Guests and goodies for Friday the 13th doc!
If there’s anyone who understands there is no rest for the wicked, it’s producer Anthony Masi and the team behind the upcoming Friday the 13th documentary His Name Was Jason. Masi, co-producer Thommy Hutson and director Daniel Farrands have just banked 70 interviews for their 90-minute look at the entire franchise presided over by Jason Voorhees.
“It sounds funny, but it’s the truth – we had 13 weeks to pull all of this together,” Masi says incredulously. Interviews with cast, crew, industry reps and fans (ShockTillYouDrop.com included) took place in New York and Los Angeles over the last two weeks. Moreover, they are still going. Masi and company are gearing up to some of the key players behind Platinum Dunes’ Friday the 13th.
Masi – who produced Halloween: 25 Years of Terror in 2006 – sees that as a perfect capper to their documentary. “Unlike H25, this one will have the ending that I didn’t have. I really wanted to end that with the new movie, a passing of the torch. For this, it looks like we’re going to get the new cast, and we may have our ending. A look at the series and looking ahead.”
Jason will feature most of the men who have embodied Voorhees over the years including Ari Lehman, C.J. Graham and, of course, Kane Hodder, Masi’s personal fave. Ken Kerzinger is coming close to being involved. Then there are those who have died by Voorhees’ hand. “Bonnie Hellman, the one who squeezes the banana by the side of the road as she’s getting killed [in Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter] – she was hilarious. We interviewed her and did a gag where she’s peeling bananas and answering questions. We’re doing some silly things like that.” Jason Lives helmer Tom McLoughlin and A New Beginning‘s Shavar Ross, Masi says, are other highlights.
This “epic” documentary will not only feature spoken recollections; Masi is excited to report his interviewees are bringing unseen items from the film to share. Friday the 13th: Part 3‘s FX artist Douglas White dragged into over 30 never-before-seen behind-the-scenes photos. “He just brought them in a box. Adam Marcus brought in an original Friday the 13th script with handwritten notes from 1980. We’ve got typed notes from Sean Cunningham to business associates, stuff that was going to be thrown out when they were clearing their office. He just held onto it. He brought in one of five boxes of original Variety ads and other insane stuff. “
“Marylin Poucher – she jumped out of the lake in Part 3 as Mrs. Voorhees – she brought in rare photos of the makeup application. These were just personal photos of hers,” he continues. “We’ve got some alternate scenes I don’t believe fans have seen.”
Masi, Hutson and Farrands are working towards a mid-October deadline at which point they’ll turn in their cut. Anchor Bay will release His Name Was Jason on DVD February 3, 2009 with three hours of bonus material; a debut on Starz follows on, you guessed it, February 13th
Source: Ryan Rotten
