*Yesterday, the “Candyman” returned to terrorize theaters in the thrilling sequel to the 1992 film and as of this time of this posting on Saturday (08-28-21) at, 9am it was winning the weekend box office race with $21 million.
This “Candyman” follows a young couple living in the heavily gentrified Cabrini Green of Chicago, Illinois. In symmetry with the first film, our protagonists Anthony McCoy (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) and Brianna Cartwright (Teyonah Parris), stumble across the legend of the Candyman while in pursuit of inspiration for their artwork.
Vanessa Estelle Williams plays McCoy’s mom Anne-Marie McCoy. In the original film, she’s a healthcare worker and after she hears Candyman murder her neighbor, he begins appearing in her apartment before kidnapping her son, Anthony. She never told him what happened…
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EUR correspondent Tifarah Dixon talked to Williams about creating her characters backstory with director Nia DaCosta, the “violence” of gentrification, and her personal relationship to myths and folktales.
TD: As an actor, mentally, did you embrace this character the same way you did the first time you played her or was it totally different?
VW: It was very different. Being a parent of two Black boys enriched the (acting) experience for me because now I have my own lived-experience. So being able to look at what her life had been like after living through the trauma of the Candyman – with the project being shaped by Black people who chose to give an unapologetic ally Black point of view – was very gratifying!
“Candyman lives in a very special place in my career,” Williams shared with producers. “It was the first film I got when I moved to L.A., and it was my second feature.
TD: You reprise your role of Anne-Marie McCoy, what was that like?
VW: I was so happy to hear Jordan Peele was involved! His brand of horror is the kind of film-making and storytelling that’s on my affirmation-list (to-do list).
Universal Pictures “Candyman” premieres in theaters August 27th.
For more details go to CandymanMovie or follow @CandymanMovie on Instagram!
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