'Crystal Lake' Preview: First Impressions and Q&A with Linda Cardellini and Brad Caleb Kane
By Dan Bremner - October 13, 2026
It’s been 17 years since we last had any sort of official Friday the 13th project (unless you count appearances in garbage like Dead by Daylight and other terrible video games. I certainly don’t), which is absolutely crazy when you remember what a long-lingering cultural icon Jason Voorhees still is. He’s still a prime figure in the face of slashers and horror as a whole. Thankfully, rights issues have now been sorted, and while we're teased with a new Friday the 13th film every year, this TV prequel, Crystal Lake actually got made, and it's finally here. Jason is back.
He’s been to Space, Hell and even Manhattan, but with this new project it’s time to go somewhere he’s rarely gone: the beginning. It’s no secret this has been a shoddy franchise from the get-go, and let’s be honest, there are two good Friday the 13th films: Jason X and Freddy vs. Jason. The rest can go into a bin and stay there. Based on the two episodes I was lucky enough to see at the screening event in London’s Regent Street Cinema, it seems A24 have made the right call to give things a fresh reboot, completely free of all the convoluted lore of the sequels and instead just tell its own story. Not just one of how Jason became Voorhees, but the impact Jason’s untimely death, thanks to horny teens refusing to keep an eye on the kids, had on his mother, Pamela.
A Bloody Return to Crystal Lake
Right off the bat, these early episodes nail the vibe of the franchise. They deliver the gore, the ’70s aesthetic and the silliness we expect, while also giving Pamela a detailed backstory. That backstory is going to prove incredibly divisive amongst fans. I wasn’t entirely convinced by what was implied about Jason’s origins that we’re going to see explored throughout the whole season, but I was definitely intrigued to see if they can pull it off.
Linda Cardellini is the clear standout as Pamela Voorhees. She’s the emotional and dramatic core of the whole thing. She brings depth, vulnerability, softness and real layered complexity to the character, a grieving mother with genuine warmth in the scenes with her son, raw helplessness and frustration after the loss, and an unnerving subtlety when the rage or unhinged moments start to creep in. She avoids pure camp while still establishing exactly why this version of Pam becomes the figure we know from the original film. Emotion and pent-up anger just ooze out of every scene. She’s excellent, unstoppable, and basically elevates the material single-handedly.
The series digs into an unexpectedly raw, heartfelt and tragic foundation through Pamela and Jason’s relationship. The scenes of their domestic life and bond are tender and quickly established to effect. It adds a surprising emotional weight and character-study dimension the franchise has almost never bothered with before. It makes Pam’s path more understandable and gives the overall tone something richer than the pure slasher formula this could have been.
Episode 1, “The Great Pretender”, is the stronger of the two by a decent margin. It’s painful, frantic, bloody, gripping and intense. It jumps straight into the tragedy of Jason’s drowning, balances horror with drama and even a bit of crime-procedural energy, and features some gruesome-to-hilarious practical violence and gore, including a few over-the-top moments that still somehow serve character and plot. The show captures that classic 1970s/80s slasher spirit with a warm colour palette, knowing intensity, humour mixed with tragedy, and solid practical effects. Seeing it in a cinema was certainly a treat, as it did feel far more cinematic than you would expect from television, even given a solid layer of artificial film drain for good effect.
There’s a real nostalgic authenticity running through it too. They shot on location (including the original camp site), which helps no end. The look, feel, sound, production design and period details all recreate the camp atmosphere effectively. There are satisfying call-backs, Easter eggs, younger versions of legacy characters like Crazy Ralph and Officer Dorf, and little homages that connect to the original without drowning the new material. Showrunner Brad Caleb Kane has clearly put together a well-thought-out, carefully crafted beginning that balances familiarity and fun with some new ideas. Whether they pay off later in the season we'll have to see, but I am intrigued.
Episode 2 is a noticeable step down. The pacing slows considerably and it shifts into a more contained, less interesting detour (including a self-help seminar subplot that feels like it wandered in from a different show). It fails to build directly on the premiere’s tension and ends up a less engaging experience overall. Hopefully that’s just an early wobble rather than a sign of things to come, but it was a bit concerning after such a strong pilot.
Behind the Bloodshed with Linda Cardellini and Brad Caleb Kane
After the screening we were treated to a Q&A with Pamela Voorhees and Velma Dinkley herself, Linda Cardellini, alongside showrunner Brad Kane.
The two reminisced about their love of the franchise, with Cardellini correctly pointing out that Freddy vs. Jason was one of the most enjoyable theatrical releases she ever experienced. She does a lot of her own stunts and ends the most enjoyable days on set covered in fake blood and entrails, which is exactly the energy you want from someone playing Pamela Voorhees.
Kane strongly made the point that he only wanted to make this show because he had a fresh idea for the franchise, and that he wanted to balance original ideas with fan-service. He also promised later episodes with extreme body-counts, direct re-enactments of famous film scenes, and a commitment to staying true to the films by only using practical blood and gore while filming on the same locations where the original Crystal Lake was shot.
The Q&A sadly didn’t extend to audience questions, which is a shame because I was fully prepared to ask if they planned to send Pamela to space in the ultimate homage to Jason X. Still, the two of them proved the show is in safe hands, with plenty of potential for new and interesting ideas while still staying true to the fact that this is, at its heart, a dumb, silly slasher franchise.
Can Crystal Lake Deliver the Friday the 13th Revival Fans Deserve?
Based on these first two episodes, Crystal Lake feels like a promising, character-driven reboot that finally gives Pamela Voorhees the spotlight she’s always deserved, held together by a fantastic Cardellini performance and a clear respect for the franchise’s messy, bloody roots. If they can keep the energy of that first episode and avoid too many Episode 2-style detours, this could be the Friday the 13th project we’ve been waiting 17 years for.
All episodes of Sky Exclusive series Crystal Lake will be available on October 19 on Sky and streaming service NOW.
For more features, reviews, and deep dives into film and TV, keep it locked to Film Focus Online.
Dan Bremner
Writer
Dan is a writer from Guildford with a love for all things genre, schlocky, and thoroughly '80s, and a part-time philanthropist.
Want your film or TV show reviewed by Dan? Contact us.
