Actor Tony Todd Talks 'Tales From The Hood 3' And Candyman Update

It’s spooky season! Halloween is just a day away and we jumped at the opportunity to talk to Tony Todd about his role in ‘Tales From The Hood 3,’ which premiered on the SYFY network October 17th.

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Tony Todd has given us chills in classic films like ‘Candyman,’ ‘Final Destination,’ ‘The Crow,’ ‘Night Of The Living Dead’ and more. This spooky season he continues his reign with a starring role in ‘Tales From The Hood 3’ but he is quick to remind us his resume also includes plenty of other kinds of roles. The 6’5 65-year-old actor says he knew he wanted to pursue a career in acting in high school. He attended the University of Connectocit for college and went on to attend the Eugene O’Neill National Theatre Institute, the Hartman Conservatory and the Trinity Square Repertory Theatre Conservatory, ultimately completing a Master’s degree in Theater.

“I moved to New York and got my equity card and you know, did tons of plays and finally was doing a one man play called “Johnny Got His Gun” and Oliver Stone’s people saw it and next thing you know I was cast in ‘Platoon’ and that started the film stuff.”

Pretty incredible stuff. Imagine getting your big break from none other than Oliver Stone!

With an extensive filmography that includes titles from a range of genres, in both TV and film, Todd isn’t interested in claiming the crown of Horror King.

“Nobody goes through a masters program and says I want to be in this genre or that genre, you just want to do the work and the work to keep coming,” Todd told BOSSIP. “So it wasn’t like I woke up and was a three-year-old in my grandmother’s lap and said ‘I want to be the next Frankenstein.’ I just want to work. If you look at my resume, it’s not all horror.

Ironically, it was a documentary called ‘Horror Noire,’ about the history of black folks in horror cinema that led to his latest role in ‘Tales From The Hood 3’.

Todd says he bumped into ‘Tales From The Hood’ writer/directors Rusty Cundieff and Darin Scott at a screening in LA and a few months later received an offer to come to Winnipeg and join their production.

“Rusty and Darin are great and they’re keeping the anthology format alive and kicking and hopefully people are receptive to what they’ve done this time,” Todd says of the project.”

Check out a trailer below:

Have you seen ‘Tales From The Hood 3’ yet?

With the emergence of films like ‘US,’ and ‘Get Out,’ and shows like “Lovecraft Country,” it’s abundantly clear that black audiences are definitely here for more from the horror genre. Todd says he’s happy to see the support is there from the community.

“It [“Tales From The Hood 3”] is a super set and I think Darin and Rusty came up with a great formula and title with “Tales From The Hood,” and the first time it had belonged exclusively to our people and hopefully the stories are concocted from our life experiences,” Todd said. “I think with Jordan Peele’s emergence we’re getting more direct tales for us, about us and to us which is great and hopefully the new ‘Candyman’ is going to be revolutionary. I can’t give away too much but it’s going to be extraordinary. You’ve got a woman at the helm, Nia DaCosta, balancing all elements. I started it 26 years ago and here we are full circle. I’m proud of that, but it’s not my singular achievement.”

Yes indeed, gotta give this king his flowers — for his work in all genres — not just horror!

But if you are looking to get spooked this weekend, definitely put ‘Tales From The Hood 3’ on your watch list.