Daniel Kaluuya has revealed Ryan Coogler’s advice changed the course of his directorial debut The Kitchen.

The Get Out actor revealed to Rolling Stone UK that his Black Panther director offered him some guidance when he tried to make his movie too original.

“Ryan gave me advice that changed the course of this film. I really care about original cinema, but I was a bit too extreme at first. Ryan said, ‘Look, The Lion King is based on Hamlet,'” he recalled, meaning good films can be inspired by pre-existing art. “I was trying to make a whole new human and not accepting that a human has to have arms, fingers, legs. And knowing that there is biology and physiology to the storytelling and the structure. Only then you can maybe break the rules or put a twist on it.”

Kaluuya co-wrote and co-directed the dystopian sci-fi movie, which is set in a future London where all social housing has been eliminated. It follows Izi and Benji as they fight to navigate the world as residents of The Kitchen, a community that refuses to abandon their home.

The movie had its premiere at the London Film Festival in October and will be released on Netflix in January.

The British actor noted that he didn’t read any reviews of the film, which he co-directed with Kibwe Tavares, because he knows he’s still finding himself as director.

“It’s art. If the critics go, ‘Oh, this area’s not sharp.’ I know! I haven’t figured it out yet – it’s my first film,” he stated. “We’re young filmmakers growing and figuring things out, artists exploring our gifts. This is for the people. I want the people that this is about to feel it.”

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