New ‘Nightmare On Elm Street’ Movie In The Works With Paramount Landing U.S. Rights From Wes Craven Estate

While A24 is working on reviving the “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” and “Friday the 13th” (their prequel series “Crystal Lake” on the way) franchises, Paramount Pictures is getting a jump on their own legacy slasher project that should excite horror fans as they’re reportedly in early development on a new Freddy Krueger movie with the next iteration of “A Nightmare On Elm Street” after securing the U.S. rights from the Wes Craven Estate (the famed writer/director creating the franchise).

This big franchise update hails from The Hollywood Reporter, which revealed the new project is in the works at the studio’s newly formed genre shingle, Paramount Primal, led by J.D. Lifshitz and Raphael Margules (producers behind films such as Zach Cregger‘s “Barbarian” and A24‘s absurdist comedy “Friendship,” starring Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd).

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Veteran genre character actor Robert Englund has been playing Freddy Krueger, a burned ghostly child killer known for taunting his victims with extremely elaborate kills in a dreamscape setting with his signature glove with knives, since Craven’s original 1984 installment (that featured a young Johnny Depp among the cast), and his last major appearance was in New Line Cinema‘s “Freddy vs. Jason” in 2003. The supernatural slasher franchise would get a misfire reboot from Michael Bay‘s Platinum Dunes (also behind the last “Friday The 13th” film), helmed by Samuel Bayer with Rooney Mara (“The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo”) and Jackie Earle Haley (“Watchmen”) in lead roles (don’t expect Mara itching to return after nearly quiting the industry over that experience).

Craven would return to helm “Wes Craven’s New Nightmare” back in 1994, which felt like a bit of a meta experiment before tackling “Scream,” next commenting on the genre he helped popularize in the 1980s. This new project is being licensed from the Wes Craven estate (New Line Cinema had been the previous rights holder for decades), which has Iya Labunka and Craven’s son Jonathan Craven behind it. The pair will also produce the new feature film with Marc Toberoff, the attorney-turned-producer (known for practicing copyright law).

“We look forward to bringing the world of Wes Craven’s ‘Nightmare on Elm Street’ to a new and completely engaged generation of fans,” said Labunka (Craven’s widow and an overseer of the Craven Estate) in an official statement. “We know that Wes would have been thrilled to see how horror is taking its long overdue place in the cultural canon. We can’t wait for all of us to sit together in a dark theatre – around the campfire of today – as the next chapter of the Nightmare story unfolds.”

Lifshitz and Margules added, “We can’t remember a time before we were fans of Wes Craven. The fact that Iya and Jonathan have entrusted us with this opportunity to help usher a new story into this world is an honor beyond words. We look forward to working alongside them to bring a terrifying new nightmare to audiences everywhere, and to welcome Freddy home.”

Aussie Scream Queen Samara Weaving (“Ready or Not 2: Here I Come”) had been openly campaigning back in 2024 to play the final girl of a hypothetical “Nightmare on Elm Street” movie, so we’ll be curious if she’ll end up getting her wish. Weaving’s growing reputation with horror fans and being directly associated with younger audiences with the genre, it wouldn’t be the worst idea.

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Given this is just a rights deal announcement, no creatives such as writers or a director are involved in “A Nightmare On Elm Street,” so don’t expect a production start or release date anytime soon. Could we see someone like Zach Cregger (“Resident Evil”) get recruited, given the Paramount Primal team’s connection to “Barbarian”? That could be neat, but he’s a busy bee with WB‘s “Aunt Gladys” (prequel to “Weapons“) and sci-fi flick “The Flood” on deck next.