Here in 2025, only a few details have emerged about a new Nightmare on Elm Street movie.
It has been over a decade since fans last heard from the beloved horror franchise, with the last film in the celebrated series of scare-fests coming to theaters in 2010.
The franchise consists of nine total films to date, an anthology TV series, hundreds of novels and comic books, and thousands of pieces of movie merchandise. Yet, things have been eerily quiet for the last few years.
Everything Confirmed About a New Nightmare on Elm Street
Nightmare on Elm Street Was in Development Hell for Many Years
A new Nightmare on Elm Street movie was announced to be in the works back in 2015; however, it has since entered a state of development hell.
Originally revealed by New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. in August 2015, the Nightmare on Elm Street reboot was said to be in the works with Orphan scribe David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick set to pen the script (per The Wrap).
Three years after that, it was reported the film was still in development, with McGoldrick telling GameSpot in 2018, "It’s still happening:"
"It's still happening. Nothing is percolating just yet. 'The Conjuring' universe is sort of first and foremost on [New Line Cinema's] horror burner. Everybody wants to see Freddy again, I think, so I think it's inevitable at some point."
Since then, though, updates on the project have been scarce, as some believed it entered some sort of developmental stasis.
In the time since that 2018 update, various viral posters for a supposed revival have appeared online, but every one of them has turned out to be a fake (read more about the fake Nightmare on Elm Street movies here).
The Rights Reverted to Wes Craven in 2019
Work on the 2015 Nightmare on Elm Street reboot was officially put to bed in 2019 as the Elm Street rights reverted to the franchise's original director, Wes Craven.
Craven's estate took the rights back from Warner Bros. (WB) and New Line Cinema in September 2019, putting the ball back in the court of the renowned horror filmmaker and his family, at least domestically—WB and New Line retained the franchise's international rights.
It was then reported in November 2019 by Bloody Disgusting that Craven's estate was actively seeking pitches for new projects in the Elm Street universe. This included both ideas of a new feature film set in the beloved horror franchise as well as potential concepts for a possible Max streaming series.
Mike Flanagan Wanted To Pitch His Idea
One of the filmmakers who has been enthusiastic about the idea of pitching a new Nightmare on Elm Street project is The Haunting of Hill House's Mike Flanagan.
Flanagan, who is best known for his work adapting Stephen King stories for the big screen as well as working on hit streaming horror series like Netflix's The Fall of the House of Usher, has expressed interest in pitching his idea for an Elm Street project.
In a now-deleted tweet from 2019, Flanagan posted, "I've got a pitch," referencing the idea of the Craven estate being open to Elm Street ideas:
"Put me in, coach... I've got a pitch!"
He followed this up over the years in several interviews, admitting, "One of the ones that has been on my list forever is Nightmare on Elm Street" (via Cinemablend):
"One of the ones that has been on my list forever is 'Nightmare on Elm Street.' Boy, that would be fun. I have a whole take for it that I worked out a couple of years ago. And my understanding is the rights situation for that title is so fraught, no one knows who controls it really."
He said the biggest problem is "no one knows who to pitch [to]," but hopes that "one day" his take on the franchise can see the light of day:
"No one knows who to pitch. So I keep telling my agents, like, 'Send me in on 'A Nightmare on Elm Street.' And they’re like, 'We’d love to. We have no idea who you should talk to.' I’ve spent almost a year of my life with Heather Langenkamp, and we would talk about it. And it’s like, nobody knows what to do. But one of these days, perhaps."
Patricia Arquette, Kim Myers & More Have Addressed Potential Returns
If/when a new Nightmare on Elm Street movie happens, there have been plenty of franchise stars who have said they would be interested in returning to the series if given the chance.
Patricia Arquette (who played Kristen Parker in Nightmare on Elm Street 3) addressed the idea of coming back to the franchise in a 2025 interview with Comicbook, She said she would return on one condition: "If [she] can change [her] superpower:"
"Ya know, I just, I never really thought that in my dreams I'd be a gymnast so I don’t know. Can I change my superpower? Maybe I'll come back if I can change my superpower but I mean, I don’t know. I can be invisible; I can be anti-gravitational. I can do all kinds of things. Why do I have to do gymnastics? I like gymnastics don’t get me wrong but I'd like something a little more lethal when I’m dealing with him."
The "superpower" she is referencing is the set of unique abilities her Nightmare on Elm Street movie gave its teenage stars, as they used these abilities to combat the dream-haunting Freddy Krueger.
Since her appearance in Nightmare on Elm Street 3, Arquette has had an illustrious career in Hollywood, including starring in the ongoing Severance series on Apple TV+.
Nightmare on Elm Street 2 stars Kim Myers and Mark Patton have also commented on coming back, saying they "absolutely would" return if given the chance (via Screen Rant):
Kim Myers: "I absolutely would. I wouldn’t have felt that way a few years ago, but I think seeing, feeling the impact of our film and these films on the people who support them like you guys, it’s amazing. It’s incredible. And I think it would be such, just so wonderful… So yes I absolutely would. I’d like to see where it would go."
Mark Patton: "I would too, and I think they will be done because its a billion dollar franchise. Like there’s too many money people in LA to let them sit there for very long."
No new Nightmare on Elm Street project has been announced, but all previous films can be purchased on PVOD storefronts in the U.S.
