Heather Langenkamp
Heather Elizabeth Langenkamp (born July 17, 1964) is an American actress. She is considered an influential figure in horror films and in popular culture, noted for her acting in several works of the genre and her behind-the-scenes work coordinating prosthetic makeup. She is established as a scream queen, and was inducted into the Fangoria Chainsaw Hall of Fame in 1995.
Heather Langenkamp | |
|---|---|
Langenkamp in 2008 | |
| Born | Heather Elizabeth Langenkamp[1] July 17, 1964[2] Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Other names | Heather Langenkamp Anderson Heather L. Anderson Heather Anderson |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1983–present |
| Known for | Nancy Thompson in A Nightmare on Elm Street |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2 |
| Signature | |
Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma to an artist and a petroleum attorney, Langenkamp spent her childhood on a farm. While working for the Tulsa Tribune at the age of 19, she got cast as an extra in Francis Ford Coppola's The Outsiders (1983) and Rumble Fish (1983), and whilst attending Stanford University, she played her first leading role in the little-seen Nickel Mountain (1984). Langenkamp earned widespread recognition for headlining Wes Craven's slasher film A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) as the resourceful 15-year-old heroine Nancy Thompson. The film emerged as a critical and commercial success and spawned the similarly-titled franchise, in which Langenkamp reprises the role of Nancy for its third installment, Dream Warriors (1987). Her final appearance in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise was the self-aware horror film Wes Craven's New Nightmare (1994), where she received acclaim for playing both a fictionalized version of herself and Nancy.
Langenkamp has starred in numerous television series and made-for-television films throughout her career such as the drama film Passions (1984), the Emmy Award–winning ABC sitcoms Growing Pains (1988–1990) and Just the Ten of Us (1988–1990), the satirical film Tonya and Nancy: The Inside Story (1994), the anthology series Perversions of Science (1997), the Syfy–film Truth or Dare (2017), the adult animated series JJ Villard's Fairy Tales (2020), and the Mike Flanagan created Netflix series The Midnight Club (2022). Her further film roles include The Butterfly Room (2012), Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), Cottonmouth (2020) and My Little Pony: A New Generation (2021). She has expanded her career, and has worked as the special makeup effects coordinator for movies such as Dawn of the Dead (2004), Cinderella Man (2005), Evan Almighty (2007), and The Cabin in the Woods (2012).
Langenkamp met her husband, Oscar-winning make-up artist David LeRoy Anderson, at a wrap party for Wes Craven's The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988) and together they run the make-up FX firm AFX Studio.[3]
Early life
Heather Elizabeth Langenkamp was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma.[4] Her mother, Mary Alice (née Myers), is an artist. Her father, Robert Dobie Langenkamp, is a petroleum attorney. Her father was a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Energy in the Carter Administration, where he was partially responsible for realizing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.[5] He worked under the Clinton Administration, where he helped with privatizing Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 1.[5] He later was the Director of the National Energy & Environmental Law & Policy Institute of the University of Tulsa College of Law.[5] She later moved to Washington, D.C. after her father's appointment to the Carter administration, where she attended the National Cathedral School for Girls, with classmate and future Stanford University roommate Susan Rice.[4]
Career
Early work
At the age of nineteen, Langenkamp worked for the Tulsa Tribune. She saw an advertisement looking for extras for Francis Ford Coppola's The Outsiders in the summer of 1983. Auditions took place at a nearby elementary school where Langenkamp gave the casting director her Polaroid. She got a call back to appear in a high school scene. Amidst what seemed like "hundreds" of other adolescents, she had to wear 1950s based attire. The same summer, Coppola was shooting another film, Rumble Fish. Her friend got a phone call to appear in a street scene. Her friend's mother felt more comfortable with Langenkamp going with her to the set at night. The assistant director informed her that they had dialogue and wanted to give it to her. She did several takes of her saying dialogue to Matt Dillon's character. The scenes didn't make it into the final product of either film. Despite this, these extra parts helped her get into the Screen Actors Guild.[6] Langenkamp stayed in close contact with the casting director, her assistant, and the producer.
