Friday the 13th is an American horror franchise that comprises nine slasher films from Paramount, a television series from Paramount Television, novels, comic books, video games by Donmark and LJN Toys Ltd., and tie‑in merchandise. The franchise mainly focuses on the fictional character Jason Voorhees, who was thought to have drowned as a boy at Camp Crystal Lake due to the negligence of the camp staff. Decades later, the lake is rumored to be "cursed" and is the setting for a series of mass murders. Jason is featured in all of the films, as either the killer or the motivation for the killings. The original film, created to cash in on the success of Halloween (1978),[1] was written by Victor Miller and was produced and directed by Sean S. Cunningham. The films have grossed over $468 million at the box-office worldwide. It was the highest-grossing horror franchise in the world until Halloween (2018) was released, putting the Halloween franchise in the top spot.
Frank Mancuso, Jr., a producer of the films, also developed the television show Friday the 13th: The Series after Paramount released Jason Lives. The television series was not connected to the franchise by any character or setting, but was created based on the idea of "bad luck and curses", which the film series symbolized.[2] While the franchise was owned by Paramount, four films were adapted into novels, with Friday the 13th Part III adapted by two separate authors. When the franchise was sold to New Line Cinema, Cunningham returned as a producer to oversee two additional films, in addition to a crossover film with character Freddy Krueger from A Nightmare on Elm Street film series. Under New Line Cinema, thirteen novellas and various comic book series featuring Jason were published.
Although the films were not popular with critics, Friday the 13th is considered one of the most successful media franchises in America—not only for the success of the films, but also because of the extensive merchandising and repeated references to the series in popular culture.[3] The franchise's popularity has generated a fanbase who have created their own Friday the 13th films, fashioned replica Jason Voorhees costumes, and tattooed their bodies with Friday the 13th artwork. Jason's hockey mask has become one of the most recognizable images in horror and popular culture.[4]
Films[]
| Film name | Release date | Distributor |
|---|---|---|
| Friday the 13th | 1980 | Paramount Pictures |
| Friday the 13th Part 2 | 1981 | |
| Friday the 13th Part III | 1982 | |
| Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter | 1984 | |
| Friday the 13th: A New Beginning | 1985 | |
| Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives | 1986 | |
| Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood | 1988 | |
| Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan | 1989 | |
| Friday the 13th (2009 reboot) | 2009 | Warner Bros. Pictures (USA) Paramount Pictures (Internationally) |
TV Show[]
- Main article: Friday the 13th: The Series
On September 28, 1987,[5] Paramount began airing Friday the 13th: The Series, a television series that focuses on two cousins' attempts to recover cursed antiques that were sold from a shop they inherited from their uncle. The show starred John D. LeMay as Ryan Dallion and Louise Robey as Michelle Foster. It was created by Frank Mancuso, Jr. and Larry B. Williams originally under the title of The 13th Hour, and the series ran for 72 episodes. Mancuso, Jr. never intended to link the television show directly to the film series, but he utilized "the idea of Friday the 13th, which is that it symbolizes bad luck and curses". The creators wanted to tie‑in Jason's trademark hockey mask to the series, but the idea was discarded so that the show could have a chance to exist on its own. Mancuso, Jr. was afraid that mentioning any events from the films would take the audience away from "the new world that we were trying to create". The decision to name the show Friday the 13th over the original title was made because Mancuso, Jr. believed a "Friday the 13th" moniker would better help to sell the show to networks. Filming took place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.[2] Friday the 13th: The Series initially aired in first-run syndication in a late-night spot; the success of the series as a late-night show prompted some broadcasting stations to move it to primetime. Produced on a budget estimated below $500,000 per episode, the first season placed second in the male 18- to 49-year-old demographic, just behind Paramount's Star Trek: The Next Generation. In addition, the first season placed fifth in the female 18- to 49-year-old demographic.[6]
In September 2003, during a panel session at the Maniafest convention, Sean S. Cunningham spoke about the possibility of bringing Friday the 13th to television, with the series focusing on a group of teenagers living in the Crystal Lake area.[7] On October 2005, Cunningham discussed the potential series further. He explained that the idea was to call the series Crystal Lake Chronicles, and "set [it] in a town with all this Jason history". The series would focus more on "coming-of-age issues", in a similar style to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Dawson's Creek, and Smallville, with Jason as more of a recurring "background" character.[8]
In April 2014, Emmett/Furla/Oasis Films and Crystal Lake Entertainment planned to produce an hour-long Friday the 13th television series. The series was intended to focus on a group of characters at Crystal Lake, who have to deal with the return of Jason Voorhees, as well as discover new information about him and his family.[9] The series was being developed by The CW as of August 2015. Steve Mitchell and Craig Van Sickle were hired to write the plot, while Sean S. Cunningham, Randall Emmett, George Furla and Mark Canton were to be the executive producers,[10] but one year later the network decided to not move forward with the series. The CW president Mark Pedowitz explained: "We had better pilots. The bottom line is we felt we had stronger things to go with, and we didn't go forward with it. It was well-written, it was darker than we wanted it to be, and we didn't believe it had sustainability... We didn't believe that it was a sustainable script, a sustainable series. It was a very good pilot, but not a sustainable series".[11]
Novels[]
