14 DAY TRIAL // Precisely one month ago, Platinum Dunes was saying that a new Freddy Krueger film was almost impossible to bring to the silver screen, although it was also promising that a reboot would be taking place in the near future. Coming to prove that sooner is always better than later, Warner Bros has just announced a release date for the reboot for April 16, 2010, with production scheduled to start as early as next month, SlashFilm informs.
Not all the details have yet been taken care of as to the film that is supposed to bring the terrifying Freddy back to life but that much is known right now: it will be directed by music video turned movie director Samuel Bayer, based on a script by Wesley Strick (“Arachnophobia”). The often-asked question is who will take on Freddy himself, although the names of several potential actors are already being circulated on the Internet on fan forums.
From what Brad Fuller and Andrew Form of Platinum Dunes revealed in a recent interview, the biggest challenge about making Freddy Kruger slash again will be making the character in such a way as to be just as terrifying even with the help his victims might get from technology. Back in the days when the films in the “Nightmare on Elm Street” franchise were a hit, Freddy’s best ally (and his victims’ worst enemy) was the fact that no one really knew who he was – which could be easily solved in today’s world with a simple Google search, as Fuller and Form pointed out.
The special effects part will be just as challenging, the two said. “We need to find a visual director who can blow people away. And seamless transitions are the key, where the audience truly has no idea if it’s a dream or not until it’s too late you realize you’ve been duped for the last 30, 40, 90 seconds and the person’s been dreaming the whole time.” Fuller said in the interview.
One thing that fans can bet their last buck on as to the reboot is that, no matter who plays him, Freddy Krueger will be just as heartless and cruel as the original one. He will also get to keep his striped sweater, iron claws glove and the hat that made him an iconic character in the horror genre. Since production is scheduled to start next month, as noted above, more details about the reboot will be coming our way soon enough, so just keep an eye on this space for more.