Calling all slasher-masters! November 16th is the 38th anniversary of the release of A Nightmare on Elm Street. To celebrate, we put together a list of fascinating facts about the incredible horror franchise. Almost four decades ago, this iconic film series set a standard for the slasher genre. Since then, it’s become one of the most influential flicks in horror movie history. Keep these tidbits in mind on your next binge-watch to make the experience even more enjoyable!
1.) A Nightmare on Elm Street was shot on the same stage used to film the TV series I Love Lucy. It’s safe to say the set was pretty versatile…
2.) Freddy Krueger’s dream-haunting powers were inspired by real-life events. An article by Screenrant’s Richie Nguyen states that the powers were “inspired by a series of deaths that were detailed within the Los Angeles Times. These were a result of various people suffering from their nightmares and dying in their sleep. This helped lay the foundations for Freddy Krueger as a dream demon and cemented him as one of the most dangerous horror monsters of all time.”
3.) A Nightmare on Elm Street was Johnny Depp’s first movie role. His character’s death scene involved around 500 gallons of fake blood, and remains one of the most iconic scenes in horror movie history.
4.) Throughout nine movies and a TV series, Freddy Krueger killed 62 people. He was definitely pretty experienced in his craft!
5.) It took over three hours to do Robert Englund’s makeup every day. The terrifying Freddy Krueger look wasn’t easy to accomplish, but it certainly paid off.
6.) Freddy Krueger has been featured in six video games. Most notably, Freddy has made appearances in the Mortal Kombat franchise, as well as Dead by Daylight.
7.) The “Nightmare” franchise helped pave the way for New Line Cinema. Some even refer to the production company as, “The House That Freddy Built.”
Now that you’ve been educated about A Nightmare on Elm Street, it’s time to go shopping! Spencer’s has the very best horror merch, including tees, blankets, jewelry, and more. Also, be sure to keep up with our blog for more horror content (despite the fact that it’ll probably keep you up at night).
