Horror fans, rejoice! After almost twenty years of drought \u2013 spent peering into the woods for any sign of Jason Voorhees \u2013 Friday The 13th<\/em> is finally headed back to our screens. Crystal Lake<\/em> is set to machete its way into our living rooms just in time for Halloween, resurrecting the monolithic slasher franchise for its first proper outing in nearly two decades, in all its gore\u2011drenched glory.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Linda Cardellini steps into the role of slasher\u2011killer matriarch Pamela Voorhees, following her blood\u2011spattered transformation from summer camp cook to sweater\u2011clad psycho killer, taking revenge for the death of her young son Jason at the titular camp. As he prepares to unleash familiar characters, intriguing backstories, and gallons of gore, showrunner Brad Caleb Kane gives Empire<\/em> an early tour around all thing camp Crystal Lake<\/em>. Here are 13 things you need to know Ki\u2011ki\u2011ki ma\u2011ma\u2011ma!<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Cardellini isn\u2019t typically associated with a horror\u2011heavy CV beyond, perhaps, her fan\u2011favourite turn as Velma in the Scooby\u2011Doo<\/em> movies. But she was down to go fully unhinged as \u2018Pam\u2019 \u2013 as she\u2019s known to the townsfolk of Crystal Lake \u2013 and was Kane\u2019s first choice for the role. \u201cLinda was very excited about the possibility of taking on such a massive character in the horror pantheon, and she looked at the twists and turns of the story and found her own unique way in,\u201d he teases. \u201cShe really did let loose and went full kill-crazy rampage, and the result is pretty glorious.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Cardellini was careful not to simply mimic Betsy Palmer\u2019s legendary performance from the first film, instead carving out a version of the character that\u2019s entirely her own \u2013 also choosing not to lean too hard into recreating the original look: \u201cWe did initially play with the iconic Betsy Palmer hair, but in the end it felt like cosplay,\u201d says Kane. \u201cLinda is such a powerful performer that you just want to stand back and let her cook\u2026 no pun intended.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n “We do have a stuntman walking around with a bag full of blood on his head”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Clued\u2011up viewers will spot several landmark locations throughout the show, especially in some exterior shots, giving Crystal Lake<\/em> a real sense of authenticity. \u201cWe shot in Blairstown, the original location where [Friday The 13th<\/em>] was filmed, which hasn\u2019t really changed in 45 years,\u201d he reveals. The intention is to give long-time fans just the right amount of deja-vu. \u201cWe tried to totally recreate scenes from the original movie, but in ways that slightly change your understanding of the scene,\u201d Kane teases. \u201cFans are in for a treat.”<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n The showrunner is a die-hard Friday<\/em> fan \u2013 and like any horror fan obsessed with a particular franchise, he can\u2019t narrow down his favourites. \u201cI love them all, but if I had to choose I\u2019d say Part III<\/em> because it\u2019s the first one I ever saw,\u201d he says. \u201cI saw it in the original 3D and it was my gateway drug into the franchise, and really the wider world of the horror genre. So I love that one because it was formative.\u201d He considers The Final Chapter<\/em> the best Friday The 13th<\/em> movie, \u201cbecause you get the OG \u201880s kid Corey Feldman versus Jason\u201d, and says the one he finds most purely enjoyable is Part VI: Jason Lives<\/em>, calling it \u201cthe funniest and most balls-out entertaining.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n The Friday The 13th<\/em> films are famous for delivering some of horror\u2019s most inventive, air\u2011punch\u2011worthy deaths, with gore\u2011hungry fans returning time and again to discover a new favourite kill. Kane wanted the deaths in his show to feel fresh, shocking, and unlike anything audiences have seen before, \u201cAnd we wanted them to be bloody,<\/em>\u201d he promises. Pulling out his best Rick Dalton meme impression, he says he asked himself: \u201cHow can I get the audience to jump off their couch and point at the TV screen because they can\u2019t believe what they\u2019re seeing?