When Manfredini returned for the first sequel, he had an easier time composing since he only needed to perfect what he had already created. Over the course of the sequels, Manfredini loosened the philosophy that the theme should be reserved just for the killer. Manfredini describes the style of the sequels as more of a "setting 'em up and knocking 'em down" approach, which meant that there were more "McGuffins and red‑herrings" that required the killer's theme music be played to try to trick the audience. Manfredini explains, "The original had the real myopic approach, and then we had to start thinking of the sequels as more conventional films." For "Part 3", Manfredini only returned to score the first and last reels of the film because he was busy with a Broadway production. Jack Tillar pieced together portions of the score from the first two films to fill the remaining time for "Part 3", while Michael Zagar composed an opening and closing theme. Manfredini and Zagar met at the latter's apartment, where Zagar rescored the original opening theme using a disco beat. Manfredini returned for "The Final Chapter", and although there were similar elements to the score, everything was newly recorded for the fourth "Friday the 13th".