Freddy Krueger is set to slash back onto the big screen as Paramount develops a new Nightmare on Elm Street revival after securing US rights to Wes Craven’s 1984 screenplay
Robert Englund as Freddy Kruger Nightmare Elm Street(Image: Publicity Picture)
Horror’s most iconic movie villain is returning to the big screen – as a new revival of Freddy Krueger’s Nightmare on Elm Street is revealed to be under development.
Paramount Pictures has secured a deal for the US rights to the original screenplay of Wes Craven’s 1984 horror classic. And the film will introduce a whole new generation to the infamous scarred child killer with razor-sharp metal claws.
Wes Craven’s estate – represented by his widow, Iya Labunka and son, Jonathan Craven – will produce the movie after it regained the rights to the original screenplay from Warner Bros in 2019. Labunka said Wes’ estate is looking forward to the film’s new generation of filmgoers.
Film Nightmare on Elm Street 1984 Robert Englund(Image: New Line cinema)
She said: “We look forward to bringing the world of Wes Craven’s Nightmare on Elm Street to a new and completely engaged generation of fans. We know that Wes would have been thrilled to see how horror is taking its long overdue place in the cultural canon.
“We can’t wait for all of us to sit together in a dark theatre – around the campfire of today – as the next chapter of the Nightmare story unfolds.” The film starred Robert Englund as child killer Krueger, who was burned alive by the children’s parents.
However, he returned through teenagers’ dreams with a metal-claw glove, red and green sweater, fedora and burned face. The classic spawned seven sequels and a 2010 reboot, plus comic books.
A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)(Image: © Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.)
Englund played the iconic antagonist from his debut in 1984 to the Freddy vs. Jason spin-off in 2003 but admitted there was ‘no more Freddy’ left in him. In 2024, the 79-year-old said: “I mean, there might be some gimmick thing we could do with a close-up or something, but no, I can’t play him anymore. … I’m an old dog!
“Give me a break.” While no director, cast or release date has yet been announced, producers representing Paramount, J.D. Lifshitz and Raphael Margules have described the project as an “honour”.
They said: “We can’t remember a time before we were fans of Wes Craven. The fact that Iya and Jonathan have entrusted us with this opportunity to help usher a new story into this world is an honour beyond words.
Still from the 1988 supernatural slasher film A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master
“We look forward to working alongside them to bring a terrifying new nightmare to audiences everywhere, and to welcome Freddy home.” A Nightmare on Elm Street was originally made on a tiny $1.8m budget (about £1.4m).
It opened in November 1984 and went on to make $57.1m worldwide (about £44.9m), becoming a surprise smash and earning a 94% Rotten Tomatoes score. Craven was inspired by real reports of young refugees dying in their sleep after terrifying nightmares.
Starring Robert Englund and featuring Johnny Depp’s film debut, its inventive practical effects helped save New Line Cinema, later dubbed “The House That Freddy Built”.
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