Editorials
Fear File #4: The Real Tony Todd
I can’t begin to tell you how obsessed my mother was with Candyman. Aside from my early exposure to The Exorcist and Halloween, these were some of my first horror flicks. Looking back, I probably shouldn’t have been watching them THAT early in my lifespan, but I fell in love. The imagery, the urban legend, the way it was delivered to the audience- Candyman was a rush, an exquisite example of how horror should be. After all, there isn’t much that Clive Barker touches that doesn’t fall into the ‘awesome’ category. But it was Candyman himself that drew me to the series- the mystery of a man who had been murdered for his love of a woman and has since come back to take his revenge; gory revenge, sure, but revenge just the same. In short, it was an urban legend, and one that has stuck with me since.
Actor Tony Todd is Candyman. But he was also a villain on “24.” A CIA Director on “Chuck.” The voice of Fallen in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. And, as horror fans, he entertained as Reverend Zombie in both Hatchet flicks, and as Mr. Bludworth in Final Destination. His IMDB page reads like a journey- the path of a talented actor who has done every role imaginable and nailed each one with such grace that he’s always coming back for more. When I sat down for this interview, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. By the time I hung up the phone, I was awe struck. I walked into this assuming that I would be interviewing a horror icon; instead, I walked away knowing a skilled craftsman who has an undeniable love for Shakespeare and cats.
Yes, cats.
Uncoordinated Yet Distinguished
Tony Todd doesn’t have a Twitter. He doesn’t have a Facebook page, either (except for the one the system miraculously bestowed upon him). But people know him- they know who he is. Whether it’s for a character he played on television, or a role in a familiar movie, Tony Todd is everywhere- and that’s not something that’s going to change. Even if it were, why would we want it to?
Todd was hit by the acting bug early on in life. A sports fan who wanted to fall into varsity greatness, a growth spurt of nearly six inches between his sophomore and junior year forced him to reevaluate his direction due to a lack of coordination. That was when his English teacher handed him a copy of Shakespeare’s Coriolanus and the theater bug hit hard. “You know those moments where you go, ‘wow, I want to be as close to this as possible’? That was it.” He spent high school immersed in one play after the next, but eventually went on to study the craft at not only the University of Connecticut, but also in several well-known conservatories. “I take it very seriously, but at the same time it gives me such joy to not only create but just to know that, occasionally, people are moved by what I do.” Todd completed seven years of in-depth studies, but would still love to go back and do even more. Being able to study in Moscow is a thought that crosses his mind often; being able to go into a controlled environment knowing what he knows now. “I love education. I love learning.” Those who act know that there is a distinct difference between film/television and theater. Hell, even those who aren’t actors know that the disciplines are unique. It’s like night and day- some may succeed in one area, yet struggle in another. Todd, who tries to do a play every few years or so, is fortunate enough to be able to do both. “Not everybody can do both. It’s two different disciplines, two different focuses. I’m very fortunate that A) I make a living doing film and television and B) theater is still deep in my blood.”
Todd’s nickname should be ‘reality check’. He’s a realist; a breath of fresh air- after spending nearly an hour talking about life and business, I’ve learned a few things; even more so, I’ve learned that Todd is grateful for everything that he has done and will do in the future. “There is no guarantee of success. The sad reality is that maybe one out of ten are even going to get one job. When you’re young you think you’ll live forever and you’re gonna do what you say you’re going to do.” He’ll be the first person to tell you that Hollywood isn’t kind, either. “You better have a thick skin like a reptile without becoming a snake.”
What can I say? The man has a good head on his shoulders. “You gotta keep your ego in check. You gotta keep it real, man. That’s why I was raised by the right woman and I have the right friends in my life and I have two beautiful children and I love life- and that comes first.”
Tony the Gangster
“I love good movies,” said Todd. “Anything that has a good beginning, middle and end is great.” He doesn’t just like horror movies, but he has his favorites. Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein. The great Universal horror films “have always resonated with me.” Rosemary’s Baby. The original Hitchhiker. George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead made Todd think “Wow, not only is that so creepy it could happen, but I saw Dwayne Jones and said ‘I can do this and not be Sydney Poitier.’”
Todd’s love of film started early. Raised by a single mother, his aunt, she introduced him to a different movie every night, using it to build character. “What she was also building was my deep and fascinating love of movies.” In fact, Todd repaid her the best way he knew how in 1994 while filming the western, Black Fox. He invited her to the set and she was treated like a queen as she got to watch what she had loved so much come to life before her eyes. “The beam on her face just sort of validated everything that I was doing.”
