Since the original Friday the 13th movie hit theaters in 1980, the horror film franchise has expanded into a total of 12 bloody slasher flicks in the last 30 years. The last one was a reboot in 2009.
Despite the large number of sequels over the last three decades, the Friday the 13th series hasn’t shown much diversity when it comes to Latinx talent. Only a handful of Latinx actors and characters have been featured in the franchise. Facetiously speaking, you’d think a series of movies with a machetero as its main killer would’ve called on filmmakers to recognize the weapon’s Latino history and ties to many political uprisings in Latin America.
Nevertheless, here’s a quick look at some of the Latinx actors and characters who have made an appearance in some of the Friday the 13th movies. Warning: the scenes are pretty gruesome.
Vera Sánchez
As far as we can tell, the first Latinx character in the franchise appeared in the third installment, 1982’s Friday the 13th Part III. Actress Catherine Parks played Vera, a member of the Wild Bunch who makes a trip to the infamous Crystal Lake. She meets her demise at the hands of hockey-mask-wearing Jason Voorhees when he shoots her through the eye with a spear, making her his 14th victim of the entire film series.
Loco
We’re actually not sure if Loco is Latino, but we’ll claim him anyway since this list is short. Loco, played by actor Kevin O’Brien, is a biker who is passing through the Crystal Lake area when he stops at a convenience store and causes a ruckus. Later, Jason impales him with a pitchfork in a barn and hangs him upside-down from a tree. Crazy, huh?
Demon Winter
In 1985’s Friday the 13th: A New Beginning, actor Miguel A. Núñez Jr. plays the troublemaking character who eats some bad enchiladas. He is impaled with a pole by new villain Roy Burns, who is impersonating Jason.
Dieter Perez
Jason is cryogenically frozen in space in the 2001 sequel Jason X. Based on Perez’s surname alone, we’ll guess that the space station inhabitant is at least part Latino. He thinks a frozen Jason might be worth some money but doesn’t get to cash in after the killer destroys the space station with him on board.
Charlie Linderman
Played by Cuban-American actor Chris Marquette in 2003’s Freddy vs. Jason, the dorky, asthmatic character manages to escape a massacre in a corn field but is later impaled by Jason with a metal bracket. This made Charlie the 150th victim killed by Jason in the entire franchise.
Lawrence
In the 2009 Friday the 13th reboot, Afro-Latino actor Arlen Escarpeta plays a stoner and wannabe rapper. During a trip outside to the tools shed to check on his missing friend, Jason hits him in the back with an ax and then throws him on top of a log, which makes the ax penetrate his chest.
Amanda
The reboot also introduces horror fans to actress America Olivo, who claims Chilean ancestry. After Amanda lathers herself in baby oil to get a guy’s attention, Jason finds her in a tent and roasts her over a campfire like a marshmallow.