Friday The 13th Series Saved From Being Canceled With New Showrunner
Back in May, it appeared that the upcoming Friday the 13th prequel series, Crystal Lake, was in jeopardy of being cancelled as it lost its showrunner. However, it has just been announced that the show is moving forward with a new showrunner, Brad Caleb Kane, perhaps best known for being the co-showrunner on the upcoming It: Welcome to Derry.
Brad Caleb Kane
Perhaps working on Welcome to Derry is what nabbed Kane the job, with studio A24 figuring if he could handle a prequel to the It movies, then why not another prequel in the form of a Friday the 13th series? Beyond just being the showrunner, Kane will also be the series’ writer and executive producer, so a great deal of trust is being put in him for the project.
Bryan Fuller
Kane takes over from Bryan Fuller, the mind behind the Hannibal TV series. Not much details have been given as to why Fuller is gone from the Friday the 13th series, with him simply noting that A24 wanted to take Crystal Lake in a different direction than what he had planned for the show.
Perhaps one day we will hear what Fuller’s vision for the show was, as his show’s version of Hannibal Lecter had many fans, with some even saying it was better than the Anthony Hopkins movies.
Back On Track
Regardless, the showrunner role is now Kane’s, and fans are relieved to see that the show will not be getting scrapped before it makes air. With the Friday the 13th TV series moving forward, this will be the first new entry on screen for the franchise since the 2009 reboot.
With the Halloween franchise having a popular revival through its recent movies, it seems the time is ripe for some horror icons to come out of their dormant states.
The Newest Series
Younger fans might not be aware, but Crystal Lake will actually not be the first TV series based on the franchise. In the ‘80s, arguably at the franchise’s peak in popularity, there was also Friday the 13th: The Series.
It had enough viewers to run for three seasons, but with nearly 40 years passing since the show aired, there is certainly room for another show to now take a crack at expanding the franchise’s mythos.
Brad Caleb Kane has also made it clear that he is a major fan of the franchise and is very excited for the opportunity to lead a Friday the 13th series. “Nothing defined my childhood more than growing up in the golden age of the slasher flick, and nothing’s defined the genre more than Friday The 13th,” he said.
“I couldn’t be more excited for the opportunity to contribute a chapter to this iconic franchise, particularly with such fearless partners as Peacock and A24.”
More News To Come
With A24 being well-established at this point for its popular horror films, people are also eager to see what the studio can put out with the Friday the 13th series. A24 has brought horror fans such modern classics as The Witch, Hereditary, and Midsommar to name a few.
The studio is known to back projects that play with genre tropes and have a strong sense of atmosphere and psychological horror to them.
With Crystal Lake back in production, it will still be a while yet before we see the Friday the 13th series brought to the screen. But in the meantime, horror fans will get a better look at what Brad Caleb Kane is capable of when It: Welcome to Derry premiers in 2025.
Source: Deadline
