It’s been over a decade since the last attempt to reboot Friday the 13th, but the famous horror franchise has now found another life on Peacock. The streaming service has announced that A24 is producing a new prequel series, Crystal Lake, which will fill in the backstory of Jason’s infamous killing grounds. But if you’re hoping for Jason to show up as his adult incarnation with his iconic hockey mask, then you shouldn’t hold your breath. The rights for the new series only cover the script for the first film, which featured Jason’s mother, Pamela Voorhees, as the killer.
Pushing Daisies creator Bryan Fuller is slated to write, executive produce, and serve as the showrunner on Crystal Lake. Fuller previously created Hannibal for NBC, and he was one of the primary creative minds behind Star Trek: Discovery‘s development. More recently, Fuller was behind the STARZ adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s American Gods.
“I discovered Friday the 13th in the pages of Famous Monsters magazine when I was 10 years old and I have been thinking about this story ever since,” said Fuller in a statement. “When it comes to horror, A24 raises the bar and pushes the envelope and I’m thrilled to be exploring the camp grounds of Crystal Lake under their banner. And [NBCUniversal’s] Susan Rovner is simply the best at what she does. It’s a pleasure and an honor to be working with her again.”
The primary reason why Friday the 13th has languished since the 2009 remake is that original screenwriter Victor Miller went to court to reclaim the copyright on his script for the first film. The courts ruled in Miller’s favor last May, but as noted above, his share of the rights doesn’t include the name Friday the 13th or the adult incarnation of Jason. But if we had to guess, there will be plenty of attractive teens at Camp Crystal Lake who will meet grisly ends.
Peacock has given Crystal Lake a straight-to-series order, which means that it could begin filming as soon as next year.
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