Nightmare on Elm Street - Watch Order: Release Order
A Nightmare on Elm Street introduced the world to Freddy Krueger, the burned child killer who haunts the dreams of Springwood's teenagers. Created by Wes Craven, the franchise became a cornerstone of 1980s horror cinema, blending supernatural terror with creative dream sequences and dark humor.
This release order includes the complete saga from the original film through the final chapter, plus the meta-commentary of New Nightmare, the crossover Freddy vs. Jason, and the 2010 remake. While the core narrative spans the first six films (1984-1991), each entry offers a different perspective on the Elm Street mythology.
Linear Timeline: Release Order = Story Order

A Nightmare on Elm Street
Teenagers in a small town are dropping like flies, apparently in the grip of mass hysteria causing their suicides. A cop's daughter, Nancy Thompson, traces the cause to child molester Fred Krueger, who was burned alive by angry parents many years before. Krueger has now come back in the dreams of his killers' children, claiming their lives as his revenge. Nancy and her boyfriend, Glen, must devise a plan to lure the monster out of the realm of nightmares and into the real world...

A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy's Revenge
Jesse Walsh moves with his family into the home of the lone survivor from a series of attacks by dream-stalking monster, Freddy Krueger. There, he is bedeviled by nightmares and inexplicably violent impulses.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors
During a hallucinatory incident, Kristen Parker has her wrists slashed by dream-stalking monster, Freddy Krueger. Her mother, mistaking the wounds for a suicide attempt, sends her to a psychiatric ward, where she joins a group of similarly troubled teens.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master
Freddy Krueger is resurrected from his apparent demise, and rapidly tracks down and kills the remainder of the Elm Street kids. However, Kristen, who can draw others into her dreams, wills her special ability to her new friend, Alice.

A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Dream Child
Alice finds the deadly dreams of Freddy Krueger starting once again. This time, the taunting murderer is striking through the sleeping mind of her unborn child.

Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare
Just when you thought it was safe to sleep, Freddy Krueger returns in this sixth installment of the Nightmare on Elm Street films, as psychologist Maggie Burroughs, tormented by recurring nightmares, meets a patient with the same horrific dreams. Their quest for answers leads to a certain house on Elm Street -- where the nightmares become reality.


A Nightmare on Elm Street
The film that brings back horror icon Freddy Krueger as a darker and more sinister character than ever before. While Freddy is on the prowl, a group of teenagers being stalked soon learn they all have a common factor making them targets for this twisted killer.
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