Everything We Know About the ‘Friday the 13th’ Prequel Series ‘Crystal Lake’

As of August 2024, Brad Caleb Kane is serving as showrunner, writer, and executive producer on the series. (Kane knows a bit about horror prequel series; he recently wrapped production on “Welcome to Derry,” the Max prequel project tied to Andy Muschietti’s “It” movies.) A24 is on board as a producer, a major move into mainstream IP from the independent studio. 

“From the moment I watched Jason Voorhees squeeze a guy’s eyeball out of its socket (in glorious 3D!) at the tender age of 8 years old, I knew my creative path was someday destined to converge with the Man Behind the Mask,” Kane said in a statement. “Nothing defined my childhood more than growing up in the golden age of the slasher flick, and nothing’s defined the genre more than ‘Friday the 13th.’ I couldn’t be more excited for the opportunity to contribute a chapter to this iconic franchise, particularly with such fearless partners as Peacock and A24.”

Kane is taking over from original showrunner Bryan Fuller, the creator behind series like “Hannibal,” “American Gods,” and “Star Trek: Discovery.” Fuller had been attached to “Crystal Lake” since it got its straight-to-series order in 2022. However, in May 2024, he announced via Instagram that he was exiting the series.

Fuller wrote, “Adapting classic horror is something I have some experience with. These shows require a vision that elevates and transforms, as well as delivers what audiences have come to expect, which is an ambitious and risky endeavor. It requires people to take the leap with me.” He added, “For reasons beyond our control, A24 has elected to go a different way with the material. We hope the final product will be something ‘Friday the 13th’ fans all over the world will enjoy.”

Victor Miller, who wrote the screenplay for the original “Friday the 13th” (1980), is still on board as executive producer, along with Robert Barsamian (“Friday the 13th: The Game”), Craig Lyn (“X-Men: The Last Stand”), and Marc Toberoff ( “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” “Prey”).

Exact plot details are being kept quiet. According to the Wrap’s reporting, Fuller envisioned “Crystal Lake” as a “deconstruction” of the first four films in the 12-movie franchise. However, we now know based on Fuller’s statement that A24 is going in a different direction. 

For now, we know that the series will serve as a prequel to the original “Friday the 13th,” which was directed by Sean S. Cunningham. The film, produced after the success of John Carpenter’s “Halloween” (1978), follows a group of teenage counselors refurbishing Camp Crystal Lake, where a young boy named Jason Voorhees tragically drowned a year prior. One by one, the counselors are killed off, and the murderer is revealed to be (spoiler alert!) Jason’s mother, Pamela Voorhees (Betsy Palmer).

The movie was a surprise hit, garnering nearly $40 million on a budget of $550,000 and spawning 11 sequels. The second entry, Steve Miner’s “Friday the 13th Part 2,” made Jason the killer, and he’s been the hockey mask–wearing face of the franchise ever since. Over 44 years—with 10 different actors behind the mask—Jason has macheted his way through countless victims, been hacked apart and resurrected multiple times, fought fellow slasher icon Freddy Krueger, and gone to New York City, outer space, and hell. 

Back in 2022, Fuller told Fangoria that every aspect of the franchise is fair game for a TV series. “A24 and Marc Toberoff, who is Victor Miller’s lawyer, have beautifully and excruciatingly assembled all of the ‘Friday the 13th’ rights,” he said. “As a streaming series, we have the rights to do everything underneath the ‘Friday the 13th’ umbrella. The movie rights are a completely different thing. They are tied up at New Line and are super, super messy and probably won’t be untangled anytime soon, but as far as us chickens in the television industry, uh, roost, we have access to anything and everything that ‘Friday the 13th’ has done up until this point.”

We expect “Crystal Lake” to focus on elements like the backstory of a young Jason Voorhees and his murderous mother; some reports claim that Charlize Theron was “eyed” for the role of Pamela before the retooling.

Of course, “Crystal Lake” isn’t the first time the franchise tried its hand at television. From 1987 to 1990, “Friday the 13th: The Series” aired 72 episodes; the show focused on an antiques dealer who sells cursed goods (thanks to a lucrative deal with the devil, no less). When the dealer dies—his punishment for rebelling against the devil—his niece and her cousin inherit the shop and his underworldly responsibility. (No, we’re not sure what this has to do with the Jason Voorhees saga, either.)

