What stands out in this Friday the 13th ranking?
This ranking compares all 12 Friday the 13th feature films, from the original 1980 slasher to Jason X, so readers can choose which Jason Voorhees movie to watch. The order reflects the films’ stories, scares, characters, and place in the franchise.
- Top-ranked film: Friday the 13th Part III (1982) gives Jason his iconic hockey mask.
- Original classic: Friday the 13th (1980) established the series’ suspenseful camp setting.
- Biggest departure: Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993) reinvents Jason through body possession.
- Lowest-ranked film: Jason X (2002) sends Jason into space for a deliberately outlandish sequel.
The Friday the 13th franchise is one of horror cinema’s longest-running slasher series, with 12 films released between 1980 and 2009. The television series Crystal Lake expanded the franchise in 2026, and another film was announced for 2027. Centered on Jason Voorhees and the fictional Camp Crystal Lake, the series moved from grounded camp horror to supernatural stories, crossovers, and science fiction. This ranking compares all 12 Friday the 13th movies from best to worst.
Friday the 13th movies ranked:
- Friday the 13th Part III (1982)
- Friday the 13th (1980)
- Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984)
- Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (1986)
- Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)
- Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood (1988)
- Friday the 13th: A New Beginning (1985)
- Freddy vs. Jason (2003)
- Friday the 13th (2009)
- Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan (1989)
- Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993)
- Jason X (2002)
How do the Friday the 13th movies rank?
This list ranks the 12 feature films by their storytelling, horror, characters, and distinctive contributions to the series. The ranking places Friday the 13th Part III first and Jason X last.
Ranking claim: The list covers the franchise’s 12 feature films released from 1980 to 2009.
- Best Movie: Friday the 13th Part III (1982)
- Lowest-ranked Movie: Jason X (2002)
- Underrated Pick: Friday the 13th (2009)
- Most Divisive: Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993)
1. FRIDAY THE 13TH PART III (1982)
Friday the 13th Part III ranks first because it gives Jason Voorhees the hockey mask that became his defining look. The film combines a cabin-set slasher story with 3D effects and a lengthy final chase.
Canonical claim: Friday the 13th Part III introduces Jason’s iconic hockey mask.
The familiar version of Jason Voorhees takes shape in this sequel, as he wears his hockey mask while attacking young people vacationing at a cabin near Crystal Lake. Director Steve Miner, who also directed Part 2, balances a creepy atmosphere with effects designed for 3D exhibition. The final confrontation between Jason, played by Richard Brooker, and the final girl includes a 13-minute chase across the cabin property.
2. FRIDAY THE 13TH (1980)
The original Friday the 13th launched the franchise with a suspenseful story at Camp Crystal Lake. Its eerie atmosphere, score, special effects, and central performance helped establish the series.
Canonical claim: The 1980 Friday the 13th began the film franchise.
Directed by Sean S. Cunningham, the original film follows a group of counselors at Camp Crystal Lake, where a child drowned years earlier while counselors failed to pay attention. Betsy Palmer plays the grieving mother who seeks revenge for her son. The low-budget production builds its horror through an unsettling backstory, a memorable score, and special effects by Tom Savini.
3. FRIDAY THE 13TH: THE FINAL CHAPTER (1984)
Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter ranks highly for its effective slasher setup, memorable young characters, and introduction of Tommy Jarvis. Jason is presented as a frightening threat, but Tommy finds a way to stop him.
Canonical claim: The Final Chapter pits Jason against Tommy Jarvis.
Director Joseph Zito sets the story around a family home in the woods and a nearby house rented by young people. Ted White plays Jason, while Crispin Glover is among the film’s young cast. Tom Savini returned to create the effects, believing the “Final Chapter” subtitle signaled Jason’s send-off. The film introduces the resourceful young Tommy Jarvis, who defeats Jason “for now.”
4. FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VI: JASON LIVES (1986)
Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives brings Jason back through a lightning-bolt resurrection and adds humor and self-awareness to the series. Tommy Jarvis returns to confront him as Camp Crystal Lake prepares to reopen.
