First Clip of Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger in ‘The Goldbergs’ Debuts

Robert Englund will reprise his iconic role of Freddy Krueger from A Nightmare on Elm Street on this Wednesday’s Halloween-themed episode of The Goldbergs, with the promo above offering us our first look at the villain in action.

In the episode, “Despite Beverly’s wishes, Jackie’s parents allow Adam to watch A Nightmare on Elm Street and a disagreement between the families ensues. But Beverly dreams of facing off with horror icon Freddy Krueger (guest star Robert Englund), which teaches her an important lesson about her son’s relationship with Jackie. Meanwhile, Erica realizes she’s not as popular as she once was as she starts hanging out at William Penn Academy despite the fact she’s no longer a student there.”

Englund last appeared as Krueger in 2003’s Freddy vs. Jason, with Jackie Earle Haley taking on the character for the 2010 reboot of the franchise. The actor has appeared in the elaborate makeup for convention appearances, though this appearance in The Goldbergs is the first live-action Krueger we’ve gotten from Englund in 15 years.

Compared to other iconic horror movie villains, Krueger fits in perfectly with the sitcom, as he is just as known for his comedic chops as his murderous mayhem. According to Goldbergs creator Adam Goldberg, it was seemingly his familiarity with the character that convinced Englund to make the appearance.

“Convincing Robert Englund to come out of retirement to play Freddy Krueger one last time is a true bucket-list moment for me as a writer,” Goldberg shared in a statement. “I’ve been a longtime obsessive fan, collecting Freddy artwork and action figures. It took me months to convince Robert to revisit the character. Luckily, his manager Joe Rice is a big Goldbergs fan and helped me convince Robert that the world needed to see Freddy one last time.”

The series is semi-autobiographical, with Goldberg admitting Krueger was a big part of his upbringing.

“Watching Robert spend four hours getting back into makeup and bringing our script to life was a true dream and by far a highlight of the show for our cast and crew,” Goldberg added. “The story in this episode is actually true — after I saw Elm Street 3, I didn’t sleep for a week and my mom was beside herself and desperate to fix the problem.”

Check out Englund’s return to Freddy Krueger on The Goldbergs this Wednesday on ABC.

How do you think Englund looks in the sitcom? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things horror and Star Wars!

[H/T YouTube, Flickering Myth]