Platinum Dunes’ Brad Fuller Adds More To Why Paramount Axed The 2017 Film

We don’t like to pick at old wounds, but the aftermath of the 2017 Paramount film that just missed going into production is still pretty fresh in fan’s minds. Even though the script for that film leaked online and has been met with low enthusiasm, there are those in the community that would have loved to just have another Friday The 13th in theaters.

Now that the rights battle between Victor Miller, Sean Cunningham, and Horror Inc have future films at a standstill, people want to know why Paramount decided to balk at a chance for a new film before the rights were officially in question. Most recently, Brad Fuller of Platinum Dunes talked to SyFy about the failed film, and although we have posted about some of the main reasons in the past, Brad does offer up some new bits of information as to why the 2017 film never materialized.

From SyFy Wire

There was a couple of things. I think there was concern about the rights looming at that point. Paramount was concerned if they made that movie and the rights were not available… if you are going to make that movie, you want to be able to ride it for more than one or two movies. That didn’t exist in this rights structure.  We were going down the road to make the movie, but, at the end of the day, economically and/or creatively, they didn’t want to make it.

There’s this clause in the rights that the rights revert back to New Line. As that date became closer and closer, Paramount would have made one Friday the 13th movie and then New Line would have benefitted if the movie was great. Then, New Line could have followed it up with subsequent movies. It put Paramount in a very tough position to go ahead and actually make the movie, and then us to reap the benefits if it was successful beyond that particular film.

As to if the failure of the film Rings really had anything to do with Paramount’s decision...

Yes, I do. That was also a time when sequels were not doing as well. We’re all kind of reactionary when you are making something. You are looking for evidence that tells you that what you are making is right on the cutting edge of where society is going, and you certainly don’t want to make something that feels like the timing is wrong. I wouldn’t say the whole thing fell apart because of that. I certainly think that played into it. But, I also think the rights and now the litigation about the right for Friday the 13th,played into it in a much more substantial way than just how the Rings sequel did.