Malcolm D. Lee Brings ‘Strung’ to ABFF Opening Night

For the 30th anniversary edition of the American Black Film Festival, Malcolm D. Lee is stepping into opening night with Peacock thriller ‘Strung,’ starring Chloe Bailey. Speaking ahead of the 2026 festival, Lee framed the project as a psychological thriller d

When Malcolm D. Lee logged on over Zoom to talk about the American Black Film Festival’s opening night, he didn’t start with the premise of his new movie. He started with the memory of an earlier one.

“I remember when we screened ‘Girls Trip. ’ it went over like gangbusters. ” Lee said. recalling his first film that opened ABFF nearly a decade ago and went on to become a global comedy phenomenon. For ABFF’s 30th anniversary edition. organizers Jeff and Nicole Friday tapped a familiar face to kick off the festival’s opening night again—this time with Lee’s new project. “Strung. ” coming to Peacock in June.

Lee’s return, though, comes with a catch. “Now, it’ll be a different type of reaction. It’s a different movie.”

Nicole Friday—speaking about why “Strung. ” starring Chloe Bailey. was chosen as the festival opener—described Lee as more than a filmmaker selected for a moment. “Malcolm D. Lee is a friend of the festival. and has been coming for. I don’t even know how many years at this point. ” she said. “He’s a dear friend and anytime we’ve asked him to do anything. literally he’s done everything with us from screening his content. films. panels. mentoring with the filmmakers. just so many things. just hanging out with his wife so many things.”.

She added, “[We] love his point of view and his ability of storytelling. So always happy to showcase anything that he does.”

That storytelling—Lee suggested—works even when the genre shifts. Known for films like “The Best Man,” Lee said he isn’t chasing the label of a horror filmmaker. “I’m not a horror guy. I think of this more as a psychological thriller, and I love those types of movies. I never had a chance to do it. and so here was a great opportunity to exercise a different muscle and see what I can do with this genre. and I’m very happy with the results. ” he said. “It’s a good crowd pleaser. There’s going to be lots of murmurs and gasps and talking at the screen.”.

“Strung” puts Chloe Bailey into the role of a skilled violinist hired by a wealthy family to tutor their traumatized young daughter. As Lee described, the film is built around how both sides are “increasingly haunted by their pasts,” a tension that drives the story forward.

Tyler Perry and Jason Blum produced the film. The script was developed by Alan McElroy, and was originally titled “Help.” Lee and his producing partner Dominique Telson were hired to make it their own, with minimal intervention during the production process after Perry and Blum developed the script.

Lee said the working relationship gave him room to try his own decisions. “Producers are smart enough to know when they’ve got a filmmaker who knows what they’re doing and has a team who knows what they’re doing. And so it’s like, ‘Oh, ok. He’s got a vision. Go do it,’” Lee said. “Even in the editorial process. it was like. ‘Hey. try this. try that.’ And because they’ve had experience doing these movies. I

was like. ‘Ok. well. let me try that.’ But at the end of the day. you’ve got to trust your instincts. You certainly take in their wealth of experience in this genre and say. ‘Ok. all right. I’ve never done this thing before. ’ but yet still you’ve got to say to yourself. ‘All right. that’s an interesting idea. but I’m going to try it this way.’”.

He also pointed to a guiding principle that shaped how the movie was ultimately shaped for viewers. “However, ‘To their credit, they say, ‘The audience always wins.’ And I agree, the audience always wins. If the audience is responding well, great. You keep it,” said the director. “If they don’t, then you have to change. You can’t force them to see your vision. You have to make it apparent to them.”.

Lee said he expected to draw from multiple influences as he built the thriller’s tone and audience expectations. “Obviously. the combination of Jason Blum and Tyler Perry. they’ve garnered audiences for their entire careers. and so it’s a great combination to bring those two audiences together. ” he said. “In making this movie. I looked at some of the classics. some of the Hitchcock movies. and ‘Fatal Attraction’ and a lot of the Blumhouse pictures as well. just to see. ‘Ok. what does a Blumhouse audience expect and how do I bring what I do to that genre?’”.

At the same time, Lee pushed back against being boxed into a single identity. “Again, Lee resists calling a ‘Strung’ a horror movie just as he generally resists being boxed into one genre. ‘I don’t consider myself a comedy director, I consider myself a director. And I like being able to tell stories and explore different genres. stretch my legs and work with different techniques and framings and camera movement and things like that. So it was rewarding to do a movie like this.’”.

That kind of genre flexibility. ABFF leadership said. fits the festival’s purpose—especially for a 30th anniversary year that frames itself as more than a showcase of finished careers. “Opening ABFF 2026 with a film like ‘Strung. ’ which sees Lee expanding his horizons in terms of how he is perceived as a filmmaker is representative of what Friday says the festival is all about. ” the festival president and co-founder of Nice Crowd. the company that produces the festival. said.

“It’s really been that platform. that springboard for those who are just getting started. whether you’re an emerging artist or those who are already in the industry but want to use the platform to showcase their work and to just garner community and energy around whatever content it is or project it is that they have. ” she said.

“It’s not just for those who want to be in front of the camera. You have emerging and aspiring executives who want to be in the room or have a seat at the table. It’s also a platform for that,” she added. “It’s a huge networking opportunity for anyone who is interested in this space or even if you are just a cinephile and just love consuming content. and you want to see what the indie filmmakers are doing. If you want to watch any of those, we have some really, really good films.”.

The 2026 narrative feature competition will include films starring Emmy winner Courtney B. Vance. “The Wire” alum Tristan “Mack” Wilds. and Grammy winner Coco Jones. who also appears in “Strung.” The festival will also include the Oscar-qualifying HBO Short Film Award showcase. which boasts recent Oscar winner Ryan Coogler as an alum.

The conversation about “Strung” also circled back to ABFF’s programming history—specifically. Lee’s decision to try a thriller when comedies weren’t in demand. On the subject of the festival’s pasts and whether he leaned into the genre because he couldn’t find more comedies. Lee said “sometimes there’s just not good ones out there. ” and “Sometimes they’re good ones that people just don’t end up going to see. So I don’t worry too much about it. but it is increasingly difficult. but that’s why you have to make sure that the script is so good. and that you cast it right because. ‘Well. if this doesn’t work. then comedy’s dead.’ Comedy was dead before ‘Girls Trip’ supposedly.”.

He pointed to his own history with ABFF as proof that risk can land. “And yet, after the film opened ABFF 2017, ‘We made that movie and the rest is history. People really, really took to it.’”

Even with the genre shift, Lee said he’s anticipating a similar crowd response in the anniversary spotlight. “This is the kind of movie that you want to see with a crowd,” he said. “It’ll be a great way to kick it off because it’s got a lot of twists and turns and things that people aren’t going to see coming. and it’s very cinematic. So we are very much anticipating a great screening.”.

“Strung” premieres at the 2026 American Black Film Festival, and will begin streaming on Peacock on June 26, 2026.

Malcolm D. Lee Strung ABFF American Black Film Festival Chloe Bailey Peacock Tyler Perry Jason Blum Dominique Telson Alan McElroy Homecoming Girls Trip Courtney B. Vance Tristan Mack Wilds Coco Jones Ryan Coogler HBO Short Film Award