The Two Horror Movie Icons Blumhouse Is Determined To Land The Rights To

The track record of quality for movies coming out of Blumhouse Productions is very hit or miss, yet they've been able to sustain their wins and losses by largely keeping budgets on the lower end of the Hollywood spectrum. The business model gives them the opportunity to rake in high profits for a project that may require some extra funds to get off the ground or to secure the rights to a dormant horror franchise. At the head of Blumhouse is its namesake CEO, Jason Blum, whose 15-year leadership has overseen the rise of movies like "Paranormal Activity," "Insidious," "Get Out," "The Purge," and, most recently, "Black Phone 2." The company would almost always trot out titles like these in trailers promoting its next feature.

2023 saw Blumhouse lose the rights to Michael Myers after bringing the "Halloween" saga to a close (for now) with 2022's "Halloween Ends." In the time since, however, Blum's attempts at shepherding his own library of horror icons have reflected the company's peaks and valleys. The underperformance of "M3GAN 2.0" pretty much put the slaying AI doll out to pasture, while "Black Phone 2" proved that someone's interested in Ethan Hawke's Grabber. I may think the first "Five Nights at Freddy's" is a terrible gateway horror movie, but the upcoming sequel is likely going to keep Blumhouse in business for years to come.

Still, Blum is holding out hope that he can snag his killer white whales by getting Jason Voorhees and Freddy Krueger under his roof. "We're always haggling. I make a run at them every day. I will never give up the quest. And if they make one without me, I'll chase the next movie," says Blum (via Variety).

As of 2025, the rights to Freddy Krueger are all over the place. Both the dream demon and the "Nightmare on Elm Street" franchise are domestically owned by the estate of Wes Craven, while the international rights are held by New Line Cinema (via Fangoria). It makes Blum's dreams that much harder to achieve considering Blumhouse's output is largely under contract at Universal. The legal kerfuffle has pretty much halted any meaningful traction on another "Elm Street" since the widely lambasted 2010 Platinum Dunes remake. There's also the matter of choosing the right person who could both wear the tattered sweater and live up to the irreplaceable Robert Englund.

"Friday the 13th" is somehow even more complicated, as the series had been in a comically long and grueling legal battle for years. Screenwriter Victor Miller has laid claim to the "Friday the 13th" name and everything within the 1980 film, while director Sean S. Cunningham owns the rights to adult Jason. These developments have led to the slasher's image rebranding under the company Jason Universe, which intends to revive the franchise again through projects like the A24/Peacock prequel series "Crystal Lake." So far, the company has mostly stuck to trotting the big guy out for Angry Orchard-branded merch and short films. Why would you want to see Jason kill people on screen when you can see him sponsor a Peloton class instead? Unless Miller allows Blum to write him a big, fat check, the horror production company can't call any potential Jason-centered movies "Friday the 13th," which seems like a recipe for disaster. 

But setting aside the rights issues, having every horror icon under one roof just seems a pretty bad idea.

Blumhouse has no doubt produced its share of memorable movies, but very few feature villains that have gone on to become widespread horror fixtures. The production company's own boogeymen like Baghuul ("Sinister"), the Lipstick-Faced Demon ("Insidious"), Babyface ("Happy Death Day"), and just about every mask variant in the "Purge" movies aren't easily as recognizable to the general public beyond genre fans. "Black Phone 2" was successful, but I don't see The Grabber taking off as the company's Freddy. Blumhouse is also set to add Jigsaw to its horror roster as it has recently acquired the rights to "Saw," with the series now back in the hands of its creator, James Wan. It was easy to count on Michael Myers since he already had a built-in audience from the previous "Halloween" films.

It's also harder than ever to make long-lasting stars out of original horror villains. "Terrifier" breakout Art the Clown (David Howard Thornton) is the only slasher in recent memory who could make an argument for being mentioned in the same breath as Michael, Jason, and Freddy. With very few of his company's horror baddies taking off in such a manner, it's easy to understand why Blum would be so determined to revive two of the most iconic screen killers. But it just doesn't seem like a great idea for one company to spend so much time resurrecting other villains in favor of letting its own prospects go by the wayside. There's a chance Blum could get some creative people to craft exciting projects for Jason and Freddy down the line. I just don't see that happening anytime soon. It's nice to dream, though.