Guide Note

Candyman is a series of horror movie first released in 1992 which was based on Clive Barker's short story the, The Forbidden. The eponymous villain is a myth similar to the childhood spook story, "Bloody Mary," and will be summoned by repeating his name five times in a mirror. The series follows the Candyman, who is first summoned back into the world of the living in the first movie by a graduate student named Helen Lyle (played by Virginia Madsen).

The first two movies were released as feature films, while the last one was broadcast on TV and released on DVD. Although the supernatural villain remains the same throughout the series, the protagonist is a different person in each movie.

Fast Facts

• Candyman

1. Released: September 11, 1992
2. Directed by: Bernard Rose
3. Produced by: Clive Barker, Steve Golin
4. Written by: Bernard Rose
5. Starring: Virginia Madsen, Tony Todd, Xander Berkeley, Vanessa Williams
6. Distributed by: TriStar Pictures
7. Running time: 99 min.
8. Budget: $8 million
9. Total earnings: $25.8 million
10. Tagline: "We dare you to say his name five times!"
11. Source short story The Forbidden from Barker's 1985 collection, In the Flesh

Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh

1. Released: March 17, 1995
2. Directed by: Bill Condon
3. Produced by: Gregg Fienberg, Sigurjon Sighvatsson
4. Written by: Clive Barker, Rand Ravich, Mark Kruger
5. "Evil comes when you call his name"

Candyman 3: Day of the Dead

1. Directed by: Turi Meyer
2. Produced by: Andrew Golov
3. Written by: Clive Barker, Turi Meyer, Al Septein
4. Released: July 9, 1999
5. Broadcast straight to television
6. Tagline: "Blood is sharper than the blade"