1 00:00:06,353 --> 00:00:08,094 [eerie ambient music] 2 00:00:08,138 --> 00:00:10,227 - "The Forbidden," Clive's story, 3 00:00:10,270 --> 00:00:11,358 in the "Books of Blood," 4 00:00:11,402 --> 00:00:12,968 I read that and I liked that. 5 00:00:13,012 --> 00:00:14,274 And that struck me as something 6 00:00:14,318 --> 00:00:16,537 that was worth making a movie about. 7 00:00:16,581 --> 00:00:17,799 So I called Clive 8 00:00:17,843 --> 00:00:20,280 and asked him if I could borrow the rights. 9 00:00:20,324 --> 00:00:23,805 Clive's original conception of Candyman, 10 00:00:23,849 --> 00:00:26,069 he was not an African American man. 11 00:00:26,112 --> 00:00:27,722 He was not. 12 00:00:27,766 --> 00:00:29,724 - The vision of the monster in "The Forbidden" 13 00:00:29,768 --> 00:00:31,770 was completely different from what we came up with. 14 00:00:31,813 --> 00:00:33,902 He had long, long arms. 15 00:00:33,946 --> 00:00:34,816 He was hairy. 16 00:00:34,860 --> 00:00:36,122 He had broken fingernails. 17 00:00:36,166 --> 00:00:38,081 One eyeball was hanging out. 18 00:00:38,124 --> 00:00:41,432 And Bernard wanted to turn it around and say, 19 00:00:41,475 --> 00:00:43,260 what if the monster 20 00:00:43,303 --> 00:00:46,001 that is frightening everybody is a normal looking Black man? 21 00:00:47,873 --> 00:00:49,396 We're a different kind of monster. 22 00:00:49,440 --> 00:00:52,747 It's not just a monster terrorizing the suburb 23 00:00:52,791 --> 00:00:56,229 and some unexplainable, unshapeable monstrosity 24 00:00:56,273 --> 00:00:57,839 that's haunting your nightmares. 25 00:00:57,883 --> 00:01:00,277 This is the monster you created. 26 00:01:00,320 --> 00:01:03,541 [eerie orchestral music] 27 00:01:14,291 --> 00:01:17,946 [cameras shuttering] 28 00:01:17,990 --> 00:01:19,513 Most people know the story of Candyman. 29 00:01:19,557 --> 00:01:21,472 His father was a famous shoemaker 30 00:01:21,515 --> 00:01:23,604 and he wanted to become an artist. 31 00:01:23,648 --> 00:01:25,998 And then because of that turn of the century racism, 32 00:01:27,739 --> 00:01:30,437 he was chased down, covered with honey, 33 00:01:30,481 --> 00:01:31,482 had his hands cut off, 34 00:01:33,179 --> 00:01:35,355 lynched his artistic hand, his right hand. 35 00:01:36,835 --> 00:01:40,447 - Clive's original conception of Candyman, 36 00:01:40,491 --> 00:01:42,014 I mean, I don't know if he was influenced by this, 37 00:01:42,057 --> 00:01:44,147 but to me, I always imagined him. 38 00:01:44,190 --> 00:01:45,800 I don't know if you know a German book 39 00:01:45,844 --> 00:01:47,280 called "Struwwelpeter." 40 00:01:47,324 --> 00:01:48,890 There's some very frightening characters in it. 41 00:01:48,934 --> 00:01:51,197 There's also the long legged scissor man 42 00:01:51,241 --> 00:01:54,157 who comes and chops off the thumbs of children 43 00:01:54,200 --> 00:01:55,810 who suck their thumbs. 44 00:01:55,854 --> 00:01:58,552 So I kind of imagined a bit from the description in the book 45 00:01:58,596 --> 00:02:00,250 that Candyman looked like Struwwelpeter. 46 00:02:02,121 --> 00:02:03,340 - [Nia] I think what's scary about it 47 00:02:03,383 --> 00:02:05,907 is that you bring it on yourself. 48 00:02:05,951 --> 00:02:08,301 Candyman, like you choose him. 49 00:02:08,345 --> 00:02:10,347 Like he says it throughout the entire first film. 50 00:02:10,390 --> 00:02:11,522 - Be my victim. 51 00:02:13,263 --> 00:02:15,526 - And I think that like Freudian instinct 52 00:02:15,569 --> 00:02:17,223 of self-destruction, I think, 53 00:02:17,267 --> 00:02:18,877 is really terrifying to people. 54 00:02:18,920 --> 00:02:22,185 - He's almost more like a vampire than he is a monster. 55 00:02:22,228 --> 00:02:25,057 And you have to sort of look at the deformity, 56 00:02:25,100 --> 00:02:27,233 and a bloody hook, and all that 57 00:02:27,277 --> 00:02:28,756 before you start to think, oh yeah, 58 00:02:28,800 --> 00:02:31,237 this guy is actually monstrous. 59 00:02:31,281 --> 00:02:34,327 - I mean, I almost don't even think in terms of "Candyman" 60 00:02:34,371 --> 00:02:35,502 as a slasher in a sense. 61 00:02:35,546 --> 00:02:37,200 It's more of a monster movie. 62 00:02:37,243 --> 00:02:38,505 It just feels, 63 00:02:38,549 --> 00:02:39,376 you know, even though he has the hook 64 00:02:39,419 --> 00:02:41,204 and he kills people with it, 65 00:02:41,247 --> 00:02:44,076 there's such a dense, interesting backstory to him. 66 00:02:44,119 --> 00:02:47,035 And the way he's dealt with in the first film at least 67 00:02:47,079 --> 00:02:50,038 that I think separates him from the slasher characters. 68 00:02:50,082 --> 00:02:52,737 - I'm scared, scared for my child. 69 00:02:56,306 --> 00:02:57,568 That he never going to catch him. 70 00:02:58,917 --> 00:02:59,613 - Who? 71 00:03:01,267 --> 00:03:02,790 - Candyman. 72 00:03:02,834 --> 00:03:06,359 - It was possibly one of the finest decisions 73 00:03:06,403 --> 00:03:07,882 in horror history 74 00:03:07,926 --> 00:03:10,363 that Bernard Rose had zero interest 75 00:03:10,407 --> 00:03:14,062 in presenting Candyman as depicted in the novella. 76 00:03:14,106 --> 00:03:16,891 I sometimes try to imagine what Candyman would be like 77 00:03:16,935 --> 00:03:20,808 if they'd cast an actor as described in the novella. 78 00:03:20,852 --> 00:03:24,595 And I doubt we'd be talking about him today. 79 00:03:24,638 --> 00:03:27,902 - He was really a revelation 80 00:03:27,946 --> 00:03:31,558 in terms of the portrayal of Black characters at that time. 81 00:03:31,602 --> 00:03:33,299 - Good. 82 00:03:33,343 --> 00:03:36,302 Because you got to rob to get rich in the Reagan era. 83 00:03:36,346 --> 00:03:39,087 - You know, a lot of it tended to be 84 00:03:39,131 --> 00:03:42,569 inner city hood characters. 85 00:03:42,613 --> 00:03:44,397 - Don't you ever pull a gun on me again in your life. 86 00:03:44,441 --> 00:03:46,573 - I hope I won't have to. 87 00:03:46,617 --> 00:03:49,184 - Yeah, we all go down if you do 'cause we all crew. 88 00:03:49,228 --> 00:03:52,840 - So to have this articulate artist, 89 00:03:52,884 --> 00:03:54,451 I think Tony Todd came through 90 00:03:54,494 --> 00:03:56,801 and presented that as a character 91 00:03:56,844 --> 00:03:58,933 that you could really relate to, 92 00:03:58,977 --> 00:04:01,109 regardless of your race. 93 00:04:01,153 --> 00:04:03,677 - You go through the history of horror monsters. 94 00:04:03,721 --> 00:04:06,419 There really aren't a lot of Black horror monsters 95 00:04:06,463 --> 00:04:07,768 and that's fine. 96 00:04:07,812 --> 00:04:09,292 It's not like people are sitting around saying, 97 00:04:09,335 --> 00:04:11,424 God, I wish we'd have more Black villains in movies. 98 00:04:11,468 --> 00:04:12,599 No one's saying that. 99 00:04:12,643 --> 00:04:14,209 But at the same time, 100 00:04:14,253 --> 00:04:18,953 Candyman works because Candyman has a reason for existing. 101 00:04:18,997 --> 00:04:23,654 Candyman has been put on a path outside of his own making. 102 00:04:25,090 --> 00:04:27,266 - Candyman was stung to death by the bees. 103 00:04:29,834 --> 00:04:32,619 They burned his body on a giant pyre 104 00:04:32,663 --> 00:04:35,883 and then scattered his ashes over Cabrini-Green. 105 00:04:35,927 --> 00:04:37,972 - You understand why he's upset. 