Mr Todd was best known for his role in the Candyman horror films

Actor Tony Todd, known for his role in the ‘Candyman’ horror film series, passed away at the age of 69. Reports indicate that he died at his home in Los Angeles on Wednesday night.

He famously portrayed the candy man, a ghostly figure with a hook in his hand who is evoked by saying his name five times in front of a mirror. Mr. Todd played the role in the 1992 original and its sequels in 1995 and 1999, before returning for the 2021 installment, which is a direct sequel to the first film.

In a career spanning four decades, Mr. Todd’s work has spanned hundreds of films, stage productions and television programs, with notable roles in the ‘Transformers’ and ‘Final Destination’ franchises. The Candyman character, whose real name is Daniel Robitaille, was originally a murdered artist in the 19th century and is revealed in reality when a graduate student in Chicago researching the Candyman urban legend unwittingly summons him, leading to a series of deadly events.

Recalling the iconic scene in the 1992 film in which his character was covered in bees, Todd told The Guardian in 2019 that he had been stung 23 times, earning a $1,000 bonus each time. “Anything worth doing must involve some kind of pain,” he said.

Discussing his iconic role in Candyman during an interview, he said: “I’ve done 200 movies, that’s the only thing that sticks in people’s minds. It affects people of all races. I used that as a means of entry into gangs.” intervention study: what scares you? What terrible things have you experienced? Actor Virginia Madsen, who played student Helen Lyle in the original Candyman, described Todd: “She’s an angel now. He was in life”. She hailed him as “a truly poetic man” with “a deep knowledge of art” and added: “I will miss him very much and hope that he will drop in on me from time to time.” The sequel to Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh brought Todd’s unforgettable character back to New Orleans, where he meets a descendant of his daughter.