\u201d<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n If you’re still wondering where Crystal Lake<\/em> fits into Friday The 13th<\/em> canon \u2013 and what the Voorhees family is up to at this point \u2013 the show paints a rich picture of the events leading up to the 1980 original. \u201cPam is a cook at Camp Crystal Lake, Jason is an eleven-year-old camper participating in all activities despite his physical limitations, and his mom is absolutely intent on making sure he has a normal summer outdoors with other kids\u2026 but with ultimately tragic consequences,” says Kane. It\u2019s no secret that things don\u2019t turn out well for little Jason, kicking off a franchise-worth of slasher mayhem. \u201cThings take some twists and turns on the way to Pam\u2019s total psychotic break and subsequent bloody rampage,\u201d Kane says.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Kane and his team were determined to retain the tactile quality of the movies and keep the special effects as practical as possible. Case in point: a sequence in the first episode involving a literal bag of blood. \u201cI don\u2019t want to give away spoilers because it\u2019s a fun surprise, but we do have a stuntman walking around with a bag full of blood on his head,\u201d Kane grins. \u201cWe weren\u2019t sure if it was achievable, and it took our brilliant special effects supervisor Johann Kunz to figure out how to do it. It was messy but we got it on the third try and I\u2019m really proud of it. And nauseated by it!\u201d \u2018Gag\u2019 is right!<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n \u201c[The kills are] hopefully even more satisfying in a way than the movies”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Another standout element of any Friday The 13th<\/em> film is an opening credit sequence that practically punches audience members in the face with 3D-style titles. Crystal Lake<\/em> is no different \u2013 and Kane is drawing from surprising inspiration. \u201cThe credit sequence can really help set the right atmosphere and vibe from the start. I remember watching a show that was the precursor to the X-Files<\/em>, Kolchak: The Night Stalker<\/em>, and it had this really grainy, nerve-jangling vibe to it that\u2019s just steeped in that 1970s time and place,\u201d he says of his influences. \u201cBut I also wanted to give a nod to the original Friday The 13th<\/em> movie; the words \u2018Crystal Lake\u2019 pop out of the screen, shatter the glass, and the credits use the same font as the movie.” They also got Harry Manfredini \u2013 who scored the original film \u2013 to create new original music for the title sequence.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Each new Friday The 13th<\/em> movie offers up a gaggle of disposable teens to machete, and the franchise has never been particularly interested in character development. But Kane wanted to delve deeper into the victims before they\u2019re chopped up, adding an extra layer to the shock value. \u201c[The kills are] hopefully even more satisfying in a way than the movies, because of the character work that comes before the carnage,\u201d he notes. \u201cThe goal was about getting the audience so invested in the story and the characters that each kill lands emotionally.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Unlike the other big slasher killers like Michael Myers, Freddy Krueger, Chucky and Ghostface, Jason has always had more of a sympathetic edge. Sure, he\u2019s an unstoppable murder machine, but he’s had a rough time of it, bless him. Kane says it was really important to see the relationship between Jason and his mother, and how the loss of this very sweet little boy would affect her. \u201cThe series is the story of Pam in the immediate aftermath of losing the one person she considers her reason for living,\u201d he say, \u201cso we wanted to explore that relationship and all the love so we\u2019d fully understand how she became the woman we know from the first movie.\u201d And it sounds like Voorhees Jr might get his stab at the action too\u2026 \u201cAll the Jason-as-slasher stuff hits much later in the season. But when it hits, it hits hard.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Kane says that Vinson, who plays young Jason in the show, hardly needed any prep from the creators to take on one of horror\u2019s biggest villains. \u201cI think Callum\u2019s been preparing for this his whole short life. He’s a massive horror fan so he was excited to take on the role, and game for anything we threw at him.