By the time Patricia Arquette was cast on Medium, she'd already established herself as the darling at the center of critically-adored projects. For her work in True Romance, she was nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Actress, just six years into her career, immediately emerging as a talent to watch. And watch we did as just about every stylish director and screenwriter pulled the young star into their films, from Tim Burton to David Lynch. Arquette proved she knew how to bring dimension to characters, and it's made her an endlessly watchable actress.

But far enough into any star's career, it's natural to wonder: How did Patricia Arquette get her start? What role debuted this rising star? 

The year was 1987, and Patricia Arquette was only 18 years old when her first movie debuted in theaters. It was Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors, the spectacular third installment of the Freddy Krueger horror franchise that welcomed Wes Craven back as a writer and debuted at No. 1 its opening weekend. Dream Warriors remains the franchise's third highest-grossing movie.

In it, Arquette co-stars as Kristen Parker, a patient of Nightmare star Nancy Thompson who one night dreams herself into Freddy's lair on Elm Street. It's Nancy who recommends that Kristen gets sent to the mental hospital where nurses and doctors threaten to sedate her back into Freddy's striped and menacing arms. So although Heather Langenkamp's Nancy still gets top billing, apart from Robert Englund's gripping performance, it was Arquette who truly stars in this installment, and you need only look to the amazing official music video that accompanied the movie's theme song, from steamrolling '80s rockers Dokken, to prove she's what rocked most in this popular horror picture.

In the music video for Dokken's "Dream Warriors," Arquette is the first thing you see once the music starts, and she remains the focal point of the video, as Freddy haunts the edges. It's one of the most perfectly edited totally '80s videos ever, expertly weaving scenes of Arquette's shock and fear with clips of Dokken guitarist George Lynch shredding his skeleton guitar, seeming as if his playing is what's terrifying her. The music video triumphs over Freddy in the end, and it's got nearly as much drama as the movie that introduced us to Arquette. Watch it below:

On Start TV, we love watching Arquette's interpretation of real-life psychic medium Allison DuBois on Medium, because it gives us a whole new way to appreciate Arquette's special gifts as an actress. So next time you catch an episode of her surreal TV series, remember Arquette's got decades of experience "crossing over" to other worlds, starting with Freddy Krueger's!