Aquaman actor Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is in talks to lead the new Candyman.


The spiritual sequel from MGM is being produced by Jordan Peele and his Monkeypaw Productions banner, along with Win Rosenfeld. Nia DaCosta (Little Woods) is on board to direct.


The movie will be a contemporary follow-up to the 1992 horror film, an adaptation of the Clive Barker story The Forbidden that told of the legend of the Candyman, a murdered son of a slave who is now a supernatural killer, and his unique relationship with a white grad student working on a thesis on urban legends, all set against the backdrop of a Chicago housing project.


The new story is set in the Cabrini-Green housing projects, which have now been gentrified.


Candyman is set for a June 12, 2020, release.


Abdul-Mateen, whose credits include The Get Down and Baywatch, will next be seen in Peele's horror thriller Us. He is repped by Gersh, Anonymous Content and Bloom Hergott.