Legendary filmmaker Wes Craven passed away yesterday after a battle with brain cancer. The director was 76 years old.
Most popularly known for his work on “Nightmare on Elm Street” and the “Scream” series of films, Craven was responsible for reinvigorating the horror genre, especially the slasher film, not once but twice in his career. After the success of “Halloween” and “Friday the 13th”, knockoffs and sequels were constantly being released, and it wasn’t long until the public became weary of the seeing the same thing played out endlessly on screen. It wasn’t until 1983 with Craven’s “Nightmare on Elm Street” that audiences once again found true horror in a film.
He did it again in 1996 with the “Scream” series which took the entire genre and turned it on its ear by not only being brutal and scary but also irreverent and willing to poke fun at the stereotypes common in nearly all horror films. “Scream” renewed interest in the genre again, and it’s doubtful that horror would be where it is today without that re-launching pad.
Due to those successes, it’s easy to forget that he also directed other fan favorites such as “The Twilight Zone” TV series, “Swamp Thing”, one of the vignettes in “Paris, je t’aime.” and also the Meryl Streep drama, “Music of the Heart.” He also helped jump start the careers of many successful actors including Johnny Depp, Sharon Stone and Bruce Willis.
His producing, writing and acting credits could go on for pages, as he had quite the busy and varied career over his 40 plus years making films. Needless to say he will be sorely missed, and his absence leaves a huge void in the industry that few if any will ever be able to fill.
Andy Wilson (Citizen-Bot) and I recorded our own In Memoriam for him on the Bored As Hell Podcast where we dove a bit deeper into his career and discussed the impact his movies have had on the art form as a whole. Follow this link to join us in paying tribute to an incredible filmmaker.