Star Trek may not seem to have much in common with A Nightmare on Elm Street, but several cast and crew members have worked on both iconic franchises. Star Trek began with the premiere of Star Trek: The Original Series in 1966 and has become a pop culture juggernaut with numerous films and television show spin-offs. Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy) have become household names and some of the most recognizable figures in science fiction, just as Elm Street’s Freddy Krueger is one of the most iconic characters in horror.

Created by Wes Craven, the original A Nightmare on Elm Street premiered in 1984, spawning one of the most revered horror franchises of all time. With nine feature films, a television series, and numerous comic books and tie-in novels, the world of A Nightmare on Elm Street has captivated audiences for decades. Even today, Robert Englund’s Freddy Krueger remains one of the most popular horror movie villains. Both Star Trek and A Nightmare on Elm Street have garnered large and passionate fan bases, and the two franchises have a surprising number of connections.

10

Heather Langenkamp

Nancy Thompson in A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise & Moto in Star Trek Into Darkness

One of horror’s original Final Girls, Heather Langenkamp portrayed Nancy Thompson in A Nightmare on Elm Street and A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. After surviving her initial encounter with Freddy Krueger in the original film, Nancy returns in Dream Warriors to help a group of teens rescue another child from Krueger. Langenkamp returned for Wes Craven’s New Nightmare, in which she plays a version of herself haunted by Freddy Krueger in the “real world.”

Langenkamp makes a brief cameo in Star Trek Into Darkness as Moto, a Starfleet officer of an unknown species who was a security officer on the USS Enterprise. Langenkamp also worked on the make-up staff of Into Darkness, alongside her husband, David LeRoy Anderson. Together, Langenkamp and Anderson own and operate AFX Studio, a special effects make-up studio that has done work on numerous films and television shows.

9

Lisa Wilcox

Alice Johnson in A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise & Yuta in Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 3, Episode 9 – “The Vengeance Factor”

Lisa Wilcox joined the Elm Street franchise as Alice Johnson in A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master and reprised the role for A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child. Alice becomes known as the Dream Master when she gains dream superpowers. As she grows stronger and gains more abilities, her confidence grows and she begins fighting back against Freddy Krueger, thwarting him at the end of both films.

Wilcox appeared in the Star Trek: The Next Generation season 3 episode “The Vengeance Factor,” in which she plays Yuta, an attendant to the Acamarian leader, Sovereign Marouk (Nancy Parsons). Commander William Riker (Jonathan Frakes) pursues Yuta romantically, and although she seems interested, she does not allow herself to open up to him. Yuta eventually reveals herself to be a murderer and Riker is forced to kill her.

8

Mimi Craven

A nurse in A Nightmare on Elm Street & Jisa in Star Trek: Voyager Season 6, Episode 7 – “Dragon’s Teeth”

Mimi Craven had a small role as a nurse who tends to Nancy in 1984’s A Nightmare on Elm Street. She was married to Elm Street creator and horror icon Wes Craven from 1984 to 1987, during which time she appeared in episodes of The Twilight Zone series and Beauty and the Beast. She had also appeared as a secretary in 1982’s Swamp Thing, and popped up on episodes of Seinfeld, L.A. Law, and ER.

In Star Trek: Voyager’s “Dragon’s Teeth,” Mimi Craven portrayed Jisa, a member of the Vaadwaur species married to Gedrin (Jeff Allin). Gedrin and Jisa had been placed into stasis with about six hundred of their people, but Jisa unfortunately died when the stasis equipment malfunctioned. Although the surviving Vaadwaur were meant to revive in five years, they remained in stasis for 892 years until they were awakened by the crew of the USS Voyager.

7

Brooke Bundy

Elaine Parker in A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise & Sarah MacDougal in Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 1, Episode 3 – “The Naked Now”

Brooke Bundy portrayed Elaine Parker in A Nightmare on Elm Street 3 and A Nightmare on Elm Street 4. Elaine was the mother of Kristin Parker (Patricia Arquette), the main protagonist in Dream Warriors. She was also one of the Elm Street parents who helped burn Freddy Krueger alive after the child murderer was released from custody on a technicality.

Before Lt. Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton) took over as Chief Engineer of the USS Enterprise-D in Star Trek: The Next Generation season 2, a few different chief engineers popped up in the series. Brooke Bundy appeared as Lt. Commander Sarah MacDougal, who served as one of the Enterprise chief engineers in TNG season 1. MacDougal’s only appearance was in TNG‘s “The Naked Now,” in which she allowed Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton) to take control of main engineering.

6

Nan Martin

Amanda Krueger in A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors & Victoria Miller in Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 1, Episode 11 – “Haven”

In A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors, Nan Martin portrayed Amanda Krueger, the mother of Freddy Krueger. Amanda worked as a nun at the Hathaway House, a psychiatric facility for the criminally insane. After her death, Amanda continued to haunt Hathaway House, and her spirit was one of the few beings who could control Freddy Krueger.