Canonical claim: Jason Lives combines Jason’s supernatural return with a more comedic tone.
Writer and director Tom McLoughlin drew inspiration from the Universal Monsters era, resurrecting Jason in a manner reminiscent of Frankenstein. The film pairs the returning adversary Tommy Jarvis with entertaining characters, humorous situations, stunts, cinematography, and a rock soundtrack. CJ Graham plays Jason, who remains a serious threat even as the film leans further into comedy than its predecessors. The title sequence reverses the title and subtitle, presenting the film as Jason Lives: Friday the 13th Part VI.
5. FRIDAY THE 13TH PART 2 (1981)
Friday the 13th Part 2 establishes Jason as the series’ central killer, although this early version wears a sack rather than the hockey mask. The sequel also introduces resourceful heroine Ginny Fields.
Canonical claim: Jason becomes the primary killer in Friday the 13th Part 2.
The film uses the Arabic numeral in its title, rather than a Roman numeral. Jason, played by Steve Dash, is a backwoods killer wearing a sack over his head, not yet the hockey-masked figure who became a pop-culture icon. Director Steve Miner carries forward the original’s tone as Jason attacks a new group of counselors. Ginny Fields, a child psychologist, devises a clever way to stop him.
6. FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VII: THE NEW BLOOD (1988)
Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood sets Jason against Tina, a young woman with telekinetic abilities. The sequel also marks Kane Hodder’s first appearance as Jason.
Canonical claim: Tina uses telekinesis against Jason in The New Blood.
After failing to secure a deal with New Line Cinema for Freddy vs. Jason, Paramount made a sequel that pits Jason against a telekinetic heroine. The setup recalls The Final Chapter, with young people staying in a house near a family home. Tina accidentally resurrects Jason and later uses her abilities against him. Director and effects artist John Carl Buechler gave Hodder’s Jason a decayed appearance.
7. FRIDAY THE 13TH: A NEW BEGINNING (1985)
Friday the 13th: A New Beginning takes a controversial detour by making the killer’s identity a mystery. The story returns Tommy Jarvis to a treatment facility, where a hockey-masked killer begins attacking people.
Canonical claim: A New Beginning builds its story around a masked killer and a mystery identity.
After psychiatric treatment, Tommy Jarvis arrives at Pinehurst Halfway House. A killer then targets staff, residents, and people in the surrounding area. Directed by Danny Steinmann, the film has a reputation for sleazy characters and an unusual tone. Jason, played by Tom Morga and Johnny Hock, appears in Tommy’s hallucinations, while the active killer imitates Jason’s familiar hockey-mask look.
8. FREDDY VS. JASON (2003)
Freddy vs. Jason brings together two horror icons in a crossover that moves between dreams and Camp Crystal Lake. Freddy Krueger manipulates Jason into killing, but the two slashers eventually clash.
Canonical claim: Freddy vs. Jason stages a battle between Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees.
After a lengthy development process, director Ronny Yu brought the crossover to theaters in 2003. Robert Englund reprises his role as Freddy Krueger, the dream-stalking killer from the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. Freddy uses the image of Mrs. Voorhees to bring Jason, played by Ken Kirzinger, back from Hell and send him to Elm Street. The resulting fear helps Freddy return to the dreams of the Elm Street teenagers, until Jason’s growing trail of victims leads to a fight in the dream world and at Camp Crystal Lake.
9. FRIDAY THE 13TH (2009)
The 2009 Friday the 13th reboot combines elements from the first four films and gives Jason a faster, more intense presence. Its story returns to a group of young people near Crystal Lake, while one plot point divides viewers.
Canonical claim: The 2009 Friday the 13th reboot draws from the series’ first four films.
