A Nightmare on Elm Street 3:

Dream Warriors

A Screenplay By:

Wes Craven and Bruce Wagner

FADE IN:

A COMPLETELY BLACK SCREEN. THE FOLLOWING QUOTE IS SUPERED:

"Sleep. Those little slices

of death. How I loathe them."

-- Edgar Allan Poe

FADE TO:

INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT

Warren Zevon's "I'll Sleep When I'm Dead" BLARES from a radio as we begin a CLOSUP MONTAGE:

CLOSEUP - A YOUNG GIRL'S HAND

dips a strip of newspaper into a bowl of paper mache mix.

CLOSEUP - THE WETTED PAPER

is applied to a paper mache surface, and a popsicle stick is pressed into place. (We are TOO TIGHT to see the object being constructed.)

CLOSEUP - KRISTEN PARKER

Kristen (16) is strikingly pretty, despite the dark, tired circles under her eyes. She's exhausted, but desperately trying to stay awake. She wears pajamas and robe.

Her head nods, her eyelids close. She snaps herself awake.

CLOSEUP - THE RADIO

She turns the VOLUME UP EVEN LOUDER.

CLOSEUP - THE CLOCK

It's 1:20 a.m.

CLOSEUP - A JAR OF FOLGER'S COFFEE CRYSTALS

She scoops out a spoonful.

CLOSEUP - KRISTEN

She puts the spoonful of coffee crystals in her mouth and chases it down with a swig of Diet Coke.

CLOSEUP - PAPER MACHE

Another piece is applied.

CLOSEUP - KRISTEN

Nodding off again. She rouses herself angrily.

WIDER ANGLE

The bedroom door opens and her mother enters. ELAINE PARKER, late 30's, is dressed in an expensive evening gown that carefully displays her assets. She snaps the radio off.

ELAINE

Are you crazy? You'll wake the whole

neighborhood!

KRISTEN

(bleary-eyed)

Hi Mom.

ELAINE

Don't "hi Mom" me. What are you still

doing up? It's past one!

KRISTEN

I thought I'd wait for you.

ELAINE

(softening)

Well, I'm home now, so you can go right

to sleep. C'mon, angel.

KRISTEN

It's okay, I'm not tired. Really.

ELAINE

(turning down the bed)

Kristen, don't start with me. You know

what your shrink said...

KRISTEN

(sullen)

He's full of shit.

ELAINE

I am not going to let you get me into an

argument, goddamn it. Not tonight. Now

get in bed.

Kristen does as she's told. Her mother goes to the door and reaches for the light switch.

KRISTEN

(a soft plea)

Mom? I'm still having these awful dreams.

A MAN'S VOICE comes from downstairs:

MAN (O.S.)

Elaine? Where do you keep the bourbon?

ELAINE

I'll be right down!

(to Kristen)

Look honey, I've got a guest.

KRISTEN

And you don't want to keep him waiting.

ELAINE

That's right. I don't.

The door closes, shutting Kristen into darkness. She lies in bed, blinking back angry tears. She turns on her side, her gaze falling on:

THE PAPER MACHE OBJECT

It is a miniature house glowing weirdly in th moonlight. A crude, homemade replica of the Elm Street House.

CLOSEUP - KRISTEN

Staring at the tiny house, hearing her mother's FAINT LAUGHTER downstairs.

Kristen begins to nod off, though she's fighting it.

A breeze starts up, rustling her hair. Leaves fall across her pillow and face. Her mother's LAUGHTER FADES OUT, replaced by teh EERIE GIGGLING of small children. She awakes with a start.

CAMERA SLOWLY PULLS BACK, CRANING UP TO REVEAL:

Kristen's bed sits in the middle of the dark, deserted street in front of the Elm Street House.

Small CHILDREN are playing on the lawn. The boys are dressed in suits, the girls in party dresses. They are jumping rope and chanting a singsong:

CHILDREN

One, two, Freddy's coming for you,

three, four, better lock your door,

five, six, grab your crucifix...

KRISTEN

gets out of bed and approaches the children, transfixed.

...except for one eerily pretty LITTLE GIRL sitting on her red tricycle near the front door, hair billowing in the breezes as she stares at Kristen.

LITTLE GIRL

Hello. What's your name?

KRISTEN

Kristen. What's yours?

The Little Girl giggles and smiles shyly, but doesn't answer.

KRISTEN (cont.)

What is this place?

The wind kicks up, MOANING. We hear the SOUND OF WIND CHIMES.

THE WIND CHIME

Tinkling in the wind. The "chimes" are long razors.

KRISTEN

reacts.

ANOTHER ANGLE

The front door of the house CREAKS open behind the Little Girl. Darkness within.

LITTLE GIRL

(sadly)

I have to go now. Bye.

RINGING the bell on the handlebar, she pedals her tricycle through the door and is swallowed by the darkness inside.

KRISTEN

Wait! Don't go in there!

Too late. Kristen stands alone. Fighting her fear, she approaches the house.

INT. ELM STREET HOUSE - NIGHT

Kristen enters. The place is barren, empty. Broken windows, flaking paint, rotted walls. Leaves skitter across teh floor.

KRISTEN

Little girl!

THE CHILDREN

They sense her presence and turn their vacant, staring eyes toward her. They scatter, vanishing into the shadows...

She hears the JINGLING of the tricycle bell and the GIGGLING of the Little Girl ECHOING FAINTLY from deep inside the house. Then silence again. Kristen tries to follow the sounds.

ANOTHER ANGLE

Kristen comes around a corner just in time to see:

HER POV

A quick glimpse of the Little Girl vanishing around the corner at the far end of a long, twisted corridor. The walls are streaked with rust...or perhaps dried blood.

KRISTEN

She keeps following. Being led.

ANOTHER ANGLE

Kristen comes around a corner and finds herself facing a heavy steel door that is just closing wiht a SOLID METALLIC CLANG. The riveted metal seems out of place in the rotted wood house.

Kristen goes to the door and pulls it slowly open. A stairway leading down into darkness.

STAIRWAY

Kristen carefully makes her way down the metal steps.

INT. BOILER ROOM

Kristen fearfully enters Freddy's decrepit lair. Ancient rusted boilers stand cold and silent in the shadows.

The SOFT JINGLE of the tricycle draws Kristen's attention.

ANOTHER ANGLE

The Little Girl pedals out of the darkness and comes to a stop before Kristen.

LITTLE GIRL

This is where he takes us.

There is a SCREECH OF METAL. Kristen whirls and sees:

A BOILER

The rusted furnace door is swinging open, metal grating on metal. Inside, the charred bones of children lie in heaps of cold ash. A tricycle lies in the carnage, identical to the Little Girl's -- only charred.

KRISTEN

Horrified. Suddenly, a METAL DOOR SLAMS LOUDLY in the darkness. THUDDING FOOTSTEPS approach, BOOMING CLOSER.

THE LITTLE GIRL

looks up at Kristen with sad eyes.

LITTLE GIRL

(eerily calm)

Freddy's home.

THE BOILER FURNACE