Friday the 13th is a popular series of American slasher films. All of the films feature Jason Voorhees either as the killer or as the motivation or inspiration for the killings. The original film was produced and directed by Sean S. Cunningham. Afterwards, the franchise was taken up by Frank Mancuso Jr. during its time with Paramount. When it was sold to New Line Cinema, Cunningham returned to oversee the franchise. Victor Miller, the writer of the original film, claims to have never seen any of the sequels.