One, two, Freddy's no longer comin' for you!
According to Dread Central, Warner Bros.’ A Nightmare on Elm Street reboot, which had Evil Dead Rise and The Mummy director Lee Cronin attached to write and direct, is no longer moving forward.
However, Freddy Krueger may still return to the big screen via a separate Paramount Primal Elm Street film.
Both studios had been racing to get their respective takes on the "Dream Demon" into production, but with the WB version now dead in the water, Paramount's is the only one left standing.
Paramount announced its deal with the Wes Craven estate in July, licensing the U.S. rights for a new movie based on Craven’s original screenplay. Iya Labunka, Jonathan Craven, and attorney Marc Toberoff are producing, with Paramount Primal’s J.D. Lifshitz and Raphael Margules executive producing.
Apparently, Warner Bros., which retained the international rights, wasn’t too happy about this.
"From what I’ve learned, Michael De Luca pushed to get Warner’s own version into production before Paramount could make theirs, with the looming merger adding urgency to that effort. Well, the merger happened."
If and when a new Nightmare on Elm Street film does happen, fans shouldn't expect to see OG Freddy Robert Englund back in the iconic bladed glove and striped jumper.
“There’s no Freddy left in me," he told Bloody Disgusting in a recent interview. "I could possibly voice a really high-end animated version. That would be nice to be asked to do, but I know I can’t do the fight scenes more than one take now, one angle. I just can’t be snapping my head or anything like that. I’m an old dog! Give me a break.”
“I don’t. I literally don’t. 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 too old,” he added.
What would you like to see from a new NOES movie? Let us know in the comments.
In Wes Craven's classic slasher film, several Midwestern teenagers fall prey to Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund), a disfigured midnight mangler who preys on the teenagers in their dreams -- which, in turn, kills them in reality. After investigating the phenomenon, Nancy (Heather Langenkamp) begins to suspect that a dark secret kept by her and her friends' parents may be the key to unraveling the mystery, but can Nancy and her boyfriend Glen (Johnny Depp) solve the puzzle before it's too late?