Amanda Righetti - Vegas Magazine

SCREAM QUEEN

Vegas-raised Amanda Righetti brings her signature passion, intensity and sex appeal to screens big and small-be it cuffing bad guys on The Mentalist or escaping the clutches of Jason Voorhees in the new Friday the 13th.

Local girl makes good-very good, indeed. At 25, Amanda Righetti is a force to be reckoned with in Tinseltown-sleuthing opposite Simon Baker on CBS' The Mentalist and screaming her way into fanboy hearts in the bloody new Friday the 13th (in theaters, appropriately, February 13th). An accomplished alum of The O.C., North Shore, Reunion and K-Ville, Righetti has made that all-important jump to celluloid via the immensely popular blockbuster horror genre (look what it did for Jessica Biel!). Regardless of how her character fares against Jason Voorhees at Camp Crystal Lake, expect to hear much more from this Vegas-raised leading lady in the months and years ahead.

VEGAS: How does it feel to be on the cover of your hometown magazine?

AMANDA RIGHETTI: It's very exciting, especially since it's a magazine my mom and dad will be able to find and buy. You've been working consistently on TV for years, but with Friday the 13th, you're about to experience a whole new level of recognition. Are you prepared? It's exhilarating. Though with projects like this, it's always a crapshoot. You don't really know how things are going to turn out.

For fans of the original-and there are many-how do you feel the new Friday the 13th will measure up?

I think it's a throwback to the originals, wrapping the best elements of the first four films into one. Obviously there's a built-in audience who have followed the franchise, and I think they'll get a kick out of seeing Jason in his original form. But there are also new elements that make it different. I'd call it a face-lift. It will definitely play toward ...

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