Looking over Todd’s vast career, he really has done it all. Westerns. Horror. Action. Thriller; everything has come together to showcase how much he loves what he does. He’s not a one-genre kind guy, and that’s what makes him a treasure; the fact that he can take on such different roles and do it incredibly well. “It builds character. The beautiful thing is that whatever role is meant for you to do, you’re going to do it.” Todd even admits to hating his flops; something many actors would deny, even going so far as to cite wanting a do-over on his 2006 take on Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. “You just don’t know at the time. You’re only as good as your weakest link in the cast.”
Every actor, filmmaker, producer and even writer has their influences. I know for me, it’s Diablo Cody and the ever-changing writing style of Kevin Williamson. But Todd has several, including Robert Deniro and Martin Scorcese. Personally, I’d love to see Todd take on a gangster flick with the best of them. The biggest surprise to me was when Todd mentioned the likes of Humphrey Bogart, but cracked me up when he added “… he had a face only a mother could love.”
The Future
With Final Destination 5 in theaters, Todd is once again in the spotlight; but he’s constantly working. Video games, cartoons, whatever peaks his interest can easily find a place on his resume. Even the type of projects that churn out toys. “I counted one day when I was bored. I have 7 action figures. That’s pretty awesome.”
Aside from FD5, Todd’s role in Jack the Reaper has been in headlines as well. The film recently earned top horror/sci-fi honors at the Cannes Film Festival. But it’s the upcoming film Sushi Girl that has Todd beaming with pride. “[It’s] one of the best roles I’ve ever filmed.” The movie is about a group of robbers who throw a welcome home dinner party for the member of their gang that spent six years silently in prison for a crime they all committed. The dinner is an array of sushi lined up on the body of a ‘sushi girl,’ a beautiful, naked young woman who is trained to remain in a cationic state. But as the four former partners in crime open up old wounds, will the sushi girl be able to keep her cool? It’s a question that I’m willing to ask, and a film that I’m more than excited to see.
The group of filmmakers behind Sushi Girl ‘script stalked’ Todd for awhile before he finally committed to the role. Initially, they dropped a script in his shopping basket at a local supermarket. “I ignored it. I gave it to the cashier.” They pushed and pushed until Todd fell for the content and agreed to play the role. “I gotta give them points for tenacity.”
Todd doesn’t want to stick to just acting, though. Eventually he’d love to take the reigns as director at the helm of his own original project. In fact, he said he’ll keep going “… until I’m done and then I’ll travel and probably end up somewhere in Tahiti. I’ll be there, laying on the beach, having a coconut, maybe with a little rum, a woman on a boat arriving with my weekly groceries… and there in my bag will be a script sticking out of the top. Then I’ll know it’s time to move.”
Todd is a gem. He’s a rare breed; an iconic figure who is actually down to Earth and hates leaving his three cats when he has work to do (they hate it too, I’m sure). He loves fishing, gardening, traveling; but most importantly, he loves what he does. He loves entertaining; frightening people, bringing them to tears, making them smile. He is a master and the fact that he’s good at what he does makes him all the more prestigious. I can’t say enough good things about this man. Actor Kane Hodder agrees: “Tony is a very talented actor… and he happens to be the only guy I met in my life that intimidates me.” I guess that whole ‘be my victim’ mess is the equivalent of ‘you had me at hello.’
For more from ANDREA ALBIN, visit her rad blog THE ALBIN WAY
For more on SUSHI GIRL, visit the film’s official website.
And don’t forget, Todd returns as Mr. Bludworth in Final Destination 5, currently in theaters.
There’s a lot of reading left to do in 2026, between the glut of summer releases and the approach of fall, when horror titles get a special push from publishers, but this has already been an incredible year for horror literature.
Some of the biggest names in the genre have turned in outstanding work, rising stars have made their mark, and we’re only halfway through the year.
To celebrate the midway point of 2026, with plenty of horror books still to come, we’re taking a look back at the best horror books we’ve read this year so far, listed alphabetically by author.
If you missed any of these books earlier in the year, consider this your reminder to catch up.
Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker
A student running from a crime he may or may not have committed escapes to his father’s country home in Japan, only to find himself haunted by strange apparitions, while in the past, a young samurai tries to find salvation for her family and finds a door to the future instead. Kylie Lee Baker’s Japanese Gothic begins with this dialogue between past and present, and then blossoms into so much more, a cross-time ghost story about old wounds and what it really takes to finally heal them. I got so happily lost in this one that I would have read at least 200 more pages.
