Following the return of the Halloween franchise in 2018, the latest legendary horror series set to return for a new decade is Candyman.
Helming the return of the franchise as a co-writer is one of horror’s most exciting new faces: Get Out director Jordan Peele. Peele has co-written the film alongside Win Rosenfeld and director Nia DaCosta.
Peele has called the new film a “spiritual sequel” to the 1992 original, which looks set to bypass the events of the two Candyman sequels: Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh (1995) and Candyman: Day of the Dead (1999).
From a release date to trailers, a plot, cast members and more, here is everything we know so far about the new reboot of Candyman.
Latest Updates:
- Universal and MGM have pushed back the release date of Candyman back to 2021
Candyman release date: when will it hit cinemas?
The film was due to come out in both the USA and UK on September 25, 2020. It was then moved to October 16, 2020. On September 11, it was announced that Universal and MGM, who are committed to the movie getting a theatrical release, have pushed it back to some time in 2021 due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. A new date is TBC.
Candyman trailer: is there a teaser yet?
Two, in fact! The bloodcurdling first trailer for the new horror sequel arrived in late February, and introduces a grown-up version of Anthony McCoy, the baby from the original Candyman.
The clip sees McCoy moving to the same Chicago neighbourhood depicted in the original film, the place where the urban legend of the Candyman began. What follows is intensely grisly. Watch it below.
A new teaser then arrived in June, with director Nia DaCosta sharing details about the film when sharing the teaser on Twitter.
“Candyman, at the intersection of white violence and black pain, is about unwilling martyrs,” DaCosta wrote. “The people they were, the symbols we turn them into, the monsters we are told they must have been.” Watch the trailer below.
CANDYMAN, at the intersection of white violence and black pain, is about unwilling martyrs. The people they were, the symbols we turn them into, the monsters we are told they must have been. pic.twitter.com/MEwwr8umdI
— Nia DaCosta (@NiaDaCosta) June 17, 2020
Who is directing Candyman?
Although Jordan Peele is producing, the filmmaker has hired Nia DaCosta to direct Candyman. In an interview with Empire, Peele defended his choice.
“I was working on Us when this would have happened,” Peele began. “But quite honestly, Nia is better to shoot this than I am. I’m way too obsessed with the original tales in my head.
“I probably wouldn’t be any good. But Nia has a steady manner about her which you don’t see a lot in the horror space. She’s refined, elegant, every shot is beautiful. It’s a beautiful, beautiful movie. I’m so glad I didn’t mess it up.”
Candyman cast: who is in the upcoming reboot?
The cast for the forthcoming sequel will be headed up by Aquaman and Watchmen star Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as a grown-up version of Anthony McCoy, the baby from the original Candyman.
Abdul-Mateen was originally thought to be playing the Candyman himself, but director Nia DaCosta confirmed that he’s not replacing Tony Todd in the role. “I can’t say what’s happening in the film because we want it to be a surprise, but he’s not replacing Tony Todd,” she told Collider.
