Freaky: The Children’s Book That Inspired The Horror Movie – Screen Rant

Christopher Landon's Freaky provides the horror/comedy sub-genre with fresh blood, but takes its primary inspiration from a classic children's book.

Blumhouse's newest horror-comedyFreakyputs a gory spin on the ages-old body swap trope, butdespite all of its bloody murders, the movie is, in fact, based on a children's book.Freaky Friday, written by Mary Rodgers and first released in 1972, has the honor of serving as the basis for both a line of family-friendly Disney movies as well the satirical slasher romp.

Freakyfollows the violent and chaotic hijinx that ensues after a meek high school student, played by rising genre star Kathryn Newton from Netflix'sThe Societyand HBO'sBig Little Lies, switches places with a ruthless serial killer played by Vince Vaughn.It's odd to think that a slasher movie shares the same source material asfour separate Disney films, but that's part of the irreverent appeal. The film's working title wasFreaky Friday the 13th, implying that the story isas much a parody of the famed slasher series as it is a riff on a trope traditionally found in whimsical children's films.

Related:Freaky Cast Guide: Where You've Seen The Actors Before

To be fair, this isn't the first time aFreaky Fridayadaptation has shared DNA with a slasher movie. Jamie Lee Curtis, who got her start as iconic final girl Laurie Strode inHalloween,was praised for her Lindsay Lohan impression in the 2003 iteration, which is probably the most well-known and beloved movie version of the story. Beyond this, there was a 1976 version of Rodgers' story starring a young Jodie Foster, a made-for-television ABC Family remake in 1995 withCheersstar Shelley Long, and even a musical version that premiered on the Disney Channel in 2018. However,Freaky Fridayserving as the inspiration for Landon's newest genre-bending slasher outing is certainly an interesting connection.

The legacy of Rodgers' original novel may now be overshadowed by the Disney adaptations that followed afterward,butFreaky Fridaydid help to establish the modern body swap comedy. The original story focused primarily on the daughter character, who learns a lesson regarding the difficulties of maternal care. It'sthe mother that initiates the switch in the 2003 version in order to mendthefractious relationship with her daughter. However, later versions placed the mother and daughter on equal footing as they both struggle to operate in each other's shoes.

TheFreaky Fridaynovelwasn't the firstnarrative to utilize the body swapdevice. A Victorian-era novel published in 1882 calledVice Versa: A Lesson to Fatherstells essentially the same story with the opposite genders, but Rodgers' story did most firmly establish this particular type of tale. Theidea has been rehashed so oftenmost notoriously in a sitcom settingthat it often comes across as trite.Freaky, though, is clearly poking fun at the body swapping mechanic through the lens of a slasher flick.The characters who switchplaces inFreaky Fridayend up learning valuable lessons about identityand the importance of each other's roles. Likewise, the protagonist ofFreakyembraces a newfound confidence and becomes the hero of her own horror movie. Horror has taken on meta angles before, and is often known for poking fun at its own weak points, so Landon's decision to employ Freaky Fridayin a different light is a welcome change. However, in this instance, the biggest difference between the twobody swap storieslies in the body count.

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Freaky: The Children's Book That Inspired The Horror Movie - Screen Rant

Reviewed and Recommended by Erik Baquero