It’s admittedly scary that we’re still marking “firsts” for Black women in 2021.
That said, “Candyman” — a refreshed reboot of a 1992 horror movie staple directed by Nia DaCosta — has become the first-ever film directed by a Black woman to debut at no. 1. And with a grand total of $22.4 million made, it’s also one of the highest-grossing openers for a movie made by a Black woman, Deadline reports.
Others, including “Selma” and “A Wrinkle in Time” director Ava DuVernay, have come close, but ultimately opened in second place.
The successful opening weekend of “Candyman” came as a surprise to many, as concerns over the Delta variant of Covid-19 continue to impact all facets of life, including movie-going. That, and the end of August is not usually a major movie-going time for Americans, even in the best of times.
But DaCosta’s daring remake pulled it off. Considering her debut film, “Little Woods,” was an award-winning film festival darling, perhaps no one should be surprised at all.
Better still, blockbusters appear to feature big in DaCosta’s future as well — she’s already slated to direct Marvel’s superhero sequel “The Marvels.” And at 31 years old, she’ll be breaking another record as the youngest person to ever direct a Marvel movie.