106 00:04:38,016 --> 00:04:40,323 You understand his pain 107 00:04:40,366 --> 00:04:42,063 and you empathize with him in a lot of ways, 108 00:04:42,107 --> 00:04:43,978 even though he is going around killing people 109 00:04:44,022 --> 00:04:45,110 in Cabrini-Green. 110 00:04:46,851 --> 00:04:49,897 It's unlike any other character because of that. 111 00:04:54,380 --> 00:04:57,818 - I was talking to some people who lived in Cabrini 112 00:04:57,862 --> 00:05:02,519 and they all volunteered for me the story of Bloody Mary. 113 00:05:03,215 --> 00:05:04,216 And so I said, 114 00:05:04,259 --> 00:05:06,523 well, you have to call Candyman 115 00:05:06,566 --> 00:05:07,828 like Bloody Mary in the mirror. 116 00:05:07,872 --> 00:05:12,311 - Candyman, Candyman, Candyman, Candyman. 117 00:05:13,704 --> 00:05:15,183 - It was 13 times in the original 118 00:05:15,227 --> 00:05:18,012 and they start reading Candyman, Candyman, Candyman. 119 00:05:18,056 --> 00:05:19,405 So everyone's falling asleep. 120 00:05:19,449 --> 00:05:22,016 I'll make it five and that was it. 121 00:05:22,060 --> 00:05:22,930 - Candyman. 122 00:05:25,237 --> 00:05:25,977 You chicken! 123 00:05:27,413 --> 00:05:28,936 - I love that the original "Candyman" 124 00:05:28,980 --> 00:05:33,724 uses urban legend and fear of the other. 125 00:05:35,160 --> 00:05:36,814 - We've got a real shot here, Bernadette. 126 00:05:38,250 --> 00:05:40,208 An entire community starts attributing 127 00:05:40,252 --> 00:05:43,864 the daily horrors of their lives to a mythical figure. 128 00:05:43,908 --> 00:05:46,345 - Helen Lyle fucked around and found out basically. 129 00:05:47,825 --> 00:05:48,956 - [Female Speaker] If you look in the mirror 130 00:05:49,000 --> 00:05:50,523 and say his name five times, 131 00:05:50,567 --> 00:05:52,743 he'll appear behind you breathing down your neck. 132 00:05:54,571 --> 00:05:57,312 - I love the idea of a monster who emerges 133 00:05:57,356 --> 00:05:59,706 in order to assert his own identity 134 00:05:59,750 --> 00:06:03,101 and to keep himself in the thought processes 135 00:06:03,144 --> 00:06:05,059 of the people in Cabrini-Green. 136 00:06:05,103 --> 00:06:07,105 - [Candyman] Your disbelief destroyed the faith 137 00:06:07,148 --> 00:06:08,367 in my congregation. 138 00:06:09,368 --> 00:06:11,936 Without them, I am nothing. 139 00:06:11,979 --> 00:06:13,981 So I was obliged to come. 140 00:06:15,156 --> 00:06:17,898 And now, I must kill you. 141 00:06:17,942 --> 00:06:20,901 - Even during the kill scenes, we feel his pain. 142 00:06:20,945 --> 00:06:22,947 And it's all sold through his eyes. 143 00:06:22,990 --> 00:06:25,602 We feel his soul in that movie. 144 00:06:25,645 --> 00:06:28,431 We feel how he got to that point, 145 00:06:28,474 --> 00:06:31,259 how he became the urban legend of Candyman. 146 00:06:31,303 --> 00:06:34,654 - He needs to kill to maintain his legacy 147 00:06:34,698 --> 00:06:38,571 and to keep his spiritual being, his essence. 148 00:06:38,615 --> 00:06:42,488 - [Candyman] Our names be written on 1,000 walls, 149 00:06:42,532 --> 00:06:47,232 our crimes told and retold by our faithful believers. 150 00:06:48,625 --> 00:06:50,322 - It kind of lends into the whole tradition 151 00:06:50,365 --> 00:06:52,629 of African oral storytelling. 152 00:06:52,672 --> 00:06:54,805 The masters didn't allow their slaves 153 00:06:54,848 --> 00:06:56,371 to learn how to read or write 154 00:06:56,415 --> 00:06:59,113 for fear of they would organize and rebel. 155 00:06:59,157 --> 00:07:02,987 So traditions were passed on by oral means. 156 00:07:03,030 --> 00:07:05,642 And so I think this kind of feeds into that sort of thing 157 00:07:05,685 --> 00:07:08,514 where the power of oral stories 158 00:07:08,558 --> 00:07:11,038 get passed down from generation to generation. 159 00:07:11,082 --> 00:07:13,127 - I do remember I was in fifth grade 160 00:07:13,171 --> 00:07:15,956 when I heard about Candyman for the first time. 161 00:07:16,000 --> 00:07:18,481 That's where I was dared to say his name in the mirror. 162 00:07:19,569 --> 00:07:21,614 I never did 'cause that's crazy. 163 00:07:21,658 --> 00:07:22,789 - Candyman. 164 00:07:22,833 --> 00:07:24,225 [glass breaking] 165 00:07:24,269 --> 00:07:25,531 [laughing] 166 00:07:25,575 --> 00:07:26,532 - There's this challenge going on 167 00:07:26,576 --> 00:07:28,012 called the Candyman challenge. 168 00:07:28,055 --> 00:07:29,796 You go to in front of your mirror 169 00:07:29,840 --> 00:07:32,407 and you say Candyman five times over and over. 170 00:07:32,451 --> 00:07:34,322 - Don't be freaking scared, don't be scared. 171 00:07:34,366 --> 00:07:35,541 - Okay. - Don't be scared. 172 00:07:35,585 --> 00:07:38,631 - Candyman, Candyman. 173 00:07:38,675 --> 00:07:40,503 - Candyman, Candyman. 174 00:07:40,546 --> 00:07:41,416 - Candyman. 175 00:07:42,461 --> 00:07:44,158 - Oh no! 176 00:07:44,202 --> 00:07:46,857 - Folklore is an outlet for connecting with other people. 177 00:07:46,900 --> 00:07:48,641 It's really about preserving culture, 178 00:07:48,685 --> 00:07:49,903 about creating our own culture 179 00:07:49,947 --> 00:07:51,818 from what's kind of come before. 180 00:07:51,862 --> 00:07:54,038 And I think Candyman is definitely a part of that. 181 00:07:54,081 --> 00:07:55,518 - What if we go missing 182 00:07:55,561 --> 00:07:57,476 and they play this on the news the next day? 183 00:07:59,565 --> 00:08:00,827 - Candyman is iconic 184 00:08:00,871 --> 00:08:04,048 because of the very real dare system 185 00:08:04,091 --> 00:08:07,268 that happens in a group of friends. 186 00:08:07,312 --> 00:08:08,269 - What? 187 00:08:08,313 --> 00:08:09,053 - There's somebody in there. 188 00:08:09,096 --> 00:08:09,880 I saw a light go on. 189 00:08:09,923 --> 00:08:11,055 - There's nobody there. 190 00:08:12,143 --> 00:08:13,013 - Psych. 191 00:08:13,057 --> 00:08:13,840 - That's not funny. 192 00:08:13,884 --> 00:08:15,233 That was not funny. 193 00:08:15,276 --> 00:08:16,713 - I was totally scared of Candyman 194 00:08:16,756 --> 00:08:18,192 and my brother knew that. 195 00:08:18,236 --> 00:08:21,021 And he used to shove me in the bathroom, 196 00:08:21,065 --> 00:08:22,675 say Candyman five times, 197 00:08:22,719 --> 00:08:24,721 turn off the lights, and then hold the door closed. 198 00:08:24,764 --> 00:08:28,376 Candyman was definitely one of the scariest villains to me, 199 00:08:28,420 --> 00:08:30,683 and one of the most interesting, and one of the most sad. 200 00:08:30,727 --> 00:08:34,861 - Candyman is like this entity who comes for you, 201 00:08:34,905 --> 00:08:36,559 but he looks like you. 202 00:08:36,602 --> 00:08:38,865 He looks like a member of your community, 203 00:08:38,909 --> 00:08:42,782 but he's just kind of different and warped. 204 00:08:44,349 --> 00:08:46,307 - Just trying to understand a full story 205 00:08:46,351 --> 00:08:48,048 because we're a different kind of monster. 206 00:08:48,092 --> 00:08:51,399 It's not just a monster terrorizing the suburb 207 00:08:51,443 --> 00:08:55,621 and some unexplainable, unshapeable monstrosity 208 00:08:55,665 --> 00:08:57,144 that's haunting your nightmares. 209 00:08:57,188 --> 00:08:59,625 This is a person that you created. 210 00:08:59,669 --> 00:09:04,238 This is the monster that is not self-made, okay? 211 00:09:04,282 --> 00:09:06,980 He's a Frankenstein turned upside down 212 00:09:07,024 --> 00:09:08,852 'cause he's created by society. 