Freddy Krueger is a fictional character and the primary antagonist in the A Nightmare on Elm Street film series. He was created by Wes Craven and made his debut in Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) as the malevolent spirit of a child killer who had been burned to death by his victims' parents after evading prison. Krueger goes on to murder his victims in their dreams, causing their deaths in the real world as well. In the dream world, he is a powerful force and seemingly invulnerable. However, whenever Freddy is pulled back into the real world, he has normal human vulnerabilities and can be destroyed. He is commonly identified by his burned, disfigured face, dirty red-and-green-striped sweater and brown fedora, and trademark metal-clawed, brown leather, right hand glove. This glove was the product of Krueger's own imagination, having welded the blades himself before using it to murder many of his victims, both in the real and dream worlds. Over the course of the film series, Freddy has battled several reoccurring survivors including Nancy Thompson and Alice Johnson. The character was consistently portrayed by Robert Englund in the original film series as well as in the television spin-off Freddy's Nightmares. Englund has stated that he feels the character represents neglect, particularly that suffered by children. The character also more broadly represents subconscious fears.
A scream queen is an actress who is prominent and influential in horror films, either through a notable appearance or recurring roles. A scream king is the male equivalent.
The Last House on the Left is a 1972 American exploitation horror film written, directed and edited by Wes Craven in his directorial debut. The film follows Mari Collingwood, a hippie teenager who is abducted, raped, tortured, and killed by a fugitive gang on her seventeenth birthday. When the gang unwittingly finds refuge in her family's home, the killers face the vengeance of her parents.
David Alexander Hess was an American actor, singer, songwriter, and director. He came to prominence for his portrayals of murderous villains and gruff characters in several films in the 1970s and 1980s.
The Virgin Spring is a 1960 Swedish film directed by Ingmar Bergman. Considered as a precursor of rape and revenge film; set in medieval Sweden, it is a tale about a father's merciless response to the rape and murder of his young daughter. The story was adapted by screenwriter Ulla Isaksson from a 13th-century Swedish ballad, "Töres döttrar i Wänge". Bergman researched the legend of Per Töre with an eye to an adaptation, considering an opera before deciding on a film version. Given criticism of the historical accuracy of his 1957 film The Seventh Seal, he also invited Isaksson to write the screenplay. Other influences included the 1950 Japanese film Rashomon. Max von Sydow played Töre.
The final girl is a trope in horror films. It refers to the last girl(s) or woman alive to confront the killer, ostensibly the one left to tell the story. The final girl has been observed in many films, including The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Halloween, Alien, Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Scream and Train to Busan. The term was coined by Carol J. Clover in her book Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film (1992). Clover suggested that in these films, the viewer began by sharing the perspective of the killer, but experienced a shift in identification to the final girl partway through the film.
Woodrow Wilson Woolwine Strode was an American actor, football player and author. He was a decathlete and football star who was one of the first Black American players in the National Football League in the postwar era. After football, he went on to become a film actor, where he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Spartacus in 1960. Strode also served in the United States Army Air Corps during World War II.
Sara Paxton is an American actress and singer. She began acting at an early age, appearing in minor roles in both films and television shows before rising to fame in 2004. She played the title role in the television series Darcy's Wild Life (2004-2006) and Sarah Borden in Summerland (2004). Her other films include Aquamarine (2006), Return to Halloweentown (2006), Sydney White (2007), Superhero Movie (2008), The Innkeepers (2011), and The Front Runner (2018).
Chaos is a 2005 American horror film about the rape and murder of two adolescent girls. It is an unofficial remake of Wes Craven's The Last House on the Left, with all character names changed and a different ending. It stars Kevin Gage and was written and directed by David DeFalco. The film received negative reviews, in particular for its use of gore and the ending.
A Nightmare on Elm Street is a 1984 American supernatural slasher film written and directed by Wes Craven and produced by Robert Shaye. It is the first installment in the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise and stars Heather Langenkamp, John Saxon, Ronee Blakley, Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger, and Johnny Depp in his film debut. The film's plot concerns a group of teenagers who are targeted by Krueger, an undead former child killer who can murder people through their dreams, as retribution against their parents who burned him alive.
