The Goldbergs creator reveals how he got Robert Englund to return as Freddy

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Robert Englund will be reprising the role of horror icon/dream stalker Freddy Krueger in an upcoming episode of the ABC sitcom The Goldbergs. As we all know, Englund has stated on more than one occasion that he was done playing Freddy. So just how did this ABC sitcom land the big man? Well, The Goldbergs creator Adam F. Goldberg evidently made a statement about the whole ordeal and it's pretty fascinating. But I couldn't find it, so here's the skinny via our buddies over at B-D.

Creator Adam F. Goldberg

Convincing Robert Englund to come out of retirement to play Freddy Krueger one last time is a true bucket-list moment for me as a writer. I’ve been a longtime obsessive fan, collecting Freddy artwork and action figures. It took me months to convince Robert to revisit the character. Luckily, his manager Joe Rice is a big Goldbergs fan and helped me convince Robert that the world needed to see Freddy one last time.

The moment Robert read the scene, I envisioned he recognized that I was a true fan who knew the voice of Freddy. On our first call when we went over the script, I told him ‘of course I knew how to write lines for Freddy. He traumatized me as a child and is burned into my brain!’

Watching Robert spend four hours getting back into makeup and bringing our script to life was a true dream and by far a highlight of the show for our cast and crew. The story in this episode is actually true — after I saw Elm Street 3, I didn’t sleep for a week and my mom was beside herself and desperate to fix the problem.

I've seen quite a few episodes of The Goldbergs, to be honest. My girlfriend's mom loves the series and has made me watch about a dozen episodes because the little filmmaking kid reminds her of me. How cute. Anyways, how glad are you that Goldberg was able to convince Robert Englund to don the Freddy make-up one more time? Let us know below!

Here's the synopsis: 

Despite Beverly’s wishes, Jackie’s parents allow Adam to watch “A Nightmare on Elm Street” and a disagreement between the families ensues. But Beverly dreams of facing off with horror icon Freddy Krueger (guest star Robert Englund), which teaches her an important lesson about her son’s relationship with Jackie. Meanwhile, Erica realizes she’s not as popular as she once was as she starts hanging out at William Penn Academy despite the fact she’s no longer a student there.

Englund's co-stars on the episodes will include Wendi McLendon-Covey as Beverly, Sean Giambrone as Adam, Alexis G. Zall as Jackie, and Hayley Orrantia as Erica. The show is narrated by Patton Oswalt and also features Troy Gentile, George Segal, and Jeff Garlin among its regulars. Titled Mister Knifey-Hands, the episode will be broadcast on ABC Wednesday, October 24th.