A Nightmare On Elm Street’s original Nancy actor, Heather Langenkamp, is right about the prospect of a final face-off between her and Freddy Krueger.
While A Nightmare On Elm Street star Heather Langenkamp did already get to face down Freddy Krueger three times, this is only further evidence that the slasher legend is right about a requel. The Halloween franchise was revived for a new trilogy in 2018 and the Friday the 13th series is finally coming back with a prequel television series, Crystal Lake. However, the Nightmare On Elm Street franchise has remained dormant ever since 2010’s misguided remake.
Original A Nightmare On Elm Street star Heather Langenkamp recently stated that she hoped to see her character square off against Freddy one more time, and the genre legend is right to suggest that this could reinvigorate the series. While Langenkamp’s Nancy defeated Freddy in the original A Nightmare On Elm Street’s ending, the character was later killed by a revived Krueger in 1986’s sequel Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. After that, Langenkamp returned to the Nightmare On Elm Street franchise in 1994 to play a fictionalized version of herself in the underrated meta-sequel New Nightmare, providing further proof that a requel could work in the process.
A Nightmare On Elm Street Requel Would Work
In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Langenkamp said: “If Nancy could fight Freddy one last time, I would really like that. Gosh, I’d love to see a future in that. I’ve been really watching the Halloween saga that’s been out, and I love watching Jamie Lee Curtis get to play that part.” While the controversial Halloween Ends killer Corey Cunningham made the final installment of the new Halloween trilogy divisive, Langenkamp is right about the perennial appeal of seeing an original Final Girl face off against her longtime nemesis. The A Nightmare On Elm Street franchise already pitted Nancy against Freddy thrice, and each fight improved on their last showdown.
New Nightmare Proved Langkenkamp Should Face Freddy Again
While Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors expanded on the premise of the original movie with characters who could harness the powers of dreams against Freddy, this wasn’t enough to save Nancy from the killer’s clutches. Freddy tricking Nancy by taking the form of her father was one of the nastiest (and best) kills in the series, but even this was outdone by New Nightmare’s wholesale reinvention of the franchise. Years before Scream‘s success, Craven’s New Nightmare was an ingenious horror satire that saw Langenkamp play a fictionalized version of herself who is stalked by the Entity, an ageless evil force that takes the shape of Freddy Krueger.
This clever conceit allowed New Nightmare to parody Hollywood’s culture of reboots and endless sequels with a sharp, witty script, but none of this would have worked without Langenkamp finding the humanity in her character. The underrated star excels in New Nightmare, allowing the inherent humor of the movie’s premise to shine through by playing her role surpassingly straight. While Robert Englund has a blast as both the new improved Freddy and a caricature of himself, Langenkamp ensures that viewers have a reason to care about her character’s fate even though she is technically playing herself—an impressive achievement that proves the actor could carry another A Nightmare On Elm Street outing.
Why Nightmare On Elm Street Deserves A Revival
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As evidenced by Freddy’s influence on Stranger Things season 4’s villain Vecna, the slasher icon is as beloved as ever and remains a terrifying titan of horror cinema. Not only that, but Englund’s red herring cameo in Stranger Things proves that the genre veteran is still able to reprise the role of Freddy, while Langenkamp’s more substantial supporting role in the recent Netflix hit The Midnight Club proves that she is also able to return as Nancy and still has the dramatic chops to make the role of a grownup version of the Final Girl compelling.
It is easy to understand why some critics are unsure about a Nightmare On Elm Street franchise revival when it has been over thirty-five years since the stars first played their now-iconic roles. However, Englund and Langenkamp became genre legends for good reason and the reception of Jamie Lee Curtis’s return as Laurie Strode in the Halloween trilogy proves that the pair deserve another onscreen face-off. Freddy Krueger has been one of the most influential faces in horror cinema for decades and Nancy is still the first and greatest Final Girl that he ever faced off against, making the prospect of a new A Nightmare On Elm Street movie that reunites the pair an exciting prospect.
