Robert Englund, best known for playing Freddy Krueger in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, almost played Luke Skywalker in the original Star Wars film. Although this did not happen, it is still a fascinating what-if scenario, as Englund is known for playing horror characters.
Gary Smart and Christopher Griffith’s recently released documentary Hollywood Dreams & Nightmares: The Robert Englund Story is a great opportunity to celebrate the actor’s career and revisit some of his best performances. He has starred in many horror movies and TV series, the most recent being the Netflix series Stranger Things. The documentary includes behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with Englund, as well as clips from his films. It is a must-watch for fans of Englund and horror movies in general.
Robert Englund almost starred as the iconic Star Wars character
Robert Englund recently spoke about his unexpected link to the Star Wars franchise. Englund was originally auditioning for the role of Colonel Kilgore in Francis Ford Coppola‘s Apocalypse Now, but he failed the audition. However, a casting agent who saw Englund’s audition thought he might be a good fit for the role of Luke Skywalker in Star Wars. He said that he was not actually offered the role, but that he did audition for it. He said that it was a “crazy missed connection” that he almost played such an iconic character.
He said that although he didn’t get the part, he did take home the audition sides for Luke Skywalker, which he later gave to his roommate, Mark Hamill, who eventually won the role. Englund said,
“I’m a character actor, so I never thought of it for me, but when I went back to my apartment, there was Mark with a Heineken in his fist watching Bob Newhart. I told him about it, and he got on the phone and called his agent.”
“Now his agent, I believe she already had him up for the role. And that may be true; I don’t know, but I know that Mark hadn’t heard about it yet. And I did tell him about it, and he got on the phone. That’s the story.”
The story of Englund almost playing the iconic role in Star Wars is proof of the many twists and turns that can happen in Hollywood. It also happens to leave one wondering about this episode of what-if casting.
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The upcoming documentary on his Hollywood career
Hollywood Dreams & Nightmares: The Robert Englund Story is a chronological overview of Englund’s film career. It covers his early work in low-budget horror movies, as well as his breakout role as Freddy Krueger in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. The documentary also features interviews with Englund and other horror filmmakers, including Eli Roth. Roth points out that Englund’s performance as Freddy was unique, as he was required to act menacingly without speaking many lines. This made Freddy a more memorable and terrifying villain. Hardcore fans of Nightmare on Elm Street will appreciate the in-depth look at Englund’s career.
In the documentary, Englund says that he never intended to become a horror icon, but he found the character and voice of Freddy Krueger when he was in the makeup lounge for the first A Nightmare on Elm Street movie in 1984. Surprisingly, Johnny Depp helped Englund develop Freddy into one of the creepiest and most frightening horror villains of all time. Englund says,
“Johnny Depp waltzed into the set about a week into shooting looking all beautiful young and dewy, and there was the makeup girl with little pink fans she bought. “We have to keep our stars cool,” she said. ‘Well… what am I? Chopped liver?’ For the rest of the movies, I can remember that moment, and that becomes the shorthand to get back to Freddy.”
The documentary was released on June 6 and is available to stream on Screambox. It will be released on Blu-Ray on July 25, 2023.
Source: The Digital Fix
