Heather Langenkamp says she’s open to playing Nancy Thompson again for a “Nightmare on Elm Street” legacy sequel…
It’s been done with “Halloween” so why not “A Nightmare on Elm Street”?
Legacy sequels are all the rage these days with more than a few popular horror franchises being revived or resurrected, many times with direct sequels to past films that just move past complicated canon as a result of numerous films made in succession. That’s what happened with David Gordon Green directing the latest “Halloween” trilogy, which basically reset the timeline and served as a direct sequel to the original film from 1979.
There’s been talks for years about a new “Nightmare on Elm Street” film but the rights to the movies were held up for quite some time before finally returning to the estate belonging to Wes Craven’s family after the famed director created the original film in 1984. Following his death, Craven’s family assumed ownership of the “Nightmare on Elm Street” franchise and there’s been rumors for years that the dream demon himself Freddy Krueger would eventually be resurrected on the big screen.
If that happens, Heather Langenkamp — who famously portrayed Freddy’s original final girl Nancy Thompson in the first “Nightmare on Elm Street” as well as in “Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors” — says she would be more than interested in reprising her most iconic role, especially with the 40th anniversary of the original film and a new 4K version being released this year.
“These fans are dying for another episode of this incredible story about Freddy and hopefully Nancy,” Langenkamp told Bloody Disgusting. “I think it’s a little bit of cold comfort to get a remastered 4K when truly, in the hearts of so many people that I talked to, what they really want is a sequel or some kind of new installment of this epic.
“That’s the bittersweet part about this whole thing. It’s so great to get something on the 40th anniversary that people can collect. So much has gone into keeping the spirit of Nightmare on Elm Street alive. I’m hoping the next thing that Warner Bros. focuses on is recreating Freddy Krueger in a way that all of us can really enjoy in a new movie.”
Of course while Langenkamp would love to step into the role of Nancy again, it’s tough to imagine her going up against a Freddy who isn’t being played by Robert Englund.
Englund has stated numerous times that he’s too old to put on the red and green sweater and razor glove again while advocating for a new actor take over the part that he made famous.
As much as Englund says he wouldn’t do it, Langenkamp believes he could be convinced to return to play Freddy one more time, especially if the right circumstances surrounded the film.
“I’ve recently gone out with him, and he has a ton of energy,” Langenkamp said about Englund. “He’s a person that I can barely keep up with on our jaunts around the country. If he can’t do it, nobody can; that’s what I like to say. Until I see him with his walker stumbling down the street, I’m pretty sure Robert Englund can play Freddy Krueger.”
It remains to be seen if Langenkamp’s vision for a new “Nightmare on Elm Street” is realized but if there’s a green light given for a new sequel any time soon, perhaps Nancy and Freddy really could battle it out again.