213 00:09:11,158 --> 00:09:12,986 - Anyone who conjures Candyman 214 00:09:13,030 --> 00:09:14,597 has to suffer the consequences. 215 00:09:14,640 --> 00:09:17,948 And it's kind of a good allegory for the legacy of racism. 216 00:09:17,991 --> 00:09:21,778 Anyone today who lives in a society 217 00:09:21,821 --> 00:09:23,606 that's founded on social inequality, 218 00:09:23,649 --> 00:09:26,391 racial inequality will deal with the consequences. 219 00:09:27,348 --> 00:09:29,655 - Candyman also like, 220 00:09:29,699 --> 00:09:34,399 it's an incantation that brings this force into your life. 221 00:09:35,792 --> 00:09:37,010 And think about what kinds of things 222 00:09:37,054 --> 00:09:39,622 that we bring into our lives as a society. 223 00:09:39,665 --> 00:09:42,755 Like we're in this horrible divisive place 224 00:09:42,799 --> 00:09:44,931 and how much of that do we have a hand in? 225 00:09:44,975 --> 00:09:48,631 - Sometimes, we turn icons into what they are 226 00:09:48,674 --> 00:09:50,937 because we identify with them in some way 227 00:09:50,981 --> 00:09:54,158 or we identify with the phobia that they might represent. 228 00:09:54,201 --> 00:09:55,942 And usually, they reflect something 229 00:09:55,986 --> 00:09:57,988 that's going on in society at the time. 230 00:09:58,031 --> 00:09:59,467 There's some kind of moral panic 231 00:09:59,511 --> 00:10:01,992 that might be reflected in those movies. 232 00:10:02,035 --> 00:10:06,126 - "Candyman" also represents the angry Black man stereotype, 233 00:10:06,170 --> 00:10:10,696 the stereotype of a Black person who is not contained 234 00:10:10,740 --> 00:10:14,004 or controlled by fear or shame. 235 00:10:15,353 --> 00:10:17,877 And he's angry for a good reason. 236 00:10:17,921 --> 00:10:19,836 And I think that's true of a lot of people 237 00:10:19,879 --> 00:10:23,013 who are labeled with that angry Black man stereotype. 238 00:10:25,363 --> 00:10:29,367 We're mad, not because we're naturally mad. 239 00:10:29,410 --> 00:10:34,067 We're mad because we are subjected to real horror every day, 240 00:10:35,199 --> 00:10:36,983 real menace and real fear. 241 00:10:37,027 --> 00:10:40,247 And that's why Candyman is both a monster 242 00:10:40,291 --> 00:10:43,033 and a heroic figure to a lot of people. 243 00:10:44,556 --> 00:10:48,821 - So the monster isn't just Candyman. 244 00:10:48,865 --> 00:10:52,912 The monster in Candyman is the so-called urban jungle. 245 00:10:52,956 --> 00:10:55,915 The monster is Black masculinity 246 00:10:55,959 --> 00:10:58,004 because it's not just Candyman who's scary. 247 00:10:58,048 --> 00:11:01,094 All these Black dudes are scary. 248 00:11:01,138 --> 00:11:03,314 - I hear you're looking for Candyman, bitch. 249 00:11:05,751 --> 00:11:06,752 Well, you found him. 250 00:11:06,796 --> 00:11:08,406 - I find Daniel Robitaille 251 00:11:08,449 --> 00:11:10,408 one of the most fascinating people 252 00:11:10,451 --> 00:11:11,931 I've ever spent time with. 253 00:11:11,975 --> 00:11:13,716 He was more like a Phantom of the Opera 254 00:11:13,759 --> 00:11:16,066 than a beast in the woods. 255 00:11:17,807 --> 00:11:19,286 - The shine of his shoes, 256 00:11:19,330 --> 00:11:21,724 that incredible costuming he has. 257 00:11:21,767 --> 00:11:22,768 He's gorgeous. 258 00:11:22,812 --> 00:11:24,117 You know, that's the bottom line. 259 00:11:24,161 --> 00:11:26,598 Your first reaction is you're kind of entranced 260 00:11:26,641 --> 00:11:28,034 along with Helen. 261 00:11:28,078 --> 00:11:31,211 He is a very unique monster in that way. 262 00:11:31,255 --> 00:11:34,214 - He's wearing dress shoes, and a long coat, 263 00:11:34,258 --> 00:11:37,478 and a scarf and he's elegant. 264 00:11:37,522 --> 00:11:38,784 That's the whole point about him. 265 00:11:38,828 --> 00:11:40,438 - I would love to have that coat. 266 00:11:40,481 --> 00:11:41,787 I think that's a beautiful coat 267 00:11:41,831 --> 00:11:45,878 and Candyman is the most stylish horror monster, 268 00:11:45,922 --> 00:11:47,575 in my opinion. 269 00:11:47,619 --> 00:11:49,969 I don't think Candyman would work if he was bad dresser. 270 00:11:50,013 --> 00:11:52,406 I think he had to look cool. 271 00:11:52,450 --> 00:11:55,583 And of course, there's tons of stereotypes 272 00:11:55,627 --> 00:11:56,976 about Black people being good dressers. 273 00:11:57,020 --> 00:11:58,891 And that's one I don't mind. 274 00:11:58,935 --> 00:12:01,589 - He is charming, he is handsome. 275 00:12:01,633 --> 00:12:05,637 - [Candyman] Helen, you came to me. 276 00:12:05,680 --> 00:12:07,595 - He is debonair, he's classy. 277 00:12:07,639 --> 00:12:09,249 And at the same time, 278 00:12:09,293 --> 00:12:11,469 he looks like he is going to mess you up if need be. 279 00:12:11,512 --> 00:12:14,689 And they were so smart to not do anything to his face, 280 00:12:14,733 --> 00:12:16,430 which is what we did in the 1980s. 281 00:12:16,474 --> 00:12:18,345 We'll put a mask on that, we'll put a scar here. 282 00:12:18,389 --> 00:12:20,695 No, no, we're going to make you look all burned and messed up. 283 00:12:20,739 --> 00:12:22,262 - Candyman did not wear a mask 284 00:12:22,306 --> 00:12:23,829 and did not wear a prosthetic makeup. 285 00:12:23,873 --> 00:12:25,918 Tony Todd has such a striking face. 286 00:12:25,962 --> 00:12:27,615 It's in the eyes too. 287 00:12:27,659 --> 00:12:29,269 It's interesting, 288 00:12:29,313 --> 00:12:32,098 he looks like this handsome, tall kind of powerful person. 289 00:12:32,142 --> 00:12:34,013 So I think that that all kind of comes together 290 00:12:34,057 --> 00:12:35,623 and makes Candyman special. 291 00:12:35,667 --> 00:12:37,451 - Tony Todd kind of proved 292 00:12:37,495 --> 00:12:39,192 that you don't need the layers of makeup. 293 00:12:39,236 --> 00:12:40,541 You don't need any of that. 294 00:12:40,585 --> 00:12:42,630 What you need is someone who is intense, 295 00:12:42,674 --> 00:12:43,849 and who can deliver, 296 00:12:43,893 --> 00:12:45,808 and who can engage your audience. 297 00:12:47,418 --> 00:12:48,680 - There's a bunch of storyboards 298 00:12:48,723 --> 00:12:50,813 that I drew before I cast Tony. 299 00:12:50,856 --> 00:12:54,468 And Tony does look like the drawings before I cast him. 300 00:12:54,512 --> 00:12:56,993 It was just like this guy, he's got it all. 301 00:12:57,036 --> 00:12:58,646 He's got the elegance. 302 00:12:58,690 --> 00:13:00,866 He could be intimidating and he could be ruthless, 303 00:13:00,910 --> 00:13:03,129 but that wasn't what you took from him. 304 00:13:03,173 --> 00:13:05,958 - Your death will be a tale to frightened children 305 00:13:06,002 --> 00:13:08,526 to make lovers come closer in their rapture. 306 00:13:09,875 --> 00:13:11,703 - I think that the idea 307 00:13:11,746 --> 00:13:16,316 that he was this tragic person would have been enough, 308 00:13:16,360 --> 00:13:19,145 but he didn't play Candyman as like an angry avenge person. 309 00:13:19,189 --> 00:13:20,843 He played it as somebody 310 00:13:20,886 --> 00:13:23,976 who you could just tell felt sorrow for what he was doing. 311 00:13:24,020 --> 00:13:26,849 There were so many levels to Tony Todd's performance. 312 00:13:26,892 --> 00:13:30,200 [screaming] [eerie ambient music] 313 00:13:30,243 --> 00:13:31,984 - Anybody can wield a weapon 314 00:13:32,028 --> 00:13:33,986 and anyone can use it to hurt someone. 