10 Horror Movies That Changed Their Franchise
8. Candyman (2021)
Bernard Rose's 1991 Candyman is an utter classic, introducing the world to Tony Todd's hook-handed Daniel Robitaille. Unfortunately, 1995 follow-up Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh was so-so (at absolute best), and 1999's Candyman 3: Day of the Dead was a total stinker.
Not only was Nia DaCosta's 2021 Candyman thankfully a great film in its own right, but it also changed the foundations of the franchise.
With artist Anthony (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) exploring the legend of the Candyman and Cabrini-Green, his quest for artistic inspiration starts to take a sinister turn when dead bodies mysteriously begin to turn up - all with ties to the Candyman.
DaCosta's movie has two notable reveals; the first being that Anthony was the young boy Helen Lyle sacrificed herself for in the first Candyman; the second being that not just is Anthony this modern-day Candyman, but that there's a Candyman Hive made up of black men who'd fatally faced racial injustice over the years.
As the 2021 picture concludes with Anthony blamed for a slew of murders he didn't commit, him being gunned down by the police cements the character as the latest member of this Hive - meaning he can be summoned simply by looking in the mirror and saying Candyman five times.