“Who would win in a fight between…” is the opening of countless considerations over the might and merits of pop culture icons squaring off against one another, with the likes of Alien vs. Predator, Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, Sadako vs. Kayako and Godzilla vs. Kong exploring how monsters and horror villains react upon meeting for the first time.
The permutations are almost endless, and another possibility put forward is how a battle might shape up between Freddy Krueger from A Nightmare On Elm Street and Pinhead from Hellraiser.
The fan trailer above splices together scenes from the two movies, merging into a single tale of people being inexplicably stalked by forces beyond their ken, aided by the distinctly ‘80s aesthetic of both preventing the transitions from seeming too obvious. As with many such works, it takes a while for the combatants to encounter each other, but they eventually do and it’s a lot of fun to watch.
What would make this particular clash interesting is that neither side is entirely of the physical realm, with Freddy commanding dominance over the realm of dreams and nightmares, while Pinhead and his Cenobite cohorts form the forefront of the legions of a particularly sadomasochistic interpretation of hell, summoned by the desires of existential explorers traveling out of their depths.
Even in the mortal world, both have been seen to retain certain powers, with Pinhead able to transform humans into Cenobites and add them to his ranks, and also summon bloody hooks and chains from the shadows to immobilize and eviscerate the unwary. Freddy, meanwhile, is possessed of nigh-invulnerability and a limited ability to warp reality to his will, using everything within the subconscious of his victim against them. It would be a protracted and bloody fight, and more than a little surreal, and deciding the victor would be a difficult call to immediately make.
Tell us, though, who do you think would win the smackdown of razor metal and tortured agony? Let us know below.