315 00:13:34,030 --> 00:13:38,817 The power is the way Candyman presents himself. 316 00:13:40,906 --> 00:13:43,866 I am scared of him in the way he says Helen's name. 317 00:13:43,909 --> 00:13:45,258 - [Candyman] Helen. 318 00:13:47,434 --> 00:13:49,175 - I just need to hear him talk, 319 00:13:49,219 --> 00:13:52,352 I need to hear the grumble of his voice, 320 00:13:52,396 --> 00:13:54,398 and I'm already chilled. 321 00:13:54,441 --> 00:13:55,878 - He's written very poetically. 322 00:13:55,921 --> 00:13:58,402 I knew his voice was deeper than my normal voice, 323 00:13:58,445 --> 00:13:59,925 so we worked on that. 324 00:13:59,969 --> 00:14:02,885 Like Helen, Helen, Helen. 325 00:14:02,928 --> 00:14:07,715 Helen, I came for you. 326 00:14:07,759 --> 00:14:10,675 [lightning striking] 327 00:14:14,418 --> 00:14:17,900 Everything that he says has a weight to it. 328 00:14:17,943 --> 00:14:19,292 You know? 329 00:14:19,336 --> 00:14:21,729 And it's not just in the sentences and each word, 330 00:14:21,773 --> 00:14:23,122 you know? 331 00:14:23,166 --> 00:14:24,515 As opposed to me, I'm more of a saxophone. 332 00:14:26,256 --> 00:14:28,693 Daniel was like a cello. 333 00:14:33,698 --> 00:14:34,438 Helen. 334 00:14:37,180 --> 00:14:39,834 The most important thing was his stance. 335 00:14:43,621 --> 00:14:46,276 The way he moves, takes his time, there's no rush. 336 00:14:47,277 --> 00:14:49,235 He never chases anybody 337 00:14:49,279 --> 00:14:52,978 and he calls to people that he wants into his realm. 338 00:14:53,022 --> 00:14:55,024 Come with me and be immortal. 339 00:14:56,634 --> 00:15:00,507 - He is a terrifying figure because of his size, 340 00:15:02,683 --> 00:15:04,076 because of his voice. 341 00:15:04,120 --> 00:15:06,122 - You're mine now. 342 00:15:06,165 --> 00:15:08,167 - Because of the hook, and the coat, 343 00:15:08,211 --> 00:15:09,516 and the bees coming out of him. 344 00:15:09,560 --> 00:15:11,692 But he also has a nobility. 345 00:15:11,736 --> 00:15:13,607 - He leaves an impression on you, you know? 346 00:15:13,651 --> 00:15:16,784 And he has a sort of dignity to him as well. 347 00:15:16,828 --> 00:15:18,699 He didn't feel like grotesque 348 00:15:18,743 --> 00:15:21,876 in the way that Freddy or Jason 349 00:15:21,920 --> 00:15:23,617 or Mike Myers felt grotesque. 350 00:15:23,661 --> 00:15:24,836 It's weird. 351 00:15:24,879 --> 00:15:27,099 Like Candyman wasn't really a monster 352 00:15:27,143 --> 00:15:29,972 so much as like a guy who had a hook for a hand 353 00:15:30,015 --> 00:15:33,105 who had a history of pain that we all understood. 354 00:15:33,149 --> 00:15:34,628 So I think he was like unique in that way as well 355 00:15:34,672 --> 00:15:36,979 from the other villains that I grew up with. 356 00:15:37,022 --> 00:15:39,024 - I've spoken to Tony Todd about the fact 357 00:15:39,068 --> 00:15:40,678 that Black people who saw it as kids 358 00:15:40,721 --> 00:15:42,810 will come up to him and say, 359 00:15:42,854 --> 00:15:46,118 you were such a hero to them as an antihero. 360 00:15:46,162 --> 00:15:49,861 - I can't say nothing or Candyman will get me. 361 00:15:49,904 --> 00:15:52,646 - Not because he was nice necessarily 362 00:15:52,690 --> 00:15:54,648 to any of the Black residents there, 363 00:15:54,692 --> 00:15:56,650 but because he had so much power. 364 00:15:56,694 --> 00:15:58,565 He was a powerful figure 365 00:15:58,609 --> 00:16:00,741 and these were kids who were craving power. 366 00:16:00,785 --> 00:16:03,701 So when you don't really have much to choose from, 367 00:16:03,744 --> 00:16:06,660 you'll take power in whatever form you can find it. 368 00:16:06,704 --> 00:16:08,706 - I was in college when I saw Candyman 369 00:16:08,749 --> 00:16:10,316 and I was studying theater, 370 00:16:10,360 --> 00:16:11,665 so acting, you know, 371 00:16:11,709 --> 00:16:13,232 I wanted to be the first biracial 372 00:16:13,276 --> 00:16:15,539 Teen Beat magazine centerfold. 373 00:16:15,582 --> 00:16:17,889 It was this kind of forbidden interracial love story. 374 00:16:17,932 --> 00:16:19,891 As somebody who's biracial myself, 375 00:16:19,934 --> 00:16:21,414 that just really resonated with me. 376 00:16:22,720 --> 00:16:23,895 - There was almost something 377 00:16:23,938 --> 00:16:26,028 very Dracula-esque about Candyman 378 00:16:26,071 --> 00:16:27,507 where it was the long lost love, 379 00:16:27,551 --> 00:16:30,075 but there was all of these great things 380 00:16:30,119 --> 00:16:32,512 that were kind of coming together in that. 381 00:16:32,556 --> 00:16:35,080 - There's so many different themes going on 382 00:16:35,124 --> 00:16:36,081 within "Candyman." 383 00:16:36,125 --> 00:16:37,604 You have the slavery aspect 384 00:16:37,648 --> 00:16:39,780 where you have like horrible American culture, 385 00:16:39,824 --> 00:16:41,739 but you also have like interracial love. 386 00:16:43,654 --> 00:16:45,395 - I always like to shoot without rehearsal 387 00:16:45,438 --> 00:16:47,440 because you can always do it again. 388 00:16:47,484 --> 00:16:49,703 The first time is usually the best time. 389 00:16:49,747 --> 00:16:52,880 First scene I shot with Tony was the scene in the car park 390 00:16:52,924 --> 00:16:54,360 where we first meet him. 391 00:16:54,404 --> 00:16:56,580 Tony walks in, but he just had something, 392 00:16:56,623 --> 00:16:59,104 and I think it was the way that he walked towards Virginia. 393 00:16:59,148 --> 00:17:01,237 You just felt that he was in love. 394 00:17:02,629 --> 00:17:05,284 It wasn't just about killing or this, 395 00:17:05,328 --> 00:17:07,895 or some story, or some fantasy. 396 00:17:07,939 --> 00:17:11,247 It was romantic. 397 00:17:11,290 --> 00:17:12,770 - We were like, this is a romance. 398 00:17:14,163 --> 00:17:15,947 And the things that he says to her, 399 00:17:15,990 --> 00:17:18,558 even be my victim 400 00:17:18,602 --> 00:17:22,780 and what is blood if not for shedding, 401 00:17:22,823 --> 00:17:26,958 and you know, how glorious it will be, 402 00:17:28,002 --> 00:17:32,659 which it's so dark, 403 00:17:32,703 --> 00:17:37,447 but he means it with this great amount of love. 404 00:17:38,448 --> 00:17:39,449 - We did horseback riding, 405 00:17:39,492 --> 00:17:40,754 we did fencing together, 406 00:17:40,798 --> 00:17:42,408 we did ballroom dancing. 407 00:17:42,452 --> 00:17:43,801 We did that for two or three weeks 408 00:17:43,844 --> 00:17:45,237 before the actual production started 409 00:17:45,281 --> 00:17:49,589 so we had that sort of romantic vibe going in. 410 00:17:49,633 --> 00:17:51,722 - Tony would just glide. 411 00:17:54,638 --> 00:17:56,857 And he was like, I'll just hold you up and do it. 412 00:17:58,642 --> 00:18:02,254 Both of us have this place in our hearts for that sequence. 413 00:18:02,298 --> 00:18:05,779 - We both embraced it because it was like rehearsing 414 00:18:05,823 --> 00:18:07,651 what we were going to be feeling and doing 415 00:18:07,694 --> 00:18:09,000 once the cameras started rolling. 416 00:18:09,043 --> 00:18:10,175 And then we could forget about them. 417 00:18:10,219 --> 00:18:11,611 No offense to camera operators, 418 00:18:11,655 --> 00:18:13,178 but at the end of the day, 419 00:18:13,222 --> 00:18:15,137 when you're on the set, 420 00:18:15,180 --> 00:18:16,834 you want to be as natural as possible. 