| "I couldn't believe it. He started writing this book with low expectations, but a few pages in, he was already enjoying himself. He'd found a way to tell the story in his own interesting way – with his own imprint – and he wrote the book in less than a week. Dad never wrote a book that he didn't like." |
| — David Avallone on his father's experience writing Friday the 13th Part 3[12] |
Six of the twelve films have been adapted into novels—Friday the 13th 1 – 3, Jason Lives, Jason X, and Freddy vs. Jason—with Friday the 13th Part 3 being adapted twice. The first novel was Michael Avallone's 1982 adaptation of Friday the 13th Part 3;[13] Avallone had previously adapted Beneath the Planet of the Apes and Shock Corridor.[12] The author chose to use an alternate ending, one that was filmed for Part 3 but never used, as the conclusion for his adaptation. In the alternate ending, Chris, who is in a canoe, hears her boyfriend Rick's voice and immediately runs back to the house. When she opens the door, Jason is standing there with a machete and kills her.[14] The next book was not published until 1986, when Simon Hawke adapted Jason Lives.[15] Hawke would also adapt the first three films into novels, and his adaptation of the original Friday the 13th was published in 1987,[16] with novelizations of Part 2 and 3 both being published in 1988.[17][18] Hawke's first adaptation, Jason Lives, introduced the character of Elias Voorhees, Jason's father, who was supposed to appear in the film before being cut by the studio. The book explains how Elias has Jason's body buried, instead of the planned cremation, after his death in The Final Chapter.[19]
In 1994, four young adult novels were released under the title of Friday the 13th. These stories focused on different people finding Jason's mask and becoming possessed by his spirit, but the actual character did not appear in the novels. The novels were written by author William Pattinson, under the pen name Eric Morse, and published in 1994. The books are titled Mother's Day, Jason's Curse, The Carnival, and Road Trip.[20][21][22][23] In 2003 and 2005, Black Flame published novelizations of Freddy vs. Jason and Jason X.[24][25] After the release of the Jason X novel, Black Flame began publishing two series of novels. One set was published under the Jason X title, while the second set used the Friday the 13th moniker. The Jason X series consisted of four sequels to the 2005 adaptation. The first to be published was Jason X: The Experiment, which saw the government attempting to exploit Jason's indestructibility to create an army of "super soldiers".[26] The second novel, Planet of the Beast, follows the efforts of Dr. Bardox and his crew as they try to clone a comatose Jason and stay alive when Jason awakens.[27] Death Moon revolves around Jason crash-landing at Moon Camp Americana,[28] and the final novel, To the Third Power, is about the discovery of a Jason clone underneath a prison.[29]
The Friday the 13th series of novels are not connected to the Jason X series and do not continue any story set forth by the films. Instead, each novel developed the character of Jason in its own way. Friday the 13th: Church of the Divine Psychopath has Jason resurrected by a religious cult.[30] In Friday the 13th: Hell Lake, a recently executed serial killer, Wayne Sanchez, persuades Jason to help him escape back to the real world.[31] In Hate-Kill-Repeat, two religious serial killers attempt to find Jason at Crystal Lake, believing that the three of them share the same contempt for those that break the moral code.[32] The Jason Strain places Jason on an island with a group of death row convicts—placed there by television executives running a reality game show—while a scientist attempts to create an age-retarding "super drug" from Jason's DNA. Instead, she creates a virus that reanimates the dead into zombies.[33] The character of Pamela Voorhees returns from the grave in Carnival of Maniacs, and she searches for Jason, who is now part of a traveling sideshow and about to be auctioned off to the highest bidder.[34]
Videogames[]
In May 1986, Domark released a Friday the 13th game for the Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, and ZX Spectrum. The plot involved the player picking a "sanctuary" and attempting to persuade others to hide there. Jason is "disguised as a friend" until he decides to attack the player.[35] Three years later, LJN published a game for the Nintendo Entertainment System.[36] In 2007, Xendex released their own Friday the 13th game for mobile phones. In the game, the player plays as one of the counselors at Camp Crystal Lake. While the staff is preparing the camp for its first summer weekend, an "unknown stalker" begins murdering each of them. The player must discover the truth and escape the camp alive.[37]
Electronic Gaming Monthly announced in January 2015 that a new survival horror, multi-platform[38] "asymmetrical, co-operative and competitive multiplayer predator/prey horror experience" is in development, with a tentative release date of October 2015. This game was originally titled Slasher Vol. 1: Summer Camp, in which it was originally developed by IllFonic, but Gun Media joined and helped develop, in which they will publish the game. The game was raised through BackerKit and Kickstarter, with BackerKit collecting US$271,439.20 from 16,109 backers and Kickstarter collecting US$823,704.20 from 12,128 backers, collecting a total of US$1,095,143.40 from an overall 28,237 backers, with a confirmed title of Friday the 13th: The Game.[39][40] A developer panel for Gun Media and IllFonic was opened at PAX South 2016 in January with alpha footage and a list of kill animations.[41] A mobile game available on iOS, Android and Steam, Friday the 13th: Killer Puzzle, was released on January 20, 2018. It has also been released on the Xbox One and PlayStation 4.[42]
References[]
- ↑ Grove, David (February 2005). Making Friday the 13th: The Legend of Camp Blood. United Kingdom: FAB Press, page 11–12. ISBN 1-903254-31-0.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Grove, David, pp. 189–196
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedIGN ranking - ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedABC - ↑ Bracke, Peter, pg. 171
- ↑ Aljean Harmetz. "TV Producers Discover New Path to Prime Time (page 2)", The New York Times, 1988-07-05.
