‘Candyman’ Director Nia DaCosta 1st Black, Female Director To Debut At #1

The long-awaited Candyman reboot has ended its debut weekend on top in more ways than one. Not only is the film number one at the box office, director, but Nia DaCosta is also the first blast female to debut a film at number one! this is the second feature-length film for DaCosta who in the past has worked on Little Woods with Tessa Thompson. The film has raked in over $22 million since it was released on Friday. It opened in just under 4000 theatres that are following strict COVID-19 safety guidelines. But, clearly, not even the threat of the Delta variant could keep fans away.

DaCosta is in good company of other women of color who have topped the box office in the last few years or achieved significant success. Ava Duvernay’s A Wrinkle In Time, and Selma both debuted at number two during their respective releases. In addition., Gina Prince-Blythewood’s hit Love & Basketball was also a success at the box office and landed the number two spot. Recently female Chinese director Chloe Zhao had the honor of winning two Oscars in 2020 Best Motion Picture of The Year, and Best Achievement in Directing for her film Nomadland starring Frances McDormand. However, none of the women are yet to achieve a number one film at the box office like DaCosta has, but they are close behind!

Candyman may have gotten a little boost from its association to modern horror director Jordan Peele. The Us writer and director’s production company Monkey Paw Productions took a chance on DaCosta who wanted to shine a new light on the 1992 film and its relevance to social justice today. DaCosta shared in an interview that she believes that the Black Lives Matter movement has helped films like this to flourish because people are now more willing to listen and learn. The film was initially supposed to come out in 2020 but the Coronavirus shut down theaters and DaCosta did not want to take the streaming route that other films like Black Widow and Zack Snyder’s Justice League have taken.

There is no question that the film’s pushback was worth the wait, DaCosta breaking records is just one form of proof. The other is how much fans are raving about the all-around “creepiness” of the horror movie. Some fans were concerned that it was “too woke” but other followers had to remind them that the original was exactly the same, just a different point of view. “Nia Decosta and Jordan Peele focused on the actual atrocity that happened to Candyman. Either way, when you boil it down, you still have to talk about racism, classism or both.

So, with all this praise and excitement for the fresh, young director what is next for DaCosta? In addition to more promotion for Candyman? She is the director for the upcoming Captain Marvel movie The Marvels. The sequel to 2019’s Captain Marvel, the film will star Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, and Samuel L. Jackson. The film will possibly focus on Larson’s character passing the Captain Marvel torch to Monica Rambeau. As for now, she is busy celebrating the success of Candyman, Candyman, Candyman, Candyman… don’t say it five times or you’ll be sorry.