Robert Englund Returning For Another Nightmare On Elm Street Movie?
Robert Englund famously portrayed one of the biggest horror icons, Freddy Krueger, and now it appears as if he is being targeted to take on the role again.
One of American cinema’s leading villains is Robert Englund’s portrayal of Freddy Krueger in the franchise, A Nightmare on Elm Street. The man, the myth, and the legend himself has embodied the character of Freddy Krueger for many years, scaring children and adult viewers for generations. Now, a leading horror film producer is trying to persuade Englund to return as Krueger in another incarnation of the film that made him famous, despite the character actor’s prolific career in a range of film and television projects.
According to a report by MovieWeb, American actor Robert Englund is being courted by producer Jason Blum to return as the iconic Freddy Krueger in a new film based on A Nightmare on Elm Street. Jason Blum, through his production company Blumhouse, has apparently been attempting to purchase the rights to A Nightmare on Elm Street, as well as the franchise rights to Friday the 13th. Since Blumhouse has become the modern leader in the horror film genre, it seems like a natural step in the right direction for Blum to acquire these two storied film series.
Well, that is if Robert Englund is even interested in playing Freddy Krueger again. As reported by Screen Crush, Englund believes that he may be too old to play the character of Freddy Krueger at this point in his career, and he has taken on other roles to highlight his range as an actor. These have supposedly come in the form of older doctors and those that resemble a Van Helsing type. One of these recent roles has been Victor Creel in the fourth season of Stranger Things, currently available on Netflix.
However, that doesn’t seem to be stopping Jason Blum from having his say when it comes to unearthing one of cinematic history’s favorite villains. Blum is currently promoting his new film The Black Phone, starring Ethan Hawke and Jeremy Davies, and was recently discussing his interest in the renowned franchise. In an interview with Screen Rant, Blum noted that he is very intrigued with owning the rights to A Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th, remarking that he truly believes he can bring Robert Englund back for another round. Commenting on the fact that he was able to convince 87-year-old Ellen Burstyn to reprise her famous role as Chris MacNeil in the upcoming sequel to The Exorcist, that at 75 years old, Englund is seen as a youngster in comparison.
The original A Nightmare on Elm Street was released in 1984, which was written and directed by the late Wes Craven of Scream fame. Robert Englund portrayed Freddy Krueger, a demonic vision of a real serial killer who was burned alive, but then appears in the dreams of children to torment them and kill the residents of a small Ohio town. The franchise spawned several sequels and iterations that spanned television series and novels. The last time that Englund has appeared as a version of Freddy Krueger was in a 2018 episode of ABC’s The Goldbergs.
