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John Saxon Wrote an INSANE ‘Elm Street’ Prequel Back in 1987

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“Donald Thompson secretly visits Mr. Krueger, a young, sensitive, bookish intellectual, who wears a red and green sweater…”

John Saxon is something of an icon in the horror world, having starred in two of the best horror movies ever made: Black Christmas in 1974 and A Nightmare on Elm Street in 1984. Saxon is perhaps most known to horror fans for the latter film, which saw him play the father of heroine Nancy Thompson.

John Saxon later reprised the role of Donald Thompson in A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors, released in 1987. But what you probably don’t know about Saxon is that, the very same year that Dream Warriors came out, he penned his own treatment for a proposed prequel to Wes Craven’s original classic!

Aside from the Tobe Hooper-directed pilot episode of “Freddy’s Nightmares,” Freddy’s origin story has only been briefly delved into over the years. Granted, the films laid out much of the story, but Saxon’s pitch was to do something that has to date still not been done: make an entire movie out of Freddy’s reign of terror as the very human “Springwood Slasher.”

Well… sort of.

Over on eBay, the account TheMovieWizard is currently selling Saxon’s ultra-rare treatment for How the Nightmare on Elm Street All Began, a pitch package that has completely flown under the radar over the years. Hell, I’ve been a diehard Elm Street fan my whole life, and I had NEVER heard about this thing.

The film Saxon hoped to get off the ground was set in 1969, many years before the events of A Nightmare on Elm Street. Nancy Thompson is just five years old and, playing upon a deleted scene from the original Elm Street, she has a step-sister, Betsy Thompson (named Melody in an alternate treatment), who’s caught up in the hippie movement of the time.

Unfortunately, the eBay seller only uploaded photos of select pages from the treatment, but what I’ve been able to ascertain is that the story kicks into high gear when Donald takes the teenage Betsy to a therapist after bringing her home from a hippie commune she ran away to – a therapist whose name happens to be Frederick Krueger. At the time all of this Thompson family turmoil is going on, Donald is also investigating the murder of a young boy who was “stabbed with some kind of object that produces multiple wounds simultaneously.”

Betsy Thompson is soon killed. And of course, the killer is Fred… right?

The Elm Street parents eventually kidnap Freddy in the hopes of at least getting him to confess to his crimes, but they end up becoming so enraged by his confessions that they beat him up and burn him alive. After the murder, the young Nancy Thompson soon begins having visions of a burnt up demon wearing a red and green sweater.

Now here’s where things get REALLY CRAZY.

Again, I only have select pages of Saxon’s treatment at my disposal, but what I’m gathering is that his pitch was for Fred Krueger to actually be innocent of the crimes he’s forced to confess to – an idea briefly explored in the 2010 Elm Street remake. As he’s being burnt alive, he insists that he’s innocent, and that the Elm Street parents are actually to blame for their children losing their lives. Why? Because they didn’t care about their children enough. And because that lack of care led those teenagers, in 1969, to seek comfort in the arms of…

CHARLES MANSON.

Yes, John Saxon’s Elm Street prequel pitch ties the lore of Freddy Krueger directly to Charles Manson, who was of course America’s biggest real-life villain during the time period his proposed film was to be set in. It was actually Manson who master-minded the murders Freddy was killed for, carried out by his loyal followers.

Naturally, Krueger returns from the dead in the nightmares of the Elm Street children, seeking revenge for his own wrongful death at the hands of the Elm Street parents.

Not only would Saxon’s proposed film have significantly deepened the history between Freddy Krueger and his greatest adversary, Nancy Thompson, but it also would’ve blown minds by introducing the idea that Freddy was actually innocent all along. Furthermore, it would’ve linked the fictional slasher icon to one of American history’s most notorious bad guys, which would have forever changed everything we thought we knew about Freddy and the Elm Street mythology.

Needless to say, Saxon’s Elm Street prequel would’ve been bold, bonkers and like nothing we’ve ever seen before. Perhaps a little *too* bold, if anything.

If you’re interested, you can preview and purchase the crazy treatment over on eBay.

Writer in the horror community since 2008. Editor in Chief of Bloody Disgusting. Owns Eli Roth's prop corpse from Piranha 3D. Has four awesome cats. Still plays with toys.

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SCREAMBOX Investigates UFOs and Extraterrestrials: Several Documentaries Streaming Right Now!

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As someone who is obsessed with UFOS (or more recently known as UAPs) and the concept of extraterrestrials, I love a good documentary. Sightings have been on the rise since the 1940s, with the atomic bomb seemingly acting as a catalyst for new visitors. But what are these UFOs/UAPs? Is there an explanation or are they simply beyond our explanation? Why are they here? Who are they? How much do our governments know? The questions are endless and so are the documentaries that attempt to uncover the secrets behind decades of sightings and alleged confrontations.

Whether you’re a seasoned viewer or new to the rabbit hole, there’s always a handful of interesting documentaries to get your neurons firing and leave you with sleepless nights. SCREAMBOX is investigating with the addition of several docs, all streaming now on the Bloody Disgusting-powered service. Here’s the breakdown:

Aliens (2021): Beam into this unidentified streaming documentary for a glimpse into Extraterrestrial life. Aliens are hypothetical life forms that may occur outside Earth or that did not originate on Earth.

Aliens Uncovered: Origins (2021): Before Area 51, hidden deep in the desert, the military discovered a hidden gem that helped them create Project Bluebook.

Aliens Uncovered: ET or Man-Made (2022): The crash of Roswell wasn’t meant for New Mexico. In 1947, a neighboring state had 3 major sightings that were swept under the rug.

Aliens Uncovered: The Golden Record (2023): In the late 70s, the US government launched a message to our distant neighbors.

Roswell (2021): This high-flying documentary examines the July 1947 crash of a United States Army Air Forces balloon at a ranch near Roswell, New Mexico. Theories claim the crash was actually that of a flying saucer, but what is the truth?

Also check out:

The British UFO Files (2004): Since the 1940’s the British Government has been investigating the Flying Saucer phenomenon. High-ranking military and government personnel, speak out for the first time, offering unique eyewitness accounts and inside information.

Alien Abductions and Paranormal Sightings (2016): Amazing Footage and stories from real people as they reveal their personal encounters of being abducted by Aliens.

And do not miss Hellier (2019): A crew of paranormal researchers find themselves in a dying coal town, where a series of strange coincidences lead them to a decades-old mystery.

These documentaries join SCREAMBOX’s growing library of unique horror content, including Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls, Here for Blood, Terrifier 2, RoboDoc: The Creation of RoboCop, Hollywood Dreams & Nightmares: The Robert Englund Story, The Outwaters, Living with Chucky, Project Wolf Hunting, and Pennywise: The Story of IT.

Start screaming now with SCREAMBOX on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Prime Video, Roku, YouTube TV, Samsung, Comcast, Cox, and Screambox.com.

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