“Candyman” Took a Lot of Liberties With the Source Material

Candyman is based on Clive Barker’s short story “The Forbidden,” which isn’t set in Chicago — or even America. It takes place instead in Liverpool, England, and puts less focus on the eponymous murderer and more on its grad-student heroine and her research into the Candyman legend. In Barker’s version, the killer doesn’t even appear in the flesh until page 31 (out of just 37) and was originally white. Director Bernard Rose changed that after deciding to shift the setting to Chicago in general and the (very real) Cabrini-Green housing project in particular, where the majority Black residents faced deteriorating conditions and rising crime rates at what was once a model of public housing. Barker’s “The Forbidden” is also even more violent than the film, with Candyman dispatching his victims in ways you simply couldn’t show on screen.

Candyman is far from the only adaptation of Barker’s work. His novella The Hellbound Heart is the inspiration for the Hellraiser franchise, while other adaptations (some of which Barker has even written and directed) include 1986’s Rawhead Rex, 1990’s Nightbreed, 1995’s Lord of Illusions, and 2008’s The Midnight Meat Train.

Composer Philip Glass Wasn’t a Fan — At First

Even if you don’t know him by name, you’re likely familiar with the work of Philip Glass. The prolific avant-garde composer is responsible for the scores to movies including The Truman Show, The Hours, and Koyaanisqatsi, to name just a few, with three Academy Award nominations to his name. Also on his resume: Candyman, which he wasn’t happy with — at least at first. According to Rolling Stone, which placed Candyman third on its list of the 35 Greatest Horror Soundtracks, “What he’d presumed would be an artful version of Clive Barker’s short story ‘The Forbidden’ had ended up, in his view, a low-budget slasher.” Glass has softened on it, however, acknowledging in a 2014 Variety interview that “it has become a classic.”

Eddie Murphy Almost Got the Title Role…

Eddie Murphy was at the height of his popularity in the early ’90s, with recent roles in Beverly Hills Cop II, Coming to America, and Another 48 Hrs. cementing him as one of Hollywood’s most in-demand actors. Not even the producers of Candyman were immune to his charms, as the funnyman was their first choice to play the title role despite never having appeared in a horror film before. It’s never been made clear why Murphy didn’t end up with the part, though his salary demands have been pointed to as a potential factor.

The role eventually went to well-known character actor Tony Todd, whose unforgettable voice makes it nearly impossible to imagine anyone else playing Candyman. Todd reprised his role in the sequels Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh (1995) and Candyman: Day of the Dead (1999). Murphy, meanwhile, dipped his toes in the horror/comedy genre with 1995’s Vampire in Brooklyn.

… and Sandra Bullock Nearly Got Virginia Madsen’s Part

Candyman is the film’s namesake, of course, but he isn’t its protagonist. That would be Helen Lyle, a University of Illinois Chicago graduate student researching urban legends and folklore for her thesis — an endeavor that leads her to Cabrini-Green, said to be the site of Candyman’s crimes. Future Oscar nominee Virginia Madsen (Sideways) plays Helen, but the part almost went to Sandra Bullock instead. Neither was especially well known at the time, and producer Alan Poul revealed on the film’s audio commentary that Bullock would have been offered the role if Madsen had been unable to fulfill her duties.

There Was Almost a Crossover Sequel With “Leprechaun”

Crossovers have long been common in the horror genre, from Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man in 1943 to Freddy vs. Jason 60 years later, with the latter’s success almost prompting a mash-up between the Candyman and considerably more lighthearted Leprechaun franchises. The script never made it past Todd, however, who immediately declined any involvement in the project because he felt it would cheapen the character’s legacy. He was probably right. The similarities between the franchises ended with the fact that both were owned by the same studio, and Leprechaun had strayed from its horror roots into campy comedy by that point (see: 1997’s Leprechaun 4: In Space).

Tony Todd Got a Bonus Every Time He Was Stung by a Bee

It was a good one, too: “I negotiated a bonus of $1,000 for every sting during the bee scene,” Todd shared. “And I got stung 23 times. Everything that’s worth making has to involve some sort of pain. Once I realized it was an important part of who Candyman was, I embraced it. It was like putting on a beautiful coat.” (Candyman uses bees against his victims, a strange, unsettling approach that ties into his tragic backstory.)

Less enthused about these insect scene partners was Madsen, and with good reason: She’s allergic. “When Bernie [Rose] was first asking me to do the role I said, ‘Well, I can’t, I’m allergic to bees,’” she explained in an interview occasioned by the film’s 20th anniversary. “He said, ‘No, you’re not allergic to bees, you’re just afraid.’ So I had to go to UCLA and get tested because he didn’t believe me. I was tested of [sic] every kind of venom. I was far more allergic to wasps. So he said, ‘We’ll just have paramedics there, it will be fine!’ You know actors, we’ll do anything for a paycheck! So fine, I’ll be covered with bees.” This necessitated both a bee wrangler on set and the use of “baby bees” (just 12 hours old), who are less likely to sting than their full-grown counterparts. Fortunately, Madsen escaped unscathed — something that can’t be said of most of the film’s characters.