While studying at Stanford University, she would travel to Los Angeles to pursue acting opportunities. Her first official Hollywood audition was for Drew Denbaum's Nickel Mountain (1984), an adaptation of John Gardner's 1973 novel. During the audition, her rented car got hit by a runaway truck on Cahuenga Boulevard. Denbaum and the casting director helped Langenkamp during the ordeal. She bonded with them and got cast in the lead role of Callie Wells.[7] She has expressed regret for doing the nude scene as she feared voicing her discomfort at the time of filming.[8] She later got cast as Beth alongside Joanne Woodward and Richard Crenna in the CBS television film Passions (1984).[7] The direction towards her character received praise.[9]
Rise to prominence
Langenkamp became aware of auditions for a horror film known as A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) in the winter of 1983.[10] Casting director Annette Benson was familiar to Langenkamp as she had brought her in to read for the lead role in Night of the Comet (1984) although the part ultimately went to Catherine Mary Stewart.[11] She auditioned for the highly sought after role of fifteen-year-old heroine Nancy. There were not enough chairs to accommodate the number of actresses auditioning.[10] Her reading impressed both Benson and director Wes Craven enough that she was called back to read with another actress auditioning, Amanda Wyss.[10] Craven stated that he wanted someone very "non-Hollywood" and someone who embodied the "all-American, girl-next-door" for the role and believed that Langenkamp had these qualities.[11] Craven informed her that she got the part that winter, although shooting didn't begin until June 1984.[10] She beat out more than 200 actresses auditioning for the part. She won the Best Actress Award at the Avoriaz Film Festival for her role as Nancy,[12] and Empire magazine wrote that "Heather Langenkamp [is] an appealing high school lead."[13]
In 1984, she starred in the music video for ZZ Top's "Sleeping Bag".[14] In 1986, she guest-starred in CBS Schoolbreak Special and ABC Afterschool Specials. Langenkamp was cast in Suburban Beat (1985), a television pilot that was not picked up for a full series, where she played Hope Sherman, the youngest housewife. Craven approached Langenkamp to reprise her role of Nancy in the sequel A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987), about the survivors of Freddy Krueger's previous attempts;[15] it opened to box office success in 1987 grossing over $44 million,[16] and earned positive reviews. Later, she had a guest appearance as Tracy in the television series The New Adventures of Beans Baxter and Monica on the soap opera Hotel (both in 1987).[17] Langenkamp obtained further recognition when she portrayed lead character Marie Lubbock on the ABC television series Just the Ten of Us, a spin-off of the popular ABC situation comedy Growing Pains (on which she guest-starred), from 1988 to 1990. Both shows won Emmy Awards.[18][19] That year, she and her castmates were nominated for the Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor/Actress Ensemble in a Television Comedy, Drama Series or Special.
Langenkamp had a cameo role as the first victim of Horace Pinker in Wes Craven's horror film Shocker (1989).[20][21] In the film, she is on a news report being pulled away on a stretcher. Following this, she portrayed the figure skater Nancy Kerrigan in the NBC television film Tonya & Nancy: The Inside Story (also released in 1994), which focused on Tonya Harding's husband's attack.[22]
I would never say no to the option of doing something like that. It's a great universe and it's one of the most creative franchises, there's more to be made, I'm sure.
—Langenkamp on the possibility of returning to the A Nightmare on Elm Street series[23]
Langenkamp returned to the Elm Street franchise with Wes Craven's New Nightmare,[24] which is a standalone film, and follows the journey Freddy Krueger takes to the real world.[25] She instead starred as a fictionalized version of herself, which was based on a stalking incident she was subject to that involved a fan angry over the cancellation of her show, Just the Ten of Us.[26] On the film, Langenkamp stated "It's a really interesting concept, and it's one of the only horror movies where the monster's really in the background, at least until the end. But it's all about our mentality about fear."[27] Wes Craven's New Nightmare was released in 1994, and opened to critical praise,[28] being cited as an influential "metahorror" film. Langenkamp's acting earned acclaim, with several critics dubbing it her magnum opus.[29] Review website Slasher Studios wrote that "The performances are pitch perfect, led by a tour-de-force performance by the amazing Langenkamp."[30] In a video ranking the Nightmare on Elm Street films, James A. Janisse, the host of the YouTube channel Dead Meat, stated that Langenkamp "is in top form and gives her best performance of the franchise here, likely a product of her age and greater life experience."[31] For her performance, she won the Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Best Actress.
