Who would win, Michael Myers or Jason Voorhees?

Before Freddy Krueger injected his brand of dark humor into the slasher genre, the medium was dominated by masked killers like Friday the 13thJason Voorhees and HalloweenMichael Myers. While the two couldn’t be more different in terms of presence, their demeanor was uncannily similar, as both were incredibly imposing figures who never spoke and showed no mercy. Additionally, both have laid waste to dozens, if not hundreds, of victims over the course of successful and long-running (if not always brilliant) franchises. Both killers even have their own ties to the supernatural (depending on the film) that help make them potent threats.

If these two horror icons were to ever go head-to-head, who would win: Jason or Michael Myers? The question is more complicated than it seems, in part because both franchises have extremely convoluted histories that defy the simple rules of how their respective killers work. The two have never formally faced off, as Jason did with Freddy in 2003. Freddy vs Jason. Even if they did, the results would likely be inconclusive, as they have been in that film and countless similar comparisons in pop culture. An answer can be found, though it depends at least somewhat on the audience inferring certain details, and remains open to speculation and reinterpretation as new projects continue to be produced.

Updated September 19, 2024 by Arthur Goyaz: As spooky season approaches, moviegoers will soon flock to streaming services to watch their favorite slasher films. This inevitably leads to a lot of discussion among horror fans about the best slasher of all, and two characters almost always end up at the top of the list: Jason Voorhees and Michael Myers. This list has been updated to provide additional analysis and to reflect CBR's current formatting guidelines.

Michael Myers is almost immortal on Halloween night

Fun Fact: Michael's middle name is “Audrey”, so his full name is: Michael Audrey Myers.

When Michael Myers first appeared, he was nothing more than a form that wanted to return to his childhood home and kill as many people as possible in the town of Haddonfield, Illinois. The original Halloween ends with a classic twist, Michael disappearing after Dr. Loomis unloads a revolver on him, strongly suggesting that he is much more than just human. However, as his story progresses, more layers are revealed.

Halloween II establishes that Michael can withstand multiple gunshot wounds, while the fourth, fifth, and sixth entries explain that he is tied to the Cult of Thorn, who branded him with a curse that forces him to kill the entire lineage on Halloween night. To achieve his goal, the curse grants him strength, near invulnerability, and high levels of resistance, allowing him to use any object as a deadly weapon.

Michael's goal of killing Laurie Strode and the rest of her ilk comes with many benefits, such as turning him into a machine that never stops and shows no mercy. He can also take immeasurable amounts of damage, including being shot, burned, and stabbed. However, due to the curse, Michael does not have complete control over his free will. He is a one-minded person, and while this is great for someone who is not in his sights, it puts him at a disadvantage when facing someone like Jason.

The specificity of the date also works against him, giving him only one night to commit his crimes and leaving the rest of the year more or less safe. Jason, on the other hand, is not bound to the date of Friday the 13th like Michael is, but it simply denotes the day he drowned as a boy. While other rampages have taken place on that date, nothing formally dictates that he kills only on that day.

The last days HI The films make it clear that Michael has no supernatural abilities, other than an inexplicably lucky streak when it comes to getting injured. He survives both 2018 films HI and 2021 Halloween kills with the same perceived invulnerability that has allowed him to reappear in sequel after sequel. 2022 Halloween is over, However, it seems to settle the question of his immortality forever. After mulling over all the terror and bloodshed he has inflicted on Haddonfield, Laurie condemns him as a mere man, not a monster, then slits his throat and wrist as he bleeds.

Laurie then takes Michael's corpse to the town's scrapyard, accompanied by the residents of Haddonfield, and throws it into an industrial shredder, presumably destroying it forever. The franchise's convoluted continuity has paths around that ending, which has been likened to a “Choose Your Own Adventure” story for the various paths it takes. But Halloween is over leaves little doubt that he's gone for good. It even leaves the door open for the franchise to continue with another killer to carry on Michael's horrific legacy.

Jason Voorhees is strong, but has a critical weakness

Trivia: Jason has been the main antagonist in all Friday the 13th films, except Part I and Part V.

In his early appearances, Jason Voorhees demonstrated immense strength and endurance when he suffered severe injuries. However, in the early films he was apparently still human, and as a result, Jason died at the end of Friday the 13th: Final Chapter. From Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason LivesHowever, the masked killer returns as a zombie-like immortal with a host of enhanced abilities. Although Jason's body is in a constant state of decay, he still has superhuman strength and enough stamina to hold his own against his victims in the sprawling forest near Camp Crystal Lake.

