Jason Blum Weighs in on Possible Friday the 13th Reboot at Blumhouse

Back in 2018, Jason Blum pulled off the seemingly impossible by reviving the Halloween franchise with a direct sequel to the original movie, but while he and many others would like to see him work similar magic with a new Friday the 13th, the producer admits that he doesn’t see that happening any time soon, despite his passion for the series. The last entry came in 2009 in the form of a remake, while the ’80s saw a staggering eight entries into the series, making the franchise a defining part of the decade’s slasher craze, though a dispute over rights to the property has stagnated any new installments.

“I have the same question!” Blum responded to a fan via Fandom about if he would ever produce a new film in the series. “I don’t have an answer to that. But like I’ve said before, I would love to do it and it’s very complicated, but I hope someday. How about that? It’s not the answer I want to hear because I wish it was right away, but it isn’t.”

A sequel in the series was reported to be moving forward as recently as early 2017, only for that project to be put on hold indefinitely. The legal battle is so intense that it has also halted any progress on the popular Friday the 13th video game.

In the original film, a group of counselors heads to Camp Crystal Lake in hopes of reviving the camp for a new generation of campers. As the counselors are murdered one by one, it is revealed that Pamela Voorhees is killing the coeds as revenge for counselors letting her son Jason drown at the camp years earlier. In subsequent films, Jason Voorhees becomes to iconic killer.

Following the success of Halloween in 1978, director Sean S. Cunningham secured the name “Friday the 13th” and hired Victor Miller to write the script for the film. The dispute centers around who is the rightful owner of the property.

The legal battle is far from cut and dried and could come with a number of complications. Despite the title “Friday the 13th” being connected with the figure of Jason Voorhees, he wasn’t the familiar hockey mask-wearing killer until the third film, so while it’s possible for one party to earn the rights to the title, they might not be awarded the rights to the familiar Jason. This could potentially result in new films featuring Jason moving forward without the famous title, or new films earning that title might be devoid of Jason.

Stay tuned for details on the Friday the 13th franchise.

Would you like to see Blum develop a new Friday the 13th? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things horror and Star Wars!