You'll be hooked after watching the trailer for Jordan Peele and Nia DaCosta's Candyman
Aux Features Film
The first trailer for the new Candyman film, directed by Nia DaCosta (Little Woods) has finally appeared. A “spiritual sequel” to Bernard Rose’s 1992 horror stunner, which was itself based on the Clive Barker story “The Forbidden,” Candyman explores a modern Chicago in which the Candyman myth not only lives on, but is becoming commodified into art.
Fresh off his star-making turn in Watchmen, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II stars as Anthony, a visual artist who moves into the gentrified area where the Cabrini Green projects, the setting of the first film, once stood. “Anxious to maintain his status in the Chicago art world,” reads a synopsis. “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.”
The social commentary—it’s been said to explore “toxic fandom”—looks to mingle with some traditional slasher tropes in the below trailer, which trades shots of Chicago’s upper-class and lower-class neighborhoods with shots of some horny art-types coming face to hook with…is that Tony Todd? He’s in this, but we’re not sure how just yet.
Watch the trailer below.
In addition to producing, Get Out’s Jordan Peele co-wrote the script with BlacKkKlansman producer Win Rosenfeld. Colman Domingo and Teyonah Parris round out the cast of the DaCosta’s film, which hits theaters on June 12.
65 Comments
It’s a BIG tell that the lead character’s name is Anthony, the name of the baby in the first film, and said Anthony is drawn back to Cabrini-Green.
drink every time they say candyman in the trailer.
Pretty sure doing that is paramount to suicide friend.
Paramount? No, this film is distributed by Universal.
Not only that, I’m fairly sure they meant to say tantamount.Hey, was there a sitcom that used Tantamount Pictures as a joke?
NARRATOR: There was.
Have a piece of candy every time they say Drinkyman in the trailer.
Take of shot of raw, unfiltered honey every time someone says “Canydman”.
But what exactly do you drink? Like a shot of one of those candy flavored vodkas?
Nothing says scary to me like Destiny’s Child. Like the film’s called Candyman not Destiny’s Child so what would saying Destiny’s Child do, uh? Can’t wait for Jordan Peele to remake Dr. Giggles and have No Scrubs be his motif.
The New Mutants trailer also featured a terribly on-the-nose reworking of a song lyric to try to build suspense (i.e., “Leave those kids alone!”). Is this the BWOOOOONG trailer sound for the new decade?
You expect a trailer NOT to have a slowed down, sad cover of a popular song? I was gunning for “I Want Candy” myself.
I put the MC Pee Pants discography up against any musician.
“I want candy, bubblegum and taffy- DAMMIT!”Carl expresses exactly how I feel anytime I have a song stuck in my head.
I would have preferred Mandy Moore’s “Candy”.
I was hoping for Sammy Davis Jr. Maybe alter it a little “The Candyman can cause he mixes it with blood and make’s the bees feel good.”
“The Candyman can. Yes, the Candyman can. Wait, how many times have I sung Candyman?”*sound of hook meeting flesh*
“Sugar…”*slow piano lick*“…honey, honey…”
I hate that whole trend but I fucking love it here
I think it feels forced here. But the slowed down “I Got 5 On It” for the Us trailer was really fucking cool. The song itself just sounded better and fit a horror theme. It was the perfect fit. Everyone has been trying to replicate it, even Jordan Peele himself which is why it feels repetitive and forced in this trailer
I think it feels forced here. But the slowed down “I Got 5 On It” for the Us trailer was really fucking cool. The song itself just sounded better and fit a horror theme
Like the film’s called Candyman not Destiny’s Child
Clearly the slowed-down, dramatic cover should have been of a song by, uh, the band Candyman. I’m sure that was a band. Maybe a few of them.
“The candyman can because he mixes it with love and makes the world taste good”(Sung in a creepy slow scary manner)
It should have been a creepier version The Candy Man from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Missed opportunity.
