Universal Pictures recently released the trailer and poster to its upcoming revival of the Candyman franchise. Produced by none other than Jordan Peele, the new movie is expected to act as a spiritual sequel to the first film in the horror series, which was released in 1992 and also titled Candyman.
The 2020 version is directed by Nia DaCosta, stars Yahya Abdul-Matten II and Teyonah Parri, and looks to pick up with the basic premise of director Bernard Rose's original: There's a local urban legend that Chicago's Cabrini-Green Homes are haunted by a murderous spirit called "Candyman," who appears if you say his name five times while looking in a mirror.
In honor of the new trailer's debut, we decided to take a close look at the preview and see how it compares to the trailer for the 1992 version of Candyman. Here's what we noticed.
The Rules
Both trailers establish the rules of Candyman pretty early: They open with characters from each film explaining how you summon actor Tony Todd's hook-wielding killer. "The urban legend is, if you say his name five times looking in the mirror," Yahya Abdul-Matten II's Anthony McCoy says, "he appears in the reflection and kills you."
The Origin
In the 1992 trailer, Candyman's origin story is detailed a little bit more. We hear that the stories of Todd's character date back to the late 1800s, and that they say he was "attacked, mutilated and burned to death." The first film—which, it should be noted, is based on the 1985 short story "The Forbidden"—explains even more about the character's background, obviously, including that his name was Daniel Robitaille, he was the son of a slave and that he was killed for having a relationship and child with a white woman. The new trailer doesn't get into Candyman's backstory; instead, it seems to suggest that Candyman's spirit is taking over Abdul-Matten II's character.
The Obsession
The 1992 trailer actually focuses mostly on the character of Helen Lyle, played by Virginia Madsen. She's a student who has heard about the Candyman legend and is interested in investigating it. Once she starts asking questions about the spirit and the series of murders that are credited to Candyman, Helen becomes a target for the bloodthirsty ghost.
A similar arc seems to be at the center of DaCosta's Candyman: Abdul-Matten II's Anthony moves close to Cabrini-Green, finds out about the urban legend and becomes fixated on Candyman. Anthony's interest apparently reawakens the killer, who once again starts murdering anyone who dares to speak his name in front of a mirror. Candyman also appears to be inhabiting Anthony's body: In the trailer, there are shots of Abdul-Matten II looking like the villain, with a hook for a hand. "Something's happening to me," Anthony says at one point.
Tony Todd
Todd has played Candyman in three films: the 1992 original, 1995's Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh, and 1999's Candyman: Day of the Dead. Even though it looks like the character's hook has been passed onto Abdul-Matten II, there is a shot in the trailer where it looks like Todd's reflection is visible in the window of a car, suggesting that he's still a part of the Candyman lore. He is also a part of the cast on the film's IMDb page, credited as Daniel Robitaille. And in a 2019 interview with Cinema Blend, Todd mentioned Peele had reached out to him and said the new film would deliver "applause-worthy moments."
DaCosta's Candyman will hit theaters on June 12, 2020.
