Jason Voorhees is the iconic hockey mask-wearing antagonist of the Friday The 13th franchise, though there are many times his headwear has been removed to show the gruesome face beneath. When anyone thinks of Jason Voorhees, the image of the iconic hockey mask instantly comes to mind. However, for the fans, the face behind the mask is always a highlight. Usually saved until the climactic final act, Jason’s face is revealed, and over the course of eleven movies, each unmasked Jason is unique.
When Jason Voorhees was first seen in the final moments of 1980’s Friday The 13th, he emerged from Camp Crystal Lake to drag final girl, Alice, down into the depths. While this was only a dream, and the creature that grabbed her had no mask, Alice correctly predicted that Jason was still alive. Sure enough, he returned — this time as the main antagonist — in 1981’s Friday The 13th Part 2, though it wouldn’t be until the next entry that he donned the iconic Jason Voorhees hockey mask. The sequel also started the tradition of Jason Voorhees unmasking scenes, which have become a franchise staple in the entries since.
1
The Precursor Jason
Friday The 13th Part 2 (1981)
1981’s Friday The 13th Part 2 didn’t have Jason wearing his iconic hockey mask. This was before the franchise found its footing in many ways, though Jason did have his face covered for most of the movie by a burlap sack (which was, in its own way, equally terrifying). Not everything about this version of Jason would carry over into future sequels, though it did introduce a franchise staple that lasted — the grand reveal of Jason’s face as he leaps through a window.
The first unmasked Jason Voorhees reveal came at the movie’s climax when Ginny (Amy Steel) and Paul (Jon Furey) hole up in a cabin and, mistakenly, think they’re finally safe. This is when Jason, without his sack, bursts through a window. What happens next isn’t clear, as Ginny then awakens in an ambulance with Paul nowhere to be found, mirroring the ending of the first movie somewhat.
While effective in Friday The 13th Part 2, this version of Jason did not age well. The long red hair, the beard, and the overall farmer look make Jason without his mask look more akin to a Wrong Turn or The Hills Have Eyes character. Still, it did the job of a good scare and planted the seeds for better versions of Jason to come.
2
Proto-Jason
Friday The 13th Part 3 (1982)
It wasn’t until the third film that Jason finally dons the iconic hockey mask that he is known for. It was also in Friday The 13th Part 3 that the blueprint for Jason’s look was established: tall, muscular, bald, and imposing. The third movie ditched a lot of the Jason Voorhees design from the previous film in the franchise, with the only returning feature from Part 2 is the deformed eye.
His creepy grin and the speed of Jason do a fantastic job of giving the audience one final scare before the credits roll.
The unmasked Jason is used quite effectively in Friday The 13th Part 3, and there are multiple moments when Jason Voorhees shows his true face. It’s also clear that the silent menace is aware of just how terrifying his deformed features are, as he uses them to scare his many victims.
At one point, he takes off his mask to taunt a character, Chris (Dana Kimmell), he had attempted to murder a few years prior to the events of the movie. The most memorable unmasking scene in the third Friday The 13th movie is when he recovers from his ax wound to chase after Chris trying to escape on the boat. Even though it turns out to be a dream, his creepy grin and the speed of Jason do a fantastic job of giving the audience one final scare before the credits roll.
3
The Definitive Jason
Friday The 13th Part IV: The Final Chapter (1984)
Richard Brooker revolutionized Jason in Friday The 13th Part 3, but it was Ted White’s portrayal of Jason in Friday The 13th Part IV that perfected him and gave audiences the version of Jason Voorhees as modern audiences know him today. With special-effects artist Tom Savini behind the scenes, the look of Jason was enhanced, keeping everything that made Part 3‘s Jason so memorable and improving on it.
The Jason unmasking scene in Friday The 13th Part IV came after Tommy Jarvis (Corey Feldman) tricks Jason, allowing his sister Trish (Kimberly Beck) to use Jason’s own machete to knock off the mask.
When Jason was seen without his mask in Friday The 13th Part IV, it was clear that the franchise had started to lean into Jason Voorhees as a being not entirely human. He was gnarled, scarred, and had clearly sustained injuries that would have killed a mere mortal. While it didn’t fully confirm that Jason was a supernatural or superhuman presence, his appearance was completely removed from the Deliverance-like mountain man visage seen in Friday the 13th Part 2.
