Candyman is one of the greatest modern horror films, and it only gets better with age. Over the year’s, the reputation of Bernard Rose’s socially conscious urban legend chiller has grown and grown, and Tony Todd’s performance in the title role is iconic. The social commentary hasn’t dated, the scares haven’t lessened, and that soundtrack is still amazing.
Now, it looks as thought it might be getting the remake treatment, courtesy of Get Out writer-director Jordan Peele.
Bloody Disgusting reports that Peele is in talks to produce a new take on the story, which was based on Clive Barker’s short story The Forbidden. There’s not much in the way of details, and it’s not clear whether it intends to write or direct, but it looks as though the rights are available and Peele is interested.
The 1992 film starred Virginia Madsen as graduate student Helen Lyle who heads to the Chicago housing project of Cabrini Green to investigate the Candyman myth. According to the legend, if you say Candyman into a mirror five times, he’ll appear behind you with his hook for a hand and, well, split you from your groin to your gullet.
The social and political element of Candyman feels like it would fit neatly into Peele’s fondness for social thrillers (although, the aforementioned “splitting you from your groin to your gullet” would certainly be a lot gorier than anything in Get Out). It would definitely be interesting to see what a Candyman in today’s political climate would look like, and Peele is obviously a hugely talented filmmaker with a real love for the genre. Count us in.
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