A Nightmare on Elm Street cast reunites to update franchise jingle for coronavirus era

Plenty of celebrities have released isolated PSAs about the coronavirus or reprised familiar genre characters in order to warn of the pandemic's dangers, but few have the creepy production value of a song by the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise's cast. The large group of actors teamed up to chant a version of the famous slasher's nursery rhyme/jingle all about keeping a safe distance and staying safe. And if anyone knows about needing to stay safe, it's those running from Freddy Krueger.

While Robert Englund — Freddy himself — doesn't make an appearance in the video (he did his own PSA earlier this month), the large cast includes Heather Langenkamp, Lisa Wilcox, Mark Patton, Andras Jones, Ken Sagoes, Brooke Theiss, Toy Newkirk, Ira Heiden, Brooke Bundy, and a few creepy children with sidewalk chalk. The latter are masked and six feet away from each other, at least, but it doesn't make their spooky messages (the lyrics of the jingle) any less effective.

Take a look, and take it to heart:

Instead of "One, two, Freddy's coming for you / Three, four, better lock your door / Five, six, grab your crucifix / Seven, eight, gonna stay up late / Nine, ten, never sleep again," the lyrics have been changed to "One, two, COVID's not the flu / Three, four, wash your hands some more / Five, six, Zoom your therapist / Seven, eight, don't congregate / Nine, ten, never see your friends." Pretty effective, even for these B-horror Weird Als.

With plenty of nice Elm Street vibes thrown in for color, the PSA is fun for horror fans and good for messaging. The tag #StopTheNightmare is particularly good. Even without Englund, who recently told SYFY WIRE that he would love to see a prequel to the series, the video works wonders — so remember to wash those blades, boys and ghouls.

This story presents some humorous responses to coronavirus, but COVID-19 is very real! Please exercise caution out there: Wash those hands, stay at home, and practice social distancing. For extensive information on how to keep you and your loved ones safe, check out the CDC’s coronavirus website.