421 00:18:20,011 --> 00:18:21,143 - So beautiful. 422 00:18:21,186 --> 00:18:22,622 Talk about a score, 423 00:18:22,666 --> 00:18:25,843 a beautiful score that offsets the horror 424 00:18:25,886 --> 00:18:26,974 of what you're seeing. 425 00:18:27,018 --> 00:18:29,281 - Philip Glass. - Unbelievable. 426 00:18:29,325 --> 00:18:32,154 And that absolutely makes Candyman hit different 427 00:18:32,197 --> 00:18:36,723 than any of the other big iconic villains of this era. 428 00:18:36,767 --> 00:18:38,160 - Yeah. 429 00:18:38,203 --> 00:18:39,596 And that's why I enjoyed the kiss with the bees. 430 00:18:43,339 --> 00:18:45,341 - I mean, I had real bees in my mouth. 431 00:18:45,384 --> 00:18:46,994 I worked with over a million bees. 432 00:18:47,038 --> 00:18:48,648 I had a different lawyer at the time 433 00:18:48,692 --> 00:18:51,651 that negotiated $1,000 dollars per sting. 434 00:18:51,695 --> 00:18:54,567 And I think we had 28 over the course of three films. 435 00:18:54,611 --> 00:18:55,916 So that was a nice little perk. 436 00:18:55,960 --> 00:18:58,180 It took a little bit of pain away. 437 00:18:58,223 --> 00:19:00,660 - He's not acting like a man with bees in his mouth. 438 00:19:00,704 --> 00:19:02,662 He's acting like a man who's about to kiss his lover, 439 00:19:02,706 --> 00:19:03,663 you know? 440 00:19:03,707 --> 00:19:05,274 - Allow me at least to kiss. 441 00:19:06,362 --> 00:19:08,190 Just one exquisite kiss. 442 00:19:10,279 --> 00:19:12,019 As soon as I read the first scene, 443 00:19:12,063 --> 00:19:14,544 I asked, we're using practical bees, right? 444 00:19:14,587 --> 00:19:15,675 We're doing practical effects. 445 00:19:15,719 --> 00:19:16,720 And the answer was, yes. 446 00:19:16,763 --> 00:19:18,678 I said, this will be remembered 447 00:19:18,722 --> 00:19:20,419 by anybody that had ever seen it. 448 00:19:20,463 --> 00:19:25,207 [screaming] [bees buzzing] 449 00:19:28,253 --> 00:19:30,690 - I remember seeing "Candyman" in theaters. 450 00:19:30,734 --> 00:19:34,868 Me and two of my friends snuck in to Candyman. 451 00:19:34,912 --> 00:19:37,567 And I was not expecting that. 452 00:19:37,610 --> 00:19:40,570 I was definitely as an adolescent 453 00:19:40,613 --> 00:19:44,051 expecting Mike Myers, Jason, Freddy, 454 00:19:44,095 --> 00:19:46,619 a lot of the other slashers that I had seen at this point. 455 00:19:46,663 --> 00:19:48,708 "Candyman" is nothing like that. 456 00:19:48,752 --> 00:19:50,971 - I was very intrigued by the Candyman's argument 457 00:19:51,015 --> 00:19:52,886 which is that since he exists, 458 00:19:52,930 --> 00:19:54,279 because people believe in him, 459 00:19:54,323 --> 00:19:56,238 if they debunk him, he'll die. 460 00:19:56,281 --> 00:19:59,371 In other words, yes, Virginia, there is a Candyman. 461 00:19:59,415 --> 00:20:01,286 This is a little deeper than your average horror film 462 00:20:01,330 --> 00:20:02,679 and I enjoyed it a little more. 463 00:20:08,772 --> 00:20:10,252 - By the time I was in film school, 464 00:20:10,295 --> 00:20:12,428 that was definitely a conversation starter was like, 465 00:20:12,471 --> 00:20:14,473 Candyman is probably one of the best films of this decade. 466 00:20:14,517 --> 00:20:15,909 And then it would just launch 467 00:20:15,953 --> 00:20:18,390 into like an intellectual conversation. 468 00:20:18,434 --> 00:20:20,131 - I'm a 15-year-old kid going to that 469 00:20:20,174 --> 00:20:21,611 and feeling drawn to him. 470 00:20:21,654 --> 00:20:23,003 - Also keep in mind, 471 00:20:23,047 --> 00:20:25,919 and I always, always tell people this too, 472 00:20:25,963 --> 00:20:28,313 this is when urban films were kind of coming into play. 473 00:20:28,357 --> 00:20:30,794 So I think Candyman came out at a perfect time for that. 474 00:20:30,837 --> 00:20:34,450 We were getting our own horror story with a Black character, 475 00:20:34,493 --> 00:20:35,625 maybe not centralized, 476 00:20:35,668 --> 00:20:37,496 but he was still the person 477 00:20:37,540 --> 00:20:39,629 that drove behinds into seats basically. 478 00:20:39,672 --> 00:20:41,283 - During that period, 479 00:20:41,326 --> 00:20:44,634 I think it just sort of kept bubbling under 480 00:20:44,677 --> 00:20:47,811 in its own peculiar way. 481 00:20:49,378 --> 00:20:50,770 - [Narrator] "Candyman." 482 00:20:50,814 --> 00:20:53,120 - It was because cable was exploding 483 00:20:53,164 --> 00:20:55,993 and cable, the content was there. 484 00:20:56,036 --> 00:20:57,995 So they ran "Candyman." 485 00:20:59,475 --> 00:21:01,128 It was a couple of Christmases after, 486 00:21:01,172 --> 00:21:03,870 I remember I was with my daughter at a mall 487 00:21:03,914 --> 00:21:06,786 and it seemed like every store we went into, 488 00:21:06,830 --> 00:21:09,702 all of a sudden, there were people following us. 489 00:21:09,746 --> 00:21:12,444 And it hadn't happened like that before. 490 00:21:12,488 --> 00:21:14,446 And then by the time we got to another floor, 491 00:21:14,490 --> 00:21:15,882 it was like 50 people. 492 00:21:15,926 --> 00:21:18,450 And my daughter was four at the time 493 00:21:18,494 --> 00:21:20,626 and she was so upset. 494 00:21:20,670 --> 00:21:24,238 She just like dropped her little bag and said, 495 00:21:24,282 --> 00:21:27,807 "That's not Candyman, that's my daddy." 496 00:21:27,851 --> 00:21:28,678 Okay? 497 00:21:28,721 --> 00:21:30,157 - Right after it opened, 498 00:21:30,201 --> 00:21:34,205 this was a big movie and people loved it. 499 00:21:36,207 --> 00:21:38,252 - We had this mega successful movie 500 00:21:38,296 --> 00:21:39,819 with this very cool killer. 501 00:21:39,863 --> 00:21:42,431 - The first one was a big enough hit to greenlight a second. 502 00:21:44,041 --> 00:21:47,305 [eerie orchestral music] 503 00:21:52,092 --> 00:21:53,398 - The second one, 504 00:21:53,442 --> 00:21:54,921 I wanted to make sure that the script 505 00:21:54,965 --> 00:21:57,228 told the backstory of Candyman completely. 506 00:21:57,271 --> 00:21:59,012 That's what I pushed for. 507 00:21:59,056 --> 00:22:01,928 [lightning striking] 508 00:22:04,888 --> 00:22:07,020 - So "Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh" 509 00:22:07,064 --> 00:22:08,848 takes place three years after the original film 510 00:22:08,892 --> 00:22:10,023 and the original murders. 511 00:22:10,067 --> 00:22:11,677 He's down in New Orleans. 512 00:22:11,721 --> 00:22:16,160 A school teacher again is a little bit apprehensive 513 00:22:17,161 --> 00:22:18,510 about who he is and his lore, 514 00:22:18,554 --> 00:22:21,295 but her students are a little bit more fearful. 515 00:22:21,339 --> 00:22:24,037 - That's how he gets you, from the mirror. 516 00:22:24,081 --> 00:22:25,517 - Five times. 517 00:22:25,561 --> 00:22:28,520 You say his name five times, he's supposed to come. 518 00:22:28,564 --> 00:22:31,044 - You guys don't really believe that, do you? 519 00:22:31,088 --> 00:22:33,960 - She calls his name and then chaos erupts from there. 520 00:22:34,004 --> 00:22:38,835 [screaming] [glass shattering] 521 00:22:40,619 --> 00:22:41,751 - As far as Candyman, 522 00:22:41,794 --> 00:22:43,883 it's just like, good, yeah. 523 00:22:43,927 --> 00:22:46,016 Fucking kill everybody for what you went through. 