Continued success and expansion
Langenkamp starred in Robert Kurtzman's low-budget superhero film The Demolitionist (1995).[32] In 1997, she portrayed Lou Ann Solomon in one episode of the short-lived science fiction/horror television series Perversions of Science. She later starred in the direct-to-video film Fugitive Mind (1999). In 2000, she had a guest role in 18 Wheels of Justice as a waitress. The following year, she and her husband, David LeRoy Anderson, launched the Malibu Gum Factory which sold locally manufactured chewing gum that featured trading cards of local surfers inside each package.[33] Langenkamp played Janet Thompson in an episode of JAG (2002). After this, she took a break from acting to focus on her family.[34] In 2005, she was cast in the Wes Craven horror film Cursed. The film had to be reshot and rewritten, causing her to leave due to scheduling conflicts.[35]
Langenkamp portrayed a fictionalized version of herself in the indie mockumentary film The Bet (2007). It was released as a web series with the same title in April 2020. She starred in, executive produced, and narrated the 2010 documentary Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy. The following year, she produced a documentary entitled I Am Nancy, which focused on her experience portraying Nancy in the A Nightmare on Elm Street films.[36] Langenkamp portrayed Dorothy in the horror film The Butterfly Room (2012). As a partner in her husband's Special FX Make-up company, AFX Studio, she worked on the horror-comedy film The Cabin in the Woods. In 2013, Langenkamp appeared as herself in the documentary Fantasm[37] and had a small role of an alien in the film, Star Trek Into Darkness in which her husband David LeRoy Anderson designed all of the Special FX make-up.[38] In 2014, she made a cameo appearance in the fourth season of the horror anthology series American Horror Story, titled Freak Show, as a Tupperware party lady.[39]
In 2015, Langenkamp was cast in the short film Intruder, portrayed Sharon Monroe in four episodes of the drama series The Bay, and narrated the short horror film Vault of the Macabre II.[40][41] In 2016, she starred in the horror drama film Home.[42] Langenkamp had a cameo role in the short horror comedy film The Sub (2017) and appeared as herself in the documentary Unearthed & Untold: The Path to Pet Sematary (2017). She has a cameo appearance in the horror sequel film Hellraiser: Judgment. Also that year, she portrayed the adult version of the "final girl" Donna Boone in the Syfy television horror film Truth or Dare, guiding a group of teenagers with their battle with a deadly spirit that left her physically scarred several years prior.[43] She is confirmed to have the anchoring role in the Mike Flanagan written, directed, and executive produced Netflix series The Midnight Club (2022).[44] Langenkamp voices Dazzle Feather and Mayflower in My Little Pony: A New Generation (2021).
Personal life
Jill Simpson, the assistant to The Outsiders (1984) casting director, became a close friend of Langenkamp. Simpson worked as the assistant on Wes Craven's The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988) and suggested that Langenkamp attend a wrap party to meet one of the crew members. There, she met make-up artist David LeRoy Anderson and the two began a relationship shortly after.[4] Anderson proposed to her on the set of Mary Lambert's Pet Sematary (1989) and they wed that year. They had two children together, son Daniel "Atticus" Anderson, who died in 2018 as the result of a brain tumor, and daughter Isabelle Anderson.[45] She was previously married to Alan Pasqua, a musician, from 1984 until 1987.[46]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | The Outsiders | [a] | Scenes deleted | [47] |
| Rumble Fish | ||||
| 1984 | Nickel Mountain | Callie Wells | ||
| A Nightmare on Elm Street | Nancy Thompson | [47] | ||
| 1987 | A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors | |||
| 1989 | Shocker | Victim | Cameo | |
| 1994 | Wes Craven's New Nightmare | Herself / Nancy Thompson | ||
| 1995 | The Demolitionist | Christy Carruthers | ||
| 1999 | Fugitive Mind | Suzanne Hicks | Direct-to-video | |
| 2007 | The Bet | Heather Langenkamp | ||
| 2008 | Prank | None | Director; segment: "Jennifer" | |
| 2010 | Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy | Narrator / Herself | Documentary; also executive producer | |
| 2011 | I Am Nancy | Herself | Documentary; also producer | |
| 2012 | The Butterfly Room | Dorothy | [47] | |
| 2013 | Star Trek Into Darkness | Moto | Cameo | |
| 2015 | Intruder | Sally | Short film | |
| 2016 | Home | Heather | ||
| 2017 | The Sub | Senora Babcock | Short film | |
