By featuring two of horror’s most iconic characters of all time squaring off, Freddy vs. Jason could be seen as the genre’s ultimate crossover. Released back in 2003, the film was directed by Ronny Yu with a script by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift. It was the last movie to feature Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger from A Nightmare on Elm Street with Ken Kirzinger replacing Kane Hodder as the new Jason Voorhees from Friday the 13th.
Over two decades later, Freddy vs. Jason continues to see some debate with fans concerning the ending of the film. Notably, it’s been argued that the “winner” of the fight is not quite as clear as it might seem. Many will insist that Jason definitely won, while others say there are clues that suggest Freddy is the real winner. Let’s take a look back at Freddy vs. Jason to see if we can determine which horror titan truly came out on top.
Theory 1 — Jason Voorhees Is the Winner
It’s certainly easy to interpret Jason as the winner in Freddy vs. Jason. In the climax of the film, it’s Jason who ultimately takes out Freddy by impaling him with his own glove and pulling him into Crystal Lake. To further give Jason the edge, the final scene shown on-screen sees Jason emerging from the lake with Freddy’s severed head in his hand. For many, this is Jason’s “victory pose” meant to clarify that he won the battle.
Jason should also be credited for the journey in getting to that point. While Freddy has the upper hand in the dream world, he became vulnerable once pulled into the “real” world. Freddy was still able to deliver a lot of punishment, but Jason was able to withstand it all. The two went toe to toe, giving their best to one another, but in the end, as noted, Jason was the last one left standing.
It could also be noted that Freddy’s goal was to be resurrected as the most-feared supernatural murderer, while Jason’s only looking to destroy Freddy and/or anyone else in his territory. Jason seemingly accomplished his goal, which may have made survivors more fearful of him than Freddy. This could tie into the idea that Jason is the winner.
Theory 2 — Freddy Krueger Is the Winner
However, there will be many Nightmare on Elm Street fans arguing that it’s not that simple, pointing to some more subtle clues that Freddy is the true winner. That will first come with further analyzing the scene where Jason is carrying Freddy’s head in the ending sequence. There’s an argument to be made that this shot is taking place in the dream world, where the two had returned to after sinking in the lake. If that’s the case, Freddy would again have the upper hand, making Jason doomed.
Lending to this argument, the setting itself is rather dreamlike. The lake is completely engulfed in fog, and there’s no dock or land anywhere in sight. Once Freddy winks, the theme from A Nightmare on Elm Street starts to play, another possible sign that we are now back in Freddy’s realm. Freddy can also be heard laughing just when the camera cuts to black, which could also be interpreted as the Springwood Slasher celebrating.
Of course, the wink itself is perhaps the biggest indicator that Freddy Krueger has something else up his sleeve. While what happens next isn’t shown on-screen, the wink and laugh are, at the very least, a hint that Freddy actually has Jason right where he wants him. And if Jason is indeed back in the dream world, now with no escape, Freddy would certainly be the winner.
Theory 3 — The Battle Should Be Declared a Draw
Meanwhile, another point of view is that the fight should ultimately be called a draw. With arguments to be made for either one winning, a victor isn’t crystal clear. Freddy dominates the dream world, while Jason dominates the real world. At the end, it would seem that neither is truly destroyed. Not one of them is sent back to hell, and even if Freddy’s wink doesn’t mean that he “won,” it still seems to suggest that the battle continues.
Often in reality, when it comes to combat sports like boxing and MMA, draws will lead to rematches. The idea is for the rematch to find out once and for all who really is the better fighter. Let’s keep that in mind when noting that there were plans to develop a movie sequel to Freddy vs. Jason, one which would have also brought in Ash Williams from the Evil Dead franchise. Dubbed Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash, the concept was eventually retooled into a comic book series when the movie plans fell through, though it still shows that maybe the battle really wasn’t over.
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It would seem that there’s an argument to be made for any of the three possibilities for who “won” in Freddy vs. Jason. In any case, the certain sense of ambiguity surrounding the ending of Freddy vs. Jason could be for the best. The ongoing debate helps keep the crossover relevant in fan discussions so many years later, and the legends of both Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees thus remain alive and well.
