Rob Savage, director of The Boogeyman, reveals that the existing horror IP he’s most interested in exploring is A Nightmare On Elm Street. The Boogeyman taps into the primal fear of a monster everyone was afraid of as a child, bringing it to life in a whole new way. The movie follows the Harper family as they each struggle with their own grief while trying to still find a way to connect to one another. When the Boogeyman, an ancient evil, latches onto their suffering, they’ll have to work together to survive.
During an exclusive interview with Screen Rant for The Boogeyman’s home release, Savage shared which of his favorite horror franchises he’d like to contribute to. He explained why he wanted to explore the world and storytelling style of A Nightmare On Elm Street in the future, if possible. Savage also praises Wes Cravens’ innovative filmmaking and labels Freddy Krueger a dream character. Check out Savage’s full quote below:
Rob Savage: Oh, God. Bruckner beat me to the punch, but I always had ideas of how to build out the Hellraiser universe. And Clive Barker was somebody who would always consistently mess me up as a kid when I’d be reading his short stories. There’s lots of franchises that I grew up loving. I think Nightmare on Elm Street is one that comes to mind. I know there’s a bit of a rights issue or something going on there.
I’m not sure if anyone’s gonna get to do A Nightmare on Elm Street movie for a long time, but that mode of horror storytelling that plays in kind of surreal dream space. There’s so much you could do with that and there’s nothing really since Nightmare on Elm Street that’s done that to the level that Wes was doing. So that world and that character would be a dream project.
The Boogeyman’s Rob Savage Could Bring Something Fresh To A Nightmare On Elm Street
Although A Nightmare On Elm Street and The Boogeyman are very different Freddy Krueger became a boogeyman for an entire generation. A killer that hunted and murdered children in their dreams is a horrifying concept that shares a similar DNA to the Boogeyman, an eternal entity destroying families and feeding on their misery. Savage’s ability to bring new life to an urban myth like the Boogeyman could be the perfect breath of fresh air for the Nightmare On Elm Street franchise.
Savage has proved an impressive ability to lean into the tension of the scare as well as dynamic character evolution with The Boogeyman, which could be perfect for Nightmare On Elm Street. His originality in bringing a new life to Stephen King’s short story could be perfect as well, sparking a fresh new take on Krueger’s story instead of remaking the original. This could lend itself well to a prequel or continuation from one of the earlier sequels, similar to Saw X being set between the first two Saw movies.
Freddy Krueger is an iconic horror villain and is due a reboot, especially with so many IPs, including Hellraiser, Halloween, and The Exorcist, bringing beloved characters back. Savage can continue Freddy Krueger’s story while introducing a whole new generation to the terrifying killer along with new heroes. Savage has clearly demonstrated a passion for horror, and The Boogeyman showed his ability to create deep lore, compelling characters, and original ideas from existing properties, which could make him the ideal director to bring A Nightmare On Elm Street back to the big screen.
