What Other Movies is Freddy Krueger Referenced In?

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Scary Movies and Series

Nightmare on Elm Street and Freddy Krueger References and Cameos

Freddy Krueger has become a horror legend. With all of his glory and notoriety, he has paved the way for cameo appearances for life not only for himself but also for the franchise as a whole.  Nightmare on Elm Street, Freddy Krueger, and his claw are referenced or found in a number of other horror movies, paying homage to the original horror masterpiece and its creators. After all, the horror movie genre would never be what it is today if it had not been for the smooth talking, charismatic slasher that is Freddy Krueger!

Movies that Reference Freddy Krueger or the Nightmare Franchise

Without further ado, here is the up-to-date list of other movies which reference the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, or Freddy Krueger directly.

Freddy with Needles as Fingers

Bride of Chucky

The Bride of Chucky decided to go all out and highlights a number of killer artifacts within the evidence locker.  Jason Voorhees and Michael Myer’s masks, Leatherface’s chainsaw, and Freddy Krueger’s glove are all present.

Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn

Freddy’s glove can be seen above the door within the tool shed. This was a homage paid to Wes Craven, and also a response to Craven putting up an Evil Dead (director: Sam Raimi) poster in the room of a Nightmare on Elm Street scene. Hilariously enough, this was a response to Sam Raimi putting up a Hills Have Eyes (1977) poster in another movie. Director easter eggs are awesome.

Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives

A generalized reference to the Nightmare on Elm Street (and Freddy Krueger) story line is made in form of a little girl named Nancy (main character, first, third, and seventh films) complaining about a nightmare monster trying to kill her in her dreams.

It

The 2017 remake of the popular Stephen King film about a derranged child killer clown hosts homage to Freddy Krueger and the Nighmare franchise by playing Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child in a in-movie movie theatre in Derry. There is also a movie poster of the same flick.  The movie It was set in 1989, the same year Nightmare on Elm Street 5 was released.

Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday

Freddy Krueger’s glove makes a cameo appearance grabbing hold of Jason’s mask at the end of the film.

Ready Player One

A reference to Freddy is made in the trailer for the 2018 film, where Freddy is annihilated as he jumps towards one of the players in the movie.

Scream

Wes Craven has directed a number of horror films and projects, including Scream (1996). Wes Craven himself can be seen making a cameo in the movie as a janitor who wears Freddy Krueger-like clothing (fedora and sweater).  His name is even Fred!

Other References and Mentions

Bloody Rage (Video Game)

Freddy Krueger is a playable character alongside Jason Voorhees.

Call of Duty: Black Ops (Video Game)

Freddy Krueger / Robert Englund is a playable character on a map called “Call of the Dead.” He is caught saying some of Freddy’s most notable catchphrases, including “I am your worst nightmare!”

Dead by Daylight (Video Game)

Freddy Krueger is a downloadable character (currently paid content via expansion pack).  Freddy Krueger’s Springwood elementary school is a map that was released with the same expansion pack (though this was a free edition).  Also, Quentin Smith, the male protagonist from the movie remake in 2010, was also added to the game.

DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince (Song)

The hip hop team produced a song called “A Nightmare on My Street” which was inspired by the Nightmare on Elm Street series and had Freddy on the cover. The track even included a Freddy-like murder scene and modified catchphrase “I’m your DJ now, Princey!”

Everybody Hates Chris (TV)

In one episode of Everybody Hates Chris, Malvo threatens Chris, asking him to give back his gold chain, or he would be there when he least expected it.  Malvo goes on to explain he’d show up even in his dreams.  Later in the episode, Malvo shows up in a Freddy Krueger-like outfit, complete with a Fedora, green and red sweater and even a glove.

Family Guy (TV)

Episode “The Splendid Source” features a scene where Quagmire hires Freddy Krueger to visit Peter in his dreams and deliver a message. When Peter wakes he exclaims “When you poop in your dreams, you poop for real!”

Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, The (TV)

In the episode “Mistaken Identity,” Will dons a latex Freddy Krueger mask and scares Carlton in Mr. Furth’s car.

High Fructose Adventures of Annoying Orange, The (TV)

The Teddy Juicer episode is a Freddy Krueger parody.

Mortal Kombat 9 (Video Game)

Freddy Krueger is a downloadable character.

Mucha Lucha (TV)

A wrestler known as Misterioso Grande is mythed to be able to steal another wrestler’s mask in the dreamworld if he defeats them.

