According to a report published this week by Tracking Board, New Line Cinema has plans to develop another reboot of the popular franchise that made scarred slasher Freddy Krueger a household name and prevented several generations of movie fans from getting a good night’s sleep. The report indicates that the studio will ignore the previous remake that cast Watchmen actor Jackie Earle Haley as Krueger, a role originated by Robert Englund in the 1984 film and portrayed by him in all eight of the pre-reboot installments of the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise.
Orphan screenwriter David Leslie Johnson is reportedly attached to pen the script for the Nightmare on Elm Street remake, which will almost certainly feature the sweater-wearing, razor-gloved “bastard son of 100 maniacs” stalking the dreams of a new crop of teenage victims. Johnson was recently confirmed as the screenwriter for an upcoming Dungeons & Dragons movie, and previously penned several episodes of AMC’s The Walking Dead television series in addition to the 2012 fantasy action film Wrath of the Titans.
It’s worth noting that nothing is official at this point regarding New Line’s plans for the long-running franchise, but given the way the iconic franchise once “saved” the studio by becoming its first commercial success — earning it the nickname “The House That Freddy Built” — it wouldn’t be surprising to see Freddy Krueger back on the big screen.
Over the course of eight in-continuity films and one remake, the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise has earned more than $370 million — an impressive feat that becomes even more so given the relatively low budgets for many of the installments. The highest-grossing film in the franchise so far was 2003’s horror crossover Freddy vs. Jason, which earned more than $82 million domestically (and $114 million worldwide) on a $30 million budget.
There’s currently no official studio confirmation (or rumored timetable) for the remake of A Nightmare on Elm Street.