- ↑ Peter H. (2003-09-20). "'Friday the 13th' Box-Set News and More!". Bloody-Disgusting.
- ↑ "The Godfather". Slasherama (2005-10-22).
- ↑ Fleming, Mike (April 24, 2014). "'Friday The 13th' Scares Up Hourlong Series". Deadline Hollywood.
- ↑ "Friday The 13th TV Series In The Works At The CW" (August 11, 2015).
- ↑ Hibberd, James (August 11, 2016). "CW scraps plans for Little Women, Friday the 13th shows".
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Gove, David, pp.89–90
- ↑ Michael Avallone (1982). Friday the 13th Part 3. United Kingdom: Star. ISBN 0-352-31249-1.
- ↑ Bracke, Peter, pg.92
- ↑ Simon Hawke (1986). Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives. New York: Signet. ISBN 0-451-14641-7.
- ↑ Hawke, Simon (1987). Friday the 13th. New York: Signet. ISBN 0-451-15089-9.
- ↑ Hawke, Simon (1988). Friday the 13th Part 2. New York: Signet. ISBN 0-451-15337-5.
- ↑ Simon Hawke (1988). Friday the 13th Part 3. New York: Signet. ISBN 0-451-15311-1.
- ↑ Grove, David, pg.147
- ↑ Morse, Eric (1994). Friday the 13th: Mother's Day. Berkley Books. ISBN 0-425-14292-2.
- ↑ Morse, Eric (1994). Friday the 13th: Jason's Curse. Berkley Books. ISBN 0-425-14339-2.
- ↑ Morse, Eric (1994). Friday the 13th: The Carnival. Berkley Books. ISBN 0-425-15825-X.
- ↑ Morse, Eric (1994). Friday the 13th: Road Trip. Berkley Books. ISBN 0-425-14383-X.
- ↑ Hand, Stephen (2003-07-29). Freddy vs. Jason. Black Flame. ISBN 1-84416-059-9.
- ↑ Cadigan, Pat (2005-01-25). Jason X. Black Flame. ISBN 1-84416-168-4.
- ↑ Cadigan, Pat (2005-01-25). Jason X: The Experiment. Black Flame. ISBN 1-84416-169-2.
- ↑ Kilpatrick, Nancy (2005-06-07). Jason X: Planet of the Beast. Black Flame. ISBN 1-84416-183-8.
- ↑ Johnson, Alex (2005-11-29). Jason X: Death Moon. Black Flame. ISBN 1-84416-273-7.
- ↑ Kilpatrick, Nancy (2006-04-25). Jason X: To The Third Power. Black Flame. ISBN 1-84416-281-8.
- ↑ Phillips, Scott (2005-08-05). Friday the 13th: Church of the Divine Psychopath. Black Flame. ISBN 1-84416-181-1.
- ↑ Woods, Paul (2005-08-09). Friday the 13th: Hell Lake. Black Flame. ISBN 1-84416-182-X.
- ↑ Arnopp, Jason (2005-10-25). Friday the 13th: Hate Kill Repeat. Black Flame. ISBN 1-84416-271-0.
- ↑ Christa Faust (2006-01-31). Friday the 13th: The Jason Strain. Black Flame. ISBN 1-84416-320-2.
- ↑ Hand, Stephen (2006-06-06). Friday the 13th: Carnival of Maniacs. Black Flame. ISBN 1-84416-380-6.
- ↑ "Friday the 13th - 1986 game" . Your Sinclair Rock 'n' Roll Years (5). World of Spectrum.
- ↑ "Friday the 13th for the NES by LJN". AtariGuide.com.
- ↑ "Friday the 13th (mobile phone game)". Xendex.com.
- ↑ Michael Briers (November 11, 2015). "Friday the 13th: The Game Reaches Funding Goal, Licensed Horror Will Hit PS4 in 2016".
- ↑ "Friday the 13th: The Game - BackerKit". BackerKit. [dead link]
- ↑ Greenback, Randy. "Friday the 13th: The Game by Randy Greenback - Gun Media - Kickstarter". Kickstarter.
- ↑ Mozuch, Mo (29 January 2016). "'Friday the 13th: The Game' Panel At Pax South Reveals New Kill Animations For Jason Voorhees". iDigitalTimes.
- ↑ "Friday the 13th: Killer Puzzle". iTunes.