The A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise has been in limbo for a long time, following a disastrous 2010 remake that didn’t do Freddy Krueger or his fearful fans any favours. And while there isn’t any news about the next time we see Freddy on screen (and we know there’s going to be a next time, some things just don’t end), we at least know more about the legal situation behind the villain.
As reported by Bloody Disgusting, after 35 years the rights for A Nightmare on Elm Street in the United States have reverted to estate for the late Wes Craven. And while these things are always messy and legally fraught, this seems to mean that the domestic rights for the Freddy franchise are in the hands of the people in charge of managing Craven’s estate along with it. It is, after all, pretty impossible to make a Freddy movie without using the character and ideas that originated in that film.
As Bloody Disgusting explains, though, that doesn’t mean this is suddenly an auteur-led franchise. Warner Bros/New Line Cinema still holds the international rights. But it does mean that the company will have to come to the table with Craven’s estate to make anything that releases domestically, which is, probably, just about everything and anything.
Does this news foreshadow the long-awaited return of Freddy? Well, if nothing else, it means he’s on somebody’s mind. Maybe even in their… dreams? (Heh.)