Black Phone 2's Grabber Wants To Be The Modern Freddy Krueger – Do They Pull It Off?

This article contains spoilers for "Black Phone 2."

Mainstream horror is currently leaning less on established icons of the genre to carry it forward. Blumhouse's "Halloween" trilogy is firmly in the rearview mirror, and we haven't had a feature-length "Friday the 13th" movie in more than 16 years. Similarly, Freddy Krueger has been dormant since the "A Nightmare on Elm Street" remake in 2010. "Black Phone 2" is stepping up to try and fill that void as The Grabber seeks to take up Freddy's mantle as the killer of our dreams.

In the sequel, The Grabber seeks vengeance on Finn (Mason Thames) and preys on his younger sister, Gwen (Madeleine McGraw), from beyond the grave, attacking her in her dreams. Sound familiar? Gwen begins receiving calls in her dreams from the infamous black phone and begins seeing visions of three young boys at the Alpine Lake winter camp. Gwen talks Finn into visiting the camp during a winter storm to solve the mystery. The Grabber is there waiting for them, even if it's not in the flesh.

Director Scott Derrickson and writer C. Robert Cargill didn't hide that "Elm Street" and Freddy were influences on "Black Phone 2." The way in which Ethan Hawke's Grabber can attack via dreams after his death at the hands of Finn in the first movie is very reminiscent of Krueger, who made his debut in Wes Craven's timeless 1984 horror classic. But he's been away from the silver screen for a long time. The filmmakers saw a unique opportunity to fill that void.

/Film's Rafael Motamayor noted in his review of "Black Phone 2" that "there are clear similarities and nods to that franchise, particularly the phenomenal 'A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors.'" But can The Grabber really become our modern Freddy Krueger? Does the sequel succeed in making a convincing case for that? It's complicated.

"Black Phone 2" isn't ripping off "A Nightmare on Elm Street." If anything, it's more of a grab bag of horror classics. The camp setting calls to mind any number of summer camp slashers. The way the dream stuff is portrayed through Super 8 film calls to mind Derrickson's own "Sinister." That all comes with a side of Freddy Krueger, as he becomes something closer to an immortal dream killer.

In that way, "Black Phone 2" might scratch a certain itch, but it's not a one-to-one substitute for a new "Elm Street" movie. At the same time, the comparisons that are emerging between The Grabber's evolution and Freddy Krueger are undeniable. Aside from what's on the surface, with The Grabber violently attacking Gwen in her dreams, there is one key thing that links these two characters.

Hawke is an Oscar-nominated actor, arguably one of the better actors working today. Getting him to play The Grabber was a big win, and he's been committed to the role ever since he very creepily accepted the part. The difference here is that, all due respect to any actor who plays them, but Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees can hide behind a mask. The Grabber has a mask, but there's a real person, with a real personality behind it. The same goes for Freddy, which is what set him apart during the '80s slasher boom.

That is very much owed to the brilliance of Robert Englund, who portrayed Freddy in every single movie, save for the 2010 remake. Englund, similarly, infused a real personality into the character that made him a generational favorite. In that way, The Grabber is very much aping what Freddy Krueger did before him. A brilliant actor making a meal out of portraying a twisted killer.

Let's circle back to the central question. Is The Grabber poised to become our modern Freddy Krueger? Can Hawke's masked maniac do what Englund's child-killing psycho did before him? In a way, yes. Where Derrickson and Cargill truly succeeded was by deepening our understanding of the character while providing him a path to immortality. There is something beyond death, and The Grabber has exploited that to continue his reign of terror.

At the same time, The Grabber isn't Freddy Krueger. His kill count is far lower. His methods are different. This movie doesn't end on a cliffhanger or with some stinger that leaves the door open for endless sequels. It feels unlikely that Hawke would play this character for 20 years like Englund did with Freddy. So, on the one hand, the movie absolutely pulls off a wonderful homage of sorts to Freddy, while doing its own thing. But it doesn't necessarily tee up the ball for an "Elm Street" successor.

The fact of the matter is that Robert Englund probably isn't going to play Freddy Krueger again. The franchise is dormant with no imminent signs of return. Something can and should fill that void. What's refreshing is that Derrickson and Cargill found a way to create a new horror icon in The Grabber. Whether or not we see him in a third movie or beyond is somewhat irrelevant. It's now undeniable that he is an icon of the genre in his own right, while acknowledging that he is certainly borrowing from when of the best to ever do it. Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, after all.

"Black Phone 2" is in theaters now.