Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (also known on screen as Jason Lives: Friday the 13th Part VI) is a 1986 American supernatural slasher film and the sixth installment in the "Friday the 13th" film series. It was written and directed by Tom McLoughlin. Although the original concept called for Tommy Jarvis, the protagonist of "" and "", to become the new villain, the poor fan reception of "A New Beginning" prompted the producers to bring back Jason Voorhees as the series' antagonist. In resurrecting Jason, McLoughlin made Jason an explicitly supernatural
Jason Voorhees ending, as he was available for the reshoot and had been the production's second choice to portray the role of Jason during the original casting. For the 2009 remake, stuntman Derek Mears was hired to portray Jason Voorhees at the recommendation of makeup special effects supervisor Scott Stoddard. Mears's pleasant demeanor had the studio worried about his ability to portray such a menacing character on screen, but Mears assured them he would be able to perform the role. When Mears auditioned for the role he was asked why they should hire an actor over just another guy in a mask.