ONE… TWO FREDDY’S COMING FOR YOU, THREE… FOUR HE’S AT THE DOOR: The Future of the ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ Franchise

It’s a well-known fact that many of us love a good horror film, which is why the industry netted almost $7 billion in 2016. However, for some of us, it’s the old classics that really give us the fright we’re looking for. And A Nightmare on Elm Street is arguably one of the best horror films of all time.

The Merchandise
Regardless of whether you’ve seen all of the aforementioned films or not, it’s highly likely you’ve come across this franchise before. Due to its ongoing popularity, A Nightmare on Elm Street has spun off into a number of different areas, meaning you can buy everything from a t-shirt to full Freddy costumes and mugs to posters.

Fans of the franchise can even get their hands on a toaster; it burns an image of the evil janitor on toasted bread! You’ll even find the franchise recreated in the A Nightmare on Elm Street online slot game, which, compared to all of the other merchandise, really makes you feel as though you’re at the heart of Freddy’s nightmares. Boasting incredible graphics, plenty of fake-blood spatters and a great story (not to mention progressive jackpots), it’s ideal for all Freddy fans.

So, is there room for this franchise to expand even further? After all, we’ve already seen 9 slasher films and lots of merchandise within this franchise already.

Below, we’ll explore the story so far before questioning what may be to come for the franchise in the future.

Films to Date

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) – The original one, this film had a budget of $1.8 million and raked in $25.50 million (gross) at the box office. It was directed by Wes Craven and featured Heather Langenkamp, Johnny Depp, John Saxon and Robert Englund. For the majority of people, and as is the case with most original films, this was the best one.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985) – The follow-up to the first film, which was directed by Jack Sholder, wasn’t an all-round success because it removed the original idea Wes Craven had introduced (that Freddy stalked the dreams of his murderers’ children). It also featured Robert Englund alongside Robert Rusler, Kim Myers and Mark Patton. The budget was $3 million and it grossed $30 million.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987) – For many, the franchise returned to its best in the third rendition because it expanded on the first film and its characters. It starred Robert Englund, Heather Langenkamp, Patricia Arquette and Craig Wasson and was directed by Chuck Russell. It did gross quite a bit more than the first two ($44.79 million) but also cost more to make ($4 million).

A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master (1988) – When it comes to the financial success of the franchise, this was it. Earning just short of $50 million at the box office (one of the film industry’s biggest financial successes of the 1980s), this film carried on the story of the third. It featured Robert Englund (as they all do bar the 2010 remake) as well as Kisha Brackel, John Beckman and Rodney Eastman. Renny Harlin directed and it cost $7 million to make.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child (1989) – Featuring the usual suspect, alongside Danny Hassel, Kelly Jo Minter and Lisa Wilcox, this was when you started to feel as though everyone was getting a bit bored with the franchise. Ticket sales fell (it only grossed $22.17 million despite costing $8 million to make) and many thought this could be the end. Its director was Stephen Hopkins.

Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare (1991) – Not content with letting number 5 be last of the franchise, New Line Cinema decided to let Freddy go out with a bang. They spent a cautious $5 million making it and it earnt them just short of $35 million (gross) at the box office. Rachel Talalay took over the role of director and enlisted the help of Lezlie Deane, Shon Greenblatt and Lisa Zane to tell the tale of how Freddy had killed all of the children in the town.

Wes Craven’s New Nightmare (1994) – You might think that after the ‘final’ film in the franchise was released, people wouldn’t be too receptive to yet another film, and you’d be right – it cost $14 million to make and only grossed $19.7 million. However, many argue that this film showed off Craven’s talent and was the start of met-horror.

Freddy Vs. Jason (2003) – If you take this film seriously, you won’t enjoy it, but many loved the concept of this film, which is why it bagged a whopping $114.9 million in the box office (it did cost $25 million to make, though). Ronny Yu was the director behind this one and it featured Monica Keena, Kelly Rowland and Ken Kirzinger.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) – Finally, there’s the remake of the original and one that many believe fails to live up to the mark. It’s removed all of the grit despite having Samuel Bayer as its director and appearances from Rooney Mara, Jackie Earle Haley, Katie Cassidy and Kyle Gallner. The most expensive one to date, costing $35 million, it grossed $63.08 million.

Overall, despite there being some downright flops amongst the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, there have been many standout moments. And there are even hints that Freddy could be returning to our screens in the not too distant future…