Doctor Sleep Director Is “Dying” to Pitch His Nightmare on Elm Street Project

Earlier this month, a report surfaced that Wes Craven’s estate was actively looking for pitches to revive the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, with director Mike Flanagan recently teasing that he is “dying” to pitch his take on the material. Between Doctor Sleep and The Haunting of Hill House, Flanagan’s recent accomplishments in the horror genre will likely earn him the opportunity to pitch whatever he might be working on, though with the franchise having been dormant for nearly a decade, he might be going up against a number of worthy creatives who have their own take on how to bring Freddy Krueger back into prominence.

“I got a killer idea,” Flanagan shared with Bloody Disgusting. “[I’m] dying to get in there to pitch it.”

He added, “If I got to do this it would be so cool.”

The original film was written and directed by Wes Craven and hit theaters in 1984, quickly becoming a major sensation in the genre world. The film starred Robert Englund as Krueger, a figure who was killed by neighborhood parents when it was discovered that he was torturing school children and escaped punishment due to a legal loophole. Krueger returned in the dreams of neighborhood teens, violently attacking them in their sleep, resulting in real-world fatalities. Ultimately it was Heather Langenkamp’s Nancy who was able to bring Krueger out of the dream world and into reality to defeat him.

While Craven’s estate earning back the rights to the series is promising for the franchise, it’s unclear when a new project could move forward. The last entry into the series came in the form of the 2010 reboot, which saw Jackie Early Haley take on Krueger, with the film being both a critical and financial disappointment.

Despite it being unknown what direction the Craven estate wants to take the series, Englund has previously teased he could be up for one more movie.

“I’m not Freddy anymore, you guys. I could do one more…probably,” Englund shared with the crowd at Monster Mania. “If you shot me up with vitamin C. But here’s the thing: I can’t do eight more, you guys. So we need a new actor that you guys believe in and trust and love that can go the distance.”

Englund isn’t the only original star who would love to star in a sequel, with Heather Langenkamp also confessing her interest in returning to the franchise.

“I would really love to reprise Nancy in a way, because I feel that there’s more of that story to be told, certainly,” Langenkamp shared with ComicBook.com. “But I don’t know if there’s anyone out there who is as imaginative as Wes Craven, who could figure it out. I just don’t know. I don’t see enough great storylines that would incorporate Nancy in any universe. I just don’t know if that exists, but some brilliant person might be working on something. But I know the fans would love it so much, because I see them in these situations where they’re so enthusiastic.”

She added, “They’re such great fans that the horror genre just doesn’t seem to appreciate them enough. I constantly walk away with, these are people who have created a genre just out of pure love over the past 30 years. Their love of these movies has actually buoyed this genre in a way that no other genres, I think, can say that’s the reason why they’re so successful. And so, for their sake, I think, give them what they want. If this is what they want, they’re telling me they want it, then why wouldn’t you give people what they want?”

Stay tuned for details on the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise.

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