Jason Voorhees returns as Friday the 13th franchise revives after 17 years
- By Asim Mallick -
- May 11, 2026
The Friday the 13th franchise is finally making its return this year, ending a 17-year gap that left one of horror’s most recognizable slasher series sitting dormant for far longer than fans expected.
Peacock has confirmed that Crystal Lake, a new prequel series tied to the long-running franchise, will premiere on October 15, bringing Jason Voorhees and the infamous Camp Crystal Lake story back to screens ahead of Halloween season.
Rather than picking up after the older films, the upcoming Friday the 13th series goes back to the beginning and centers on the Voorhees family before the events that shaped the franchise. The story will focus heavily on Pamela Voorhees, Jason’s mother, whose role in the original 1980 film became a defining part of the series’ mythology long before Jason himself emerged as the face of the franchise.
Friday the 13th series cast & details
Linda Cardellini has been cast as Pamela Voorhees, while William Catlett will appear as Levon Brooks. Several other cast members have also joined the project, including Devin Kessler, Cameron Scoggins and Gwendolyn Sundstrom, though most character details are still being kept under wraps for now.
The Friday the 13th series has had a fairly complicated road to release. First announced in 2022 under A24, the project initially moved forward with Hannibal creator Bryan Fuller attached as showrunner.
Production delays linked to the 2023 Hollywood strikes slowed development, and the series later underwent another major shift when Fuller exited the project in 2024.
Also Read: Why Gina Gershon turned down a role in Friday the 13th franchise?
Brad Caleb Kane later stepped in to take over showrunning duties, with filming eventually taking place between June and October 2025. By April this year, Friday the 13th series had entered the final phase of post-production, fueling speculation that an official release announcement was close.
The new installment of Friday the 13th marks the franchise’s first major live-action return since the 2009 reboot film. While it remains unclear whether Crystal Lake will connect directly to the original movie timeline or establish its own continuity, the series is expected to revisit the early events surrounding Camp Crystal Lake and Jason Voorhees’ childhood before the killings that defined the franchise began.