Director Dan Trachtenberg has spent the last few years orchestrating high-stakes alien hunts in the Predator franchise (Prey, Predator: Badlands). But for his next trick, he’s swapping gory sci-fi decapitations for family-friendly animated chaos. Trachtenberg is officially headed back into the world of animation to direct a horror-comedy project for Paramount Animation, based on the graphic novel Freddy the 13th by Yehudi Mercado.
The best way to pitch the premise? Imagine if Uncle Buck accidentally stumbled into a Friday the 13th movie and left with a body count.
The Santa Clause, But Make It Murder
According to Deadline, the upcoming animated feature—which is technically untitled at the moment—follows a family vacation that takes a sharp detour into a living nightmare when the fun-loving, highly irresponsible Uncle Freddy accidentally kills the local Boogeyman. As a result, he inadvertently inherits his supernatural powers.
Yehudi Mercado’s original graphic novel pads out the hilarious, high-stakes misery:
When an unlucky, horror-obsessed schlub accidentally terminates the legendary slasher known as “Nighty Night,” he instantly inherits the monster’s mantle. The timing couldn’t be worse: he’s currently stuck babysitting his niece and nephew for thirteen straight nights of terror. To make matters crazier, rival cinematic killers are crawling out of the woodwork to steal the Boogeyman throne. To save his skin and break the curse, Freddy has to survive a cross-country road trip, protect his family, and prove to the world that he’s finally good at something—even if that “something” is being the ultimate creature of the night.
Sclhubs, Scares, and Parental Approval
Trachtenberg took to Instagram to celebrate the career pivot, perfectly summing up his filmography shift:
“I’ve spent most of my career making movies that parents probably shouldn’t show their kids. I’m finally making one… they… can…?”
While the movie might be aiming for a family-friendly rating, the goal is to deliver a balanced diet of legitimate spooky-season scares and laugh-out-loud comedy that won’t require a therapy fund for the younger viewers.
Stay tuned for more updates on this animated slash-fest, Freddy the 13th, as Paramount drops them. Just remember to pack extra snacks for the road trip—and watch out for rival killers at the rest stops.
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