Friday the 13th director has hope for the franchise's future: 'There's more to come'

It might have been 15 years and counting since we last saw a live-action version of Jason Voorhees on the big screen—in the 2009 remake—but that doesn't mean the Friday the 13th universe is dying off anytime soon. Just like its iconic villain, it's really hard to kill off a popular horror franchise for good.

This past weekend, the original director and producer Sean S. Cunningham attended a convention in Worcester, Massachusetts, where he spoke about the franchise and his hopes for its future, and Bloody Disgusting got the scoop. Cunningham directed the 1980 movie that started it all alongside writer Victor Miller and he's remained part of the franchise over the years in a producing capacity.

Friday the 13th fans have repeatedly been put through the wringer due to a combination of factors, primarily a lengthy legal dispute over the rights to the franchise, which has prevented more movies from being made.

The Friday the 13th television series that never was

During the convention, Cunningham revealed that there was once another Friday the 13th television series in the works a long time ago, way before the prequel series named Crystal Lake currently being developed by A24 for Peacock.

The director says they had gotten pretty far along in the previous television project when it was postponed indefinitely due to the lawsuit and then the pandemic. Head to Bloody Disgusting to read more about the series that never happened, including Cunningham describing a scene they had planned for it.

Thoughts on the Crystal Lake prequel

According to Cunningham, the first iteration of the Crystal Lake prequel series created by showrunner Bryan Fuller was "too dark." Creative differences reportedly led to the studio parting ways with Fuller and bringing in a new showrunner in Brad Caleb Kane.

Many fans were disappointed by Fuller's exit from the series as his NBC series Hannibal is still often heralded as a masterpiece of horror television. Even Mike Flanagan recently posted on X (formerly Twitter) lamenting the fact that Fuller's version of the series will never come to pass.

Cunningham says he's heard that Crystal Lake is looking to start filming in Australia by the end of the year and potentially release the show in time for Halloween 2025, though he admits that might not be credible, noting, "There’s just so many things that can go sideways.”

'There's more to come.'

Despite everything, Cunningham does say, "There's more to come," regarding the future of Friday the 13th and the character of Jason Voorhees. That's in line with a statement that Cunningham made earlier this year at Texas Frightmare Weekend, where he said he expects a new movie is still probably at least three years away.

At his most recent convention appearance, the filmmaker confirmed that Jason will appear in more video games in the future, thanks to the success of the 2017 game Friday the 13th: The Game.

As for getting Jason back into the film world, it's harder to say when that will come to fruition but it does seem like the powers that be are trying their best to make it happen.

In the meantime, Horror Inc. has launched a multi-platform Jason Universe with the help of original writer Victor Miller and executive producer Marc Toberoff. The new universe will reportedly feature games, immersive experiences, merchandise, and more.

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