| 2017 | Truth or Dare | Donna Boone | ||
| 2018 | Hellraiser: Judgment | Landlady | Direct-to-video; cameo | |
| 2019 | Road Trash | Narrator | Short film | |
| Portal | Fiona | |||
| Washed Away | None | Short film; writer and director | ||
| In Search of Darkness | Herself | Documentary | ||
| 2020 | In Search of Darkness: Part II | Herself | Documentary | |
| 2021 | My Little Pony: A New Generation | Dazzle Feather / Mayflower | ||
| 2022 | Glitch | Emily's mother |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Passions | Beth Kennerly | Television film |
| 1985 | Suburban Beat | Hope Sherman | Television pilot |
| 1986 | CBS Schoolbreak Special | Erica | Episode: "Have You Tried Talking to Patty?" |
| 1986 | ABC Afterschool Special | Paula Finkle | Episode: "Can a Guy Say No?" |
| 1986 | Heart of the City | Audrey | Episode: "Of Dogs and Cat Burglars" |
| 1987 | The New Adventures of Beans Baxter | Tracy | Episode: "Beans Goes to Camp" |
| 1987 | Hotel | Monica | Episode: "Desperate Moves" |
| 1988 | Circus of the Stars #13 | Herself | Television special |
| 1988–1990 | Growing Pains | Marie Lubbock / Amy Boutilier | 5 episodes |
| 1988–1990 | Just the Ten of Us | Marie Lubbock | Main role (47 episodes) |
| 1990 | ABC TGIF | Marie Lubbock | Episode: "#1.19" |
| 1994 | Tonya and Nancy: The Inside Story | Nancy Kerrigan | Television film |
| 1997 | Perversions of Science | Lou Ann Solomon | Episode: "Ultimate Weapon" |
| 1999 | Partners | Suzanne | Episode: "Always..." |
| 2000 | 18 Wheels of Justice | Waitress | Episode: "Genesis |
| 2002 | JAG | Janet Thompson | Episode: "Odd Man Out" |
| 2014 | American Horror Story: Freak Show | Female Toulouse | 2 episodes |
| 2017 | Truth or Dare | Donna Boone | Television film |
| 2020 | JJ Villard's Fairy Tales | Charla (voice) | Episode: "Boypunzel" |
| 2022 | The Midnight Club | Dr. Stanton | Main role |
Web series
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | The Bay | Sharon Monroe | 4 episodes |
| 2016–2020 | The Bet | Heather Langenkamp | 4 episodes |
Music videos
| Year | Title | Artist | Role | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | "Sleeping Bag" | ZZ Top | Sleeping Girl | [48] |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Association | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Avoriaz Fantastic Film Festival | Best Performance | A Nightmare on Elm Street | Won |
| 1985 | Young Artist Awards | Best Young Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical, Comedy, Adventure or Drama | Nominated | |
| 1989 | Young Artist Awards | Best Young Actor/Actress Ensemble in a Television Comedy, Drama Series or Special | Just the Ten of Us | Nominated |
| 1995 | Fangoria Chainsaw Awards | Best Actress | Wes Craven's New Nightmare | Won |
| Fangoria Horror Hall of Fame | — | Won | ||
| 2010 | Fright Night Film Fest | Scream Queen of the Year | — | Won |
| 2020 | Atlanta Horror Film Festival | Best Actress | Cottonmouth | Won |
| 2021 | Indie Fest | Best Ensemble Cast | The Bet | Won |
Notes
- ^ Uncredited role as an extra
References
- ^ "Annual Commencement: Order of Exercises – Stanford University". 1987. Retrieved August 11, 2015.
- ^ "Heather Langenkamp". AllMovie. Archived from the original on December 18, 2021. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
- ^ "AFX Studio". AFX Studio. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
- ^ a b c Yamato, Jen (October 31, 2018). "Beyond slashers and 'scream queens': Three iconic women of horror on the legacies of their legendary roles". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
- ^ a b c Levy, Larry (November 28, 1998). "Former Soviet Oil Tap Tough Turn, Expert Says". The Oklahoman. p. 27. Retrieved June 14, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Hutson 2016, p. 106.
- ^ a b Hutson 2016, p. 108.
- ^ "Heather Langenkamp, Star of ABC's Just the Ten of Us, Who Has Put Her Nightmares Down for the Count". People. Retrieved February 3, 2017.
- ^ Jarvis, Jeff (October 1, 1984). "Picks and Pans Review: Passions". People. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
- ^ a b c d Hutson 2016, p. 112.
- ^ a b Hutson 2016, p. 110.
- ^ Barton, Steve (April 26, 2010). "Heather Langenkamp Explains Why You Should Never Sleep Again". Dread Central. Retrieved August 11, 2015.
- ^ "A Nightmare On Elm Street, Part 3: Dream Warriors". Empire. Retrieved November 17, 2021.
- ^ Bartel, Jordan (November 8, 2015). "Flashback Friday: The top 10 songs this week in 1985". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
- ^ Crow, David (November 18, 2020). "The New Mutants and Its Nightmare on Elm Street Influences". Den of Geek. Retrieved May 17, 2021.
