Six Actors Who Could Pull Off Playing Freddy Krueger in an ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ Reboot
I’ve been a FredHead since I was a little kid watching scary movies from under my blankets. To this day, A Nightmare on Elm Street remains my favorite horror franchise (you can read about its personal impact on me here). That’s why I remain devastated that we haven’t had a new film in the series since that disastrous remake in 2010. Over fifteen years without Freddy. The man of our nightmares has been locked away while peers such as Michael Myers or Chucky flourish. The audacity.
Studios such as SpectreVision have been reported to have interest in the Nightmare franchise in the past, but to no avail (at least, not yet). You can’t keep a dream demon down, though. Like any good horror villain, Freddy always comes back. I mean, come on, he’s on the Mount Rushmore of horror icons! Whether by belief or a dog pissing fire on his grave, he’ll rise from the dead eventually.
In the meantime, I’ve been thinking about who should put on the fedora when everyone’s favorite nightmare maker does return, since Robert Englund has retired from the role. Below, you’ll find a list of six performers who would fit Freddy’s glove like Cinderella and her glass slipper. To keep things interesting, I excluded some obvious picks who have already taken on the roles of popular horror villains, such as Bill Skarsgård (IT) and Ethan Hawke (The Grabber from Black Phone 2 is basically Freddy, anyway). To be clear, no one can replace Robert. But I have no doubt that each of these six would bring something special to the iconic character that he and Wes Craven unleashed over forty years ago.
Jim Carrey
During an interview with Dream Warriors director Chuck Russell on Dread’s podcast, Development Hell, our own Josh Korngut floated the idea of Jim Carrey donning Freddy’s glove…and was met with a stamp of approval from Russell. It makes sense. Freddy requires a level of physicality that you could argue no one on this list would fit better than Carrey. An actor who made a career for himself with his unique physical comedy, he himself has the presence of a figure straight out of a strange dream. Tall, long-limbed, and utterly manic, can’t you just picture him running down the dark halls of Elm Street with a murderous gleam in his eyes? You don’t even have to try that hard. He did (almost) exactly that in a legitimately frightening dream sequence from The Cable Guy. In the words of Ace Ventura, it would be a la-who-za-her move to not at least consider him.
Willem Dafoe
There’s just something about Willem Dafoe’s face that screams “Freddy Krueger”. I mean that in the most complimentary way possible. The dream demon needs to have a certain presence on screen, one that intimidates while also keeping your eyes locked in place. Dafoe has that in spades. He’s an actor who can hypnotize you in one moment and strike fear in your heart in the next. His off-the-wall role as the Green Goblin in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man offers a taste of the giddy madness he could bring to Freddy. Then there’s his performance as the iconic Max Schreck in Shadow of the Vampire, an excellent display of his ability to perform through heavy makeup. Look at the above photo and tell me you can’t hear him say, “Come to Freddy”. And before you claim he’s too old, don’t forget that Craven originally envisioned Freddy Krueger as an older man. Don’t be ageist, now.
David Dastmalchian
Dastmalchian reminds me a lot of Robert Englund back before he was hired to wear the glove. A character actor able to chameleon his way into any role, but rarely given the chance to shine as the lead. Let the man get his creep on! Similar to Carrey, he has a Slenderman sort of stature that makes him appear like a looming shadow on the wall. What I especially love about Dastmalchian is his ability to project an immense darkness from behind his eyes, tinged with the slightest touch of sadness. That small bit of empathy that he allows for could create a Freddy Krueger that causes audiences to shift uncomfortably in their seats. He’s also a massive horror fan. Dastmalchian would approach wearing the glove with the sort of love and respect that the role demands.
Colman Domingo
There was a time when I was not sure I would have considered Domingo under that dusty fedora. And then I saw Edgar Wright’s The Running Man. In an otherwise shoulder-shrug of a film, Domingo pops off the screen as TV host, Bobby T. We’ve always known the actor to deliver phenomenal performances. That was never in question. But in Bobby T, Domingo brought the sort of manic energy that a villain like Freddy Krueger requires. He has a playfulness to him that he can switch on and off as easily as one blinks. And then, of course, there’s his unique voice that he can weaponize as either magnetic, powerfully intimidating or downright sexy. One, two, this Freddy’s coming for you…and I’d be good with that.
Walton Goggins
Now we’re playing with power! Perhaps this one’s a little too obvious, but I don’t care. Goggins more than deserves a mention here. His role on The White Lotus garnered him the title of a sex symbol. But it’s his performance as The Ghoul in Amazon’s Fallout series that caught my eye. The man has an effortlessly cool, calm, and calculated aura that lends itself well to Freddy. It doesn’t hurt that his makeup in the show offers a glimpse at how Goggins would appear as a pepperoni pizza-looking corpse. Of all the names listed here, he’s the easiest to imagine in that dirty red and green sweater with a murderous sneer.
Samara Weaving
Who says Freddy can’t be a woman? I’m sure many of you are already getting holy water to toss at my sacrilegious ass, but hear me out. Weaving has become best known for her leading “final girl” performances in films like Ready or Not and Azrael. But she’s no stranger to playing bloodthirsty psychopaths, either. In fact, that’s how she caught my attention in the first place. The Australian actress with a killer scream nailed her role as the sadistic villain of The Babysitter. She’s a performer who never seems to mind getting soaked in blood, and even delights in it. Just watch Mayhem for proof. With her disarming charm and striking features, you’d have an unconventional Freddy that could haunt nightmares for years to come.
Who do you think should play Freddy Krueger next? Let us know in the comments below!
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