Friday the 13th Part XIII: Jason Goes to Court has begun production, finally giving fans of the franchise the 13th installment of the long-running horror movie series. Taking the Friday the 13th series in entirely new creative territory with art imitating life, the sequel is written and helmed by Jason Lives director Tommy McLoughlin. Abandoning his original concept for the film, which was set at Camp Crystal Lake during the winter, McLoughlin was forced to switch gears and change the location, as Jason Voorhees cannot legally leave the courtroom at this time.
In the film, it is revealed that the Christie family has turned the abandoned Camp Crystal Lake into a tourist attraction. Elias Voorhees emerges to claim ownership of Jason Voorhees as his biological father, looking for a share of the profits. When no deal was reached, the disagreement went to court with Mr. Voorhees and the Christies arguing their sides in a lengthy legal battle. Until the matter is resolved in the sequel’s thrilling conclusion, the court has Jason removed from the lake and placed into the courtroom to take part in the trial – and that includes going on the witness stand.
Fans of the franchise will be happy to see several Friday the 13th fan favorites return. Larry Zerner returns as Shelly Finkelstein, as the character apparently faked his death in Part 3 and now works as an attorney representing Mr. Voorhees. Meanwhile, Thom Mathews is back to reprise his role from Jason Lives as Tommy Jarvis, who also now works as an attorney and is representing the Christies in the case. “Jason belongs with the Christies, and I’m gonna see to it that he gets there,” Jarvis tells his client in the opening moments of the film.
It’s an interesting evolution for the franchise, which has typically consisted of violent slasher films. Rated PG-13, Jason Goes to Court won’t carry over many of the same elements the previous films in the Friday the 13th series are known for. This means that there are no gory death scenes, nor will you see any partying teens, gratuitous nudity, and corpses displayed in a comical fashion. Still, the film has plenty of long-winded monologues and tense legal drama, and that is certainly just as good.
In any case, as you’ve probably guessed, nothing you’ve read in this entire article is true. Today is April 1st, and this article is nothing more than an April Fool’s Day joke. Now, let’s hope a real Friday the 13th movie enters development soon. Happy April Fool’s Day!
Read Last Year’s April Fool’s Day Article: Brad Dourif to Replace Mark Hamill in ‘Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’
