The ominous chime of the clock strikes again, signaling the potential resurrection of a horror classic that has long lain dormant in the crypts of cinematic history. It now seems like the popular Friday the 13th franchise might just be gearing up for a comeback, courtesy of Blumhouse Productions.
The genesis of these whispers can be traced back to a casual revelation to Inverse by Blumhouse producer Ryan Turek during a promotional round for the upcoming Exorcist sequel. When prodded about the possibility of revitalizing other beloved horror franchises, Turek didn't play coy.
He laid bare the studio's longing to lay hands on the Friday the 13th series, expressing a desire to strip it back to its roots, where summer camps, unsuspecting campers, and the menacing Jason Voorhees in his iconic mask played pivotal roles. Jason [Blum] and I are definitely in agreement that Friday the 13th is the thing we would love to get our hands on. I really want to go back to the basics. You don't need too many ingredients for a Friday the 13th film. You need summer camp, you need campers, and you need Jason Vorhees in a mask.
Listen, I've gone on the record saying Halloween is the ultimate slasher film for me. That's my favorite slasher film of all time. But Friday the 13th as a franchise is one that I just bow down to. I just love everything about it. And if we were able to live in both worlds, like we do with Halloween, then to be able to live at Crystal Lake for a while would be so incredible. The original Friday the 13th film, birthed in 1980 under the watchful eyes of producer and director Sean S. Cunningham, was the cornerstone of a sprawling horror empire. This empire eventually sprawled into twelve films, a television series, video games, novels, and comic books, becoming an indomitable presence in the horror genre.