Tony Todd, the actor known for his roles in Candyman, Final Destination, and more, has died at the age of 69.
According to reps for Todd, the actor passed away on November 6th at his home in Los Angeles following a long illness. No official cause of death has been reported at this time.
Born in 1954 in Washington, DC, Todd began his acting career on the stage, studying theater at University of Connecticut before joining celebrated theatrical companies like the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center and the Trinity Repertory Company. In the ‘80s, he began landing on-screen roles, with his first major part being in Oliver Stone’s Best Picture winner, Platoon.
From there, Todd built a prolific filmography across film and television, appearing in shows like 21 Jump Street, Night Court, MacGyver, Matlock, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and more, as well as movies like the 1990 remake of Night of the Living Dead.
Related Video
Todd’s most iconic role, though, came in 1992, when he was cast as the titular character in the folklore horror film, Candyman, which spawned two sequels later in the decade: 1995’s Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh and 1999’s Candyman: Day of the Dead.
Throughout the ‘90s, Todd had roles in other acclaimed titles as well, like films The Crow and The Rock, as well as series like Law & Order, The X Files, Murder, She Wrote, Beverly Hills, 90210, Xena: Warrior Princess, Star Trek: Voyager, and more.
In 2000, Todd joined yet another beloved horror franchise, starring as funeral home owner William Bludworth in the first Final Destination film. He would go on to reprise the role in several films, including the upcoming Final Destination: Bloodlines, which is currently in post-production and will arrive as a posthumous release for Todd in 2025.
Other roles from Todd’s final years included voice parts for video games like Half-Life 2: Episode Two, Dota 2, Call of Duty: Black Ops II, and more, as well as a number of on-screen roles. In 2021, he returned to the Candyman franchise for the Nia DaCosta-directed sequel, with a script co-written by Jordan Peele.
In the wake of Todd’s passing, fans and collaborators have come forward with tributes, including his Candyman co-star Virginia Madsen, who called him “my beloved Candyman” in a video posted to Instagram. “The great actor Tony Todd has left us and now is an angel. As he was in life,” she wrote in the caption.