- ^ "A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
- ^ Therkelsen, Michael (July 13, 2012). "Where Are They Now? : Heather Langenkamp". Horror Society. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
- ^ "JUST THE TEN OF US". Emmys.com. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
- ^ "Growing Pains". Emmys.com. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
- ^ Heerden, Bill van (2008). Film and Television In-Jokes: Nearly 2,000 Intentional References, Parodies, Allusions, Personal Touches, Cameos, Spoofs and Homages. McFarland. ISBN 9781476612065.
- ^ Muir, John Kenneth (2017). Wes Craven: The Art of Horror. McFarland. ISBN 9780786419234.
- ^ Bianculli, David (April 30, 1994). "'Most Wanted' looks for 300th fugitive". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
- ^ "Heather Langenkamp thinks there are more Elm Street stories to tell". JoBlo.com. US. March 3, 2017.
- ^ Maslin, Janet (October 14, 1994). "FILM REVIEW; Freddy Krueger Enters The Real World. Yikes!". The New York Times. p. 8. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
- ^ Peitzman, Louis. "How "New Nightmare" Changed The Horror Game". BuzzFeed. Retrieved May 30, 2021.
- ^ "New Nightmare based on factual events". Games.tcm.com. Retrieved October 19, 2014.
- ^ "INTERVIEW: Heather Langenkamp Reminisces About Being Freddy's First Final Girl". nerdbastards.com. September 1, 2014. Retrieved May 30, 2021.
- ^ "Wes Craven's New Nightmare Meta Message Cuts Deeper Than Ever". Collider. October 14, 2019. Retrieved May 30, 2021.
- ^ "Wes Craven's New Nightmare Meta Message Cuts Deeper Than Ever". Collider. October 14, 2019. Retrieved November 17, 2021.
- ^ "Meta Movie Magic: "Wes Craven's New Nightmare" Review". Slasher Studios. May 11, 2011. Retrieved November 17, 2021.
- ^ Every A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET Movie RANKED!, retrieved April 8, 2022
- ^ "Heather Langenkamp". Flixster. Fandango. Retrieved April 23, 2016.
- ^ Jones, Noa (December 11, 2001). "Trading Cards Are Added to Surfers' Turf". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
- ^ "Interview: Heather Langenkamp". April 9, 2008. Retrieved June 11, 2016.
- ^ Dietsch, Drew (September 14, 2016). "Movie of the Day: Cursed (2005)". CHUD.com.hk. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
- ^ "Exclusive: Heather Langenkamp Discusses Her New Documentary I Am Nancy". Dread Central. May 5, 2011. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
- ^ "Horror Convention Documentary Fantasm Arrives on DVD November 11th". Dread Central. November 4, 2014. Retrieved February 14, 2017.
- ^ "Langenkamp In Star Trek Into Darkness". Trek Today. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
- ^ Squires, John (December 11, 2014). "Heather Langenkamp in American Horror Story: Freakshow". iHorror. Retrieved October 4, 2015.
- ^ "Intruder Short Review". Shock Ya Movies. March 31, 2016. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
- ^ Jones, Tamika (November 3, 2015). "Round-Up: UNCANNY Q&A with Lucy Griffiths, EMELIE, ONE EYED GIRL Blu-ray / DVD, VAULT OF THE MACABRE II". Daily Dead. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
- ^ "Heather Langenkamp Narrated This Nancy Thompson Fan Film". iHorror.com. September 8, 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2017.
- ^ McGrew, Shannon (October 5, 2017). "An innocent game turns deadly in SYFY's 'Truth or Dare'". 1428 Elm. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
- ^ Scott, Ryan (February 3, 2021). "Netflix's The Midnight Club Cast Announced, Including Elm Street Icon Heather Langenkamp". MovieWeb. Retrieved February 3, 2021.
- ^ . The Malibu Times. The Malibu Times. Archived from the original on January 27, 2018. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
- ^ Yu, Ting. "Beyond Freddy". People.com. Retrieved December 27, 2015.
- ^ a b c Colllis, Clark. "'Nightmare on Elm Street': Whatever happened to Nancy?". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved June 18, 2021.
- ^ "ZZ Top – Sleeping Bag (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
Further reading
- Hutson, Thommy (2016). Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy: The Making of Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street. Permuted Press. ISBN 978-1-61-868640-4.
External links
- Official website
- Heather Langenkamp at IMDb
- Heather Langenkamp at AllMovie
- at the TCM Movie Database