Crystal Lake, prequel series to 'Friday the 13th', promises “rivers of blood”

With filming in the completed stage, we receive the most recent news about the long-awaited Crystal Lakethe prequel series from the classic Friday the 13thcon Brad Caleb Kane as showrunner, creator, screenwriter and executive producer.

Filmed under the amusing false title Mama’s BoyKane shares the first details about the series produced by A24 and the streamer Peacockwhich, with a release scheduled for 2026, will mark the first project in the franchise Friday the 13th in sixteen years, since the theatrical release of the 2009 reboot.

The series previously described as a “expanded prequel” of the original classic, with the return of the characters Jason Voorhees and his mother, Pamela Voorhees, has a story that will cover the life and times of these two characters.

And fans of the franchise can rest assured, since the project is in good hands, with Kane being the co-showrunner of IT: Welcome to Derryanother series that addresses the prequel story of another horror classic, It by Stephen King, with great results on the small screen.

And what can we expect about what he's doing with Crystal Lake?, “rivers of blood,” according to statements provided by Kane to EW:

“In many ways, it's a psychological thriller. It is a paranoid thriller from the 70s. It has all the DNA of a slasher without being one. There are rivers of blood in the series. There are sequences of murders, deaths and very clever murders, but everything is done at the service of the character, the theme, the place and the time“.

The series stars three-time Emmy nominee, Linda Cardellini (Dead to Me, The Curse of La Llorona, E.R.). Previously, Cardellini's Ms. Voorhees described herself as, “a mother who gave up her singing career to raise a child with special needs and who suffers a dark turn when she loses her son.”

Callum Vinson (Chucky, Long Bright River) is playing the new Jason Vorhees, in his version as a little boy, and who in his adult stage becomes the iconic hockey mask killer.

And since this is a project largely focused on Pamela Vorhees, Vinson's role is as a recurring guest star.

In the first movie Friday the 13th (1980) by Sean S. Cunningham, Pamela was the murderer who terrorized the counselors of a teen camp when they tried to reopen Camp Crystal Lake. Jason drowned at that camp years before, and his mother sought revenge against the counselors who didn't pay attention to him.

The 1981 sequel reinterpreted the story to present a reality in which Jason never drowned. The character became the face of the horror franchise as its masked killer.

With this context, Kane explains how he approached the story for the prequel series:

“I tried to think of Crystal Lake and a prequel to Friday the 13th as: 'What era did the first film come from?' It emerged from the time of 70s paranoid thriller. From the time of the distrust in institutions. From the time of women's liberationof the National Women's Organizationfrom the time of awareness in the United States. “I wanted to explore all those themes.”

Regarding Cardellini's interpretation, Kane shared with the outlet:

“It's going to surprise a lot of people. I think He's going to get a lot of attention for this role.. Es incredibly bright. “I can't say much more.”

The cast also includes William Catlett (Abigail), Devin Kessler (Godfather of Harlem), Cameron Scoggins (Nashville), Gwendolyn Sundstromcon Nick Cordileone (Warrior) como Crazy Ralph, Danielle Kotch (Director’s Cut) as Claudette and Phoenix Parnevik (Bel Air) like Barry, characters from the original film, Nancy Nagrant as Kay Christy, a relative of Steve Christy from the original installment, and Joy Suprano (Fleishman is in Trouble) as Rita.

Crazy Ralph appeared in the first two films. He is a long-time Crystal Lake resident who drunkenly rambles about the curse of Camp Crystal Lake.

We met Barry in the 1980 film as a camp counselor at Crystal Lake and the first victim of Pamela (Betsy Palmer in the film). He was characterized by Willie Adams. His girlfriend, Claudette, also a camp counselor, was Pamela's second victim.

The series was announced in November 2022. Peacock ordered a full season for the series, with an option for a second season.

The first season, 8 episodeswill be directed by Michael Lennox (Derry Girls), Celine Held & Logan George (Caddo Lake) y Quyen Tran (The Pitt). Lennox directs the first episode with Maceo Bishop (The Watcher) as director of photography.

After the 2009 reboot premiered in theaters, the IP became caught in a legal dispute between Sean Cunningham – director of the original film – and Victor Miller –screenwriter of the original– to have control of the property rights.

The legal case, which was decided by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, saw Miller as the winner of the rights to the character he created after a battle over copyright termination. The producers of the original film, Horror Inc., had argued that Miller's involvement was a work-for-hire, but a judge ruled that it was not. The case paved the way for Miller to license a prequel series.

Miller is another executive producer alongside Kane, Marc Toberoff, Robert M. Barsamian, Robert P. Barsamian, Stuart Manashil and A24.