Moviehold.net tells us that actor Robert Englund will be asked to return as Freddy Kruger in the Platinum Dunes remake of A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET (which we mentioned in this post). Of course, this does not alter the fact that there is no need for a remake of A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, but outraged fans will search for any tiny silver lining in this dark cloud.
“At last, my right arm is complete again!”
This remake seems to put the kibosh, at least for the time being, on the oft-discussed prequel, which would have portrayed Kruger before being burned by the angry vigilantes. Personally, I have never found these origin stories to be that fascinating, especially in a case like this, where we have been told so much in bits and pieces over the years. Kruger became an icon of horror because he haunts dreams; the back story of his human life is of secondary interest.
As for doing a remake…well, Wes Craven already tried that, more or less, with NEW NIGHTMARE – a great concept for re-imagining Kruger as an eternal, archetypal evil that takes on different guises in different eras, which unfortunately faltered somewhat in execution. It might be interesting to see something new along those lines, something that extends the existing ELM STREET mythos. What we definitely do not need is a hack re-run of the original, along the lines of last year’s THE HITCHER.
UPDATE: Moviehold.net turned out to be incorrect, as Jackie Earle Haley was cast as Kruger, not Robert Englund.
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