We’ve waited quite a long time for our thirteenth Friday the 13th, so a series set at Crystal Lake was being developed to hold us over.
Hannibal creator Bryan Fuller was teamed with Jim Danger Gray to serve as co-showrunner, while Fuller served as writer and executive producer. Then, last month, the shocking news came that Fuller & Gray were stepping away from the project.
With studio A24 in the mix, no one expected it to fall to the wayside. At the time, it was indicated that A24 was retooling the project behind the scenes with the studio “going a different way with the material.”
A new story from The Wrap reveals more about the supposed backstage drama, which looks fairly wild.
Everything has been set in place, but A24 abruptly fired Fuller and Gray three months from filming. Nothing has been officially announced as to why, but the publication noted the series was being considered “plagued by inexperienced production executives making questionable decisions, problems with the show’s writing staff, and conflicts between showrunners and executives.”
“It felt like everybody on the Bryan/Jim side was trying very hard to make the show. A24 felt like they were doing everything they could to not make the show.”
Enough of the drama; what’s Fuller & Gray planning for Jason Voorhees’ lore, his sinister mother, and the bloody summer camp?
Eight episodes per season were budgeted at around $85 million, which A24 wanted to cut in half. The studio is committed to the series, so the new creatives will likely work with the lower budget.
Crystal Lake was reportedly set to be led by Charlize Theron. She was being eyed to play Pamela Voorhees in the series, which would’ve instantly given it a prestige horror feel. No other actors were attached at the time, though rumors swirled that known that the original film’s final girl Adrienne King would star in it in some form.
Storywise, each season would be a deconstruction of the first four films, giving the showrunners material from several sequels but the ability to have more freedom. One source close to the situation told The Wrap, “We had the mask, we had the sequels, we could do whatever we wanted. He had a good path forward.”
Kevin Williamson wrote an episode for the series, described as the series’ “Red Wedding,” and would’ve been set on a frozen version of the iconic Crystal Lake.
What will come out of the Camp Crystal Lake series? A24 will revamp the project, but little is known about how. No one knows if the studio will use the original Fuller scripts or start from scratch, but there’s a lot of juicy material to work with there.
SEE ALSO: Ranking Every Friday the 13th Movie From Worst to Best
Do you think Friday The 13th is too basic for a TV format, or could there be a way to bring this to life? Only time will tell, but this news has undoubtedly shaken up the horror community.
Originally published June 22, 2024. Updated February 15, 2025.