524 00:22:47,104 --> 00:22:49,498 [bees buzzing] 525 00:22:51,108 --> 00:22:52,892 You don't fully side with him, 526 00:22:52,936 --> 00:22:55,242 but you don't want to see him fail either really. 527 00:22:55,286 --> 00:22:57,331 You're in this weird position 528 00:22:57,375 --> 00:23:00,073 throughout at least the first two movies. 529 00:23:00,117 --> 00:23:04,426 [screaming] [eerie orchestral music] 530 00:23:04,469 --> 00:23:05,731 - What's interesting is 531 00:23:05,775 --> 00:23:08,430 sometimes it takes seeing other movies 532 00:23:08,473 --> 00:23:09,909 to know how special something is. 533 00:23:09,953 --> 00:23:14,697 But if you watch Candyman sequels, it's tough. 534 00:23:15,480 --> 00:23:17,090 - If anything, 535 00:23:17,134 --> 00:23:19,179 the sequels are detrimental to the legacy of Candyman. 536 00:23:20,833 --> 00:23:23,575 - Unfortunately, by the time you get to the sequels, 537 00:23:23,619 --> 00:23:26,099 they're really starting to sink under the weight 538 00:23:26,143 --> 00:23:28,450 of all of the issues 539 00:23:28,493 --> 00:23:31,931 that to some people weren't as apparent in the original 540 00:23:31,975 --> 00:23:36,501 because the original was so fresh, so exciting, so scary. 541 00:23:36,545 --> 00:23:38,634 The imagery, the art, the murals, 542 00:23:38,677 --> 00:23:42,942 and then Candyman too is trying to sort of take that baton 543 00:23:42,986 --> 00:23:44,204 and run with it. 544 00:23:44,248 --> 00:23:46,119 But it really did start to become 545 00:23:46,163 --> 00:23:49,296 more about Black men as jump scares, right? 546 00:23:49,340 --> 00:23:52,343 [lightning striking] [screaming] 547 00:23:52,386 --> 00:23:54,650 And so like every Black person 548 00:23:54,693 --> 00:23:56,869 is potentially going to hurt you. 549 00:23:56,913 --> 00:23:59,045 And that's not a good look. 550 00:24:00,873 --> 00:24:02,179 - It's set in New Orleans. 551 00:24:02,222 --> 00:24:04,311 There are a bunch of Black characters. 552 00:24:04,355 --> 00:24:06,531 But still, it's about like him and a white woman, you know? 553 00:24:06,575 --> 00:24:08,838 - You cannot change who you are. 554 00:24:10,666 --> 00:24:12,494 - Like he's still chasing after these white ladies. 555 00:24:12,537 --> 00:24:14,408 And I think a similar thing happened in the third film. 556 00:24:14,452 --> 00:24:16,802 - [Narrator] "Candyman: Day of the Dead." 557 00:24:16,846 --> 00:24:18,151 - [Female Speaker] Help me. 558 00:24:18,195 --> 00:24:19,501 - The third one was more of a money grab. 559 00:24:19,544 --> 00:24:20,502 They meant well, but. 560 00:24:22,678 --> 00:24:24,549 - [Narrator] The screen's most brutal killer 561 00:24:24,593 --> 00:24:25,855 is back for blood. 562 00:24:25,898 --> 00:24:27,813 - It was the quickest shoot. 563 00:24:27,857 --> 00:24:30,512 We had some great Latino actors in there. 564 00:24:30,555 --> 00:24:33,036 [screaming] 565 00:24:33,079 --> 00:24:37,780 But it wasn't as fully conceptualized as the others. 566 00:24:39,216 --> 00:24:41,348 - [Narrator] Revenge never tasted so sweet. 567 00:24:41,392 --> 00:24:42,654 - The third one definitely 568 00:24:42,698 --> 00:24:44,090 was a straight to video affair though. 569 00:24:44,134 --> 00:24:47,093 It was like Donna D'Errico from "Baywatch." 570 00:24:47,137 --> 00:24:49,182 She's like the next generation 571 00:24:49,226 --> 00:24:53,970 and Candyman is trying to get her to die with him. 572 00:24:56,494 --> 00:24:58,540 It's not making sense really to me 573 00:24:58,583 --> 00:25:01,847 'cause there was sort of some seductive overtones 574 00:25:01,891 --> 00:25:03,240 like he was trying to seduce 575 00:25:03,283 --> 00:25:05,590 his great, great, great granddaughter, 576 00:25:05,634 --> 00:25:08,550 but also wanted her to be part of his legacy. 577 00:25:08,593 --> 00:25:09,246 - Come to me. 578 00:25:12,641 --> 00:25:13,946 Do not fear me. 579 00:25:13,990 --> 00:25:15,600 - I don't remember much about the third. 580 00:25:15,644 --> 00:25:18,777 There's a sense of purpose, I guess, 581 00:25:18,821 --> 00:25:23,565 that gives him more leeway for our sympathy 582 00:25:24,609 --> 00:25:27,046 and for our understanding. 583 00:25:27,090 --> 00:25:28,395 - Evil breeds evil. 584 00:25:28,439 --> 00:25:30,093 This man couldn't lash out in life, 585 00:25:30,136 --> 00:25:31,616 but in death, that hate, 586 00:25:31,660 --> 00:25:34,445 that evil was strong enough to bring him back 587 00:25:34,488 --> 00:25:35,925 to reclaim what was taken away. 588 00:25:37,143 --> 00:25:38,057 - Older generations, 589 00:25:38,101 --> 00:25:39,319 when I hear them talk about 590 00:25:39,363 --> 00:25:40,973 when Blaxploitation horror came out, 591 00:25:41,017 --> 00:25:42,975 they had a real visceral reaction to it 592 00:25:43,019 --> 00:25:43,933 because they were seeing people 593 00:25:43,976 --> 00:25:45,717 who looked like them on screen. 594 00:25:45,761 --> 00:25:48,285 So I think the same thing happened with "Candyman." 595 00:25:48,328 --> 00:25:50,461 And I think that's how certain people in my generation 596 00:25:50,504 --> 00:25:51,462 really felt about it. 597 00:25:51,505 --> 00:25:53,333 - You have to build up the icon. 598 00:25:53,377 --> 00:25:55,509 The same way we build it up in our mind, 599 00:25:55,553 --> 00:25:57,076 you have to build it up in the movies itself. 600 00:25:57,120 --> 00:25:59,078 You can't come out of the gate saying it's an icon. 601 00:25:59,122 --> 00:26:00,732 We decide that. 602 00:26:00,776 --> 00:26:04,649 And "Candyman" is probably the last of that true era 603 00:26:04,693 --> 00:26:07,478 that has made that mark, I think. 604 00:26:07,521 --> 00:26:10,655 Not that there haven't been great horror villains since, 605 00:26:10,699 --> 00:26:14,137 but they just don't seem to permeate the way that they did. 606 00:26:17,488 --> 00:26:18,794 - One day, I was doing a con. 607 00:26:18,837 --> 00:26:20,273 It was down in, 608 00:26:20,317 --> 00:26:22,928 it was either Florida or Georgia. 609 00:26:22,972 --> 00:26:25,931 And this whole family, I spotted them from across the way, 610 00:26:25,975 --> 00:26:30,501 literally out of casting central Beverly hillbillies. 611 00:26:30,544 --> 00:26:31,850 And so I'm waiting. 612 00:26:31,894 --> 00:26:33,983 He says, "We like your movies." 613 00:26:34,026 --> 00:26:37,551 And I go, why is that? [laughing] 614 00:26:37,595 --> 00:26:41,164 He said, "We like the way you kill." [laughing] 615 00:26:41,207 --> 00:26:42,556 And I realized at that moment, 616 00:26:44,167 --> 00:26:46,822 me and them may have never crossed paths in life. 617 00:26:46,865 --> 00:26:49,781 But because of this unified moment, 618 00:26:49,825 --> 00:26:52,958 even though my character was a victim of slavery, 619 00:26:53,002 --> 00:26:54,177 and a victim of lynching, 620 00:26:54,220 --> 00:26:56,570 and a victim of physical indignity, 621 00:26:56,614 --> 00:26:59,878 these people wanted to give me their props 622 00:26:59,922 --> 00:27:02,489 from their side of the world. 623 00:27:02,533 --> 00:27:04,666 And that was one of the defining moments 624 00:27:04,709 --> 00:27:06,493 when I realized that culture 625 00:27:06,537 --> 00:27:10,236 and pop iconery can reach and touch many, many people. 626 00:27:11,629 --> 00:27:13,196 - There was a Black American cultural boom. 627 00:27:13,239 --> 00:27:16,503 And we weren't seeing ourselves as a monolith necessarily. 