Tony Todd’s Widow Calls Out Emmys for Leaving Actor Out of ‘In Memoriam’

Tony Todd’s widow Fatima Cortez Todd expressed her displeasure with the Emmys after the late actor was not included in the “In Memoriam” segment on Sunday.

“It’s just another disrespect of him,” Fatima told TMZ. “He faced a lot of disrespect in his career.”

Even though Todd is popularly known for playing the titular character in the Candyman film series, his acting credits also include appearances in a number of TV shows, such as Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Stargate SG-1, The Young and the Restless, and 24.

According to TMZ, Fatima was also upset when the Oscars left Todd off the “In Memoriam” segment earlier this year. The widow was especially bothered by this particular snub because her late husband was a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for three decades.

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Fatima mentioned Polly Holliday, whom she considered to be “a wonderful human being in addition to a great actress,” was also absent from the Emmys “In Memoriam” segment. Holliday may be most commonly recognized for her role as Flo Castleberry in the TV series Alice.

Todd and Holliday appeared in the Emmys online version of the “In Memoriam.” Fatima believes the Emmys need to “either do everybody or nobody” when it comes to that broadcast segment going forward.

Todd passed away in Nov. 2024 at the age of 69. The actor made one of his final onscreen appearances in Final Destination: Bloodlines, delivering his character’s heartfelt parting dialogue, which happened to be improvised.

“I intend to enjoy the time I have left. And I suggest you do the same,” Todd said in the scene. “Life is precious. Enjoy every single second. You never know when…Good luck.”

Bloodlines co-director Adam Stein told ScreenRant that he and co-director Zach Lipovsky recognized Todd was “quite sick” during filming. While they did not know that the movie could be his last, they believed it would be his final in the film series.

Lipovsky remembered telling Todd to scrap the script and speak from the heart.

“And he just said, ‘Life is precious. Savor every second that you got,'” Lipovsky recalled. “Which is something he was very much living through in that moment, and he was showing us on set. He was cherishing every moment, and filled it with so much life and joy, and that kind of stuck with all of us, and it really comes through in that moment.”