The horror franchise A Nightmare on Elm Street is among the most beloved in cinema history. A genre-defining original, plenty of divisive sequels, and a failed attempt at a remake later, it is safe to say that Freddy Krueger is etched permanently into pop culture as one of film’s most iconic villains. But as it turns out, Freddy wasn’t always the monster you imagine. While the character’s design can be credited to director Wes Craven, Freddy actor Robert Englund has revealed that the iconic fedora hat wasn’t in the original design. After trying it out with the heavy makeup, the actor was convinced that the fedora was the way to go, and he had to fight Craven, as well as producer Robert Shaye, to keep it in the film.
The actor recently spoke to ComingSoon about the launch of the 4K UHD collection of the franchise. Englund says that these restorations are the way fans should see the Nightmare on Elm Street movies: “They’re pristine. They’re brand-new. The color timing, the color mix, and everything have been adjusted just exactly the way the people made them wanted. It’s really a treat.”
While discussing the origins of the character, Englund says that, though Craven was heavily involved with everything in the 1984 movie, the director let him think of the best way to embody the dream demon: “There wasn’t really a note about how to act Freddy. Wes, God bless him, he was hands-off with me.” However, there was one aspect about the character that Craven and Shaye were not sure of:
“I had to fight for the hat. Both he and Robert Shaye were getting cold feet about the hat, for some reason. I sort of reminded them how the hat could help with the makeup. It could help hide the makeup because it casts a shadow, and by lifting my head, I could reveal my eyes and catch the light. Also, if I took the hat off — when I removed the hat — I would reveal further disfigurement, which was a dramatic value, too. So I kind of had to fight for the hat. But that’s about it. Wes, once he cast me, he kind of left me alone.”
Englund Got a Priceless Piece of Advice When Taking on Freddy Krueger: “Respect the Genre”
Playing Freddy Krueger changed Englund’s life forever. The character’s legacy remains among the most enduring, and it is impossible to talk about the history of the genre without including the monster with the glove. Freddy was the result of a passionate actor/director duo coming together to create an entity that existed beyond the limits of the big screen. Englund was also inspired by an invaluable piece of advice shared by the director:
“The great advice Wes gave me early on was to respect the genre. I remembered, I had a flashback to my childhood. And I was a bit of a snob in the ’70s because I’d come from the theater. I’d forgotten what a little fanboy I was and how much I loved Hammer Films, matinee horror movies, science fiction, Twilight Zone, and everything.
“When Wes told me that, to respect the genre, I think it really was a profound piece of advice. It really made me always think of the sequels and each one of the Nightmare projects, to imagine them in the best possible way. Imagine that they would look the best possible way coming alive off the page of the script. I always did that with my performance, as well.”