Robert Englund’s ‘The Goldbergs’ Episode as Freddy Krueger Gets Air Date, Synopsis, and Photos

15 years after his appearance in Freddy vs Jason, Robert Englund is reprising his role as Freddy […]

October 10, 2018, 11:50am

15 years after his appearance in Freddy vs Jason, Robert Englund is reprising his role as Freddy Krueger in a Halloween episode of ABC’s The Goldbergs. The episode is slated to air on Wednesday, October 24th.

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In the episode, titled, “Mister Knifey-Hands,” “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.”

With the sitcom taking place in the ’80s, it makes perfect sense that it would incorporate such an iconic character, with Englund’s appearance as Krueger marking the actor’s first live-action return to the character for the first time since he faced off with Friday the 13th‘s Jason Voorhees. Englund has donned the intricate makeup for convention appearances, though these were limited to photo ops for fans and not a scripted appearance.

The Nightmare on Elm Street series has been dormant since the 2010 remake featuring Jackie Earl Haley as the villain, which was both a financial and critical disappointment. Haley might have given the character his all, but with Englund having portrayed the character in the first eight films, fans felt the lack of Englund and didn’t respond to it well.

No plans for a new Nightmare on Elm Street film have been announced, leaving fans having to settle for this Goldbergs appearance to fulfill their Freddy craving. Additionally, Englund has previously confirmed that the physical requirements of playing Freddy are too intensive for him to return to the franchise.

“I’m too old to do another Freddy now,” Englund previously shared with ComicBook.com. “If I do a fight scene now it’s got to be real minimal because I can’t snap my head for eight different takes and different angles. My spine gets sore. I can still be mean and scary, but I’m mostly relegated now to sort of Van Helsing roles, old doctors and sh*t. So it’s fun that the last moment of me ever playing Freddy is a wink to the audience.”