Tony Todd, Star of ‘Candyman’ & ‘Final Destination,’ Dies at 69

Dan Clarendon November 9, 2024, 10:10 am

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Tony Todd, a horror actor with memorable turns in the Candyman and Final Destination film franchises, has died at 69.

Todd died at home in Marina del Rey, California, on Wednesday, November 6, following a long illness, as his wife, Fatima, told The Hollywood Reporter.

The actor — born on December 4, 1954, in Washington D.C. — studied at the University of Connecticut and the Eugene O’Neill National Theatre Institute. He later joined the acting troupes at the Hartman Conservatory in Stamford, Connecticut, and the Trinity Repertory Company in Providence, Rhode Island, per THR.

Todd made his screen debut in the 1986 fantasy film Sleepwalk and played Warren in Oliver Stone’s Best Picture-winning war drama Platoon that same year.

In 1992’s horror film Candyman, Todd played the titular antagonist, a ghost hooked on vengeance. He reprised the part for three sequels, including 2021’s Candyman.

Virginia Madsen, who costarred with Todd in the first Candyman film, eulogized Todd on Instagram. “My beloved. May you rest in power sweet to the sweet in heaven,” she wrote in one post. “The great actor Tony Todd has left us and now is an angel. As he was in life.”

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In a second post, she wrote, “A truly poetic man. A voice that made it easy to swoon. Thanks to [screenwriter and director] Bernard Rose, we really created a gothic romance. It’s why the film lives on. A gentle soul with a deep knowledge of the arts. He enjoyed the fans and was never shy when it came to fans approaching, wanting photos. A rare actor who allowed himself to be open to the public attention. Wish I had seen him on the stage. I will miss him so much and hope he haunts me once in a while. But I will not summon him in the mirror!”

Madsen also said filmmaker Jordan Peele talked of making a prequel in which Todd and Madsen once again played Daniel Robitaille and Helen Lyle and told the tale of how their love began. “Imagine that,” she wrote. “I do. My dear friend Tony, I do.”

Todd also played William Bludworth, a funeral director familiar with the rules of death, in 2000’s horror film Final Destination and three of its sequels, including the forthcoming Final Destination: Bloodlines.

Devon Sawa, who joined Todd in the first film, also paid tribute to the late actor on Instagram, writing, “Tony Todd was a friend even through my darkest times. I’ll never forget that. RIP Brother Todd.”