Jason Voorhees' Father Never Appears in the Movies - But He Does in a Friday the 13th Crossover with Texas Chainsaw Massacre

In an epic horror franchise comic book crossover, the father of Jason Voorhees managed to make his Friday the 13th debut without anyone noticing. One longstanding question on every Friday the 13th fan's mind has been this: what happened to Jason's father? Jason's mother, Pamela, has a domineering presence throughout the franchise, even after she dies, yet his father barely gets mentioned.

Jason vs. Leatherface #2 – written by Nancy Collins, with art by David Imhoff – finally provided an answer, as Elias, the father of Jason Voorhees, makes his debut. While the exact place in continuity of this crossover is questionable – especially when it misnames Jason's mother as "Doris" – it's the closest fans get to canonizing Elias Voorhees.

At the very least, the character's role in the crossover provides some additional context for how he might appear in future Friday the 13th film installments.

Elias Voorhees Finally Made His "Friday The 13th" Debut In A Crossover Comic With "Texas Chainsaw Massacre"

Jason vs. Leatherface #2 – Written By Nancy Collins; Art By David Imhoff, Jeff Butler, Steve Montano, Renee Witterstaetter, & Electric Crayon

In Jason vs. Leatherface #2, a drainage of the lake that Jason is chained underneath leads to the infamous slasher inexplicably washing up on Texas, where a chance encounter with the Hitchhiker and Leatherface leads to him being indoctrinated into the Sawyer Family. Throughout the second issue, watching the Hitchhiker bully his brother, Bubba prompts Jason to have a flashback to one of the most traumatizing moments of his young life, in which the young boy is severely beaten by his father, Elias, until he runs to his mother's room for her protection.

And protect him she does – as Elias Voorhees stalks his son, yelling obscenities and slurs in an angry, drunken stupor at the boy, Elias opens the door to find Jason's mother...who, for some reason, is nothing like Pamela in name or appearance. As Jason cowers behind "Doris Voorhees," she proceeds to kill Elias with a machete to his head, in the process creating an immediate connection in Friday lore, serving to explain why Jason seems so attached to using machetes to kill.

Why Fans Haven't Encountered Jason's Father In Any Friday the 13th Movies

Elias Nearly Appeared On Screen Several Times

Jason's father has become something of a legend in the space of the Friday the 13th franchise; not in a glorified sense, but a legend as in there's doubt if the man ever existed at this point. It is extremely rare for the man to be mentioned at all in the franchise, particularly the movies. Granted, that wasn't always by design. Victor Miller, the writer of the original Friday the 13th, has spoken publicly on the matter, saying that there just wasn't any time to incorporate Jason's father – even so much as part of the Voorhees' family backstory – into the movie.

As a result, the mystery of Elias Voorhees has developed a life of its own in many ways, particularly as to how different forms of media explain both the character and his absence. More often than not, Elias is portrayed as abusive to Pamela Voorhees, usually abandoning the family as a result of Pam's obsession with her son; or alternatively, the obsession manifests as a result of his departure. Friday the 13th: The Game, for example, suggests that Pamela used Elias to escape an abusive relationship, only to find out Elias himself was abusive.

It's worth noting that Mr. Voorhees was meant to make an official onscreen debut in Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives. He was originally written into the movie, but his scenes never made the final production, and thus were never filmed (although the deleted scene is recreated through storyboard art and the voice of Bob Larkin in the role for the movie's DVD special features). Jason Lives would've depicted Elias in a more sympathetic role, paying Martin the Caretaker to care after his wife and son's grave, only to be horrified to learn the latter is missing from his.

Another Friday the 13th Comic Took Direct Inspiration From "Jason Vs. Leatherface"

DC Comics' Pamela's Tale – Written By Marc Andreyko, With Art By Shawn Moll.

It's also notable that under their Wildstorm imprint, DC Comics released an origin story for Elias Voorhees of their own. It is a two-part prequel limited series called Friday the 13th: Pamela's Tale. This miniseries recontextualizes Pamela picking up hitchhiking Annie as the then-offscreen killer in the first movie, giving Pam someone to tell her origin story to on the drive to Camp Crystal Lake. The story flashes back to September 1947 in Cadiz, Ohio as Elias Voorhees arrives home to his new wife.

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In Pamela's Tale, Elias is an abusive miner who would regularly batter and assault Pamela Voorhees. His violent nature is depicted as so brutal that she is too afraid to even tell Elias she was pregnant, out of fear for what he would do to her and their baby. Under the impression that young Jason is talking to her in her stomach, urging her to kill, she takes an ax to Elias' head while he is sleeping. If this sounds familiar, it's because it is almost verbatim what happens to Elias in Jason vs. Leatherface, only trading a machete for an ax.

Friday The 13th Comics Flesh Out Franchise Lore In Ways The Movies Couldn't

Expanding & Exploring The Series' Canon

Custom image Simone Ashmoore.

What makes this so noteworthy is that remnants of this 2007 origin story seem to have carried over from that seen in the 1995 crossover comic, Jason vs. Leatherface. The influence of Jason vs. Leatherface unexpectedly seems to have weaved its way into other forms of media, specifically when it comes to how other forms decide to depict Jason's father. Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday is the first to give a name to Jason's father in canon, but Jason vs. Leatherface is the first to give a description of the man, and show his face.

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Multiple times in the movies, attempts have been made to canonize Jason's father into the lore of the movies, and yet, all of those attempts failed seeing as there still is no onscreen appearance for Elias Voorhees. This comic crossover is the closest that the franchise has come to canonizing Jason's father into the franchise. Considering how subsequent stories would borrow elements of this origin story, it's safe to say that this depiction of Elias is generally accepted within the canon of Friday the 13th.

As said earlier, the origin story that DC Comics produced borrows the element of Pamela killing Elias out of love for Jason. In fact, just about all Friday the 13th media takes the stance that Elias, in some way or another, was abusive either to Pamela, Jason, or both. Since this appears to be the earliest depiction of Elias Voorhees, it's hard to argue against the idea that so many of these stories were inspired by Jason vs. Leatherface, which says a lot when not even a deleted scene intended for Friday the 13th Part VI inspires any of these incarnations.

Friday the 13th

The Friday the 13th film franchise is a chilling saga centered around the cursed Camp Crystal Lake and the supernatural serial killer Jason Voorhees. Known for his iconic hockey mask and relentless brutality, Jason is a nigh-indestructible force driven by vengeance. The series follows different groups of teenagers who encounter Jason, leading to gruesome fates. Spanning several decades and various settings, from Camp Crystal Lake to the bustling streets of Manhattan, the franchise combines supernatural elements with slasher horror.