Alien Jesus’s Blurbomatic:
“You’re Hooked by the First 10 Minutes”“Candyman Moves Like a Butterfly, Stings Like a Bee”“This Summer, It’s Cabrini Red!”“Say Her Name! Nia DaCosta!”“Toxic Fandom Meets Traditional Slasher Tropes” ******* AV Club
Wish Peele was directing, but as long as he had a hand in writing, I have hope that this’ll be real good. I’m pumped, and will definitely go check it out in theaters this summer. Good summer horror flick.
I agree. I assume that Peele really wants to focus on completely new/original ideas for the films he puts his name on as Director. He could take an existing property if he wanted (and likely will try at some point in the future). I’m just glad it seems like he’s more involved with this than you’d normally expect if there’s a big name listed as producer. Sometimes that’s just a title but here it’s clear he’s putting some love and work into it.
Yeah, he has earned my money. I was blown away by “Us” and “Get Out.” He’s a guy who truly loves the art form of horror movies, and he’s super-smart regarding the script writing. Also has an original eye for how to shoot scenes that seem fresh and new. Student of the game.
I don’t know if I’d call the “Us” script smart. He seems to mainly be an excellent director, so much so that his style elevates the material.
I enjoyed it, but the explanation didn’t make a whole lot of sense. The government made 330 million shadows??
Nothing in the movie makes sense, which is what makes it so much fun. My one issue with Get Out is that it’s ultimately pretty mundane. Us is a heaping spoonful of whatthefuck, vaguely centered on race and identity and parenting.
Oh it’s fun as hell, you just have to accept that the explanation for everything that’s happened doesn’t hold much water.
I enjoyed Us more than Get Out. Get Out is a very clever, solid movie, but its basic language was pretty familiar. Us was like a very weird, unsettling dream that got weirder as it went along. People talk about the general lack of coherence and the unsatisfying pseudo-explanations as a problem, but I really see that as the best part of the movie.
Get Out was fantastic. Us was just plain bad and didn’t make a lick of sense. It was a bad Twilight Zone episode stretched out to feature length and just got sillier, instead of scarier, with each plot revelation.
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II may be very good in “Watchmen,” but I hardly think it’s a star-making turn. If I asked 100 people on the street who Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, I’d be surprised if more than two or three of them would have the slightest idea.
isn’t he the sultan of Bahrain?
What a random detail to be bothered by from the article.
“What a random detail to be bothered by from the article.”
Also a random detail to fabricate for an article.
Isn’t it?! I must be out of my freakin’ mind!
Watchmen comes off of great performances in The Getdown and Black Mirror it’s clear that it’s helping him launch to greater stardom. He may not be a household name yet but he will be in a few years if this path continues. He’s got the Peele related stuff (Us, Candyman), the superhero franchise (Aquaman), and coming soon some big blockbusters (Matrix 4) and drama pieces. I agree not many will know him just by the name. But if they’ve seen Watchmen, Getdown, or his episode of Black Mirror then they’d probably be able to remember what he did and how good he was.
is he a cover artist?
Popularly, no. Industry-wise, absolutely.
Maybe if they see his penis again they’ll remember him.
It was star making in the sense that it made me sit up and take notice of him as an actor. I liked him as Black Manta before that, but he was absolutely sensational in Watchmen.
More like fished in
I’m excited for this. The original is one of my favourite horror movies and I think a new spin could be great. Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is fantastic.
I never watched Candyman as a kid but I remember everyone always talking about how scary it was. Not just kids either, I remember adults too talking about the movie. So I watched it a couple of years ago and…it didn’t live up to the hype AT ALL. In fact, I thought the movie was actually quite bad and couldn’t believe people went nuts for that movie. I’ve liked Peele’s stuff so far so I’m hoping he can bring something fresh to this movie.
“So I watched it a couple of years ago and…it didn’t live up to the hype AT ALL.”
