Summary
Before settling onBlink Twice, Zoë Kravitz had a different working title for her directorial debut. A psychological crime thriller,Blink Twicestars Naomi Ackie(I Wanna Dance With Somebody) as Frida, a down-on-her-luck cocktail waitress and aspiring nail artist, and Channing Tatum (Magic Mike) as Slater King, a billionaire tech mogul who recently retreated from the public eye after being called out on his inappropriate behavior. The film doesn’t dwell on what he did, but it does take pains to show thatSlater learned from his “cancelation” by seeking out therapy — and buying an island.
Coincidentally, Frida and her friend, Jess (Alia Shawkat), are scheduled to work Slater’s big gala. Exhausted by life, Frida and Jess decide to sneak into the gala, ditching their cocktail waitress uniforms for dresses and heels. After a chance run-in with Slater, Frida gets to know him over the course of the evening, prompting the tech mogul to invite the women to his private island. Desperate for a vacation, Frida and Jess jump at the chance to join the other members ofBlink Twice’s cast of characters. However,it soon becomes clear that Slater’s island is far from paradise.
Pussy Island Was The Original Title Of Blink Twice
Zoë Kravitz Wanted To Reclaim The Word With Her Directorial Debut
Back in 2017, Zoë Kravitz began writing the screenplay for what would becomeBlink Twice, though she titled her projectPussy Island. By 2021,Kravitz decided to make it her directorial debut, and finished penning the script alongside E.T. Feigenbaum (High Fidelity). By the following year, production on the film began, with Kravitz and the crew filming in Yucatán and Quintana Roo, Mexico. A staggering two years after that,just a few months before the film’s release, Kravitz reassessed the movie’s title. In January 2024, Kravtiz officially changed the film’s title fromPussy IslandtoBlink Twice.
Other projects, like the seriesP-Valley, have strategically minced words…
There’s no denying thatBlink Twiceis a far less provocative title. Other projects, like the seriesP-Valley, have strategically minced words, but, in the lead up to the film’s release,Kravitz voiced her dedication to keeping thePussy Islandtitle — no vowels omitted. As the writer-director put it toEntertainment Weeklyin 2022, the title is the seed of the film’s story, and a statement. “It represents this time when it would be acceptable for a group of men to call a place that,” Kravitz explained, “and the illusion that we’re out of that time now.”
Blink Twice Soundtrack Guide: Every Song & When They Play
The Blink Twice soundtrack is loaded with recognizable songs and artists like Beyoncé, James Brown, and Chaka Khan. Here’s when each song plays.
Why Zoë Kravitz Changed Pussy Island’s Title To Blink Twice
Studios, The MPA & Early Viewers Balked At The Word Choice
A few weeks beforeBlink Twice’s release, Kravitz explained why, despite her insistence, the film’s title changed. The filmmaker explained that other powers that be — studios, the Motion Picture Association (MPA), and early audiences — made it clear that “p—y” isn’t a word that “our society” is ready to embrace. Kravitz explained in another interview withEntertainment Weeklythat there were a lot of obstacles. Whilethe MPA fretted about puttingPussy Islandon a movie poster or billboard, big-name movie theater chains voiced concerns about printing the film’s working title on tickets.
The realization that a majority of women were offended by the title…really pushed Kravitz to reconsider.
Althoughthe original title was a means of “reclaiming” the word, and the first thing Kravitz wrote down when beginning the screenplay, the first-time director says she’s happy with the new title of the movie. While the studio, MPA, and movie theater roadblocks were a bit frustrating, the realization that a majority of women were offended by the title — outright saying they wouldn’t want to see a movie calledPussy Island— really pushed Kravitz to reconsider. “I care about people seeing the film,” Kravitz said, “and I care about how it makes people feel.”
Blink Twice’s Red Rabbit Clue & Meaning Explained
One of the most significant clues to Blink Twice’s twist ending is the phrase “Red Rabbit,” which holds a deep narrative and symbolic meaning.
How Pussy Island’s Title Connects To Blink Twice’s Story
Zoë Kravitz’s Original Title Hints At The Big Reveal In Blink Twice
The original title ofBlink Twicepretty much reveals what’s really going on with Slater’s entourage on the private island. Although the mogul acts like he’s reformed his misogynistic and abusive ways,the island actually serves as an outlet for Slater’s darkest impulses. It’s revealed inBlink Twice’s endingthat Slater and the other men in his entourage bring women to the island, give them tons of drugs, horrifically abuse and violate them, and then give them a perfume, made from the island’s unique flowers, to make them forget the horrors that occurred the night before. Rinse and repeat.
In a series of shocking twists, Frida learns that the island’s snakes harbor a venom that counteracts the perfume’s effects, allowing her and the other women to remember the abuse and violence. It’s also revealed that Frida attended Slater’s “retreat” the year before, though she was made to forget the whole ordeal. That said,Kravitz’s original title,Pussy Island, reiterates the idea that Slater and the other men feel entitled to the women they abduct, treating them as objects for their sexual and violent impulses. Of course,Blink Twicehammers home the message in its own way.
Blink Twiceis now playing in theaters nationwide.
Blink Twice
Directed by Zoë Kravitz, Blink Twice is a drama thriller film, marking her first foray into the world of directing. The film follows a cocktail waitress invited to a tech billionaire’s private resort home to party with them - but after arriving, she begins to discover the dark truth behind the island.
