Jason Voorhees Tattoo
Friday the 13th is a staple in the world of horror.
Even if you’ve never seen a single one of the films, chances are you know the name Jason Voorhees.
Besides giving a whole generation of people an irrational fear of goalie masks, it changed the landscape of horror cinema forever.
Friday the 13th is a darling of the horror movie fandom.
Since it was made in 1980, it has become many people’s first experience with scary movies.
Visit any horror movie convention and you’re bound to see at least one Jason Voorhees tattoo.
Although Jason Voorhees is an undead, unfeeling killing machine, he’s a sympathetic character to many.
Friday the 13th inspired many future films in the “slasher” genre- where watching good looking teens get massacred is a spot of fun with your friends.
Are you considering getting a Jason Voorhees tribute tattoo?
Maybe you’re wondering why anyone would idolize such a character.
Either way, there’s a lot to be said about the Friday the 13th franchise, and how it cemented itself into pop tattoo culture.
Unintentional Hero
Jason Voorhees was originally something of a McGuffin.
A McGuffin is a device (named after a character in a Hitchcock film) used mainly in horrors, thrillers, and suspenseful films.
It means a character or object causes things to happen to the characters in the film, but is fairly insignificant on his own.
A great example of a McGuffin is Laura Palmer in the Twin Peaks franchise.
Her death is the central conflict of the show, but she exists only to create a compelling plot for the central characters.
In the original Friday the 13th movie, it’s Jason’s mom who kills all the teens.
We see their deaths through a POV (point of view) shot of the killer, without seeing the killer herself till the end. No hockey masks, no undead murderers.
Mrs. Voorhees works at the camp and is traumatized because her son Jason drowned there years ago.
The camp counselors, being too busy having teenage sex to do their job, did not notice Jason struggling in the water.
The camp closes but eventually re-opens again, inspiring Mama Voorhees to seek her revenge on all those hormonal teenage counselors who dare fool around at camp.
The intention was never to have Jason as the protagonist or villain, he was a victim much like Laura Palmer.
But people couldn’t get enough of the little guy!
The franchise has 11 films under its belt to date, and the original villain, murderous Mama Voorhees, dies in film one.
It was the first sequel that showed us that Jason is still alive (kind of.) He’s grown since we last saw him. He’s a man.
An unkillable, mostly unhurtable, giant man.
By the third movie Jason was given his hockey mask and the rest is history.
Why do We Love Jason Voorhees?
The reason behind Jason’s popularity isn’t so hard to figure out.
While some people spend their teen years as successful, good looking types with boyfriends and girlfriends, the majority of teens feel like misfits.
It can be a difficult time, and it’s easy to take sick pleasure in seeing the popular kids go down.
Common Themes in Jason Voorhees Tattoos
There are limitless options when it comes to a Jason Voorhees tattoo, so go ahead and let your freak flag fly.
Most people opt for highly saturated New School tattoo portraits when it comes to iconic characters like these, but it could also be fun as an old school traditional or graffiti style design.
It all depends on how much space you want the tattoo to take up, and how much you want to spend.
A cute, cartoon-ish design or an old school looking tattoo can be less intricate, so it takes up less space and won’t cost the same as a portrait.
Portrait tattoos need a lot of room for all the details, so we’re talking multiple appointments and dollars.
There are just a few aspects of Jason’s character that have to be acknowledged in his portrayal:
Hockey Mask
It’s rare that a sequel is more iconic than the original, but a lot of people are surprised to find out it took 3 films to get Jason his goalie mask.
This is something of a Phantom of the Opera scenario: Jason had a disfigured face and uses this mask to hide his deformities from the world.
The movie justifies the mask by having Jason find it and, liking it better than his burlap sack alternative, change into it.
But the real reason behind the mask is that the movies were pretty low budget, makeup is expensive, and it’s easier to wear a mask than a burlap sack with an eye-hole in it.
Still, pretty spooky look!
Machete
Jason Voorhees has the highest kill count in all of horror cinema.
Though he uses different weapons and methods of killing, there’s no weapon more signature to the franchise than a machete.
It is a suitable nod to the first film as both the weapon of choice for Mother Voorhees, and the one that eventually decapitates her.
Jason Voorhees Tattoo Ideas
If you’re a horror movie junkie, a Jason Voorhees tattoo will show your dedication to the world.
He’s such an iconic character, there won’t be any question who you’re paying tribute to- so if you don’t like a lot of questions this may be a nice option!
Still undecided?
Check out our gallery for a little spooky inspiration!
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