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Fans remember him as Del Griffith or Uncle Buck, but John Candy’s children remember him simply as dad.
Decades after his death, Chris Candy and Jennifer Candy-Sullivan say they see their father’s films in a whole new light – and the documentary “John Candy: I Like Me” is helping them do it.
The film blends archival footage, rare interviews, behind-the-scenes tapes and movie clips to celebrate Candy’s storied career and legacy while giving fans a closer look at the funnyman loved by millions.
“I think the scene that stands out the most is in ‘The Great Outdoors,’ where the character takes his son out on a boat,” Chris, 41, told The Post regarding Candy’s 1988 outdoorsy comedy.
“It’s a really small scene, but the son says, ‘Oh, you’re taking me out here in the same way your dad took you out here,'” he continued. “And our dad just responds, ‘Yeah.'”
Chris said seeing moments like that now, both after his father’s heart attack death at 43 in March 1994 and through the lens of the documentary, hits differently.
“Knowing he didn’t have that experience, or if he did, it was at a very young age, it really changes the way you watch these films,” Chris, who was only 9 when his famous father died, explained. “You see these moments peppered throughout all of his movies. It really shows, as an actor, what he brought to these comedies.”
Candy’s father, like the comedian himself nearly 40 years later, passed away from a heart attack in 1955 at the age of 35. The “SCTV” alum was only 4 years old, and “I Like Me” explores how the tragic experience left Candy traumatized for much of his adult life.
Jennifer, meanwhile, noted that revisiting her father’s films after his sad passing allows her to “relive” moments that the actor may not have experienced himself. She was just 14 when her father tragically passed 31 years ago.
“It’s reliving,” Jennifer, 45, explained. “It’s being able to create moments in his films that he might not have gotten in his own life. And also, just memories for future reference.”
She went on to cite “Summer Rental” (1985) and “Uncle Buck” (1989) as being particularly personal to her.
“A lot of the time, the daughter’s name is Jennifer,” Jennifer continued. “There’s that scene where he’s talking with his daughter, it reminds me of a conversation I could have had when I was older.”
“Or in ‘Uncle Buck,’ when he’s in the car trying to remember the kids’ names – Jeremy, Christie, Burt – it’s great to have that verbal sound bite of our dad talking.”
As for “I Like Me,” Chris said that the documentary feels like a final, celebratory chapter in his father’s career.
“It’s a perfect supplement to his work,” Chris told The Post. “When he passed, he went so quickly, and his last few films weren’t really career highlights. But this film celebrates all of his work, collects it all and brings people together.”
“When we go to screenings with Ryan Reynolds, it feels like a John Candy convention,” he said. “It’s very special.”
Perhaps most important of all, Jennifer added, is that “I Like Me” will help introduce new generations of fans to her dad’s lasting legacy.
“If someone comes out learning one new thing, or talks about it to their kids and says, ‘We have to start watching these movies,’ then they get introduced to our dad and enjoy it – that’s the key,” she shared.
“We want that legacy and feeling of love for him to continue,” Jennifer concluded.
“John Candy: I Like Me” was released on Prime Video on Oct. 10 after premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival last month.
Produced by Ryan Reynolds’ Maximum Effort in partnership with Amazon MGM Studios, it was directed by Tom Hanks’ son, Colin Hanks.
Chris and Jennifer, who both served as co-executive producers on the doc, revealed what it was like teaming up with Reynolds and the younger Hanks to bring the heartfelt new project to life.
“It’s great,” Chris told The Post. “Ryan is a really big fan of our dad’s, and he’s just got a creative vision in regards to who he wants to work with, and he really helped get Colin on board for this. So that helped shape all of this.”
“We knew that it was in good hands once we knew that Colin was on board and wanted to be a part of this and go on this journey with us,” Jennifer added. “It was an honor to work with both of them.”
The film features an impressive roster of stars who loved and worked with Candy, including Billy Murray, Martin Short, Steve Martin, Catherine O’Hara, Eugene Levy and Macaulay Culkin.
Chris and Jennifer revealed that they and their mother, Rosemary, 76, still keep in touch with just about all of their father’s famous old friends.
“They’re always in our orbit,” Chris shared. “Macaulay [Culkin] is kind of new. Jen was on his podcast not too long ago. But we bump into Marty [Short] or Eugene [Levy], and they’re in the ecosystem of our lives for sure.“
“They all collectively help us,” he said. “We’re still mixed in a really nice way. So whenever we do get to connect, it’s really special.”
Jennifer added that while they “might not see them on a day-to-day basis,” they “don’t skip a beat” once they finally do get together.
“It can go years,” she shared, “but we still connect and we’re still super close with a majority of them, even though we don’t see them on a day-to-day basis or we’re not hanging out every day.”
“John Candy: I Like Me” is now streaming on Prime Video.
English (US)