In the numerous Jason Voorhees films, he has learned to transform anything from a spear to his bare hands into deadly weapons and is motivated to honor his dead mother by killing teenagers. The 2009 reboot emphasizes a similar invulnerability, combining the events of the first four films into a single narrative and ending with Jason rising from the dead once again to claim another victim. While Jason has abilities that set him apart from his contemporaries, subsequent films have shown that he has a weakness for water and is also susceptible to forms of trauma. However, as an undead, he is often unaware of these weaknesses.

The only real threat he faces is water, because while he can overcome his fear, he still can't swim. Like Michael, he has a certain single-mindedness that makes him incapable of understanding the more complex strategies that various survivors have used to defeat him. But it also means he keeps coming back no matter what, even from the depths of space. Freddy vs Jason perfectly illustrates this ability. Freddy Kreuger, infinitely more intelligent and insightful than Jason, identifies his psychological fears and uses them to his advantage, only to be struck down once he is brought into the real world by Jason's sheer, indomitable will. The Crystal Lake Killer can be eluded and challenged, but never truly defeated.

Both Jason and Michael have evolved from human villains to supernatural assassins.

Jason and Michael are both masked killers associated with a specific date and with a penchant for sharp weapons. Additionally, the two have evolved from human killers to supernatural killers in their respective franchises. In Friday the 13th Part 2It is strongly implied that Jason did not actually drown. Heavily traumatized and consumed by rage, he spent his days living in horrific conditions in a cabin near Crystal Lake.

In this sense, it would not be wrong to say that Jason and Michael were undead long before they actually died. Michael's case is not much different. He spent forty years in Smith's Grove Sanitarium before escaping, then ten years in a comma before the events of Halloween 4: The Return of Michael MyersJason and Michael were both trapped in a cycle of deterioration of body and mind, reflected in their eventual supernatural revolt.

It's safe to say that before Jason went full supernatural, Michael would have gotten the better of him. His stamina, coupled with his resolve towards his prey, was indomitable. The fact that he always walked calmly towards his victim showed how confident he was in achieving his goal. Michael's one-track mind can be seen as a weakness, but it makes him the most dangerous villain to face in single combat. However, once Jason stands as a zombie-like figure in Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Livesthings change. Michael is fueled by supernatural levels of stamina on Halloween night, but at the end of the day he is still human. Jason's supernatural aspects, on the other hand, make him unstoppable all the way, surpassing Michael's levels of stamina.

Verdict: Jason Voorhees is stronger than Michael Myers

While Michael has proven time and time again that he can survive almost anything, he doesn't stand a chance against Jason. At least when you compare the sum of each franchise. Jason's evolution is unprecedented. His immense strength and ability to continue killing no matter the circumstances prove that he can withstand a full onslaught from Michael. Considering that his only weakness is position, he also has a much better chance of coming out on top, and unlike Michael, he isn't tied to a particular date on the calendar. As of this writing, Michael has been definitively killed off, with the franchise likely to surpass him with any future entries.

Jason is still strong and with the upcoming Crystal Lake TV series in the works, it is likely that he will return once again to terrorize hapless teenagers everywhere. This gives the man in the hockey mask a firm advantage. Michael would present a difficult challenge to Jason because they are both immensely strong and singularly willed. Assuming Michael follows the rules established in the previous sequels, he would be no less formidable than Jason. But because Michael is so focused on his bloodline, he may not devote the attention needed to defeat Jason. His fate in Halloween is over Ultimately it makes him as vulnerable as all of Jason's victims, while Jason has never shown such vulnerabilities.

It would be awesome to see a crossover like that. Freddy vs Jason centered on a confrontation between Jason and Michael. There are many creative devices that would make this confrontation possible, one of which is — as absurd as it may seem — to link Jason Voorhees to the Myers bloodline. In the current crossover, Jason even decapitates Freddy Krueger, an ephemeral evil spirit, suggesting that his ability to keep coming back is unmatched.

Against this, no one can hope to prevail, at least not without the kind of methods Michael has never shown and is probably incapable of, such as an exorcism. Ultimately, Jason's perseverance and ability to make his own decisions make him the victor in this battle, assuming Vorhees and Myers don't team up. Friday the 13th The series may not be the best or most critically acclaimed in the slasher genre, but when it comes to unstoppable bad guys, it may be unmatched.