Fans of the long-dormant Friday the 13th franchise received a significant sign of life as Brad Caleb Kane, the showrunner for the upcoming prequel series Crystal Lake, confirmed via social media that pre-production is officially underway. Kane posted an image featuring a production draft script for the series, accompanied by the caption “Crystal Lake Production Offices are live.” This update marks the most tangible progress yet on the highly anticipated Peacock and A24 project, and crucially, signals the first major forward movement for the franchise in any screen medium since the Friday the 13th reboot film hit theaters 16 years ago in 2009. The prequel series, set to explore the dark history preceding the original movie, aims to finally break the curse that legal battles have kept over Crystal Lake for over a decade.
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Kane’s Instagram post, showing a script bearing his name, the A24 logo, and crediting original 1980 film writer Victor Miller, serves as concrete evidence that the Crystal Lake series is moving beyond the development phase. The opening of production offices indicates that active preparations for filming are beginning. This comes after Kane, known for his work on Tokyo Vice and the upcoming It: Welcome to Derry, took over showrunning duties for Crystal Lake. Bryan Fuller (Hannibal) was previously attached but departed the project, reportedly due to creative differences over the series’ tone, according to comments made by original film director Sean S. Cunningham. The series also recently cast Linda Cardellini (Dead to Me, Scooby-Doo) in the pivotal role of a young Pamela Voorhees, described as a mother whose life takes a dark turn after the loss of her son, Jason.
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The 16-year gap since the last Friday the 13th installment hasn’t been for lack of trying. The franchise, one of horror’s most iconic and profitable, has been effectively paralyzed for years due to complex legal issues. Numerous attempts to develop sequels or further reboots stalled, leaving fans wondering if Jason Voorhees would ever slash again. Kane’s update, therefore, ends one of the most frustratingly long hiatuses in modern horror history.
Friday the 13th‘s Long Road to a Revival
The original Friday the 13th, released in 1980, was directed by Cunningham and famously capitalized on the slasher boom ignited by Halloween. Written by Miller, the film delivered a shocking final twist: the killer stalking the counselors at Camp Crystal Lake wasn’t some supernatural force, but Pamela Voorhees (Betsy Palmer), the seemingly kindly former camp cook. Her motive was revenge against negligent counselors she blamed for the drowning death of her young son, Jason, years prior. Jason Voorhees himself only appeared briefly in the original’s final scare and didn’t become the franchise’s primary antagonist until Friday the 13th Part 2. He wouldn’t don the now-legendary hockey mask until Part III, cementing his status as a horror icon across numerous sequels.
This foundational setup became the crux of a lengthy legal battle that ultimately sidelined the franchise. Original screenwriter Miller utilized the termination provision of U.S. Copyright Law to reclaim domestic rights to his 1980 screenplay. Director-producer Cunningham and his company Horror Inc. disputed this, arguing Miller’s script was a work-for-hire. After years of litigation, courts ultimately upheld Miller’s termination claim in 2021, granting him the U.S. rights to the original screenplay and its elements. However, Cunningham/Horror Inc. retained rights related to the elements introduced in the sequels, most notably the adult, hockey-masked Jason Voorhees character that defines the franchise for most fans. This fractured ownership created a seemingly insurmountable obstacle to producing new films.
The Crystal Lake series, developed by independent studio powerhouse A24 for the Peacock streaming service, represents a strategic maneuver around this legal impasse. By focusing on events before the 1980 film, the series can delve into the history of the cursed camp and, crucially, center its narrative on Pamela Voorhees — a character and story element clearly stemming from Miller’s original, legally secured screenplay. This prequel approach allows the creators to explore the Friday the 13th universe and its origins without needing to license the specific elements (like adult Jason) controlled by Cunningham/Horror Inc. While original director Cunningham has mentioned hearing about a potential Halloween 2025 release, that seems unlikely, given the show is just now entering production.
Are you excited that the Crystal Lake prequel series is finally moving forward? Let us know in the comments!
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Image Credit: Warner Bros. Discovery