Wow, really? You had the same experience that someone or another has had with every single movie ever made in the history of cinema! Hold up, I’m gonna write this down!
Yes, fine, a good bit of snark. But older horror movies are rarely scary for a modern audience, and when you take out the aura of fear, their flaws are pretty obvious.
Candyman has always been overhyped. I rank it right up there with Blair Witch Project.
On a list of the best horror movies ever made? Yes, I’d put it right up there, too.
Hahahaha!! good one! Original idea and excellent marketing, but just utter garbage otherwise. I mean it’s 3 people lost in the woods arguing and hearing noises… and you consider it as one of the best horror movies ever made? Right..
But I digress. The writers/dirtectors of the Blair Witch went on to make some excellent films like… errr..
Yeah, pretty much. It’s a simple premise simply executed. The movie’s rhythm, where the characters grind against each other during the day, and then unnerving stuff happens at night, is simple and effective. The characters build an interesting dynamic without fussing over it. It has a great ending. It doesn’t over explain, and it also doesn’t disappear up its own ass metaphysically. It’s a great horror movie. The directors didn’t have another one in them, but that doesn’t make the movie worse.
I think it hangs way too much on it’s originality and that’s all it really had. (plus poeple thought it was real found footage, so there’s that stupidity as well). People tend to get nostalgic about movies and their first impressions on them. But in reality, the blair witch hasn’t aged well at all. I watched it again a few years ago and was an 80 min snooze fest.
I never watched Candyman as a kid but I remember everyone always talking about how scary it was. Not just kids either, I remember adults too talking about the movie. So I watched it a couple of years ago and…it didn’t live up to the hype AT ALL. In fact, I thought the movie was actually quite bad and couldn’t believe people went nuts for that movie. I’ve liked Peele’s stuff so far so I’m hoping he can bring something fresh to this movie.
No one picks a theme song for a movie like Jordan Peele. I still have ‘I Got 5 On It’ stuck in my head.
I understand the music in it and Destiny’s Child sure, buy I really like the original score. Maybe this movie’s actual score has some of that?
Your site redesign sucks!
I don’t remember if I liked the original film, but the Barker story stuck with me. Fingers crossed.
So… “spiritual sequel?” What does that mean, aside from (based on this trailer) ignoring the events of the first movie? Just call it a “reimagining” or something. Candyman is destroyed in the first film and Helen basically takes his place. The first one doesn’t hold up great by today’s standards but it stood out for being so abjectly dour. Though, to be fair, the Candyman sequels were horrid, cheap cash ins that ignored, and retconned, the first movie. There was supposed to a sequel, well, prequel really, made by the writer/director of the original but it got taken out of his hands. It was supposed to show the events described in the first film that lead to Candyman becoming Candyman, i.e. the horrible lynching because he was in a relationship, and had a child, with a white woman. I’m generally not in favor of prequels but that seems more interesting than the sequels we got. Later, Virginia Madsen claimed the studio passed on the script because they were afraid to do an interracial love story. She also trashed the sequels for rewriting Candyman’s backstory and making him a slave, when in the original he was a highly successful businessman and artist, which, aside from simply being black, was a prominent source of white resentment against him.
See, to me the trailer made it seem like a regular sequel, with Vanessa Williams even playing the same character as in the original. But it doesn’t surprise me that they didn’t want to focus the movie on the white lady who took over the Candyman legend, even though that might’ve made an interesting meditation on gentrification and appropriation if they’d found a good way to hang a story on it.
I like this trend of Peele writing/directing horror films with social themes, but I hope he doesn’t run out of ideas.“I’m doing a remake of ‘Leprechaun’ that examines the crass over-comercialisation of St Patrick’s Day. Okay, they’re not all winners.”
Twilight Zone was embarrassing with how unsubtle he was with his themes.
The Forbidden is so different from what became Candyman it’s nearly a Stephen King’s The Lawnmower Man situation.