Timelines of Terror

<p> How did <I>Friday the 13th</I> begin as a movie about a grieving mother killing camp counselors and spawn a movie in which a nanobot enhanced hockey masked man destroys a space station? Similarly how did <I>A Nightmare on Elm Street</I> evolve from a film by Wes Craven about Freddy Krueger into a film about Wes Craven making a Freddy Krueger movie? Film series are destined to change with time but horror film series are often unrecognizable after multiple sequels and reboots.</p><p> This work examines horror films and their sequels to determine the glue that holds individual franchises together which films matter to a series' continuity which should be considered as canon and what goes into the process of continuing--or in some cases abandoning--the overarching storyline. Series covered include <I>Friday the 13th Halloween Child's Play A Nightmare on Elm Street Leprechaun</I> and <I>Scream.</I></p>