628 00:27:16,547 --> 00:27:19,419 There was more stories and ideas coming out. 629 00:27:19,463 --> 00:27:20,986 And "Candyman" was just a part of that, 630 00:27:21,030 --> 00:27:23,119 which I think was what makes him special even more so. 631 00:27:25,077 --> 00:27:26,818 Fans become filmmakers sometimes. 632 00:27:26,862 --> 00:27:29,516 And the support and cultivation amongst each other, 633 00:27:29,560 --> 00:27:31,910 amongst ourselves is what makes us desire 634 00:27:31,954 --> 00:27:33,564 and motivated to make a film. 635 00:27:33,607 --> 00:27:34,391 - What's Candyman? 636 00:27:36,219 --> 00:27:38,438 - Candyman ain't a he. 637 00:27:38,482 --> 00:27:41,528 Candyman is the whole damn hive. 638 00:27:41,572 --> 00:27:43,095 - [Male Speaker] A story like that, 639 00:27:43,139 --> 00:27:45,141 pain like that lasts forever. 640 00:27:51,887 --> 00:27:53,105 - There's something about 641 00:27:53,149 --> 00:27:54,628 just to kind of resurrecting him today 642 00:27:54,672 --> 00:27:56,761 in the wake of movies like "Get Out" and "Us" 643 00:27:56,805 --> 00:27:58,545 that just makes total sense. 644 00:27:58,589 --> 00:28:03,246 - I think Jordan Peele has really changed the landscape 645 00:28:04,290 --> 00:28:06,292 with the movies that he's made. 646 00:28:06,336 --> 00:28:09,034 And I was thinking in the back of my head, 647 00:28:09,078 --> 00:28:11,210 like he's mentioned it so many times. 648 00:28:11,254 --> 00:28:14,953 I wonder if he's going to come in and bring it back. 649 00:28:14,997 --> 00:28:17,564 - I heard that Nia DaCosta was directing. 650 00:28:17,608 --> 00:28:20,393 I thought these are the right people to take this material 651 00:28:20,437 --> 00:28:22,744 and do something really fresh and interesting with it. 652 00:28:28,445 --> 00:28:30,752 - "Candyman" is malleable enough, 653 00:28:30,795 --> 00:28:32,971 just as a legend is malleable enough 654 00:28:33,015 --> 00:28:34,756 to where you can reclaim it. 655 00:28:34,799 --> 00:28:37,062 You can make it your own 656 00:28:37,106 --> 00:28:38,411 to tell the stories that need to be told 657 00:28:38,455 --> 00:28:40,283 that white people can't tell. 658 00:28:40,326 --> 00:28:42,459 They just can't, not in a good way. 659 00:28:42,502 --> 00:28:44,069 - I think the thing that happened 660 00:28:44,113 --> 00:28:46,158 was a really unique filmmaker, Bernard Rose, 661 00:28:46,202 --> 00:28:48,944 like made this really special, unique film 662 00:28:48,987 --> 00:28:52,774 without really digging into what makes Candyman as a person, 663 00:28:52,817 --> 00:28:54,993 you know, the person behind "Candyman" so interesting 664 00:28:55,037 --> 00:28:56,342 and worth telling a story about. 665 00:28:56,386 --> 00:28:58,127 - [Male Speaker] The story of Candyman. 666 00:28:59,128 --> 00:29:00,607 [indistinct] he walk around 667 00:29:00,651 --> 00:29:02,566 handing out candy to the neighborhood kids. 668 00:29:03,741 --> 00:29:06,831 One day, the police come around. 669 00:29:06,875 --> 00:29:08,833 That's when I saw the true face of fear. 670 00:29:08,877 --> 00:29:10,313 - Get on your knees. 671 00:29:10,356 --> 00:29:12,097 - Any horror fan knows that Candyman 672 00:29:12,141 --> 00:29:15,927 is pretty much like the quintessential Black icon of horror. 673 00:29:15,971 --> 00:29:17,929 We wanted to reinvent that for today. 674 00:29:17,973 --> 00:29:20,105 We wanted to make sure that it was something more 675 00:29:20,149 --> 00:29:22,455 than just another horror villain. 676 00:29:22,499 --> 00:29:25,110 We wanted to give him depth and meaning. 677 00:29:25,154 --> 00:29:27,373 Nia DaCosta brings the authenticity 678 00:29:27,417 --> 00:29:29,506 because it's just who she is. 679 00:29:29,549 --> 00:29:31,334 I think it's really, really refreshing to see that. 680 00:29:31,377 --> 00:29:33,379 - I was like humanity. 681 00:29:33,423 --> 00:29:36,295 This should actually be about the moment 682 00:29:36,339 --> 00:29:38,384 that we're in right now. 683 00:29:38,428 --> 00:29:40,517 ♪ Trayvon Martin, won't you say his name? ♪ 684 00:29:40,560 --> 00:29:42,954 ♪ Sean Bell, say his name 685 00:29:42,998 --> 00:29:43,955 This is not about a monster. 686 00:29:43,999 --> 00:29:45,304 This is about a person. 687 00:29:45,348 --> 00:29:47,393 And it's something that I was safeguarding 688 00:29:47,437 --> 00:29:48,960 and being very particular about 689 00:29:49,004 --> 00:29:51,223 throughout the entire process of directing it. 690 00:29:51,267 --> 00:29:53,138 The very first draft that I read of the script, 691 00:29:53,182 --> 00:29:55,314 Helen was the villain. 692 00:29:55,358 --> 00:29:57,751 And it was sort of like the answer to the promise 693 00:29:57,795 --> 00:29:59,362 at the end of the first film 694 00:29:59,405 --> 00:30:01,843 where her ex-husband says her name five times in the mirror, 695 00:30:01,886 --> 00:30:03,845 which is one of the funniest scenes in cinema, 696 00:30:03,888 --> 00:30:06,978 him being like, "Helen, Helen," you know? 697 00:30:07,022 --> 00:30:08,762 And which I love, 698 00:30:08,806 --> 00:30:10,764 but again was completely besides the point 699 00:30:10,808 --> 00:30:12,157 and the wrong point of view. 700 00:30:12,201 --> 00:30:13,202 - At the end of the day, 701 00:30:13,245 --> 00:30:15,073 I think our core responsibility 702 00:30:15,117 --> 00:30:17,249 was to make it Candyman's story 703 00:30:17,293 --> 00:30:19,599 and show that it's society 704 00:30:19,643 --> 00:30:22,341 that makes him the monster he himself is not. 705 00:30:22,385 --> 00:30:25,344 - I feel really connected to this neighborhood. 706 00:30:25,388 --> 00:30:26,693 - In the new film, 707 00:30:26,737 --> 00:30:29,348 art is such an important part of who he is 708 00:30:29,392 --> 00:30:30,523 and why he's there. 709 00:30:30,567 --> 00:30:31,916 He's drawn to that. 710 00:30:31,960 --> 00:30:34,049 Sometimes, great artists can do things 711 00:30:34,092 --> 00:30:36,225 that conjures up images 712 00:30:36,268 --> 00:30:38,009 that they have no control of. 713 00:30:38,053 --> 00:30:39,271 In the new version, 714 00:30:39,315 --> 00:30:41,621 I think art is the principal weapon 715 00:30:41,665 --> 00:30:43,885 as opposed to the original 716 00:30:43,928 --> 00:30:48,237 where unrequited love was the motivating factor. 717 00:30:48,280 --> 00:30:49,586 But they're both relevant 718 00:30:49,629 --> 00:30:50,543 because they're both the same thing. 719 00:30:50,587 --> 00:30:51,893 Love is art. 720 00:30:51,936 --> 00:30:53,372 - Candyman. 721 00:30:53,416 --> 00:30:54,721 - Anthony. 722 00:30:54,765 --> 00:30:55,548 - Candyman. 723 00:30:55,592 --> 00:30:57,246 - Anthony, no. 724 00:30:57,289 --> 00:30:59,074 - Candyman. - Stop. 725 00:30:59,117 --> 00:31:00,205 Stop it. - Candyman. 726 00:31:00,249 --> 00:31:01,641 - Stop it! 727 00:31:01,685 --> 00:31:03,774 - "Candyman" is about an artist named Anthony 728 00:31:03,817 --> 00:31:06,733 and his search for inspiration. 729 00:31:06,777 --> 00:31:08,387 - I think I made a mistake. 730 00:31:08,431 --> 00:31:11,042 - In his work and his search for identity 731 00:31:11,086 --> 00:31:12,217 in the place he lives, 732 00:31:12,261 --> 00:31:14,263 which is a Cabrini-Green in Chicago. 733 00:31:14,306 --> 00:31:16,395 And in that search, 734 00:31:16,439 --> 00:31:19,224 he stumbles upon an urban legend called Candyman. 