\u201d He was fearless, too, getting into the claustrophobic world of the Jason prosthetics. \u201cThe head was incredibly heavy, and poor Callum had to wear it in really sweltering conditions,\u201d says Kane. \u201cIt took some fancy footwork to figure all of that out. Our special effects makeup guy, the great Dave Presto, had to quickly create a more breathable prosthetic that could also be torn away and reapplied quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Fans of the wider cast of characters from the original movie \u2013 Crazy Ralph, Officer Dorf and Trudy among them \u2013 will get to spend far more time getting acquainted with their\u2026 eccentricities, let\u2019s say. \u201cWe knew we wanted to include all those iconic people from the first movie, because the show is called Crystal Lake<\/em>, and of course a town is its residents,\u201d says Kane. \u201cIn a 90-minute movie, you only have so long with people; sometimes they\u2019re just there to add colour or comic relief or be a prophet of doom, but in longform TV storytelling you have the chance to flesh people out, live with them a little.\u201d And then, most likely, die a lot.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n “As a longtimefan, I knew what I would want to see in a show”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n It isn\u2019t just Pamela\u2019s iconic sweater that gets an outing in the show \u2013 Kane has packed it with loving nods for those who know where to look, without alienating the casual viewer. \u201cAs a longtime Friday The 13th<\/em> fan, I knew what I would want to see in a show, and of course I\u2019d want more story and character \u2013 but you also want all those familiar goodies from the movies peppered into the context of the story we’re telling,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n It has been an excruciating wait for fans desperate to revisit Camp Crystal Lake, and Kane was keen to scratch the itch that comes from being away from that world for so long. That meant delivering \u201cnew kids at the camp, sex, drugs and rock and roll, and the excitement of wondering how the kills will be different from anything that came before,\u201d he specifies. \u201cI just want fans to have a good time in the same way I had a good time watching the movies in theatres. Just that rollercoaster of emotions and the thrill of the unknown. That\u2019s certainly what I\u2019d be jonesing for after such a long Friday The 13th<\/em> drought.\u201d Sharpen those machetes, fans.<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Crystal Lake launches on Sky and NOW in October<\/em><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Horror fans, rejoice! After almost twenty years of drought \u2013 spent peering into the woods for any sign of Jason Voorhees \u2013 Friday The 13th is finally headed back to our screens. Crystal Lake is set to machete its way into our living rooms just in time for Halloween, resurrecting the monolithic slasher franchise for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14126,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14125","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-47"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14125","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14125"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14125\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14127,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14125\/revisions\/14127"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14126"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14125"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14125"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14125"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}1) Linda Cardellini does her own thing as Pamela Voorhees<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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2) They filmed at the original Crystal Lake<\/strong><\/h2>\n
3)<\/strong> Kane is a total<\/strong> Friday The 13th<\/em><\/strong> super-fan<\/strong><\/h2>\n
4)<\/strong> It’s going to get<\/strong> really<\/em><\/strong> gory<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\"Crystal](\"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/crystal-lake-13-killer-things-to-know-about-a24s-new-friday-the-13th-show-exclusive.jpg\")
<\/div>\n5)<\/strong> The show is set eight years before the first movie<\/strong><\/h2>\n
6)<\/strong> You’re not ready for the ‘Blood Bag’ scene<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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7)<\/strong> The credit sequences pay tribute to the original movie titles<\/strong><\/h2>\n
8)<\/strong> You’ll<\/strong> feel<\/em><\/strong> the weight of the deaths in Crystal Lake<\/strong><\/h2>\n
9) Jason Voorhees is a misunderstood cutie pie<\/strong><\/h2>\n
10)<\/strong> Callum Vinson was fully ready to play Jason<\/strong><\/h2>\n
11)<\/strong> You’ll get to know the townsfolk of Crystal Lake<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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12)<\/strong> It\u2019s packed with easter eggs for fans<\/strong><\/h2>\n
13) It should satiate 20 years of Friday The 13th<\/em> fan hunger<\/strong><\/h2>\n