As someone who enjoyed 2009’s Friday the 13th reboot and thought it was a good launching pad for a new series, I was a bit dismayed that Jason Voorhees’ latest outing failed to launch, even if it did bring in about $91 million from a $19 million budget. However, the property has also been tied up in litigation, which means the most Jason we’ve received recently was the popular video game where players could take on the roles of hapless victims or Jason himself. But now it looks like Jason could be headed back to the big screen with the help of King James.
Bloody Disgusting reports that LeBron James is in talks to produce a Friday the 13th reboot. James, who’s already a producer on the upcoming Space Jam sequel and now spends a healthy amount of time in the Los Angeles area since joining the Lakers, is reportedly talking to Vertigo Entertainment to produce the reboot. As BD notes, “This news comes on the heels of original Friday the 13th screenwriter Victor Miller prevailing out of a lengthy legal battle in which U.S. District Court Judge Stefan Underhill granted summary judgment in favor of Miller and against the producers, Horror, Inc. While the latter is appealing, Miller currently has the U.S. rights to Friday the 13th, which include the locations and characters within the story.”
James putting his stamp on the franchise would certainly open it up to a larger audience to see what the basketball icon could do with one of the most famous horror franchises out there. Also, if you’re looking for James’ horror bona fides, BD points out that he’s dressed up as Pennywise for Halloween and released special “blood-stained” Friday the 13th sneakers.
I’m curious to see how much traction this ends up getting. If the legal issues are resolved, I could easily see Friday the 13th becoming a hit after the massive box office the Halloween reboot had this past weekend. If you treat an iconic horror franchise with the reverence it deserves, and you release it at the right time of year, it can be as unstoppable as its main slasher.
