Nia DaCosta, director of horror reboot ‘Candyman’, has made movie history

The release of Candyman over the weekend came with the horror movie’s director, Nia DaCosta, writing her name in the history books. According to Deadline, the 31-year-old became the first Black female director to have her movie debut at number one at the domestic box office.

The movie raked in $20.4 million over the weekend to take the top spot. Besides that feat, Candyman also became the second-highest-grossing 3-day domestic weekend box office opening for a Black female director. Ava DuVernay’s A Wrinkle In Time holds the top spot with its $33.1 million number 2 weekend debut in 2018. Ryan’s Coogler’s Black Panther was in its fourth weekend at Number 1 at the time.

Candyman is a follow-up to the original movie that was released in 1992. The sequel stars the likes of Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Teyonah Parris, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and Colman Domingo. And besides directing the project, DaCosta also shares the screenplay credit with Jordan Peele and Win Rosenfeld.

“I’m such a big fan, I thought that I’ll come at it from the perspective of someone who just lovingly wants to see what else this legend and this story could do,” DaCosta told ET about the project.

Prior to her breakthrough, DaCosta had little stints in the industry. Her 2019 indie movie, Little Woods, starring Tessa Thompson, served as the springboard that fully launched her career. DaCosta is currently directing The Marvels movie – which is the sequel to Captain Marvel. The announcement of the 31-year-old taking the director’s seat for the project made her the first Black woman to direct a film for Marvel Studios, Face2Face Africa reported last year.

The Marvels is expected to hit the theatres on November 11, 2022.