By Josh Bate
The following is a non-spoiler review of the first two episodes of Crystal Lake as screened at Toronto International Film Festival
It has been 17 years since Jason Voorhees last stalked the big screen, and the Friday the 13th franchise has spent much of that time trapped in development hell. The series was once remarkably prolific, with eight movies arriving during the 1980s alone before another six installments followed over the next 19 years. Now, with Jason’s cinematic return still nowhere in sight, A24 and Peacock are taking the franchise in an unexpected direction with Crystal Lake, a prequel series that moves away from the familiar hockey mask and instead explores the tragedy and mystery surrounding the Voorhees family.
Making the world premiere of if its first two episodes at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, Crystal Lake takes place before the events of the original Friday the 13th and centers on Pamela Voorhees (Linda Cardellini), a single mother whose life is shattered when her young, sickly son Jason (Callum Vinson) drowns at Camp Crystal Lake. Devastated by the loss, Pamela struggles to cope with her grief while two strangers from her past arrive and begin stirring up secrets she would seemingly rather leave buried. Their presence sets the stage for a story about Pamela’s history and the circumstances that will eventually lead to the events of the original movie.
What makes showrunner Brad Caleb Kane’s approach to the franchise particularly interesting is that Crystal Lake returns Friday the 13th to a subject every sequel to the original 1980 film left behind. Friday the 13th was as much a murder mystery as it was a slasher, with the shocking revelation being that Pamela Voorhees was the killer responsible for the deaths at the camp. Jason himself appeared only briefly, in the movie’s famous final jump scare, before the sequels transformed him into the face of the franchise. Rather than simply using that history as a jumping-off point for another Jason story, Crystal Lake interestingly expands on Pamela and Jason in ways the movies never really had the opportunity to do.
That decision gives the series an opportunity to make the mythology feel different without completely abandoning what came before. There are plenty of small details connecting Crystal Lake to the original movies, from the production design recreating the look of the camp to Easter eggs scattered throughout the episodes. Young Jason’s makeup also recalls the character’s appearance in the later films. These touches aren’t overwhelming nor done for fan service. Instead, they demonstrate that the series is deliberately trying to maintain a connection with the franchise’s history.
The biggest surprise from the first two episodes, however, is how raw and emotional the series appears to be. Pamela and Jason’s relationship gives Crystal Lake an unexpectedly tragic foundation, and Cardellini brings considerable warmth to their scenes together. Vinson’s portrayal of Jason is similarly heartbreaking, capturing the innocence of a child whose death will ultimately have such enormous consequences. Cardellini is particularly effective once Pamela’s grief takes over, which presumably be explored in even greater depth in the following six episodes.
The exploration of maternal grief also represents a stark departure from what some fans might expect. Based on its first two episodes alone, Crystal Lake is not a slasher. It is a more character-focused drama. There is no sense yet that the series is primarily interested in recreating the formula of Jason hunting down a group of teenagers one by one. Instead, it plays much more like a serious crime drama or thriller, with mystery, character development and Pamela’s troubled history taking priority over elaborate kills or the increasingly silly elements that became part of the Friday the 13th identity. Fans who particularly enjoy the franchise’s campier and more ridiculous side may find this version considerably different from what they are looking for, although whether that changes later in the season remains to be seen.
Admittedly the sample size is small given only the first two episodes screened at TIFF, but it is clear that the first episode is far stronger than the second. The first installment is gripping and unexpectedly emotional, while the second slows things down considerably. Rather than building directly on the tension established in the premiere, the story takes a detour into a moore contained storyline that proves considerably less interesting. Cardellini’s performance also becomes somewhat harder to reconcile with Pamela’s increasingly violent behaviors, although there is still far too much of the season left to know whether that apparent disconnect is intentional or simply an uneven aspect of the performance. Future revelations could easily put some of these early concerns into a different context.
Still, there is plenty here to render Crystal Lake a compelling watch after two episodes. Linda Cardellini gives the material a gut-wrenching emotional center, the relationship between Pamela and Jason adds a surprising amount of tragedy to a franchise that rarely focused on either character in this way, and the mystery surrounding Pamela’s past provides intriguing new possibilities for the mythology. The trade-off is that this is, at least for now, much more of a serious crime drama than a traditional Friday the 13th slasher. It doesn’t yet have the silly kills, Jason mayhem or campy horror that many fans associate with the series, but its examination of Pamela’s grief and the origins of the Voorhees family gives Crystal Lake a surprisingly compelling reason to exist.
VERDICT: 7/10
Premiering its first two episodes at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, Crystal Lake is an intriguing and unexpectedly emotional prequel that gives Pamela and Jason Voorhees a tragic new dimension while respecting the history of the original Friday the 13th. Linda Cardellini provides a stirring emotional center, and the mystery surrounding Pamela’s past offers plenty of compelling possibilities to expand the mythology of the franchise. The series stumbles with a slower second episode, and fans looking for Jason mayhem, silly kills, or the campier elements of the franchise should know that, as of two episodes in, this is not a slasher. Instead, Crystal Lake operates much more like a serious crime drama, putting maternal grief, character development, and mystery ahead of traditional Friday the 13th thrills. Even with those shortcomings, the emotional weight of Pamela’s story and the intriguing exploration of the Voorhees family’s origins render Crystal Lake a compelling addition to the franchise and make the remaining six episodes a must-watch.
The first two episodes of Crystal Lake made their world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). All eight episodes of the series premiere October 15, 2026, exclusively on Peacock.