It’s fair to say that it’s been a pretty rough ride for fans of the iconic unstoppable killer, Jason Voorhees. Indeed, with the Friday The 13th franchise still formally in legal limbo, it’s looking likely that it won’t be until the end of summer, at the earliest, until we see any sort of conclusive resolution to the ongoing contractual dispute. Sad times, right?
That being said, while Paramount’s hands are officially tied – they’re unable to release any new films under the Friday the 13th banner until the current legal situation has been worked out – that doesn’t mean that they won’t be able to celebrate the classic horror series’ upcoming 40th anniversary later this year. But what has the studio got up its blood-soaked sleeve?
Well, it seems they’ll be releasing the original movie as a 40th Anniversary Limited Edition Steelbook Blu-ray + Digital on May 5th, 2020 to celebrate the film’s four decades on the market and it looks like a real doozie, too. With the iconic Friday the 13th‘s classic poster art on the front, and finished in a premium Steelbook package, the new disc offers the previously released Blu-ray of the Uncut version. Long story short, this could well be a nice collector’s gift for hardcore fans of the slasher series.
To say that the OG Friday The 13th is an all-out classic is a huge understatement. Not only did it kick off one of the longest running horror film series to ever grace the big screen, but it also helped to revitalize the ailing slasher scene, spurred by the success of John Carpenter’s 1978 slasher masterpiece Halloween. Paramount’s Friday The 13th series would go on to become a multi-million dollar media franchise that would span across twelve movies, a TV show and two video games (we’re sure we haven’t seen the last from this iconic madman, either).
Surprisingly, Jason Voorhees’ legendary hockey mask doesn’t make an appearance until the third installment. However, the first Friday The 13th will be forever burned into our memories as the gory introduction to one of cinema’s most fierce and unrelenting teen-slasher villains.
But tell us, will you be picking up this new Limited Edition Steelbook? Or are you going to give it a wide berth? Grab your hockey masks and let us know in the usual place down below.