Freddy Krueger Legend Robert Englund Worked On The Original Halloween

Robert Englund in Freddy Vs Jason

The horror genre has been on a serious roll in the past few years, although the name on everyone's lip right now is Halloween. Arriving perfectly in time for the titular holiday, David Gordon Green's new Halloween sequel broke box office records when it debuted last month, bringing back the talents of Jamie Lee Curtis, Nick Castle, and creator John Carpenter.

John Carpenter's original Halloween changed the genre forever, and it turns out that it had another horror legend working on it: Freddy Krueger actor Robert Englund. Englund recently revealed this news in an interview, saying:

It's so funny, I actually had a roommate, back when they did the original Halloween... the John Carpenter one. And he conned me into going to Pasadena one day, with garbage bags full of dead leaves. And we were working on the set of the original Halloween, throwing the dead leaves around. So it looked like Autumn... it looked like Fall back in the Midwest.

Well, this is awesome. While Robert Englund has given endless people nightmares about Freddy, it turns out that the iconic actor actually had his razor sharp hands on the Halloween franchise. Even if it was just dressing the set in an attempt to create the world of Haddonfield.

Robert Englund's comments from [Access Online][1] are sure to delight the hardcore horror fans out there. Classic movies like Halloween and Friday the 13th have a special place in moviegoers' hearts, so this unintentional crossover is enough to set the fandom into a frenzy. As if Laurie Strode's first run-in with Michael Myers wasn't traumatic enough, Freddy Krueger was actually close enough to haunt her dreams, should the scream queen get the chance to finally lay her head down.

[1]: http://It's so funny, I actually had a roommate, back when they did the original Halloween... the John Carpenter one. And he conned me into going to Pasadena one day, with garbage bags full of dead leaves. And we were working on the set of the original Halloween, throwing the dead leaves around. So it looked like Autumn... it looked like Fall back in the Midwest.)

Originally released in 1978 and 1984 respectively, the Halloween and Nightmare on Elm Street franchises have both had extremely long runs in the theater. Just ask Robert Englund, who has personally starred in a whopping eight movies as Freddy Krueger. As such, they've both remained iconic and relevant pop culture. While Jamie Lee Curtis recently starred in a new Halloween, Englund reprised his role as Freddy in an episode of The Goldbergs.

It's particularly amusing that Robert Englund worked on the set dressing of Halloween, as it's an aspect of John Carpenter's legendary movie that hasn't aged particularly well. Made in California, autumnal leaves and costumes were used to make it looks like fall in Haddonfield, Illinois. While it mostly succeeds, there are a few shots in Halloween with visible palm trees- something that the fans know and love. And it turns out that we actually have Robert Englund himself to thanks for at least part of it.

Blumhouse's Halloween sequel is still in theaters now, with rumors of yet another movie starring Jamie Lee Curtis swirling around. Robert Englund has recently said he'd be interested in doing another Nightmare on Elm Street, although he might not physically be up to playing his iconic role. Watchmen actor Jackie Earle Haley played Freddy in the 2010 movie, which is the last time a Nightmare movie was in theaters.

Be sure to check out our 2019 release list to plan your trips to the movies in the New Year.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.