When Were the Friday the 13^th Movies Released?

The movie title “Friday the 13th” would lead fans to believe all of the movies were released on Friday the 13^th itself. The truth, however, is that the movies would be released as it were most profitable for the film makers and theaters playing the films.  It does appear that they attempted to get it close, however, the true release dates of the Friday the 13^th movies will surprise many fans.  Additionally, the plot of the films seem to draw very little connection to the ‘unlucky’ day, Friday the 13^th. Still, Horror Enthusiast mapped out the release dates in order to draw a fair conclusion.

List of Friday the 13^th Movie Release Dates

It is interesting that the Friday the 13^th movies were not released on Friday the 13^th. Here is a full list of the release dates of all Friday the 13^th movies.

• Friday the 13^th (1980) was released on May 9^th. While it was a Friday, it was not the 13^th.
• Friday the 13^th Part 2 (1981) was released on May 1^st. This was a Friday, but not the 13^th.
• Friday the 13^th Part III (1982) was released on August 13^th, the first movie to be released on an actual Friday the 13^th.
• Friday the 13^th: The Final Chapter (1984) was released on April 13^th, the second movie in the franchise to snag an authentic Friday the 13^th release date.
• Friday the 13^th: A New Beginning (1985) was released on March 22^nd, which was a Friday, but not the 13^th.
• Jason Lives: Friday the 13^th Part VI (1986) was released on August 1^st. Again, they secured a Friday but not a 13^th.
• Friday the 13^th Part VII: The New Blood (1988) released on May 13^th, a Friday, securing the third movie in the franchise with a genuine Friday the 13^th release date.
• Friday the 13^th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan (1989) was released on July 28^th, a Friday but not the 13^th.
• Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993) got released on August 13^th, a Friday and a 13^th. This becomes the 4^th movie in the franchise to have an authentic Friday the 13^th release date.
• Jason X (2001), aka “Jason in Space,” was released on April 26, which may have been a Friday, but was most certainly not a 13^th.
• Freddy vs Jason (2003) opened on August 15^th, a Friday but again, not a 13^th.
• Friday the 13^th (2009), the latest in the franchise, released on February the 13^th. This movie locks in the 5^th movie with an official Friday the 13^th release date.

Last Notes About the Friday the 13^th Release Dates

In the end, they got the release date right 5 times out of 12 movies.  That’s not that bad considering there are very few Friday the 13^th dates each year (if more than one at all). The movies themselves are not very much so based on the date. And it has even been speculated that the movie title was chosen as a way to capitalize on Halloween’s success. Still, however, the Friday the 13^th movies do quite well and wind up getting played across tons of TV networks and movie screens on Friday the 13^th itself!

Tritone

Tritone’s love of horror and mystery began at a young age. Growing up in the 80’s he got to see some of the greatest horror movies play out in the best of venues, the drive-in theater. That’s when his obsession with the genre really began—but it wasn’t just the movies, it was the games, the books, the comics, and the lore behind it all that really ignited his obsession. Tritone is a published author and continues to write and write about horror whenever possible.

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