Persona by Aoife Josie Clements
In this tale of shut-ins, sex workers, artists, and the horrors they both summon and recoil from, Aoife Josie Clements weaves something that feels less like a story to be experienced and more like a psychic wound to be endured, and I mean that in the most complimentary way possible. Evocative in its prose and nightmarish in its imagery, Persona is a story of the masks we wear, and the understanding that not all of our masks are particularly pretty or even easy to breathe through. It’s a dense, literary, unnervingly vicious book, and while it’s already attracted an audience, it deserves a much bigger one.
Dead First by Johnny Compton
Johnny Compton’s latest novel opens with a throwing down of the gauntlet, a sequence that made me instantly think “How on Earth is he going to top this?” It’s a story that begins with a billionaire hiring a private investigator to determine why, despite trying in many brutal ways, he cannot die. That premise, and the scene which sets it all off, is so alluring and delightfully gruesome that you almost can’t believe it’s the way a book begins, and then Compton just keeps going, delivering a supernatural mystery that I could not put down.
Make Me Better by Sarah Gailey
A woman grieving for the life she wanted visits a mysterious island renowned for the healing salt its residents harvest and sell, seeking renewal and relief. What she finds instead is a strange cult with a twisted history with surprising resonance in her own life, and a people who are more than willing to grant the relief she wants, for a price. Laced with beautiful prose and moments of profound realization alongside folk and even cosmic horror, this is vintage Sarah Gailey.
Partially Devoured by Daniel Kraus
If you love horror film history and analysis, Partially Devoured is an essential. Written by Pulitzer Prize-winner Daniel Kraus, the book is a deep dive into his favorite movie of all time, George A. Romero‘s Night of the Living Dead, complete with exhaustive research into the making of the film and passages of deeply moving memoir woven in. If you’ve ever wanted to know what the eerie music that opens the film is called while also bursting into tears at how horror movies can save your life, this is a must-read.
Wretch by Eric LaRocca
Our reigning King of Extreme Horror, Eric LaRocca weaves books of uncommon beauty out of the most nightmarish parts of humanity, and Wretch is no exception. The story of a grieving man who longs for relief and searches for it amid a strange support group that might be a cult, Wretch is a brutal journey into the darkest part of us all, and explores what salvation we might find when we get to the rotten core of the world and peel back its layers. LaRocca’s on a tear of great work right now that few other genre writers can match.
Headlights by CJ Leede
A mystery, a serial killer horror show, a tribute to Stephen King‘s The Shining. All of these things describe CJ Leede’s Headlights, and yet they don’t begin to cover the full breadth of horror awaiting you in this novel. The story of a former FBI agent drawn back into the cold case that haunts him most, it’s a shocker brimming over with vivid moments that’ll live behind your eyes. CJ Leede has now published three novels, and they’re all bangers, so it’s time to get on board if you haven’t already.
It Came From Neverland by Cynthia Pelayo
Cynthia Pelayo has been one of our finest genre writers for years now, but It Came From Neverland is my favorite thing she’s written, and it’s not even close. A dark take on Peter Pan from the perspective of an adult Wendy Darling living in World War I-era London, Pelayo’s book works as both a satisfying horror narrative and a rich exploration of what it really means to never grow up. The horror never loses its potency, but it’s the search for the meaning behind the Peter Pan phenomenon in our own lives, and what we can do about it, that sticks with me most.
Filth Eaters by Ito Romo
Ito Romo’s Filth Eaters is a slim volume, one you can read in just a couple of hours if you’ve got the inclination, but it has the feel of a generation-spanning epic. The story of a breed of vampires born in Central America, the European vampires who encounter them, and the offspring they eventually produced, it spans centuries and packs loads of juicy lore into its pages while never losing its grip on character and narrative drive. I would read hundreds more pages of this world, but I’ll settle for this uncommonly grand-scale novella for now.
Dead But Dreaming of Electric Sheep by Paul Tremblay
A former pro gamer gets a job at a tech company to pilot a brain-dead human body across the country, and so Paul Tremblay’s sci-fi-horror juggernaut begins. Indebted to Philip K. Dick, the primal snarl of Harlan Ellison, and the quirky comedy of The Big Lebowski, and yet wholly original, this is a towering and ambitious novel by one of horror’s most respected voices. What starts as a high-concept tech thriller soon becomes a startling meditation on the value of stories, who gets to tell them, and what happens when we cede too much control to machines we don’t understand. It’s a stunner.
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