Freddy Krueger, played by actor Robert Englund, wielding his finger knives against a blue and black background.
In the 1970s and early '80s, horror created several new icons thanks to the slasher craze. Leatherface, Michael Myers, and Jason Voorhees led the way, but they all had that commonality of being silent hulks in a mask. In 1984, Wes Craven created something at once familiar and yet entirely original with A Nightmare on Elm Street. Freddy Krueger didn't wear a mask, and he never shut up.
By 1984, horror was ready for a change. Enter Wes Craven, who was already known for modern classics like The Last House on the Left and The Hills Have Eyes. With his gritty, almost documentary-like style, he knew how to get under our skin and terrify us. Now, a movie about a man who kills people in their dreams couldn't exactly be filmed in that same way, but it still had realism in its origin story.
✕ Remove Ads The franchise reached its peak with the third entry. 1985's A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors was the best of the first film taken to the extreme. Heather Langenkamp came back as Nancy, and while Wes Craven didn't direct it, leaving that title to Chuck Russell, he did write the script.
'A Nightmare on Elm Street' Is Remembered as One of the Greatest Horror Movies ✕ Remove Ads Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare in 1991 didn't correct the series' course, and despite Wes Craven and Heather Langenkamp coming back in 1994 for New Nightmare, the $18 million tally in theaters proved that audiences no longer cared about the guy in the striped sweater. Freddy vs.
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