Honestly, it shouldn’t be this hard to get another worthy installment of the “Friday the 13th” franchise. The perpetually cursed slasher series is reeling from its latest body blow … but perhaps it’s not fully down for the count just yet. Variety cites an unnamed source claiming that despite appearances, “the series order remains in place with hopes to line up a new showrunner as soon as possible.” That’s good news for everyone involved (not named Bryan Fuller, naturally), as production had yet to gear up in earnest along with making any actual casting decisions. Victor Miller remains attached as an executive producer on the project and, thanks to the continued involvement of producer Rob Barsamian, the prequel series is legally allowed to pull from various aspects of the films.
That’s more good news for a franchise that’s been on life support for quite some time now, despite the fact that the 2009 film made quite a killing at the box office. We haven’t received a single other entry in the “Friday the 13th” canon since then for a myriad of reasons — partly creative, as re-emphasized by the Fuller parting ways with “Crystal Lake,” but largely due to the copyright lawsuit. For a series that’s left as much of a mark on our collective psyche as this one has in the years since the 1980 classic, it’s pretty wild that it appears unable to get out of its own way.
As for Fuller, the “Hannibal” creator now adds this prequel series to the incredibly long list of projects he’s ultimately left for one reason or another. For “Friday the 13th” hopefuls, at least, this might still end up having a happy ending (relatively speaking). Stay tuned to /Film for further updates.