Tony Todd played iconic horror villain Candyman in three films before a spiritual sequel arrived in 2021. While having a compelling villain can be important to just about any film, in horror, sometimes the villains themselves become the cornerstone on which a franchise is built. However, there's one thing most popular horror villains have in common: they're white. There really aren't too many prominent horror villains of color out there, and even fewer who managed to spawn a franchise.

While the current trend toward more diversity and inclusion in Hollywood films hopefully bodes well for creating more horror boogeymen and women of color, at the top of the current list is Candyman, originally played by the tall, deep-voiced Tony Todd. Candyman being Black isn't just incidental to the character either, as racism and America's dark past with slavery play key parts in Candyman's origin story. That was further explained in the reboot by Jordan Peele, who ensured the social commentary remained.

4 Candyman: Day Of The Dead (1999)

The Daughter From The Second Candyman Movie Meets The Monster

Candyman: Day of the Dead is easily the worst movie in the series, and a lot of that can be laid at the feet of underwhelming protagonist Caroline McKeever (Donna D'Errico). Caroline is the daughter of Annie Tarrent, the school teacher from the second film who named her daughter after Daniel's (Candyman) former lover. While the film arrived four years after the second, 25 years ed in that film's universe and Caroline is now an adult who summons Candyman and the killing starts up once again.

There are several problems with this movie, especially considering that Candyman killed Annie in between the two, despite her showing respect for him and the tragedy that caused his tormented existence to start. The film also tries to end the Candyman mythos by Caroline explaining away all his murders and framing another person, which is an interesting way to end the franchise. However, it died off anyway thanks to the movie's lackluster reviews as it slipped to DTV status.

3 Candyman: Farewell To The Flesh (1995)

A Teacher Learns Her Family's Past Connects To Candyman

Candyman's first sequel was a worthy follow-up to the beloved first film in the franchise. Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh depicts the Candyman's origin story visually in harrowing fashion, and sees the living urban legend stalking his distant descendant Annie Tarrant (Kelly Rowan) in New Orleans. Annie is a teacher and when her students keep talking about the urban legend, she speaks his name into a mirror to prove it isn't true, only to unleash the horrors on her community as a result.

When it comes to visceral horror movies, this one actually goes further with the gore, but the intensity and tension of the original movie were still greater, making it a horror classic and this one is simply a decent follow-up movie.

While not in the league of the classic original film, Farewell to the Flesh should still satisfy fans looking to see more of Todd's Candyman in action, and features lots of gory kills and tense scare sequences. When it comes to visceral horror movies, this one actually goes further with the gore, but the intensity and tension of the original movie were still greater, making it a horror classic and this one is simply a decent follow-up movie.

2 Candyman (2021)

Jordan Peele Produces A Sequel For The Horror Franchise

In 2021, Jordan Peele produced a direct sequel to the very first Candyman movie, while mostly ignoring the second and third films in the franchise. The first film ended with Helen Lyle sacrificing herself in a fire to save a child named Anthony - keeping the boy from Candyman's grasp. In this film, Anthony is now grown up and lives in Chicago where he learns about the Candyman legend and soon begins to become obsessed with the stories and his possible connection to the legend in his town.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Aquaman) is great as the future Candyman and the film was both a box office and critical success, deepening the mythology, showing the social issues that remain the backbone of the story, and delivering some of the best scares of the entire series.

The film goes a long way to connect the social commentary from the original (an innocent Black man is murdered by racists from the South), by showing the violence and distrust against Black men in today's society. Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Aquaman) is great as the future Candyman and the film was both a box office and critical success, deepening the mythology, showing the social issues that remain the backbone of the story, and delivering some of the best scares of the entire series.

1 Candyman (1992)

A Graduate Student Learns The Candyman Legend Is True

Unsurprisingly, director Bernard Rose's original Candyman film is the best, as any longtime franchise fan knew it would. Based on a short story by Clive Barker, Candyman introduced the film world to the titular icon, played with a mix of imposing menace and mesmerizing charm by Tony Todd in what might be the signature performance of the actor's long career. The origin story of Candyman remains one of horror cinema's most tragic, and he is sometimes as sympathetic as any of his victims.

Tony Todd is capably backed up by Virginia Madsen as Helen Lyle, who becomes the object of Candyman's desire after she makes the mistake of not believing in his legend. Just as much a dark romance as a slasher film, Candyman remains an excellent watch today, nearly three decades after its release. Critics praised its themes of race and social class in the United States, making it a slasher movie that has a lot more to say than most of its contemporaries.