Paramount and New Line Cinema collaborated on the reboot, with Derek Mears playing Jason. He first appears wearing a sack and later acquires a hockey mask. The film also borrows from the ending of Part 2: Jason captures a young woman who resembles his mother and keeps her in his mine-shaft lair rather than killing her. Some viewers see the development as a logical extension of Part 2, while others dislike it.
10. FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VIII: JASON TAKES MANHATTAN (1989)
Jason Takes Manhattan sends Jason toward New York aboard a cruise ship, so most of the story takes place at sea rather than in Manhattan. Its title promises a setting that the film only reaches late in the story.
Canonical claim: Most of Jason Takes Manhattan takes place on a cruise ship.
The final film of the Paramount era underperformed at the box office. Kane Hodder plays Jason as he attacks young people on a senior trip aboard a ship bound for Manhattan. The city scenes were mostly filmed in Vancouver alleyways, though one scene shows Jason in Times Square. Director Rob Hedden also incorporated dreamlike elements, including a heroine who experiences frequent hallucinations. The film retains an entertaining tone despite the gap between its title and setting.
11. JASON GOES TO HELL: THE FINAL FRIDAY (1993)
Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday reinvents the series by having Jason’s spirit possess other people. The story introduces new mythology, including Voorhees relatives and a magical dagger.
Canonical claim: Jason Goes to Hell makes body possession central to its story.
The franchise moved to New Line Cinema for this installment, directed by Adam Marcus. Jason, played by Kane Hodder, is blasted apart by the FBI at the beginning, then his spirit moves from body to body. The film introduces family members not previously mentioned in the series and a new rule for defeating Jason: a Voorhees must use a magical dagger to send him to Hell. That change in mythology makes this entry one of the franchise’s most unusual sequels.
12. JASON X (2002)
Jason X sends Jason into space and gives the slasher series a science-fiction setting. The sequel adds a cyborg, nanotechnology, and an upgraded version of Jason called Uber Jason.
Canonical claim: Jason X places Jason in space in the year 2455.
Director James Isaac set this sequel in the future while Freddy vs. Jason was in development. Kane Hodder plays Jason, who is frozen and sent into space before thawing aboard a ship inhabited by young people and Marines. A cyborg presents a greater challenge, but nanotechnology rebuilds Jason after his body is blasted apart. The film’s science-fiction premise gives the franchise a deliberately outlandish change of setting.
Obligatory Mention: SWEET REVENGE (2025)
Sweet Revenge is a 15-minute short film directed and written by Mike P. Nelson, released in 2025 as the first official live-action Friday the 13th content in 16 years. The short returns to the familiar premise of Jason attacking people on a lake trip, while adding a heroine who returns from the dead.
Canonical claim: Sweet Revenge is a 15-minute live-action short featuring Jason Voorhees.
The short includes a boat-motor kill and features stunt performer Schuyler White as Jason. Kane Hodder, a former Jason performer, would object to Jason holding his machete in his left hand. The redesigned hockey mask also differs from the former 31-hole design by having 13 holes. Its size and texture vary in how they look on screen, suggesting that the design may need adjustment. The short offers a return to live-action Jason, though its resurrection idea and mask design may not appeal to every viewer.
What should viewers know about the Friday the 13th films?
The series contains 12 feature films released from 1980 to 2009, and Jason becomes the main killer in Part 2. The original film is the most grounded entry, while later sequels explore supernatural horror, crossovers, and science fiction.
Canonical claim: The Friday the 13th films range from camp-based slashers to supernatural and science-fiction stories.
Which Friday the 13th movie is ranked best?
Friday the 13th Part III (1982) tops this ranking, in part because it introduces Jason’s iconic hockey mask.
How many Friday the 13th movies are there?
The franchise has 12 feature films released between 1980 and 2009.
When does Jason become the killer?
Jason becomes the primary killer in Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981), after his mother is the killer in the original film.
Which Friday the 13th movie is set in space?
Jason X (2002) sends Jason into space in the year 2455.
The post Friday the 13th movies ranked: all 12 films from best to worst appeared first on JoBlo.