At the moment, the only actor confirmed for the project is the series’ original final girl: Adrienne King, who played sole survivor Alice Hardy in “Friday the 13th.” 

“I’m so excited to be going back to CRYSTAL LAKE! I know you are, too!” King wrote on her website in 2023. “There’s so much I wish I could share with you regarding the new NBC/Peacock series, but you’ll just have to be patient. So worth the wait!”

Fans will recall that Alice didn’t survive “Part 2,” thanks to an ice pick to the head from Jason. But since “Crystal Lake” is set as a prequel series—and debuting more than four decades after King’s first appearance in the franchise, no less—it’s safe to assume she isn’t reprising her original role. The remainder of the cast remains a mystery, but we would not be surprised if other past members of the franchise land recurring roles or make cameo appearances.

Although things are a bit unclear after the series’ showrunner shakeup and the 2023 WGA strike, Cunningham recently hinted we may see “Crystal Lake” in 2025. At a panel during Silver Scream Con, the director revealed he’d been told that A24 is “talking about shooting [‘Crystal Lake’] in Australia at the end of this year and releasing on Halloween 2025.”

While we can’t say for sure when filming on Season 1 will begin, it seems the “Crystal Lake” team has every intention of getting down to business as soon as possible. Stay tuned for updates.

Currently, there are no open casting calls or auditions available for “Crystal Lake.” However, this roundup of horror gigs might satisfy your thirst in the meantime. You may also find our guide on how to get cast on “Poker Face” helpful, as it provides valuable insight into the casting process behind one of Peacock’s top TV shows. 

And, of course, there’s no harm in bookmarking our main casting page, which regularly updates as new opportunities become available. If you have your heart set on landing a role on “Crystal Lake,” we also recommend getting yourself an agent if you don’t have representation already, as these industry insiders often have access to calls that aren’t made public.

The “Friday the 13th” franchise features some of the biggest names in Hollywood, many of them prior to stardom. And with those names comes some killer advice. Crispin Glover might best be known for “Back to the Future” (1985), but the year before, he appeared in Joseph Zito’s “Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter.” Known for holding fast to his beliefs, Glover told the Guardian that “self-confidence and the ability to stand up for yourself are qualities that lead to success”—something that has come to define his career.

Before Kevin Bacon found himself six degrees away from everyone in the business, he was one of Camp Crystal Lake’s first counselors, landing a role in the original “Friday the 13th” film. Only in his early 20s at the time, Bacon admitted to Backstage that he was “incredibly cocky” during his younger days, and if he could go back, he’d advise himself to take more advice. “I didn’t really think that anybody had any kind of good advice to offer me. I would pretend that I wanted it from an agent, from an acting teacher, from an older actor—but the truth is I was a know-it-all,” he told us. 

“The older I’ve gotten, the more I know there is more to learn,” he continued. “When people say to me, ‘I’m thinking about being an actor. What should I do?’ what I usually say is, ‘Drop the hell out. Because if you’re thinking about it, then you’re probably not the right person to do it.’ It’s got to be your whole focus; there’s too much competition…. So what I tell people when they want to explore a career in acting, I say, ‘Don’t do it.’ And the person who can then say, ‘You know what? Kevin Bacon told me don’t do it and I told him to go to hell,’ that’s the person who should try to explore this career, because it’s a lifetime of rejection, it’s a lifetime of no…. You have to have very, very thick skin, and you have to be ready for that, because there’s gonna be some heartbreak along the way.”

Danielle Panabaker, on the other hand, was dedicated and diligent during her early years in the industry. The star of 2009’s “Friday the 13th” sequel once told inquiring fans that they must push themselves and continue to study the craft if they aspire to become an actor. “When I started acting, my sister and I were going to school during the day, auditioning in the afternoon, and taking acting classes almost every night,” she explained. “We studied with a number of different coaches and teachers—everyone has [their] own method, and my sister and I responded to different approaches. The benefit of finding a teacher who challenges you is something that has stuck with me throughout my career. To this day, I continue to study with a coach, and getting feedback has always been important to me so I can grow as an actor.

“In addition to studying your craft, I think it’s also important to keep kids in school and around kids their own age,” Panabaker added. “Education is something that will last much longer than a job, and I personally believe that the more experience you have to draw on as a person, the more you can bring to your characters.”