In 'Crystal Lake,' Linda Cardellini gives Pamela Voorhees her turn in the slasher spotlight
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Set us as preferred Jason Voorhees has always been the face of the “Friday the 13th” horror universe.But if he could speak, the hockey-masked mass murderer likely would not hesitate to give his mother all of the gory.Pamela Voorhees (Betsy Palmer) was the original killer in the 1980 film, single-handedly knocking off several counselors at Camp Crystal Lake, where Jason drowned.
Working as a cook at the camp at the time, she blamed the counselors, who were off having sex instead of watching her son, and launched her murder spree after discovering the camp was reopening 22 years after the accident.Pamela was decapitated during a showdown with Alice Hardy (Adrienne King), the sole survivor of her rampage.Jason, who supposedly witnessed his mother’s killing, took up the blade, slaughtering his way through several bloody sequels.
And although Pamela has less than 15 minutes of screen time in the film, she continues to be celebrated by legions of “Friday the 13th” fans.As the 50th anniversary of the first film approaches, Pamela is finally getting her turn in the spotlight in “Crystal Lake.” The Peacock prequel stars Linda Cardellini as Pamela, tracing her traumatic journey from grieving mother to serial killer.The opening episode depicts her deep bond with young Jason (Callum Vinson), an outsider who has significant health issues and is bullied by other kids.It’s a lead role the veteran actor is not taking lightly.“When you’re playing an iconic character in a franchise loved by so many fans, it is daunting,” said Cardellini in an interview over video call.
“It’s a lot of responsibility, but it’s also a great responsibility.”Adding an extra dose of expectation was stepping into Palmer’s shoes.“Betsy Palmer gave this incredibly wild performance, and makes such a strong impression in such a short a...