Dan Trachtenberg has spent the best part of the last half-decade in a decidedly Yautja state of mind, reinvigorating the Predator franchise with 2022’s Prey and last year’s double-whammy of Predator: Killer Of Killers and Predator: Badlands. But for his next move, Trachtenberg is putting all that gory, spine-ripping goodness to one side in favour of something a little more family friendly. Per Variety‘s reporting (and DT’s own Instagram), the 10 Cloverfield Lane helmsman is gearing up to co-direct Freddy The 13th, a Paramount Animation adaptation of Yehudi Mercado’s horror comedy graphic novel.
“I’ve spent most of my career making movies that parents probably shouldn’t show their kids,” said Trachtenberg in his social post announcing Freddy The 13th. “Happy to announce, along with @supermercadocomics and @paramountpics I’m finally making one…they…can…?” Set to be directed by Trachtenberg alongside Mercado himself, Freddy The 13th is, in essence, essentially The Santa Clause for the Boogeyman — and not the stealth animated Freddy vs. Jason redux its title may suggest. The graphic novel sees fun-loving uncle Freddy Vanwinkle, a luckless 13th son, totally upend his family’s summer holiday when he unwittingly kills actual Boogeyman Nighty Night and finds himself newly imbued with the terror-monger’s powers. Complicating matters further is the fact that as dark forces circle to take Nighty Night’s throne, Uncle Freddy has thirteen nights of babysitting his niece and nephew to contend with.
Outside of the likes of ParaNorman and Monster House, there’s been a real dearth of legitimate family friendly horror movies in recent years, with Eli Roth’s The House With A Clock In Its Walls — a film that’s now eight years old — arguably being Hollywood’s last mainstream effort to offer effective chills and thrills for all ages. Here’s hoping Dan Trachtenberg and his Baby’s First Slasher Movie effort Freddy The 13th will wind up being a real killer with kids and adults alike. Watch this space!