The Jason unmasking scene in Friday The 13th Part IV came after Tommy Jarvis (Corey Feldman) tricks Jason, allowing his sister Trish (Kimberly Beck) to use Jason’s own machete to knock off the mask. Then Tommy embeds the blade right in Jason Voorhees’ head, making him fall right on the machete to deal even more damage and show off more of Savini’s great work. For many, Part IV featured the quintessential human version of Jason.
4
The Fake Jason
Friday The 13th Part V: A New Beginning (1985)
Technically, this Friday The 13th unmasking scene doesn’t count, since it is not Jason Voorhees beneath the hockey mask in Friday The 13th Part V. It is a paramedic named Roy Burns going on a killing spree after his son was killed. However, in the context of Friday The 13th Part V: The New Beginning, the identity of this Jason is kept as a mystery until the climax.
The move away from Jason Voorhees to a new killer wasn’t well received.
It’s clear that, since Friday The 13th Part IV was intended to be the final chapter in the franchise when it released in 1984, the studio felt that to continue they needed to try something new. However, the move away from Jason Voorhees to a new killer wasn’t well received. Friday The 13th Part V may have been inventive by trying to incorporate mystery elements, but it was a move that ultimately fell flat.
Roy Burns is unmasked when he is killed. It’s an unmasking that left many Friday The 13th fans disappointed and confused. Not only did Roy Burns dress up like Jason, but he wore a fancy prosthetic to make his head look like Jason’s head. The twist ending that left a sour taste in fans’ mouths, but the movie has its followers.
5
Resurrected Jason
Friday The 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (1986)
After Part V disappointed fans, the franchise decided to return to its roots and reintroduce Jason Voorhees. Jason returned with a bang in Friday The 13th Part VI — literally, as Tommy Jarvis (Thom Matthews) accidentally revives Jason via a lightning bolt. However, the 6th entry also broke from tradition somewhat by not having an unmasking scene, at least not in the way that previous installments had included one.
This was the point in the franchise that Jason Voorhees fully became a supernatural being, and the only downside is that audiences weren’t given a clearer look at his face.
Jason remains masked throughout Jason Lives, but his face is shown at the beginning before he regains his iconic hockey mask. Hidden mainly in the shadows, the few clear looks at the decayed undead Jason are actually scary. Jason resembles a zombie who would not be out of place in George A. Romero’s zombie movies. This was the point in the franchise that Jason Voorhees fully became a supernatural being, and the only downside is that audiences weren’t given a clearer look at his face.
6
Zombie Jason
Friday The 13th Part VII: The New Blood (1987)
While the sixth movie didn’t show much of the undead Jason Voorhees without his mask, the same can’t be said for the sequel, 1987’s Friday The 13th Part VII: The New Blood. Much like with Part 3 and Part 4, The New Blood takes what Jason Lives established and dials it up to eleven. Not only is the undead Jason back, but the movie introduces several other supernatural elements to the franchise like telekinesis.
What she finds beneath is a decaying Jason Voorhees missing his nose, an eye, and multiple teeth.
These telekinetic powers (which are wielded by Lar Park Lincoln’s character Tina) are what lead to the unmasking scene in the seventh Friday the 13th movie. Shortly before the climax, Tina uses her abilities to shatter Jason’s hockey mask. What she finds beneath is a decaying Jason Voorhees missing his nose, an eye, and multiple teeth. Jason Voorhees’ face in The New Blood is gnarly and disturbing, with his maskless features exposed for a majority of the climax and played perfectly by Kane Hodder.
The New Blood version of Jason is much more damaged, rotten, and even more fitting of a zombie description. Though it was not Tom Savini, John Carl Buechler is easily the best follow-up to him. If Part IV has the definitive human Jason, The New Blood has the definitive undead Jason.
7
Slimy Jason
Friday The 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan (1988)
The next time Jason Voorhees was seen without his mask was in Friday The 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan. However, whereas Part VII’s unmasking scene was celebrated by the fandom, Part VIII’s was received poorly by many (though it did have its own fans, who saw the take as novel and visually striking).
In a drastic downgrade, Jason Takes Manhattan was given a much lower budget. Everything about Jason was reduced in comparison to The New Blood. The overall design of the character without the mask on has fans split. Some loved the slimy look to Jason Voorhees in Jason Takes Manhattan, while others found it too simple and cheap.
Rather than an intricate zombie design, Jason’s face looks like someone took a Halloween decoration and melted it. Some viewers found that Jason looked laughable and made an already hated sequel even worse for many fans. However, others felt that the slimy, thoroughly decomposed Jason Voorhees suited that character, especially with his backstory and history of being drowned in Camp Crystal Lake.
