This is Why Robert Englund Wants Kevin Bacon to Play Freddy Krueger

Last month, news began circulating about A Nightmare on Elm Street star Robert Englund endorsing Kevin Bacon as a potential replacement in any new versions of Freddy Krueger.

“Well the gossip I’ve heard, and I don’t know how valid this is, but there has been some talk about using, or perhaps he’s been approached, Kevin Bacon,” Englund told CinemaBlend. “I think it would be real interesting.”

Given his illustrious career over the decades, Bacon might not be the go-to name you’d think of when it comes to starring as one of the most iconic horror villains in history. Many fans might not remember that it was his starring role in the original Friday the 13th, in fact, that helped launch his career.

“Kevin was in Friday the 13th,” Englund explained to PopCulture.com. “I know way down deep, Kevin has a respect for horror. He’s not one of those guys that goes on the talk show and says, ‘This isn’t a horror movie. It’s a psychological drama.’ You know? There’s a lot of people that still put down the genre.”

“I think he might have fun with it.”

Given his familiarity with the genre and having played Krueger for two decades, few people know what it takes to embody the villain like Englund.

“I really think of Kev, even though he’s a good-looking, rock n’ roll guy, I think he’s really a true character actor,” Englund noted. “I think he might have fun with it. And he’s the right size and weight. I think it would be interesting.”

While the concept alone is interesting, it takes more than casting one role to make any potential sequel or remake exciting.

“But it all comes down to the script, and I hope they don’t remake the original again,” Englund pointed out. “I hope they jump forward after the Jackie Earle Haley one. Maybe do part two, or maybe go and combine part three and four. God, I hope they don’t remake part one again. I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Science-fiction and fantasy people are running the town…”

Englund noted the stigma surrounding the genre and how some “accomplished” actors might feel they’d be lowering themselves by starring in one, something Bacon apparently wouldn’t do.

“[A Nightmare on Elm Street director] Wes [Craven] taught me to respect [the genre], you know,” Englund shared. “We used to all have to sit by the kitchen door in the commissary at the studios. Well now we’re top 10 every week, and now the horror, science-fiction and fantasy people are running the town. Every week, we have a top 10 movie and I’m really proud of that.”

Last month, the horror adaptation of Stephen King’s IT shattered box office records with an opening of over $120 million its first weekend. Not only was it a horror film, but it was also R-rated, making the accomplishment even more exciting.

“Wes taught me how to respect the genre…”

Prior to accepting the role as Krueger, Englund was familiar with Craven due to his films The Last House on the Left and The Hills Have Eyes. It was his admiration for the genre director that caused him to accept the role.

“I did this little independent horror movie for New Line Cinema, and I did it to work with Wes Craven because I really was curious,” Englund shared. “I really thought he was a talented guy, and then that made me international. That’s the great, happy accident that I got from being a genre actor.”

“Wes taught me how to respect the genre,” Englund confessed. “Then the world respected me. So that just sort of, it was sort of like a natural volition after that. I mean from then on, I just sort of went wherever people wanted me and didn’t worry about career or image or anything like that.”

This allowed Englund to play more eccentric “professor” type characters later in his career, like the one he portrays in the upcoming Nightworld, which Englund describes as a “fussy little Eastern European contemporary Van Helsing.”

Nightworld hits VOD and select theaters on October 20.