When "Jason Takes Manhattan" failed to perform successfully at the box office, Sean Cunningham decided that he wanted to reacquire the rights to "Friday the 13th" from Paramount and start working with New Line Cinema on "Freddy vs. Jason", as New Line owned the "Nightmare on Elm Street" franchise. The concept of a fight between Freddy and Jason was not new, since Paramount had approached New Line about filming a crossover years before the latter had gained the licensing rights to "Friday the 13th". At that time, both companies wanted the license to the other's character so that they could control the making of the film. Negotiations on the project were never finalized, which led Paramount to make "The New Blood". After "Jason Takes Manhattan" was released in 1989, the rights reverted to Scuderi, Minasian, and Barsamianto, who sold them to New Line. Before Cunningham could start working on "Freddy vs. Jason", Wes Craven returned to New Line to make "New Nightmare". This effectively put "Freddy vs. Jason" on hold, but allowed Cunningham the chance to bring Jason back into the spotlight with "Jason Goes to Hell". The ninth installment "turned a healthy profit", though it was only intended to open the door for a crossover with Freddy Krueger rather than to start a new series for New Line. Ultimately, the film series would go through another sequel before that would happen.