A longtime legend of the horror genre was unrecognizable when he was spotted out and about this week at the age of 77.

In the early years of his career, he auditioned unsuccessfully for one of the main roles in what was then the brand new Star Wars franchise.

He achieved his own icon status in the next decade, the 1980s, when he appeared in one of the best-remembered scary movies of all time.

As the fearsome antagonist, he sent chills down the spines of moviegoers around the world, and his character’s name is still a byword for monstrous horror villains.

But when he was seen in real life in Los Angeles this week, he was the image of a kindly gentleman stepping out for a casual sunlit stroll.

Can you guess who he is? 

A reigning icon of the horror genre was unrecognizable when he was spotted out and about this week at the age of 77

When he was seen in real life in Los Angeles this week, he was the image of a kindly gentleman stepping out for a casual sunlit stroll

The actor in question is Robert Englund, who originated the role of Freddy Krueger in the 1984 horror classic A Nightmare On Elm Street.

He received classical training in acting at the renowned Royal Academy Of Dramatic Art in London before embarking on his career back in Hollywood. 

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Back in the 1970s, Englund auditioned unsuccessfully for the first Star Wars film, aiming for the Han Solo role that ultimately went to Harrison Ford.

He has since claimed he was the one who persuaded Mark Hamill to audition for his star-making Luke Skywalker role in the original 1977 Star Wars picture.

‘And then I went home and told a little kid that was sleeping on my couch, after a six-pack of Heineken, all about [Star Wars], and his name was Mark Hamill,’ Englund said.

‘I said: “Hey, Lucas is doing this space movie. Maybe you’re right for it. The lead guy’s like a teenager….” So Mark got on the phone to his agent and I think he went up the next day. He nailed it, and the rest is history,’ he told Yahoo! Movies.

Hamill himself has disputed Englund’s version of events, insisting on Twitter: ‘Robert was 1 of several actors who told me about #StarWars-When I told my agent-She’d already set up an audition & still gets annoyed he takes the credit.’

He added: ‘Sleeping on his couch is nonsense! I’d been a working actor for over 6 years & had my own Apt. #SettingTheRecordStraight’.

The actor in question is Robert Englund, who originated the legendary role of Freddy Krueger in the 1984 horror classic A Nightmare On Elm Street (pictured) 

His final big screen turn as the character came in the 2003 crossover film Freddy Vs. Jason, pitting his character against Jason Voorhees from Friday The 13th 

In the early 1980s, he featured in the TV franchise V as Willie, a rough-hewn fighter in the human resistance against an alien invasion.

However his ship only truly came in when he landed the role of Freddy Krueger in the smash hit blockbuster A Nightmare On Elm Street.

Directed by Wes Craven, a giant in the genre, the movie starred Robert as a serial killer with a razor-topped glove who preys on teenager through their dreams.

His tactic is to enter his targets’ nightmares and brutally murder them there – which also causes the victim to die brutally in real life. 

Freddy Krueger is the ghost of a serial killer from a previous era, who when he was alive managed to get released from jail on a technicality and was subsequently burned alive by the vengeful parents of his child victims.

By the time of the movie’s events, Freddy appears as an unᴅᴇᴀᴅ creature, his face still charred and molten from the mob justice he received during his life. 

In addition to making a star out of Robert Englund, A Nightmare On Elm Street also marked the feature film debut of the then 21-year-old Johnny Depp. 

The movie emerged as a thunderous box office success, and Englund reprised the role of Freddy Krueger for seven more movies across the next two decades.

Englund played Freddy one last time as a lark for the sitcom The Goldbergs, on a 2018 episode cheekily called Mister Knifey-Hands 

His final big screen turn as the character came in the 2003 crossover film Freddy Vs. Jason, pitting his character against Jason Voorhees from Friday The 13th.

Englund played Freddy one last time as a lark for the sitcom The Goldbergs, on a 2018 episode cheekily called Mister Knifey-Hands.

Outside of the franchise, his career includes guest sH๏τs on TV series including MadTV, Knight Rider, Walker Texas Ranger and Stranger Things. 

In the recent documentary Hollywood Dreams & Nightmares: The Robert Englund Story, Englund modestly denied that he was an icon.

‘I know who icons are,’ he said. ‘I’m not an icon. Maybe Freddy Krueger is, but I’m not. I’m just a character actor, a utility actor who’s been very lucky.’ 

He also ruled out playing the character again, explaining that he had become ‘too old and thick’ and could no longer meet the role’s physical requirements.

‘I just can’t do fight scenes for more than one take anymore, I’ve got a bad neck and bad back and arthritis in my right wrist. So I have to hang it up, but I would love to cameo,’ he said in the documentary.