735 00:31:19,268 --> 00:31:20,269 - I saw him! 736 00:31:20,312 --> 00:31:23,489 - Candyman isn't real, Anthony. 737 00:31:23,533 --> 00:31:27,319 - Developing that was just really digging into 738 00:31:27,363 --> 00:31:30,235 what does it mean to be Daniel Robitaille, 739 00:31:30,279 --> 00:31:35,023 a man whose proximity to whiteness did not save him. 740 00:31:36,459 --> 00:31:37,677 - He made a good living touring the country, 741 00:31:37,721 --> 00:31:39,941 painting portraits for wealthy families, 742 00:31:39,984 --> 00:31:41,768 but you know how it goes. 743 00:31:41,812 --> 00:31:44,946 They love what we make, but not us. 744 00:31:44,989 --> 00:31:47,774 - How do you juggle the legacy of Candyman, 745 00:31:47,818 --> 00:31:50,560 what's legitimately scary about the first one. 746 00:31:54,042 --> 00:31:55,347 People traumatized for life, 747 00:31:55,391 --> 00:31:57,262 afraid to say Candyman five times in a mirror, 748 00:31:57,306 --> 00:31:58,960 keep all that. 749 00:31:59,003 --> 00:32:01,614 So I love the way the new movie leans into everything 750 00:32:01,658 --> 00:32:03,834 that worked about the previous one. 751 00:32:03,877 --> 00:32:06,750 [eerie choral music] 752 00:32:14,714 --> 00:32:16,020 - The way the film starts 753 00:32:16,064 --> 00:32:18,457 with the drone shot was like amazing. 754 00:32:18,501 --> 00:32:20,459 But now, every movie has drone shots. 755 00:32:20,503 --> 00:32:23,332 So I wanted to kind of, no pun intended, 756 00:32:23,375 --> 00:32:25,029 flip it on its head, 757 00:32:25,073 --> 00:32:26,813 signifying to the audience like, yes, this is "Candyman," 758 00:32:26,857 --> 00:32:29,381 but this is from a whole different perspective. 759 00:32:29,425 --> 00:32:30,861 It's going to be the city that you know, 760 00:32:30,904 --> 00:32:31,818 that you've seen, 761 00:32:31,862 --> 00:32:33,037 Chicago, a beautiful city, 762 00:32:33,081 --> 00:32:37,128 but turned upside down a bit, you know? 763 00:32:37,172 --> 00:32:39,391 Like it's another perspective, another point of view. 764 00:32:39,435 --> 00:32:40,697 - We wanted to reinvent that for today 765 00:32:40,740 --> 00:32:43,656 and we wanted to reclaim it. 766 00:32:43,700 --> 00:32:45,876 We wanted to make sure that it was something more 767 00:32:45,919 --> 00:32:47,834 than just another horror villain. 768 00:32:47,878 --> 00:32:49,401 - [Candyman] I am the writing on the wall. 769 00:32:51,447 --> 00:32:53,275 - I would call it Candyman: Reclamation. 770 00:32:54,754 --> 00:32:57,148 It's a reclamation of the mythology. 771 00:32:57,192 --> 00:33:01,674 It's a reclamation of the Black vision for the story. 772 00:33:01,718 --> 00:33:03,850 - I'm hoping to spread the story all about Candyman. 773 00:33:03,894 --> 00:33:05,939 The mirror invites you to summon him. 774 00:33:05,983 --> 00:33:07,941 - We have a Black protagonist 775 00:33:07,985 --> 00:33:10,161 and we have a Black sensibility. 776 00:33:10,205 --> 00:33:11,380 - [Candyman] Be my victim. 777 00:33:12,946 --> 00:33:16,037 - This is not real, it's not real. 778 00:33:16,080 --> 00:33:19,170 - Candyman exists because we believe in Candyman. 779 00:33:19,214 --> 00:33:20,041 - [Candyman] Believe. 780 00:33:20,084 --> 00:33:21,085 [screaming] 781 00:33:21,129 --> 00:33:22,260 - Because we afraid of Candyman. 782 00:33:22,304 --> 00:33:23,740 If we stopped caring about him, 783 00:33:25,916 --> 00:33:27,352 he would go away. 784 00:33:27,396 --> 00:33:29,354 And that is kind of, I think, 785 00:33:29,398 --> 00:33:33,054 how we as a society feel about racism 786 00:33:33,097 --> 00:33:36,361 is if we don't think about it, it will go away. 787 00:33:36,405 --> 00:33:37,710 Well, it will never go away 788 00:33:37,754 --> 00:33:39,973 and Candyman can never go away 789 00:33:40,017 --> 00:33:42,237 because Candyman is that representation 790 00:33:42,280 --> 00:33:45,066 of our collective shame. 791 00:33:45,109 --> 00:33:49,331 - Now, do you see what was taken from me? 792 00:33:50,680 --> 00:33:52,986 - Horror can lean into that quite a bit. 793 00:33:53,030 --> 00:33:55,902 They can reflect the nasty bits of society. 794 00:33:55,946 --> 00:33:59,080 And we're seeing it in living color right now, 795 00:33:59,123 --> 00:34:00,733 but the movies can make it even more monstrous 796 00:34:00,777 --> 00:34:03,258 and even more apparent to those who need to see it. 797 00:34:03,301 --> 00:34:04,911 - For me, the stakes are much higher 798 00:34:04,955 --> 00:34:06,478 than like a horror villain that everyone seems to like. 799 00:34:06,522 --> 00:34:08,741 The stakes are Black lives. 800 00:34:08,785 --> 00:34:09,742 - [Male Speaker] Candyman is how we deal with the fact 801 00:34:09,786 --> 00:34:11,962 that these things happen, 802 00:34:12,005 --> 00:34:13,659 that they're still happening. 803 00:34:13,703 --> 00:34:16,445 - Everybody in America has a story. 804 00:34:16,488 --> 00:34:18,099 You may have taken away my arm, 805 00:34:18,142 --> 00:34:19,970 you may have technically killed me, 806 00:34:20,013 --> 00:34:21,145 but you can't silence me. 807 00:34:22,190 --> 00:34:26,107 [intense orchestral music] 808 00:34:26,150 --> 00:34:28,805 And Candyman will be listened to. 809 00:34:30,023 --> 00:34:31,721 - [Candyman] Tell everyone. 810 00:34:34,027 --> 00:34:35,768 - Boy, do I hate bees. 811 00:34:35,812 --> 00:34:38,597 And I was watching "Candyman" at a sleepover. 812 00:34:38,641 --> 00:34:40,643 We get to the scene where he opens his chest 813 00:34:40,686 --> 00:34:41,600 and it's full of bees. 814 00:34:41,644 --> 00:34:42,862 And you know, 815 00:34:42,906 --> 00:34:44,125 the bees are pouring out of his mouth 816 00:34:44,168 --> 00:34:45,604 and I start getting sweaty and nervous 817 00:34:45,648 --> 00:34:47,432 'cause I keep thinking about the sensation of bees 818 00:34:47,476 --> 00:34:49,434 like crawling all over me. 819 00:34:49,478 --> 00:34:51,001 And the more I keep thinking about bees 820 00:34:51,044 --> 00:34:53,308 and the more I can't let go of these intrusive thoughts, 821 00:34:53,351 --> 00:34:54,874 that they're just circling in my head, 822 00:34:54,918 --> 00:34:57,790 I like work myself up into an anxious panic, 823 00:34:57,834 --> 00:35:00,619 and they turn the lights on after the sleepover 824 00:35:00,663 --> 00:35:03,144 and I am covered like neck to chest, 825 00:35:03,187 --> 00:35:04,449 arm to elbow, 826 00:35:04,493 --> 00:35:06,799 just covered in hives, covered in hives. 827 00:35:06,843 --> 00:35:07,800 I worked myself into them. 828 00:35:07,844 --> 00:35:09,193 I can't stop itching. 829 00:35:09,237 --> 00:35:10,542 All of the girls at the sleepover 830 00:35:10,586 --> 00:35:11,978 thought like something horrible happened to me 831 00:35:12,022 --> 00:35:13,328 and I'm next. 832 00:35:13,371 --> 00:35:14,807 Or like, I'm just weird and sick. 833 00:35:14,851 --> 00:35:16,026 And I'm just sitting there itching. 834 00:35:16,069 --> 00:35:16,983 Like, I don't know. 835 00:35:17,027 --> 00:35:18,289 I kept thinking about the bees 836 00:35:18,333 --> 00:35:19,899 and now this is what's happening. 837 00:35:19,943 --> 00:35:21,814 So yeah, the first time I saw "Candyman," 838 00:35:21,858 --> 00:35:24,121 I worked myself up into giving myself hives. 839 00:35:27,690 --> 00:35:28,647 Put it on the poster. 840 00:35:28,691 --> 00:35:31,520 It made me itchy. [laughing]