8
Unfrozen Jason
Jason X (2001)
In a franchise such as Friday The 13th with so many entries, it was inevitable that one movie would go into space. Jason X is seen as proof for many that slasher movies set in space don’t work, and if any Friday The 13th movie could be described as the moment the franchise jumped the shark, it’s this one. However, while Jason X has very little going for it compared to its predecessors, it does feature one of the best views of Jason Voorhees without his mask.
When Jason is unthawed by scientists in the distant future, Jason’s face is shown only briefly during an autopsy. Surprisingly, in a movie where everything is so cheap and tacky, Jason’s face is a superb practical effect. Unfortunately, it does not match anything seen prior in the films and comes off more like a mutated Jason rather than an undead. The face never appears again, and Uber Jason (as he becomes later in the movie) is given no unmasking.
9
Back To Roots Jason
Friday The 13th (2009)
In the 2009 Friday The 13th reboot, Jason Voorhees is back to his human form and played by Derek Mears. After the flop that was Jason X, the franchise spent several years licking its wounds before returning almost a decade later to take things back to their roots. the 2009 Friday The 13th is much more in-line with the earlier entries in the franchise, including its portrayal of Jason Voorhees. In the reboot he’s fast, deadly, and a rather cunning hunter.
Paying respect to his debut in Part 2, Jason starts with a sack mask which is torn off when he attacks the farmer. This is the only time Jason’s face is shown, and like in Jason Lives, it’s kept in the shadows. An odd choice since the special effects are pretty good in behind-the-scenes photos and the few glimpses seen in the movie. It would mark the last time fans have seen Jason’s face in a Friday the 13th movie, though if the franchise receives another sequel or reboot it will also likely include another unmasking scene.
Which Unmasked Jason Look Is Considered The Best
When it comes to the most iconic face of Jason Voorhees without his hockey mask, there are generally two schools of thought among the fanbase. Opinions tend to be divided between those who see Jason as an undead monster and expect a lot of decay and damage to his face, and those who see him as more of a supernatural-but-still-human entity. While there’s relatively no contest that the worst unmasking scene was in 1985’s Friday The 13th Part V: A New Beginning, since Jason’s face wasn’t the one being revealed, there is some debate about the best.
For those who prefer the zombified corpse-like look for the character, 1987’s Friday The 13th Part VII: The New Blood is widely considered to be the best look for unmasked Jason. His face captures everything that the Friday The 13th character represents, as he’s essentially positioned as a borderline-superpowered zombie with a taste for stabbing people instead of consuming flesh. Many fans who view Jason Voorhees as an undead character see this as the best unmasking scene in the Friday The 13th franchise.
However, there are also those who don’t believe Jason Voorhees looks best unmasked when he’s decaying and clearly an animated corpse. These fans tend to be those who prefer the earlier entries in the franchise, when Jason was more tied to his roots as a bullied child at Camp Crystal Lake. From this perspective, the definitive unmasking moment is likely 1984’s Friday The 13th Part IV: The Final Chapter.
Jason’s unmasking scene in the 4th Friday The 13th movie revealed a gnarled and scarred face that wasn’t free from wounds or blemishes, but was also still clearly human. What’s more, the deformities and abnormalities that had made his childhood so miserable were still clear and apparent. While Jason was inarguably a supernatural being by this point, the character design hadn’t yet been shifted into full-blown pseudo-zombie territory. For fans who prefer there to still be a little bit of the man behind the mask left, The Final Chapter is easily the best Jason Voorhees unmasked look in the Friday The 13th franchise.
10
Crystal Lake And A New Friday The 13th Movie
Jason Vorhees’ story continues on the small screen with Crystal Lake, a prequel series from A24 and Peacock. All eight episodes premiered on Peacock on October 15, 2026, with Linda Cardellini starring as Pamela Voorhees and Callum Vinson playing a young Jason. Set in 1971, the series follows Pamela in the year after Jason’s drowning in Crystal Lake, long before the events of 1980’s Friday The 13th.
A 13th Friday The 13th movie is also in the works. Robbie Barsamian, Horror Inc. vice president, confirmed at 2025’s San Diego Comic-Con that a new movie was in development. In March 2026, franchise co-creator Sean Cunningham told TMZ that a treatment for an “old school” Jason movie was finished. Cunningham said that he and Victor Miller had resolved their dispute, and he hoped the merger between Warner Bros. and Paramount would help move the project forward, since both studios hold rights to the franchise.
