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Critics review Peacock's Friday the 13th prequel Crystal Lake: Cardellini praised, story divides

Reviews of Peacock and A24's eight-episode Friday the 13th prequel Crystal Lake, which streams on 15 October, broadly praise Linda Cardellini's lead performance but split on its pacing and its new Voorhees family backstory.

9 outlets · 3L · 5C · 1R First reported Account updated
Image: Variety
Image: /Film
Image: IndieWire
Image: New York Post
Image: TVLine
Image: The Hollywood Reporter
Image: Collider
Image: Screen Rant

1 / 8

The story, neutrally told

Mixed · 2Critics published reviews on 13 October of Crystal Lake, an eight-episode prequel to the 1980 film Friday the 13th. Peacock, with A24, will release all episodes on Thursday, 15 October. Mixed · 2Brad Caleb Kane, who also ran It: Welcome to Derry, is the showrunner. Screen Rant says he took over after Bryan Fuller left the project. Mixed · 2Linda Cardellini plays Pamela Voorhees, who in the original film was the killer, played by Betsy Palmer. The series follows her after her young son Jason (Callum Vinson) drowns at Camp Crystal Lake and his body is never found.

Mixed · 3The story moves the drowning to the early 1970s. Variety places the main action in 1972, and Screen Rant and /Film note that this shifts Jason's drowning from the late 1950s of the film's lore. Mysterious men then arrive in town asking about Pamela's past, bodies start to appear, and the local lawman Levon Brooks (William Catlett) investigates. Mixed · 3All eight reviews credit Cardellini's performance as the series' strongest element. The Hollywood Reporter calls it the best Friday the 13th-adjacent performance to date, Collider calls it one of the year's best horror performances, and the New York Post says she elevates the material. Centre · 3Several critics also mention the gory kills, 1970s setting and nods to the original films, including original music from Harry Manfredini in the title sequence.

Mixed · 3Overall verdicts range widely. /Film calls it "the most thrillingly inventive 'Friday the 13th' entry in years" and its favourite horror series of 2026, and Screen Rant calls it a worthy prequel. The Hollywood Reporter says it is the best Friday the 13th property yet, "which isn't saying a lot". TVLine finds it fun but flawed, IndieWire argues that its kills are undermined by an underbaked story, and the New York Post calls it a middling show. Left · 3Pacing draws criticism from most reviewers. The Hollywood Reporter describes a multi-episode lag, Variety calls the show sluggish, TVLine cites extreme lag, IndieWire says it is hard to sustain tension over eight hours, and the New York Post says it spends a lot of time spinning its wheels. Collider faults the side characters who eat up screen time. Left · 3The new backstory in the flashback episode (Episode 7, set in 1959 according to Variety) divides critics. Variety calls it the best episode, The Hollywood Reporter says it was the one hour it loved unreservedly, the New York Post calls it the standout, and /Film says the mystery pays off spectacularly. IndieWire says it answers every question too simply and could be the place to start, TVLine finds it overlong with shaky lore, Collider says it veers into wild sci-fi, and Screen Rant says it convolutes Jason's backstory.

Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.

Left3 outlets

Framing
Three left-leaning trade outlets (The Hollywood Reporter, IndieWire, Variety) weigh the show against the franchise and prestige-TV prequel formulas. They praise Cardellini and the violence but criticise pacing and structure.
Emphasis
Pacing, the structure of the flashback episode, comparisons with other prequel series, and themes such as women's rage and 1970s paranoia.
Leaves out or plays down
Say little about the series' production history, such as Bryan Fuller's exit.
Charged language
“Bold and Bloody”“Underbaked Story”“Over-the-Top Kills”
For example
“Best ‘Friday the 13th’ Property Yet (Which Isn’t Saying a Lot)” — The Hollywood Reporter
“Over-the-Top Kills Succumb to an Underbaked Story” — IndieWire
““Crystal Lake” is grisly and gory, but it’s not a horror series.” — Variety

Centre5 outlets

Framing
Four centre outlets (TVLine, /Film, Collider, Screen Rant) write fan-oriented reviews that lean favourable. They emphasise Easter eggs, lore changes and Cardellini, with reservations about the new origin material.
Emphasis
Homages to the original films, the timeline shift, fan reaction to lore changes, and the campy fun of the kills.
Leaves out or plays down
Less attention to the show's structure as a prestige-TV prequel, except TVLine on the overlong flashback episode.
Charged language
“Thrilling”“Fun, But Flawed”“Worthy Prequel”“Officially Changes Friday the 13th Lore”
For example
“Crystal Lake Review: A Thrilling Friday The 13th Origin Series” — /Film
“Fun, But Flawed Friday The 13th Prequel” — TVLine
“Crystal Lake Is A Worthy Prequel That Forever Changes Friday The 13th’s Foundation” — Screen Rant

Right1 outlet

Framing
The New York Post gives a short, lukewarm consumer-guide review: a middling gore-fest elevated by Cardellini and recommended mainly to franchise fans.
Emphasis
Scattered plotting, blood and gore, and the standout penultimate backstory episode; asks whether it would have worked better as a movie.
Leaves out or plays down
Does not discuss the lore or timeline changes in depth, or the period themes other reviewers stress.
Charged language
“violent gore-fest”“mediocre”“slasher schlock”“throwing spaghetti at the wall”
For example
“The new “Friday the 13th” prequel series is a violent gore-fest that intermittently takes a stab at having a meaningful plot.” — New York Post
“If you’re not especially attached to the franchise, however, and you just want a quality horror show, it might be better to skip this one.” — New York Post

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