A resurfaced video from the premiere of A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors shows fans' initial reactions to the sequel. Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street came out in 1984, introducing one of horror's most iconic characters, Freddy Krueger. Despite not wanting to turn his movie into a long-running franchise, New Line Cinema moved on without him and released A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge just a year later. Seeing the potential in the series, the studio continued pumping out sequels, and Dream Warriors was released on February 27, 1987.
Directed by Chuck Russell, A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors brought back Heather Langenkamp as Nancy Thompson and introduced audiences to a young Patricia Arquette as a character named Kristen Parker, who has the power to pull people into her dreams. The story revolved around a group of teenagers in a psychiatric hospital who team together in their dreams with their unique powers to battle Freddy. Unlike its predecessor Freddy's Revenge, Dream Warriors was well-received upon release and scared up nearly $45 million at the box office. Slashers were incredibly popular in the '80s, with Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, and Halloween all releasing multiple sequels in the decade.
Response to A Nightmare on Elm Street 3 isn't a secret after 35 years, but a recently resurfaced video from Horror Ads shows how fans reacted to seeing the sequel in 1987. The video shows different groups of people reacting as they leave their theater, with people calling Dream Warriors, "excellent," " totally bizarre," "a total nightmare," and "insane." In addition to audience reactions, the video also includes snippets of reviews from PBS and The New York Times.
Because of the monumental success of A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors, New Line Cinema of course wouldn't let the franchise die. A Nightmare on Elm Street would receive four more direct sequels, a spinoff with Jason Voorhees, and a reboot in 2010. While A Nightmare on Elm Street would continue to be profitable for its studio for years, the sequels were often hit or miss with fans and critics. Later sequels really got away from Craven's original vision and turned Robert Englund's Freddy into a comical figure. Craven would eventually return to the franchise in 1994 with the meta-horror film New Nightmare, which is considered one of the best sequels along with Dream Warriors.
To this day, A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors is often considered the fan-favorite film in the franchise. It found the perfect balance between dark humor and horror and introduced some of the most memorable characters in the entire series. Dream Warriors is also remembered fondly for its creative kills and catchphrases, such as when Freddy smashes Jennifer through the TV, saying, "Welcome to primetime b*tch!" With A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, now is the perfect time to rediscover the film, and watching throwback videos like the one above is a fun way to start.
Source: Horror Ads