Back to the Future star Michael J. Fox almost played protagonist Jesse Walsh in A Nightmare on Elm Street 2, but ultimately had to bow out. The first Nightmare on Elm Street film, written and directed by horror master Wes Craven, was of course an enormous success for fledgling studio New Line Cinema. This is why New Line used to often be referred to as “The House That Freddy Built.” Naturally, this called for a sequel, despite Craven having no desire to make one and quickly exiting the project.
A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge was an infamously rushed production, hitting theaters less than a year after the original came out. Producer Robert Shaye was willing to play hardball with anyone too, initially opting to deny Robert Englund’s request for a raise and recast Freddy with some random stuntman. Thankfully, everyone soon realized what a terrible idea that was, and Shaye worked out a deal with Englund to return.
Actor Mark Patton ended up starring in A Nightmare on Elm Street 2 as Jesse Walsh, the only male protagonist in the entire franchise. Freddy’s Revenge has become well-known for its queer subtext, which it turns out was intentionally written in, even if Patton, a gay man who had yet to come out publicly at that time, objected to a lot of it. However, before Patton was cast, one of the biggest stars of the 1980s passed on the role, albeit before he truly broke out as a leading man.
Nightmare On Elm Street 2 Almost Starred Michael J. Fox - Why He Wasn’t Cast
Before Mark Patton ultimately landed the Jesse Walsh role in A Nightmare on Elm Street 2, none other than Michael J. Fox was considered by producers for the part. It makes sense that Fox would’ve been on their radar, as he had recently become a TV star on Family Ties, but had yet to truly take off in movies. That would occur when Fox played Marty McFly in Back to the Future, which hit theaters in 1985, the same year Freddy’s Revenge was released.
It’s actually partially because of Back to the Future that Fox was unavailable to play Jesse in A Nightmare on Elm Street 2, as between filming on that, Family Ties, and fellow 1985 movie release Teen Wolf, Fox was booked solid and just couldn’t add any more projects to his overflowing plate. By the time A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors came around in 1987, the window on Michael J. Fox battling Freddy Krueger had already passed, as the one-two punch of Back to the Future and Teen Wolf had rocketed the young actor to a level of stardom way beyond starring in a slasher threequel.
More: Who Could Direct A Nightmare On Elm Street’s Reboot
