Podcasts
‘Jason Lives: Friday the 13th Part VI’ Cast and Crew Reunite for 35th Anniversary [Video]
When writer-director Tom McLoughlin grabbed the wheel of the Friday the 13th franchise, he took it in a completely new direction. Five sequels in — and particularly following the polarizing reception to 1985’s Friday the 13th: A New Beginning — he knew the slasher series needed a fresh take. Something that could recalibrate the Jason Voorhees legend. What came to fruition was 1986’s Jason Lives: Friday the 13th Part VI.
From the get-go, the film makes it clear this isn’t your run-of-the-mill sequel. It’s self-aware of itself. It’s funny. It’s meta before meta became a crutch for comedy. From the 007-inspired opening to the tongue-in-cheek references to horror movie lore, McLoughlin completely flipped the script, proving you could still make a scary movie, while also poking fun at yourself in the process. Wes Craven took that lesson to the box office a decade later.
Today marks the 35th anniversary of the game-changing sequel, and to celebrate, the Halloweenies reunited the cast and crew for a roundtable chat over Zoom. Specifically, writer-director Tom McLoughlin, Thom Mathews (“Tommy Jarvis”), CJ Graham (“Jason Voorhees”), Vincent Guastaferro (“Deputy Rick Cologne”), Cynthia Kania (“Annette Edwards”), Tom Fridley (“Carter ‘Cort’ Andrews”), Nancy McLoughlin (“Lizbeth Mott”), Whitney Rydbeck (“Roy”), Tom Nowell (“Tyen”), and a hilarious surprise guest.
For over an hour and some change, Halloweenies host Justin Gerber takes them all back to Forest Green — ahem, Crystal Lake — for one hell of a homecoming. Together, they share stories from the set, discuss the legacy of the underdog sequel, wax nostalgic over the iconic wardrobes (i.e. the great Jarvis jean jacket), and meditate on the future of the franchise.
Watch the full discussion below or stream the audio above at your leisure shortly after — your choice. It should be noted, however, that this conversation was originally recorded for last year’s Salem Horror Fest. So, keep that context in mind when they discuss anything topical — and, well, joke around that it’s the 34th anniversary. Hey, we got to 35 eventually.
New to the Halloweenies? Catch up with the gang by revisiting their essential episodes on past franchises such as Halloween, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Friday the 13th via iTunes/Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, RadioPublic, Acast, Google Podcasts, and RSS. You can also become a member of their Patreon for hilarious commentaries and one-off episodes.
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Maybe you haven’t thought about your good friend Sweeney Todd in a while, or maybe you have. The 2007 movie is a bit of a memory, though a fond one – it has a healthy 86% on Rotten Tomatoes, for what it’s worth. But 2023’s Broadway revival starring Josh Groban, who your mom thinks is “so talented” (she’s right!), was enough of a hit that its run was extended.
It appears we’re in a bit of a Sweeneyssaince.
For the uninitiated, Sweeney Todd is the story of a barber who kills his customers and disposes of the bodies by passing them off to pie shop owner Mrs. Lovett, who uses them as a special ingredient. But there’s more below the trap door.
Sweeney Todd isn’t just a late 70s musical that turned into a movie; it started as a penny dreadful called The String of Pearls: A Domestic Romance (author unknown), told week-to-week in the 1840s. Penny dreadfuls were essentially fiction zines featuring serialized stories that were usually horror-based and cost a penny, leading to the very literal nickname.
The String of Pearls differs from the more well-known Sweeney Todd plot in that it follows the investigation of a missing persons case that leads to the reveal of Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett’s arrangement, as opposed to the more modern iteration which treats audiences to the duo hatching their homicidal plan and then giving the worst haircuts ever. What a delightfully wild reveal that must have been if you were a reader in Victorian London after weeks of wondering what had become of the missing sailor carrying a string of pearls to deliver to a lovely girl.
Kristen and Will discuss the history and future of Sweeney Todd and works inspired by it this week on Guide to the Unknown. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts to get a new episode every Friday.
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