The first trailer for Jordan Peele and director Nia DaCosta’s Candyman dropped today following the poster release earlier this week. The film has been described around the web as a “spiritual sequel” to the original 1992 film directed by Bernard Rose, based on a short story by Clive Barker. What’s been unknown so far is whether or not this was a remake, a sequel to the first film, or if it would somehow incorporate the subsequent sequels to the original. In a special press event on the Universal Lot, Peele introduced us to DaCosta and previewed the trailer for what he described as “a reimagining of this story that we’re very excited about.”
Peele described his connection with 1992’s Candyman as “pretty simple.” He explained, “It was one of the few movies that explored any aspect of the black experience in the horror genre in the ‘90s when I was growing up in that moment. And so it was a perfect example, an iconic example to me of representation in this genre, and a movie that inspired me.” He also heaped praise on DaCosta (Little Woods) who he described as “uniquely suited to direct this film.”
When asked about the use of the Destiny’s Child song “Say My Name” in the trailer, and whether or not it was standard to make all ‘90s songs scary now, DaCosta — who said that she quotes Key & Peele constantly to Jordan Peele — joked that the ‘90s were a scary time.
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The original film is set in the Cabrini-Green housing project, which has since been torn down and gentrified. DaCosta mentioned an Arclight movie theater that is right down the street now. She said, “Gentrification is what helped us reimagine the story because Cabrini-Green is gone. The movie from the ‘90s has a vision of Cabrini-Green where it’s sort of on its way to being knocked down, so going back there and seeing what’s happened around that area…what we do in our film is talk about the ghosts that are left behind.”
Jordan Peele’s horror work is known for tackling social issues, and DaCosta said that was helpful. “That was already something I knew was going to happen, but the original Candyman also does that really well. What we were able to do because 30 years has passed, and because there has been so much change in the neighborhood…was dig into the themes that were already there.”
She mentioned that the original film touched on the new building that was happening in Cabrini-Green at the time and “the way the buildings were built and the way that projects are built, and [Candyman] moving between mirrors and apartments, and how crime was able to happen because of how poorly these buildings were made versus the high-rises that they made for the middle class.”
DaCosta emphasized the “fun” of the original film as well. “That was a huge part of what we wanted to bring back. We wanted to talk about these things, but it is a horror film after all,” she said. “We want to do what the original film did; be audacious, be fun, but also be meaningful.”
Wondering about the gore level? DaCosta said she is a big fan of gore, and that while Peele does more with not showing everything, she said, “My instinct is to do the exact opposite.” She said the film contains “a good amount of things you just don’t want to see.”
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DaCosta also told us that she grew up across the street from the projects and that she remembers feeling like Candyman was real. She even said she said his name in the bathroom mirror of her middle school. She said she wanted to bring back the idea “that he is omnipresent in the neighborhood and can haunt [that] neighborhood.
In addition, she said that original Candyman Tony Todd “was huge for us to have, a black antihero villain, just a black person [who] at least made it to the end of the film.” So, will Todd be in the film? “Well, well, well,” DaCosta said to laughter from the audience. “I really love Tony Todd. He’s iconic. I will say, what we do in this film is…” she was about to say more, but stopped and said, “What we do in this film is great, Jordan is great, and I don’t want to give anything away.” Sounds like there may be hope.
Candyman will hit theaters on June 12, 2020.
Source: IGN.com Candyman Director Says Gentrification Helped Reimagine New Movie