Candyman has reached #1 at the box office following a strong opening weekend, with director Nia DaCosta becoming the first Black woman to direct a #1 film ever. The soft reboot/sequel to the 1992 horror film was directed by DaCosta and sees the return of Tony Todd as the titular character. The film was produced by Get Out and Us director, Jordan Peele, through his production company, Monkeypaw Productions, alongside Universal Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn Mayer.
Starring Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Teyonah Parris, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, and Colman Domingo, with Vanessa Williams, Virginia Madsen, and Todd returning to their characters from the original film, the story returns to the Calbrini-Green Projects. Visual artist Anthony McCoy, played by Abdul-Mateen II, searches for a creative spark to fuel his career, becoming inspired by the legend of the Candyman only to accidentally bring forth the spirit of Todd's character. The film opened to an impressive box office through Thursday night preview screenings and has seen further success through its opening weekend.
According to reports by Indiewire, Candyman earned a total of $22,370,00, surpassing initial projections of $15 million and reaching the #1 position in the box office. This sees Candyman surpass and dethrone Free Guy at the top, with the comedy dropping to second place and a 27% drop in box office takings. With the box office exceeding expectations and firmly placing the supernatural horror slasher at #1, it also makes history, with director Nia DaCosta becoming the first Black woman to direct a film that has reached #1 at the box office.
DaCosta's direction for the horror icon's return has not only been a financial success, but a critical one as the film achieved a positive response and Certified Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Teyonah Parris, who stars as McCoy's girlfriend Brianna Cartwright, also praised DaCosta's directing and the opportunities this allowed, saying "I felt like it gave us an opportunity to dive deeper quicker, because there was a mutual understanding and a shared history of certain experiences..." DaCosta also collaborated with producer Peele on the film, who has earned much acclaim for his own horror hits such as Get Out, Us, as well as the revival of CBS's The Twilight Zone.
With DaCosta's sequel taking audiences and critics by storm and making Hollywood history, the director's future is sure to be bright. DaCosta is set to reunite with Parris for the Captain Marvel sequel, The Marvels, with Parris sharing her excitement for the sequel's team-ups in recent interviews. Meanwhile, Candyman's ending did leave room for a possible continuation, and though there has been no official confirmation of a sequel yet, the strong critical response and box-office performance is sure to have studios paying attention.
Source: Indiewire