Laurie Strode is a character from the Halloween series. She first appeared in Halloween (1978) as a high school student who becomes targeted by serial killer Michael Myers, in which she was portrayed by Jamie Lee Curtis. Created by John Carpenter and Debra Hill, Laurie appeared in nine of thirteen films in the series. The character has subsequently been represented in various other media, including novels, video games, and comic books.
Sidney Prescott is a fictional character and original protagonist of the Scream franchise. The character was created by Kevin Williamson and is portrayed by Canadian actress Neve Campbell. She first appeared in Scream (1996) followed by four sequels: Scream 2 (1997), Scream 3 (2000), Scream 4 (2011), and Scream (2022). Until 2023's Scream VI, her character had appeared in each successive film in the series, her role initially that of the victim but growing into heroine where she personally confronts each killer and defeats them.
Sally Hardesty is a fictional character in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise. She made her first appearance in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) as a young woman investigating her grandfather's grave after local grave robberies—crossing paths with Leatherface and his cannibalistic family in the process. In this film and later in The Next Generation (1995), she was portrayed by Marilyn Burns. Olwen Fouéré was cast in the sequel Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022). The character, renamed Erin Hardesty and played by Jessica Biel, also appeared in a remake of the original film in 2003.
Jeramie Rain is an American screenwriter, producer, philanthropist and former actress. Rain began her career with starring roles in several local stage productions in Charleston before moving to New York City in the early 1970s. After appearing in a string of commercials, she made her film debut in the crime film The Abductors (1972), then became known for roles as Sadie in Wes Craven's controversial horror film The Last House on the Left (1972) and Willie Mae in Albert T. Viola's comedy film Preacherman Meets Widderwoman (1973).
Rape and revenge, or revenge rape, is a film subgenre was used in black comedy, horror, thriller, and vigilante films, all of them bears great similarities to the subgenre, which is characterized by violent revenge for crimes committed in the film's premise.
Night Train Murders, also released in English-speaking countries as Last Stop on the Night Train and Late Night Trains, is a 1975 Italian revenge horror film directed by Aldo Lado and starring Flavio Bucci, Macha Méril, and Irene Miracle.
The Last House on the Left is a 2009 revenge horror-thriller film directed by Dennis Iliadis and written by Adam Alleca and Carl Ellsworth. A remake of the 1972 film of the same name, it stars Tony Goldwyn, Monica Potter, Garret Dillahunt, Spencer Treat Clark, Martha MacIsaac, and Sara Paxton. The film follows Mari Collingwood, a teenager who is abducted, raped, tortured, and left for dead by a family of violent fugitives. When her parents learn what was done to her, they seek vengeance against the family, who have taken shelter at their summer home during a thunderstorm.
Sandra Peabody is an American talent agent, acting coach, producer, and former actress and model. She is best known for her work in independent films, television soap operas, stage productions and her subsequent career in producing; earning an Emmy in 1992 for the children's television series Popcorn (1984–92).
The Horse Killer is a lost 1966 American mystery thriller film directed by Luke Moberly, in his directorial debut, and written by Thomas Casey. It stars Shane Erickson, Stephanie Herold, Kathleen Stanley, Julio Cesare, Bud Irwin, Sandra Peabody, and Bob Burns. The story is based on a series of real-life bizarre horse mutilations occurring in Davie, Florida in 1964. Moberly co-produced the film with Louis Wiethe on a budget of US$50,000. Filming took place from August to September 1966. The film was one of Moberly's earliest efforts to contribute to the emerging Miami and Southern Florida film industry. All of the known photographic film existing of it was stolen from him, causing the film to be unreleased.
Misfit is a lost 1965 American faith-based educational film directed by Bob O'Donnell. It stars Steven Jones, Warren Day, and Sandra Peabody. It follows a high school drop out (Jones), a drug addict (Peabody), and a "religious dropout" (Day) that rekindles his religion and helps the titular "misfit" find himself. Produced by Empire Studios, the film was distributed through churches, schools, penal institutions, and military bases before a worldwide release by Youth Films.