R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps (Book)

“A Nightmare on Clown Street” is a book by R.L. Stine, a popular children’s horror author. The book is meant to refer to the first Nightmare on Elm Street movie.

Robot Chicken (TV)

Freddy Krueger appears in a couple of episodes including “That Hurts Me” and also “I Love Her.”  Awesomely, the voice of the Dream Demon in one of the skits was loaned by Spencer from Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare (aka actor Breckin Meyer).

Simpsons, The (TV)

A cameo made by Robert Englund’s voice can be found in Simpsons episode “Treehouse of Horror IX,” by which Freddy Krueger is seen with Jason on a couch complaining about how late the Simpsons are to the party.  Freddy is also seen among Moe’s band of ghouls in the same episode.

South Park (TV)

Freddy Krueger makes a cameo in the episodes “Imaginationland Episode II” and “Insheeption.”

Weird Al (Song)

Weird Al Yankovic sings “And he slashed up Dasher just like Freddy Krueger” in his “The Night Santa Went Crazy” song.

Freddy krueger in a painting with his knife glove on

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Facts About the House of Wax Remake

Categories
Scary Movies and Series

Behind the Scenes: The Making of the House of Wax (2005 Remake)

Facts, Trivia and the Making of the House of Wax Remake

Talk about a unique horror movie: a house made entirely of wax, a town inhabited by wax people, and death by wax encapsulation. House of Wax has a fast-paced story line that hurls a group of college-age kids into a “lost town” off the beaten path, literally inaccessible by way of normal vehicle.  The town of “Ambrose” is the home of the serial killing family Sinclair, who kill their victims and preserve them as wax people for their famed wax museum. Ultimately a town that consists of fully automated wax people and only a few feigning killers, is enough to trick nearly all of the victims long enough for slaughter.

Facts and Trivia About House of Wax

House of Wax Fact #1: Film Name Change

Originally the 2005 horror film was going to be called “Wax House, Baby,” however, Warner Bros. Changed the name to “House of Wax” after they realized they were permitted to use it. In fact, a lot of posters and other promotional materials had already been created for Wax House, Baby, before the name change!

House of Wax Fact #2: Principal Photography from Australia

Most of the principal photography for House of Wax took place in Queensland, Australia. This means, despite a lot of the cast being American, most of the actual filming of the movie itself occurred in Australia.

House of Wax Fact #3: Special Effects Team Sued

Village Theme Park Management and Warner Brothers Movie World Australia sued special effects expert David Fletcher and the company Wax Productions on the basis of negligence after a fire broke out on set during actual production.

House of Wax Fact #4: A Song Without a Credit

The House of Wax soundtrack features a 12 song list, however, there is an additional song that plays during the overnight campfire party scene. The song is “Roland” by Interpol.

House of Wax Fact #5: Extras Wearing Masks

Most of the wax figures throughout the movie are actually actors wearing masks. This is especially true in scenes featuring larger numbers of wax people, such as within the church and movie theater.

House of Wax Fact #6: Peanut Butter Wax

The wax bed used to consume Elisha Cuthbert’s character, Carly, is actually peanut butter.  The bed was so sticky and entrapping that she actually got stuck several times while filming and between scenes!

House of Wax Fact #7: Real Glue

Elisha Cuthbert insisted on using real glue to seal her lips while in the basement of the auto shop.

House of Wax Fact #8: An Embarrassing Scream

Paris Hilton reportedly was so embarrassed by her scream that she needed the entire crew to scream along with her (cast included) for the first few times she had to yelp.

House of Wax Fact #9: Too Short to See

Elisha Cuthbert was so much shorter than her costar Jared Padalecki, that she required two inch thick blocks of wood to be taped to the bottom of her boots for all of their knee-up shots.

House of Wax Fact #10: Only a Loose Remake

Although the movie was inspired by the original House of Wax film in 1953, it is only a loose remake of the plot itself, sharing mostly only movie title and film environment.

House of Wax Fact #11: The Construction of Ambrose

The town of Ambrose was thrown up in an impressive 10 weeks and was modeled after a real life town of Asmara. Asmara is located in Eritrea, East Africa, and was built during World War II in Modern Style.

House of Wax Fact #12: Lester’s Character

Lester was named “The Roadkill Collector” in the script, however, is nameless in the movie itself.

House of Wax Fact #13: Paris at the Center

The entire cast as a whole were built around Paris Hilton, even being trained to repeat her catch phrase throughout the film (“That’s Hot”).  Before Paris was chosen for the role of Paige, both Jennifer Connelly and Kate Winslet were considered.

