag, and he had to take it off for him to come to an end. Her love for him is also a source of her power and her magic.

I was going to ask you if he removed it before the final gunfight to ensure that he ended up with her and their baby.

That’s 100% how I read it. He has no one left. He doesn’t have his brother, he doesn’t have his partner, he doesn’t have his baby. So what would be the point in continuing her protection? There’s also a bit of guilt there, because why does it work for him and no one else?

What Mosaku’s Comments Reveal About Smoke’s Journey In Sinners

Against All Odds, He Still Fought To Control His Fate

Mosaku’s reading of the scene emphasizes the tragic side of Sinners‘ ending, as Smoke’s journey home and last-ditch effort to make a dream a reality end in blood and flames. Even after surviving war and managing to outsmart two of Chicago’s most notable criminal organizations, Smoke and Stack’s Juke Joint aspirations were sealed even without Remmick’s (Jack O’Connell) intervention, as the vampire was truthful about the local Ku Klux Klan group’s plan to catch the pair and their guests unaware. Despite his belief in and desire for power and control, the cards were always stacked against him.

However, even with the forces working against him, Smoke is still able to take control even in the bleakest of nights. He is able to fulfill his promise to Annie by killing her to prevent Remmick’s control after she’s bit, while also staying true to his own ideals by not killing the vampire Stack, and taking out the racist locals. While Mosaku emphasizes the tragedy of Smoke’s fate, there is also a bittersweet note that letting go of the bag allows him to reunite with his family and pᴀss on his own terms.

Our Thoughts On Mosaku’s Smoke Reveal

Despite His Tougher Side, Smoke Is One Of Sinners’ Most Emotionally Driven Characters

While Sammie (Miles Catton) is ultimately the lead of Sinners, it is hard to deny that Smoke emerges as the second-most important character in the movie. From the onset, his pragmatism and ruthlessness are balanced with a heart that yearns to do the right thing, even in the bleakest of hours. As such, Mosaku’s reading of Smoke’s decision adds a new heartbreaking layer to the movie’s survivor’s tale.

Source: THR