Tony Todd dead at 69: Candyman star also acted in Final Destination, Transformers and Star Trek franchises
Tony Todd, who played the titular serial killer in the Candyman horror franchise, died at home in Los Angeles this Wednesday aged 69.
His representatives confirmed his death without disclosing the cause to Deadline.
Over the course in four decades in show business, Todd lent his talents to multiple tentpoles, including the Transformers and Final Destination film series.
He also played the Starship Enterprise’s Commander Kurn on two separate Star Trek shows – Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
Todd also enjoyed a varied stage career, including a run in the Broadway production of the musical Aida with songs by Tim Rice and Elton John.
Tony Todd, who played the titular serial killer in the Candyman horror franchise, died at home in Los Angeles this Wednesday aged 69
Born in Washington, DC in 1954, Todd was raised in Connecticut, where he ultimately studied drama at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center.
One of his early breaks in the movies was the acclaimed Oliver Stone war drama Platoon, released in 1986 as the first part of the director’s Vietnam trilogy.
Todd had a small part amid a glittering cast that included Charlie Sheen, Willem Defoe, Forest Whitaker and the young Johnny Depp.
Four years later, Todd became a star in his own right by playing the lead character Ben in the 1990 remake of Night Of The Living Dead.
‘To this day, people think of that role when they see me,’ Todd told SciFi.radio nearly three decades later. ‘That’s the beautiful thing about horror. Horror fans are precious. They hold onto the memories! And I keep making new sh*t! And I think one day, people are going to realize the depth of the genre.’
He achieved icon status in the horror world two years later, when he played the title villainous role in the supernatural thriller Candyman.
Todd played the homicidal ghost of a 19th century American slave who conducted an affair with a white woman and was murdered as a result.
When anyone says: ‘Candyman’ five times in a mirror, the ghost emerges and savages whoever summoned him with a hook that has replaced one of his hands.
Virginia Madsen led the cast as the movie’s heroine Helen Lyle, a Chicago graduate student who uncovers the truth behind the Candyman legend.
After the runaway success of the first film, Todd starred in two sequels, Candyman: Farewell To The Flesh in 1995 and Candyman: Day Of The Dead in 1999.
When the Candyman franchise was revived for a 2021 movie, Todd returned once again to the role that made him an unforgettable figure in the horror genre.
