Colman Domingo (Candyman Interview)

I had the pleasure of talking to actor Colman Domingo as he was making the rounds promoting the upcoming release of Candyman and he certainly did not disappoint.

Colman Domingo is known for his performances on stage and screen and he gained great acclaim for his performance as Mr. Bones in the Broadway musical The Scottsboro Boys in 2011 for which he earned a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical nomination. Domingo is also known for playing Victor Strand on AMC’s post-apocalyptic, zombie series Fear the Walking Dead. The role began as recurring but he was made a series regular during the show’s second season. The actor has also directed an episode of the series which makes him the first-ever actor in The Walking Dead universe to direct an episode. In 2020, Domingo signed a first-look deal with AMC Networks to develop new projects.

Domingo is no stranger to the big screen as well having appeared in Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln, Ava Duvernay’s Selma, Barry Jenkins’ If Beale Street Could Talk, George C. Wolfe’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and Janicza Bravo’s Zola. For his latest film effort, he joins his If Beale Street Could Talk co-star, Teyonah Parris, in Candyman, a spiritual sequel of sorts to the 1992 film of the same name. Domingo plays William Burke, a Cabrini Green resident who tells Anthony (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) about the Candyman legend. It’s a solid performance and Domingo brings weight to a role that is much more than it appears on the surface.

During our chat, I got to find out if Domingo was a fan of the original film and what drew him to this iteration of the story, what it was like working with Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and director Nia DaCosta, as well as how he felt the social commentary of the original film continues to resonate in this installment as well as in our current social climate. He’s seriously one of the coolest guys I’ve had the pleasure of speaking with and I hope you all enjoy the conversation.

Candyman hits screens on August 27, 2021.