There was a sense of unsettling excitement in the air on All Hallow’s Eve 2022 when A24 announced its plans to move forward with aFriday the 13thprequel series titledCrystal Lake. WithPushing DaisiesandHannibalcreatorBryan Fullerbacking the production, the reveal was just what fans of the franchise needed as they headed into their Halloween festivities. But now, that excitement has turned into feelings of loss, disappointment, and frustration asCrystal Lakeran out of gas withFuller exiting the project back in May.Since then, the rumor mill has been churning with speculation about what lies ahead for the story that was set to begin prior to the events ofSean S. Cunningham’s classic 1980 horror flick.
Although the studio that previously brought audiences such horrific classics asAri Aster’sMidsommarandHereditary,Danny and Michael Philippou’sTalk to Me, andTi West’sXtrilogy lost Fuller, it’s said by sources close to A24 that there are still plans to move forward withCamp Crystal Lake. So, who’s in the running to pick up the machete where the original showrunner left off? According toThe Wrap, who first shared the insider scoop from folks close to both Fuller and A24’s side of the story,ChuckyandCandyexecutive producerNick Antoscais interested in taking a stab at the floundering project.
The unnamed source says thatA24still desperately wants to move forward withCrystal Lake, seeing plenty of opportunity for the origin story of Jason Vorhees. Antosca previously worked with Fuller onHannibaland has ties to theFriday the 13thuniverse as he penned a feature-length script nearly a decade ago. With this in mind, should Antosca be tapped by the studio to move forward withCrystal Lake, he would likely toss everything Fuller andhis team previously drafted upand go in a completely different direction.
What Else Has Nick Antosca Worked On?
Along with acting as the executive producer for Hulu’sCandyand Syfy and USA Network’sChucky, Antosca has also served as the showrunner and creator for several other similar productions. Included in his showrunning credits areChannel ZeroandA Friend of the Family, with the latter serving as a scripted series of the true-crime story that received a documentary makeover inSkye Borgman’sAbducted in Plain Sight. Antosca’s passion for intense real-life stories can also be seen in Hulu’s limited series,The Act, which he co-created, as well as Netflix’sBrand New Cherry Flavor.
For now, it seems as thoughCrystal Lakehas floundered under the surface, but hopefully, with the rumor mill churning, new life will breathe life back into the highly-anticipated prequel series - maybe even with Antosca’s name attached to the helm. You can streamFriday the 13thnow on Max.
Friday the 13th
Friday the 13th is a horror-slasher film by director Sean S. Cunningham and follows a group of camp counselors who are stalked and murdered by an unknown assailant while trying to reopen a summer known to be the site of a child’s drowning and a grisly double murder. The film began a decades-long franchise that would eventually lead to the creation of Jason Voorhees, one of the most popular horror icons of all time.
