Nia DaCosta is director of ‘Candyman’ and makes box office history

“Candyman” director Nia DaCosta made history this weekend when her film took the No. 1 spot in the box office, earning $22.3 million in its initial end of the week.

The horror flick is a big milestone, both for the 31-year-old filmmaker and the business: She’s the first black female director to top the box-office chart.

“Candyman” is a remake of the 1992 horror classic of a similar name. Co-written by DaCosta, Oscar champ Jordan Peele and Win Rosenfeld, the plot follows Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as a craftsman who moves into the first film’s improved Cabrini-Green neighborhood with his girlfriend. The slasher film likewise stars Teyonah Parris, Colman Domingo, Vanessa Williams, Tony Todd and Virginia Madsen.

The film beat expectations, as indicated by Variety, since it was projected to procure $15 million in ticket sales.

The blowout weekend for “Candyman” additionally denotes the second-highest opening-weekend of the week gross for a film directed by a black woman. Ava DuVernay holds that best position, with 2018’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” which grossed $33 million in its opening weekend. It was additionally the first film directed by a black woman to pass $100 million in the box office.

While DaCosta’s achievement is an righteous one, black women are still underrepresented in the world of directing. Yet, she’s is set for change the entirety of that.

The Brooklyn native will make history yet again as the first black woman and the youngest person to direct a Marvel film with “The Marvels” — the sequel of 2019’s “Commander Marvel.” The superhero flick is right now production and will hit theaters in 2022.