'Friday the 13th' prequel series 'Crystal Lake' slashing onto Peacock from A24 & 'Hannibal' vet Bryan Fuller

Jason Voorhees is rising from the murky depths for his very own TV show! Peacock announced today that it has officially handed down a straight-to-series order for an "expanded prequel series" to the seminal Friday the 13th slasher franchise. Titled Crystal Lake (a nod to the camp and body of water Jason calls home), the project hails from Pushing Daisies and Hannibal creator, Bryan Fuller, who will serve as writer, showrunner, and executive producer. 

A24 — which has radically changed the horror game in recent years with acclaimed films like Hereditary and Pearl — is also on aboard as an executive producer with Marc Toberoff, Victor Miller (screenwriter of the 1980 original), and Rob Barsamian. There are no plot details at this time, but perhaps we'll receive a definitive origin story for how Camp Crystal Lake and its hockey mask-wearing, machete-wielding killer first came to be.

“Friday the 13th is one of the most iconic horror franchises in movie history and we were dying to revisit this story with our upcoming drama series Crystal Lake,” Susan Rovner, Chairman, Entertainment Content, NBCUniversal Television and Streaming, said in a statement. “We can’t wait to get to work with Bryan Fuller, a gifted, visionary creator who I’ve had the pleasure of being a longtime friend and collaborator, along with our incredible partners at A24, in this updated version for Peacock that will thrill long-standing fans of the franchise.”   

“I discovered Friday the 13th in the pages of Famous Monsters magazine when I was 10 years old and I have been thinking about this story ever since," added Fuller. "When it comes to horror, A24 raises the bar and pushes the envelope and I’m thrilled to be exploring the camp grounds of Crystal Lake under their banner. And Susan Rovner is simply the best at what she does. It’s a pleasure and an honor to be working with her again."

Chatting with Fangoria, Fuller teased that the show "will absolutely be recognizable for the hardcore Friday the 13th fans, but will also have an appeal to people who are simply interested in top-shelf TV storytelling."

The 42-year-old franchise, which helped usher in the slasher boom of the 1980s, now encompasses twelve big screen titles and almost half a billion dollars at the worldwide box office. Michael Bay's Platinum Dunes rebooted the property in 2009, though the film (simply called Friday the 13th, it was helmed by Marcus Nispel) failed to launch a contemporary series. In the years since, there has been plenty of talk about reviving the IP, including a 2018 attempt from LeBron James and his SpringHill Entertainment banner. Last year, Victor Miller won the domestic rights to to the franchise after a contentious legal battle.

Looking for more slasher mayhem in the meantime? Halloween Ends is now streaming on Peacock.