Earlier this year, the entertainment studio Cineverse, the company behind the Terrifier franchise, went into production on a remake of the classic Christmas slasher movie Silent Night, Deadly Night, with writer/director Mike P. Nelson (the Wrong Turn reboot) at the helm. Cineverse and Bloody Disgusting, its horror division, are teaming with Iconic Events Releasing to bring the Silent Night, Deadly Night remake to theatres on December 12th. This is the second revival of an ’80s horror franchise that Nelson has worked on in the last year, as he also wrote and directed the Friday the 13th short film Sweet Revenge, which was released through YouTube in August. Sweet Revenge has now mysteriously vanished from YouTube, but Nelson remains keen to keep working with the Friday the 13th rights holders – and during an interview with Slash Film, he confirmed that he has pitched an idea for a Friday the 13th feature film.
Friday the 13th Part 13?
We got eight Friday the 13th films in the 1980s, and as the sequels kept reaching theatres on an almost-yearly basis (only 1983 and 1987 went by without a new Friday), the rumor started going around that the filmmakers were aiming to make thirteen of these movies. But given how easily those first eight came along, making the remaining five needed to reach thirteen has proven to be a hellish ordeal, as the franchise has spent many of the last thirty-five years being stuck in development hell or bogged down by legal issues. We only got one sequel in the ’90s. Another dropped in the 2000s, followed by a crossover (Freddy vs. Jason) and a reboot. Released in 2009, that reboot was the last bit of official, live-action Friday the 13th entertainment we got until Sweet Revenge – a sixteen year dry spell.
Now, the legal issues have been worked out, and not only is the prequel series Crystal Lake on track for a 2026 premiere, but the Friday the 13th rights holders at Horror, Inc. have let it be known that they’re developing a new feature film. After all this time, we’re finally on the edge of getting the thirteenth Friday the 13th movie!
Of course, just because this would be the thirteenth movie doesn’t mean it would actually wrap up the franchise. These movies will keep going as long as fans pay to see them. Attempts have been made to end Friday the 13th before, and those endings didn’t stick.
Nelson Has a Pitch
Speaking with Slash Film, Nelson confirmed that Horror, Inc. is actively developing the next movie. “They are working on it, that I can promise you, because I’ve heard of it and because I have that direct communication with them, it’s there. So that’s really happening. And yes, they have reached out [to me about it]. As have other people. I can’t say too much, but I will say that I have given my two cents, I have given them my take, and right now it’s in their court and we’ll go from there.“
Nelson went on to say, “I think a lot of IP loses its luster because it’s way too ‘holier than thou’ and ‘we need to be careful.’ Dude, get over it, man. Get out there and try something. That’s the reason why the original content worked so well is because somebody went out and did something, you know what I mean? And they did something that was different. So why not do something different?“
I have the opposite view of Nelson on this one. We’ve gotten so few Friday the 13th movies over the last thirty-five years, and it’s been so long since the last one, that “something different” is not what I’m hoping for from the next movie. I think it’s time for another back-to-basics camp slasher entry. But, we’ll see how it goes… and we’ll see if Nelson ends up at the helm when the movie happens.
Sweet Revenge wasn’t received with overwhelming positivity, to put it mildly. For example, our reviewer Tyler Nichols only gave it a 4/10 review – but Tyler also gave Nelson’s Silent Night, Deadly Night remake a 7/10 review, so we can’t count him out.
Would you like to see Sweet Revenge director Mike P. Nelson get the chance to make the next Friday the 13th movie? (Friday the 13th Part 13?) Let us know by leaving a comment below.
