This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, They Cloned Tyrone being covered here wouldn’t exist. We stand with the WGA and SAG-AFTRA.
Netflix has a habit of making boring action flicks with all your favourite actors to get you to watch, only to be disappointed with dry jokes and lousy dialogue. But we were happily surprised when Netflix’s They Cloned Tyrone turned out to be the funniest, mind-blowing movie we’ve watched this year.
With everything going on with Jamie Foxx, we wanted to watch and support his new material, and the Juel Taylor-directed film didn’t disappoint with the Woman King‘s John Boyega in the lead and its unique storyline. Beware! Massive Spoilers ahead.
In They Cloned Tyrone, Jamie Foxx plays a fashionable pimp, Slick Charles, Boyega plays a sexy drug dealer Fontaine and Teyona Parris is a no-nonsense sex worker named Yo-Yo. The unlikely trio save their weird town called Glen from a crazy scientist who has been experimenting and cloning Black people in his underground lab.
Since the film came out during the release of Barbie, we feel it didn’t get the spotlight it deserved, so let’s go through some of the best moments from They Cloned Tyrone that make us want to rewatch the film for the tenth time.
Creepy Stuff Is Going On In Glen
The scene where Fontaine wakes up after he is shot as if nothing happened. It just adds to the creepy shit happening in this town. However, we liked the scene where Foxx’s character reacts to seeing Fontaine outside his door.
He is visibly shaken and hilariously says, “Jesus! You send a ghost to a pimp?” before accusing Fontaine of selling his soul to the devil. We liked Foxx’s acting here and how his character interacted with Yo-Yo in Fontaine’s car after this.
Another fantastic scene from They Cloned Tyrone comes when the trio breaks into the underground lab through what looks like an abandoned house. Yo-Yo and Charles walk in on a lab guy singing Michael Jackson’s Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough, and before they know it, all hell breaks loose. We loved the MJ shoutout, but after that, everything went downhill fast for the three, and it was funny to see.
We couldn’t stop laughing when Fontaine took his crew to the old house the next day, and they thought he was crazy. Did he honestly think they would believe him with no evidence? And Fontaine leaving them without a ride was so petty it is one of our favourite moments.
The entire Church scene with the pastor singing passionately was an excellent addition to the story considering how massive of an influence the Church is in the Black community and how it is often used to hide some of the worst acts done to its people.
We also enjoyed that the music rubbed off on Charles and Yo-Yo because they started singing out of nowhere to fill the awkward silence in the elevator. It’s one of the funniest scenes in They Cloned Tyrone because even Boyega struggled to keep a straight face.
How The Pimp Saved Glen In They Cloned Tyrone
The following scenes of the lab are downright terrifying, with several scientists going about their jobs to experiment and brainwash the Black people in the town through the media and music. The lack of sound in these scenes makes them spookier as you think of the possibility of such a lab existing somewhere.
They Cloned Tyrone gets even creepier when hundreds of brainwashed people who, we believe, are clones chase the trio. This only brings them closer to the reality of their lives in Glen. It is the strangest yet most exciting scene of the film.
When Foxx’s character Slick Charles lays out his rather cunning plan to take down the government facility, save Yo-Yo and take back their town. The local pimp brokers a deal with Fontaine’s number 1 enemy, Isaac, through his ‘girls’ in a series of hilarious fake intimate scenes. And it works! We appreciate how creatively they executed this scene.
Another great moment comes when Charles rallies the neighbourhood behind him to break into the lab and destroy the despicable facility. The Cadillac scene with Slick and his crew riding up the hill to the facility deserves an honourable mention for how cool it turned out. Foxx’s delivery of his lines before they enter the secret elevator is the best thing. You know it will be good just by the tone of his voice.
They Cloned Tyrone With No Tyrone?
The scene where Foxx’s character tries to save Yo-Yo from Kiefer Sutherland‘s character Nixon also stands out. We believed it was over at that point because there was no way they were getting out of this with Nixon pointing a gun to Slick’s head, Yo-Yo out of bullets and Fontaine caught by the mad scientist.
Then Slick saves the day when he shows up and takes out Nixon while bragging about his Goodwill fashion sense.
The craziest and best scene from They Cloned Tyrone is the ending scene when we are shown several news reports from Glen with clones walking around everywhere.
The conspiracy has been uncovered, and Fontaine, Yo-Yo and Silck are reunited. But then, in a twist of events I never saw coming, we are introduced to another clone in a different neighbourhood called Tyrone. He lives precisely like Fontaine, and seeing this at the end made us question so much about the film.
Netflix better be working on a sequel because we need answers!
To conclude, They Cloned Tyrone is a simple, funny film with the perfect mix of emotion, mystery and a pinch of sci-fi that leaves you wishing it was a series than a movie. There are no unnecessary scenes, just good acting and a good conspiracy story. And, if you’re still not convinced, you can take a look at the trailer.
They Cloned Tyrone is streaming now on Netflix.
