Peacock Bringing Back Iconic Horror Franchise for Prequel Series

Peacock has revealed that it is bringing back an iconic horror franchise for a prequel series. According to Variety, the streamer will be the home of Crystal Lake, an “expanded prequel” series to Friday the 13th. The show is being written by Bryan Fuller, who is also the showrunner and an executive producer. Victor Miller —who wrote the original Friday the 13th movie, kickstarting the franchise — will also serve as an executive producer.

Notably, A24 is the studio being the new series and will be an additional executive producer, along with Marc Toberoff — Miller’s attorney — and Rob Barsamian. Susan Rovner, chairman of entertainment content for NBCUniversal Television and Streaming, offered a statement on the news, saying “Friday the 13th is one of the most iconic horror franchises in movie history and we were dying to revisit this story with our upcoming drama series Crystal Lake.” Rovner went on to say, “We can’t wait to get to work with Bryan Fuller, a gifted, visionary creator who I’ve had the pleasure of being a longtime friend and collaborator, along with our incredible partners at A24, in this updated version for Peacock that will thrill long-standing fans of the franchise.”

“I discovered Friday the 13th in the pages of Famous Monsters magazine when I was 10 years old and I have been thinking about this story ever since,” said Fuller, who is well known for his work on series such as Dead Like Me, Pushing Daisies, and Hannibal. “When it comes to horror, A24 raises the bar and pushes the envelope and I’m thrilled to be exploring the camp grounds of Crystal Lake under their banner. And Susan Rovner is simply the best at what she does. It’s a pleasure and an honor to be working with her again.”

The Friday the 13th film franchise has raked in over $460 million globally since the first film debuted back in 1980. To date, there are 12 films starring the masked, machete-wielding antagonist Jason Voorhees. Over the past several years, Miller was involved in a complicated court case wherein he was seeking to obtain the rights to the original film screenplay that he wrote. In 2021, The Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Miller, granting him the U.S. rights to the screenplay. Variety also added that the producers so in fact have the ability to incorporate elements from other Friday the 13th films into Crystal Lake.