The iconic horror film character Freddy Krueger has been scaring people for decades, spreading terror around the world. He is renowned for frightening kids in their dreams by utilizing their fears and then killing them. 

  Krueger has been a strong influence in the horror scene since his first appearance in 1984 and is best known for his role in the A Nightmare on Elm Street series. He also starred in Freddy vs. Jason, Freddy’s Nightmares, Wes Craven’s New Nightmare, Boogeymen: The Killer Compilation, and Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare. Since the 1980s Krueger has become a household name due to his vast amount of cameos in well-known films, as well as his distinctly horrifying persona.

   According to a screenwriting blog, “Krueger might just be the Madonna of horror movie characters” (gointothestory.blcklst.com). He is so renowned, in fact, that the popular children’s song (often used for jumping rope) has been permanently changed to the one sung in Nightmare on Elm Street for many frightened movie-goers: One, two, Freddy’s coming for you. / Three, four, better lock your door. / Five, six, grab your crucifix. / Seven, eight, gonna stay up late. / Nine, ten, never sleep again. While creepy, this little tune just goes to show his prominence in pop culture. Between the everlasting impression he left upon the children who grew up watching his movies as well as the everlasting impression and influence he left upon the horror genre, Krueger has made a compelling impact.

   He is not just a scary face, his character goes much deeper than that. According to the films, Krueger’s mother was a nun who was at a mental hospital assisting the inmates one Christmas night when she got locked in the hospital along with the inmates. The inmates then gang-raped her which resulted in the birth of Freddy Krueger, “the bastard son of 100 maniacs.”      

   According to the movie analysis website Den of Geek, Director Wes Craven’s inspiration for the basis of Freddy Krueger’s power stemmed from several stories in the Los Angeles Times about a series of mysterious deaths in which all the victims had reported recurring nightmares and had died in their sleep. Originally, Freddy was going to be characterized as a child molester; however, the decision was made to instead make him a child murderer in order to avoid accusations of exploitation due to the increasing number of child molestation cases in California around that time. Craven’s inspirations for the character also included a bully from his school during his youth, a disfigured homeless man who had frightened him when he was 11 (denofgeek.com). 

   Craven meticulously planned out every aspect of Krueger’s character, according to the movie review website Fandom. Every detail from the movies ties in with other details meticulously. He made sure that even minor additions, had some type of reasoning as to why it was included. There is no question as to why Krueger is so influential when it comes to horror movies, it is all a result of Craven’s attention to detail and hard work (horror.fandom.com).

   According to a movie review website, Krueger’s character holds much more significance than just being a scary face: “He has become… a symbolic socio-cultural ambassador of the American way…. Although on the forefront, it may seem odd, and… somewhat troubling to espouse a fictitious serial killer and child molester as an emblem of American mass culture, but that has indeed become the case over the last thirty years” (retrojunk.com). Krueger’s pervasive way about him, along with his shocking appearance and incredible tactic for scaring children, has made him a scarring figure to children for thirty-plus years. 

   His notorious burned face is the result of being burned alive by the parents of Springwood. “His scarred, burned face used to scare me terribly,” explained Junior Melia Hickey. Anyone who saw the movies would agree that his disfigured face adds to his shocking fear factor. Not to mention, his motives in the films were just as startling as his appearance. According to the review website Fandom, Kruegers’ trademark metal-clawed brown leather glove was the product of his own imagination. He created it himself before he was burned to death, out of sheet metal, pipes, fishing knives, rivets, and an old leather work glove in his boiler room. It was designed to kill in a gruesome, bloody way (nightmareonelmstreet.fandom.com). In addition to his scarred face and claw hand, his appearance reflects his blue collar background. He wears a striped red-and-green sweater, a dark brown fedora, his bladed glove, loose brown trousers, and worn work boots.

   A horror webpage explained that Krueger will not reign much longer with new horror stories children, as he was officially defeated in  Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare. For his own demise, he is burned alive when he is brought back into the real world, just as he had been burned alive in a boiler room when he had previously passed away (horrorenthusiast.com).

   Gone but never forgotten, Krueger’s legacy still lives on in his movies and throughout the horror genre… and in the nightmares of many people today.