Nightmare on Elm Street Is 'Still Happening,' Says Aquaman Screenwriter

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Aquaman Writer Says Nightmare on Elm Street Is 'Still Happening'

By Tom Chapman

Published Dec 26, 2018

Aquaman's David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick confirms that he is still working on the script for a Nightmare on Elm Street revival for New Line Cinema.

It's a case of one, two, Freddy's coming for you, as Aquaman's David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick confirms he's still working on reviving New Line's A Nightmare on Elm Street series.

David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick is known for his work on movies including Orhpan, The Conjuring 2 and James Wan's Aquaman, but has been linked to a new Elm Street reboot since 2015. Speaking to Game Spot, he confirmed that while he is having a 'nightmare' with Freddy Krueger, "It's still happening" when it comes to A Nightmare on Elm Street.

"Nothing is percolating just yet," he said, hinting that New Line has a different horror franchise in its sights at the moment. "The Conjuring universe is sort of first and foremost on [New Line Cinema's] horror burner," he continued. That being said, with some 34 years of history behind A Nightmare on Elm Street, Johnson-McGoldrick explained what Freddy means to the genre, stating, "Everybody wants to see Freddy again I think, so I think it's inevitable at some point."

Starting with Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street in 1984, there have been seven sequels of varying quality, along with Samuel Bayer's maligned reboot in 2010. New Line had planned on crafting a new era with that reboot, but poor box office returns and a critical panning left Freddy Krueger dead and buried since. However, in a time when the likes of Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees are finding a new lease of life, Freddy could be the next horror legend to return to theaters.

Alongside the success of David Gordon Green's Halloween and hopes of a sequel already, LeBron James is reportedly working on a new Friday the 13th, and Legendary plans to revive Leatherface for another Texas Chainsaw Massacre. New Line has already enjoyed great success with a shared Conjuring universe, so who knows, maybe horror's biggest names will finally get to share the screen?

The big question that hangs over the long-running horror series is who will stick on the razor glove to play Freddy Krueger. Robert Englund famously played the Springwood Slasher in the first eight movies and stepped aside for Watchmen's Jackie Earle Haley for Bayer's reboot. Only recently, Englund reprised his iconic character for the 2018 Halloween special of The Goldbergs. Nevertheless, despite vowing he's done playing Freddy, a resurgence in horror movies could be enough to tempt Englund back into that red-and-green sweater.

Similar to how Blumhouse ignored the convoluted history of the Halloween movies and brought back the likes of Jamie Lee Curtis and Nick Castle to pick up where the first movie left off, New Line could lure Heather Langenkamp and Englund back to Springwood for a box office blockbuster in honor of the late Wes Craven. It's ultimately a case of wait and see, but rest assured, New Line hasn't forgotten about Freddy Krueger just yet.