Complete Order of Jason Movies by Release Date
The original Friday the 13th film premiered in 1980, directed by Sean S. Cunningham and produced by Golan-Globus/Cannon Films. It introduced the iconic hockey mask-wearing killer Jason Voorhees at Camp Crystal Lake, earning over $59 million at the domestic box office against a $550,000 budget. The franchise expanded rapidly through the 1980s and 1990s, with Paramount Pictures distributing the first seven sequels before New Line Cinema took over for later installments. The complete order of Jason movies includes 12 mainline entries, starting with the original and continuing through the 2009 reboot produced by Platinum Dunes and distributed by New Line Cinema, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Pictures. The most recent entry in the main continuity remains the 2009 remake, which grossed $92.7 million worldwide on a $19 million budget, according to Box Office Mojo data. Forbes ranked the franchise entries by cultural impact and box office performance.
The chronological internal timeline of the Jason Voorhees story begins with the events of the original 1980 film, which depicts the drowning of young Jason at Camp Crystal Lake and the subsequent murders committed by his mother, Pamela Voorhees. The second film, released in 1981, jumps forward in the timeline and introduces the adult Jason as the primary antagonist, a character trait that defines the entire franchise. The order of Jason movies by internal chronology places Friday the 13th Part 2, Jason Lives, and Jason Takes Manhattan as key continuity points, while the 2009 reboot resets the timeline with an alternate origin story. The 2009 film was directed by Marcus Nispel and produced by Michael Bay's Platinum Dunes, with a screenplay by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift. The reboot features Derek Mears as Jason and was filmed in Austin, Texas, and at Camp Crystal Lake locations in New Jersey. Box Office Mojo tracks the 2009 reboot's worldwide gross.
Jason Movie Franchise Timeline and Production Companies
The Friday the 13th franchise spans four decades of production, with New Line Cinema serving as the primary studio for the majority of the series. Paramount Pictures distributed the first seven films between 1980 and 1993, while New Line Cinema handled the 2003 crossover film Freddy vs. Jason and the 2009 reboot. The production company Platinum Dunes, founded by Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, and Andrew Form, produced the 2009 remake and a planned sequel that was later shelved. The franchise generated over $687 million in cumulative global box office revenue across all 12 mainline films, making it one of the highest-grossing horror franchises in history. The complete order of Jason movies reflects shifting production styles, from the practical effects-driven slasher films of the 1980s to the CGI-enhanced visuals of the 2009 reboot. The New York Times documented the franchise's box office milestones.
The production timeline of the Jason movies includes a 10-year gap between the 1993 film Jason Goes to Hell and the 2003 crossover Freddy vs. Jason, which was developed as a joint venture between New Line Cinema and Wes Craven's franchise. The 2003 film