Everyone remain calm, but for the first time in a long time, it looks like we might actually have some hope that a new Friday the 13th movie is on the horizon. Remember when I said to remain calm? Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves here, but one of the producers who is said to be involved in the next incarnation of the beloved horror franchise has offered hope that we may be hearing concrete news on that front sooner rather than later.
Roy Lee recently spoke with the folks at Bloody Disgusting about his upcoming movie Barbarian. During the chat, the subject of a new Friday the 13th movie came up. Lee, for now, couldn’t say much, but he did tantalizingly tease that we may be hearing something more concrete soon. “That one is something that I would love to talk about. You may be hearing something by year’s end… on that front,” Lee said. Did you hear that? It’s the sound of Jason Voorhees sharpening his machete.
There is much to discuss in the wake of Lee’s comments, so, before anyone begins celebrating, we must temper expectations and set the stage. First and foremost, the rights to the franchise have been tied up for years, which is why 2009’s successful Friday the 13th remake never got a sequel and why the series hasn’t been rebooted since. The ins and outs of it are extremely complicated, but original director Sean S. Cunningham and screenwriter Victor Miller have been at legal odds over the rights for years now, with the legal battle dragging on with no end in sight. Basically, both sides would need to come to terms for things to move forward. Lee’s latest comments lead us to believe that perhaps the dust has finally settled.
Now, if we assume that somehow the rights thing has been worked out (and that’s a huge if), how does Lee factor into it? The producer behind It and The Ring became attached to a reboot of the franchise in 2018, with Vertigo Entertainment teaming with LeBron James’ Springhill Entertainment to make it happen. Lee runs Vertigo with Doug Davison, so that would explain his insider knowledge.
What we know for sure is that in an era when Halloween and Halloween Kills made boatloads of cash, Netflix is seemingly going all-in on Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and with franchises remaining king of the hill in Hollywood overall, a new Friday the 13th movie makes sense now more than ever. There is a lot of financial motivation for everyone involved to make this happen. 13 years removed from Jason’s most recent cinematic appearance, has the time finally come? One can only hope that Lee isn’t just blowing smoke and that this is, indeed, more tangible this time around.
