Jordan Peele: Nia DaCosta’s Candyman is a beautiful movie

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Jordan Peele has become a major name in the horror genre over the last couple years, writing and directing two original horror films – GET OUT and US – that were so successful and well-received that Peele not only won a Best Screenplay Oscar for GET OUT, he was also given the opportunity to put his own stamp on two iconic genre properties: The Twilight Zone and CANDYMAN. 

Peele co-wrote and produced the upcoming "spirtual sequel" to the 1992 classic CANDYMAN, and some may find it surprising that he didn't choose to direct the film as well. How could he miss the chance to be the director who brings Candyman back to the screen?

Peele explained the decision in an interview with Empire, saying that he passed the helm of CANDYMAN over to Nia DaCosta because

I was working on US when this would have happened. 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."

Written by Peele, DaCosta, and Win Rosenfeld, the new CANDYMAN has the following synopsis: 

Don’t say his name.

For as long as residents can remember, the housing projects of Chicago’s Cabrini Green neighborhood were terrorized by a word-of-mouth ghost story about a supernatural killer with a hook for a hand, easily summoned by those daring to repeat his name five times into a mirror. In present day, a decade after the last of the Cabrini towers were torn down, visual artist Anthony McCoy and his girlfriend, gallery director Brianna Cartwright, move into a luxury loft condo in Cabrini, now gentrified beyond recognition and inhabited by upwardly mobile millennials. With Anthony’s painting career on the brink of stalling, a chance encounter with a Cabrini Green old-timer exposes Anthony to the tragically horrific nature of the true story behind Candyman. Anxious to maintain his status in the Chicago art world, Anthony begins to explore these macabre details in his studio as fresh grist for paintings, unknowingly opening a door to a complex past that unravels his own sanity and unleashes a terrifyingly viral wave of violence that puts him on a collision course with destiny.

Oscar-winner Jordan Peele unleashes a fresh take on the blood-chilling urban legend that your friend’s older sibling probably told you about at a sleepover: Candyman.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Teyonah Parris, Colman Domingo, and Nathan Stewart-Jarrett star in the film, with original CANDYMAN cast member Vanessa Williams returning to reprise the role of Anne-Marie McCoy. Anthony McCoy is believed to be the son of Anne-Marie, the baby from the first film. 

Tony Todd is also expected to appear in the film in some capacity.

Peele and Rosenfeld produced CANDYMAN with Ian Cooper, through Peele's company Monkeypaw Productions. The film is scheduled to reach theatres on September 25th.