Nan Martin appeared in Star Trek: The Next Generation’s “Haven” as Victoria Miller, the mother of Wyatt Miller (Robert Knepper), a young human doctor who had been promised to marry Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis). Wyatt’s parents contacted Deanna’s mother, Lwaxana Troi (Majel Barrett), wishing to complete the arranged marriage. Wyatt, however, fell for another woman on a refugee ship encountered by the Enterprise-D.

5

Matt Winston

Chuck Wilson in Wes Craven’s New Nightmare & Agent Daniels in Star Trek: Enterprise

In one of his first onscreen roles, Matt Winston appeared as Chuck Wilson in Wes Craven’s New Nightmare. While working on special effects for the A Nightmare on Elm Street film franchise, Chuck has a dream where Freddy Krueger’s bladed glove stabs him in the throat. As he dies in the dream, he dies in real life as the first of Freddy’s victims in New Nightmare.

Matt Winston appeared in eight episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise as a temporal agent from the 31st century known only as Agent Daniels. As part of the Temporal Cold War, Daniels assisted the crew of the Enterprise NX-01 in dealing with temporal incursions. These missions often involved time travel or alternate timelines, which eventually prompted Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) to declare that he no longer wanted to be a pawn in the Temporal Cold War.

4

Michael De Luca

Writer of Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare & Star Trek: Voyager Season 2, Episode 15 – “Threshold”

Michael De Luca began his entertainment career as a writer on Freddy’s Nightmares, an anthology television series based on A Nightmare on Elm Street. De Luca went on to write and serve as an executive producer for Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare, which follows Freddy Krueger as he terrorizes the last surviving teenager in Springfield, Ohio.

In 1996, Star Trek: Voyager producers Brannon Braga and Ronald D. Moore approached De Luca, and he pitched a story that would eventually become Voyager’s “Threshold.” “Threshold” is widely regarded as one of the worst episodes of Star Trek: Voyager, with its bizarre storyline that sees Lt. Tom Paris (Robert Duncan McNeill) morph into a salamander after becoming the first known person to travel faster than warp 10.

3

Leslie Hoffman

Worked on stunts for A Nightmare on Elm Street, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, & Star Trek: Voyager

Leslie Hoffman began stunt work in the 1970s and became the first stuntwoman elected to the Screen Actors Guild Board of Directors. She appeared as a hall guard who is actually an incarnation of Freddy Krueger in A Nightmare on Elm Street and also performed stuntwork in the film. Due to a traumatic brain injury and years of rough stunt work, Hoffman has been disabled since 2002 and continues to advocate for disabled stunt performers.

Leslie Hoffman did stuntwork for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager, and appeared in several episodes of both series as a background stunt actor. Hoffman was the stunt double for several actors in both shows, including Roxann Dawson, who portrayed the half-Klingon Lt. B’Elanna Torres in all seven seasons of Voyager. Hoffman stunt-doubled Dawson for various fight scenes and falls, and also helped with stunt coordination.

2

Mark Shostrom

Worked on make-up in A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, Star Trek Generations, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, & Star Trek: Voyager

Make-up artist Mark Shostrom opened his own studio in 1985 and began designing and creating special effects make-up. He worked on several iconic horror films throughout the 1980s, including Evil Dead II, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2, and A Nightmare on Elm Street 3. Shostrom has won three Emmy Awards for Outstanding Make-up for a Series, for episodes of Star Trek: Voyager, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and The X-Files.

Mark Shostrom worked as a make-up artist on Star Trek Generations, sculpting prosthetics for Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner. He also worked as a special effects make-up artist for six episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine before joining the crew of Voyager for much of the show’s first three seasons. His work on Voyager’s much-maligned “Threshold” earned him an Emmy Award.

1

Star Trek Actors In Freddy’s Nightmares TV Series

Tim Russ, Jeffrey Combs, Marc Alaimo, Penny Johnson Jerald, Susan Oliver, Clifton Collins Jr.

The horror anthology series Freddy’s Nightmares premiered in 1988 and ran for two seasons, and numerous Star Trek actors popped up on the A Nightmare on Elm Street spin-off. Robert Englund’s Freddy Krueger introduces each episode of Freddy’s Nightmares, which depicts some of the dark and frightening events that happen on and around Elm Street.

Tuvok actor Tim Russ appears as a doctor in an episode featuring cannibals, the always versatile Jeffrey Combs plays a creepy uncle, and Dukat actor Marc Alaimo portrays an escaped convict, just to name a few. Star Trek’s first Captain’s love interest, Susan Oliver, appears in an early season one episode of Freddy’s Nightmares, marking her last appearance before her death in 1990. Several other Star Trek cast and crew members have popped up in various A Nightmare on Elm Street projects, giving these two very different franchises more connections than one might expect.