Friday the 13th: The Series is a fantasy horror television series that ran for three seasons, from October 3, 1987, to May 26, 1990, in first-run syndication. The series follows Micki and Ryan, cousins who inherit an antiques store; after selling all the antiques, they learn from Jack Marshak that the items are cursed. The trio then work together to recover the objects and return them to the safety of the shop's vault.
Originally, the series was to be titled The 13th Hour, but producer Frank Mancuso, Jr. thought this would turn away viewers and instead took the name Friday the 13th to deliberately draw in audiences. Despite this title, the series has no story connections to the film series of the same title, as Jason Voorhees does not make an appearance, nor does any character connected to the films.
The series and the films have several cast and crew ties, however. The show's producer, Frank Mancuso, Jr., was producer of the film series from Friday the 13th Part II (1981) until the final installment distributed by Paramount (Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan in 1989, a year before the TV series ended). One of the show's stars, John D. LeMay, went on to star in Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday, guest star John Shepherd played Tommy Jarvis in Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning, and episode director David Cronenberg appeared in Jason X. Fred Mollin, Rob Hedden, and Tom McLoughlin worked behind the scenes of both series.