House of Wax Fact #14: Tourist Trap

Minus the original House of Wax novel and movie from the 50s and 60s, there was one other predecessor which may have helped develop the House of Wax script, that movie being Tourist Trap (1979).  Tourist Trap features a similar group of young friends stranded at a secluded roadside attraction.  A masked psycho with telekinetic powers kills the friends one by one within the museum.

House of Wax Fact #15: Elisha’s Hair

Elisha Cuthbert actually dyed her hair brown for the film. 

House of Wax Fact #16: The Death of Paris Hilton

As a part of a Warner Bros. promotional, Paris Hilton sold shirts pre-release which read “On May 6th, Watch Paris Die.”

House of Wax Fact #17: Vincent Lives

Vincent, one of the killers in House of Wax, is a tribute to the Vincent Price of the original House of Wax (1953).

House of Wax Fact #18: Alternate Beginning

A character named Jennifer is killed by Bo or Vincent in an alternate opening scene available as a special feature on the DVD and Blu-ray.  This character was stranded on the side of the road when she met up with one of the killers.  She is still in the movie itself in form of the female wax sculpture that Vincent works on (later displayed with flowers in a pink dress outside of the movie theater).

Final Notes About House of Wax

killer for house of wax 2005 painting of a man with black hair

House of Wax (2005) remains one of our favorite horror movies at the Horror Enthusiast, due to it’s original deaths by hot wax encapsulation and creepy town setting. However, the movie does retain some of the most landmark necessities of a good, suspenseful thriller…the killers are clever, the victims at first unaware, and there is blood!  The acting is obviously a little cheesy, however, that’s what you get when you cast Chad Michael Murray and Paris Hilton in a horror flick (or in any film for that matter)!  Regardless of casting choices, House of Wax still reels in an exciting and suspenseful experience that can be counted on by nearly anyone for a good time.

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Comparing the Original and Remake House of Wax

Categories
Scary Movies and Series

Differences Between House of Wax (1953) and the Remake (2005)

New vs Old House of Wax

Wax is naturally scary and it becomes even creepier when molded in human form. The only thing worse than a human wax figure is probably an entire building made of wax, considering we all subconsciously associate wax with melting. Constructing the suspense of a movie from within a wax building is wildly suspenseful.  That said, the two most notorious horror movies featuring a wax house killer stretch an amazing 52 years apart!  And what is even more amazing is that these two movies (both featuring a giant wax museum and killer inside) are nearly nothing alike!

How is the New House of Wax (2005) Different From the 1953 Original

House of Was Original Movie Poster with women being attacked by was man

Besides the fact both movies center around the deaths of people by a wax-obsessed killer, largely from within a wax museum, these movies are very different in plot.

How the Killer Came to Be

The 1953 original House of Wax features an associate of the wax museum who burns down the museum with the owner inside. The owner survives the fire, becoming a psychopathic killer.

The 2005 remake of House of Wax paints the killer as mentally challenged child abused by a twisted surgeon father and a sick wax-sculpting mother. The child, Vincent, grows up to become one hell of a wax artist, and a vengeful killer.

Killer’s Presence

Vincent wax killer from House of Wax movie.

The 1953 original has an almost “dr jekyll and mr hyde” feel, as the emerged killer possesses a different psychological makeup.  What’s more is, the killer is known to be alive 18 months after the fire, thus the victims are able to interact with the killer.

The 2005 remake hides the killer in the basements of the town Ambrose and within the catacombs of the House of Wax unbeknownst to his victims until it is too late.

The Town Isn’t In On It

The 1953 original features a single psychopathic killer who kills from his museum. The town is not in on it. There is no focus on a town setup with fake wax people. His family is not in on it.

The 2005 remake provides a couple of brothers to assist the wax killer Vincent, Bo and (presumed to be) Lester, the Roadkill Collector. The brothers setup and entire town of fake wax people, and it appears the entire town is unsafe.  The killers kill and hunt all over town and all types of weapons are utilized.

Principal Photography Location

The 1953 original is shot primarily in Queensland, Australia.

The 2005 remake was filmed in good old California!

And Basically Everything Else

Although the two films share a name and even the setting of a big wax museum of death…the plots and mechanics of the movie itself are totally different and both equally as creative.  The remake has a significant leg up on the original in modern cinematics and effects, however, ultimately there is nothing like a good psychological Horror – no matter the release year!

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