A Nightmare of a Reunion: Robert Englund and Lisa Wilcox

Robert Englund

This evening at Rhode Island Comic Con, horror and A Nightmare on Elm Street fans alike had the opportunity to watch Robert Englund and Lisa Wilcox reunite on the main stage panel in Ballroom A of the Rhode Island Convention Center.

Despite seeing each other on the con circuit often, it always feels like the first time. The two are very close in reality, with Lisa having even attended Robert’s wedding in 1988. You could tell from their rapport that they enjoy each other’s company and most importantly talking about their roles in the Nightmare franchise.

If you’re not familiar, Lisa played Alice Johnson in A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master and reprised the role in A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child. If you don’t know Robert Englund’s iconic serial killer and night terror-ist Freddy Krueger, have you been living under a rock?

Lisa and Robert provided fans with some tidbits on filming such as:

  • All the jokes said by Freddy were written by the writers with Robert only ad-libbing on occasion.
  • Nightmare 4 started film on April 27th – Lisa birthday. She never forgets it.
  • Lisa was a big horror film already and that’s what drew her to the script.
  • She loved how well Alice’s character was developed first in 4 with her being this shy bookworm day-dreamer to a kickass ninja warrior in the fifth film.
  • She would take many of the quirks and characteristics of other characters and incorporate them into Alice’s character onscreen.

When asked about who were some of the actors that influenced them, Robert Englund cited watching On the Waterfront and being enamored with Marlon Brando’s performance. Other inspiration later came from James Dean’s performance in East of Eden, Cary Grant, Katerine Hepburn, Jimmy Stewart and Henry Fonda, who he starred alongside in The Great Smokey Roadblock. Robert cited going through an anglophile phase during the British New Wave of film in the late 50’s and early 60’s where he became obsessed with the work of rich English actors like Albert Finney, Alan Bates, and Oliver Reed.

Lisa’s influence was Meryl Streep, especially by the fact that she could play so many different roles well. Lisa cited the Growtowski acting method with inspiring her work a great deal. She even went to Poland to study it.

When asked what were some of their passionate performances throughout their career, Robert cited his favorite performance of Freddy being in the fourth film and a fight scene he had in Stay Hungry with Jeff Bridges and Sally Field. Lisa stated she loved playing Alice and show the duality of her character first in Nightmare 4 and then in Nightmare 5.

Finally, fans got to learn where they get to see Robert next. He lends his voice to the scarecrow in the upcoming Injustice 2 and stars in a quirky Twilight Zone inspired thriller with Jason London called Nightworld. 2018 will see him team up with Lin Shaye in The Midnight Man with a premiere in Moscow this December. Lisa’s upcoming projects are as a mother in The Mansfield Killings and filming her next project in Philly that’s been dubbed an Independence Day film.


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Jen is Reel Talk's Editor-in-Chief and Girl Friday for news, sneak peeks, and film history. She's obsessed with Turner Classic Movies and loves all things film, TV, and celebrity. Jen has previously written for Soap Opera Digest, BizBash, and Latina magazines. Send her mail at jen@reeltalkinc.com.