Friday the 13th Movies Ranked from Worst to Best

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Being Friday the 13th, I decided to take the week and revisit all of the films in the franchise. Here’s how I rank them from worst to best this go-around. 

Side note: Anyone else’s OCD driving them insane with the fact that there are 12 in the series and not 13?! Lol.

12. Jason X (2001)

Rotten Tomatoes 20%

Budget: $14 million

Box Office: $16.9 million

I loathed this installment in the franchise. At this point we had all seen Leprechaun 4: In Space (1996) and we know how well that turned out. I don’t like Jason’s new look in the 25th century.

11. Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood (1988)

Rotten Tomatoes 32%

Budget: $3.5 million

Box Office: $19.1 million

A telekinetic teen accidentally awakens a dormant Jason. This movie has too much going on for me and I don’t think they needed to add another supernatural element as extreme as telekinesis. 

10. Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993)

Rotten Tomatoes 24%

Budget: $2.5 million

Box Office: $15.9 million

Jason inhabits a coroner’s body to continue his murderous spree after his original body is blown to bits. It’s not really scary/entertaining watching non-Jason, Jason kill people.

9. Friday the 13th (2009)

Rotten Tomatoes 26%

Budget: $19 million

Box Office: $92.7 million

I get it. If you’re going to do a Jason remake you need the essentials; a lake, booze, drugs, pre-martial sex and machete deaths. But this remake failed with thinking just adding the elements as fluff instead of having a solid script would make them successful. This film is aesthetically pleasing but as time goes on, better film equipment becomes available so it should surpass its predecessors in that aspect.

8. Friday the 13th: A New Beginning (1985)

Rotten Tomatoes 16%

Budget: $2.2 million

Box Office: $22 million

The infamous blue hockey mask. It’s not that this one is terrible but rather it was too obvious in the beginning that it wasn’t Jason. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind it not being Jason(hello, original). Also; what’s with the ending in the hospital? Is Tommy dreaming? Has he finally lost it? 

7. Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984)

Rotten Tomatoes 20%

Budget: $1.8 million

Box Office: $33 million

Jason escapes from a morgue and returns back to Camp Crystal Lake to surprise some teens. Alcohol, raging hormones and terrible dancing ensue and Jason is ready to slay. I think it’s your typical Friday the 13th film, it’s entertaining, has all the elements that you’d expect but I think with the ending, they don’t give Jason enough credit. Tommy Jarvis shaves his head and thats distracting enough for Jason to look at it like it’s a younger him? I don’t know about that.

6. Friday the 13th Part II (1981)

Rotten Tomatoes 28%

Budget: $1 million

Box Office: $21.7 million

The emergence of Jason. Jason awaits a group of new counselors at Camp Crystal Lake to get revenge for both himself and his mother.

5. Friday the 13th Part III (1982)

Rotten Tomatoes 12%

Budget: $4 million

Box Office: $36.7 million

I thought this installment was interesting because not only do these unsuspecting teens have to face Jason but they’re also up against a biker gang. I’m also partial to this one since this is where Jason finally gets his iconic hockey mask. I wish I would have been alive and old enough to watch this in theaters since it was the first 3D film to get a wide theatrical release stateside. With the success of the first two, I bet it was highly anticipated and something that a lot of people hadn’t experienced.

4. Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan (1989)

Rotten Tomatoes 8%

Budget: $5 million

Box Office: $14.3 million

Jason takes Manhattan, people either love it or hate it, there’s no in between. I liked that the movie had part of it at sea and then to having him take Manhattan. The ending is questionable with Jason turning back into a child after being covered with toxic sludge but before that it’s a fun ride. How can you not appreciate a human taking on Jason hand-to-hand?!

3. Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (1986)

Rotten Tomatoes 52%

Budget: $3 million

Box Office: $19.4 million

After Jason is presumed dead, Tommy, heads to the graveyard to burn Jason’s body so he can’t come back. But before he’s able to complete his mission, a rod that Tommy impales Jason with is hit by lightning and that electric charge resurrects the machete-wielding machine sending him on a new mission of mayhem.

2. Freddy vs. Jason (2003)

Rotten Tomatoes 41%

Budget: $25 million

Box Office: $116.6 million

I can see your eyes rolling. You’re thinking, “How is Freddy vs. Jason on the top of your list?” Nostalgia. The fact that two of my favorite slashers are in one film. You get the hack and slash of Jason with his brute force and then you get Freddy with his one-liners and the terrifying idea that your private dreamscape can be invaded by him. The effects, makeup and everything about the two were on point. I think the story itself was very entertaining and seeing a matchup like that was one for the ages.

1. Friday the 13th (1980)

Rotten Tomatoes 62%

Budget: $700,000

Box Office: $59.8 million

I think it’s fitting that the OG Friday the 13th is #1 on my list. It may not be Jason but it’s a classic and it’s the perfect movie to set-up for the horror icon, that is Jason Voorhees. 

How would you rank them?