‘Friday the 13th’ Series Returns With First Official Installment in 16 Years originally appeared on Parade.
It’s been nearly 20 years since audiences last saw Jason Voorhees slashing his way through hapless campers in the Friday the 13th series.
In the years since, fans have long clamored to see the return of the infamous horror villain in an official mainstream film. And as with fellow horror icons Leatherface and Michael Myers, Jason always finds a way to return from the dead, as seen through the recent Friday the 13th short film, Sweet Revenge.
Written and directed by Mike P. Nelson, Sweet Revenge has been described as a “vignette” showcasing the return of the notorious mass murderer Jason. The first official film featuring the hulking killer since 2009’s Friday the 13th reboot, the new short film recently debuted on YouTube, spawning a myriad of reactions from longtime fans of the series.
Sponsored by Angry Orchard, the short film notably incorporates a fresh redesign for Jason’s appearance, with actor Schuyler White taking over the portrayal of the character following 10 other previous performers, including Kane Hodder, Derek Mears and Ken Kirzinger.
Speaking with Variety, director Mike P. Nelson spoke at length about how the 13-minute short came to be, as well as hinting whether or not he’d take on a full-length Friday the 13th film at some point in the future.
“I have an idea of where I’d love for the story to go after this,” Nelson said. “It’s not really my hands, whether or not it’s where Horror Inc. and Jason Universe end up going with it. But if I was given the opportunity … Holy crap, dude. I would snatch it up in a heartbeat.”
With the recent debut of Sweet Revenge, it seems that the Friday the 13th series has a promising future ahead of itself. In addition to the new short film, Peacock is also hard at work developing a franchise prequel TV show, Crystal Lake, starring Linda Cardellini as a young Pamela Voorhees. There is no official date yet for when the series might air.
‘Friday the 13th’ Series Returns With First Official Installment in 16 Years first appeared on Parade on Aug 14, 2025
This story was originally reported by Parade on Aug 14, 2025, where it first appeared.
