For the first time in the Final Destination franchise, the latest instalment takes audiences back in time, setting the stage in 1968. Departing from the usual backdrops—planes, motorways, rollercoasters, NASCAR tracks, and collapsing bridges—Final Destination: Bloodlines begins its chilling tale atop a towering glass structure.
At the heart of the story is Iris (played by Brec Bassinger), a young woman with a bright future who experiences a harrowing premonition. By acting on her vision, she manages to save hundreds of lives. However, in cheating Death, she unwittingly condemns generations of her own family to face its wrath. Fast forward nearly sixty years, and her granddaughter Stefani (Kaitlyn Santa Juana) begins to feel the ominous presence of danger closing in.
The Most Ambitious Chapter Yet
Final Destination: Bloodlines brings a fresh perspective to the long-running series, cleverly breaking from familiar patterns. Directed by Adam Stein and Zach Lipovsky, this entry delivers a significantly grander cinematic experience. The film’s centrepiece—the 18-minute tower disaster sequence—is nothing short of breathtaking and only one of several jaw-dropping moments.
“One of my favourite scenes in the franchise is the bridge sequence in Final Destination 5,” Lipovsky told AlloCiné. “We wanted to play with the fear of heights and reach the kind of scale you’d expect from a Roland Emmerich disaster movie, while still maintaining the twisted fun that defines Final Destination.”
Death, Reimagined
Unlike traditional blockbusters where brutal impacts are often softened or hidden, Bloodlines leans fully into its dark identity. This film is arguably the most unrelenting in the saga, offering up some of the most bizarre and disturbing death sequences to date—one of the most memorable takes place in a hospital, though we’ll leave it to you to figure out which.
According to Lipovsky, crafting these scenes is a lengthy and intricate process. “Some of these sequences take years to develop. We start with rough ideas and basic storyboards. Early versions are often unremarkable. But we keep refining them, even during post-production,” he explains. “These films rely heavily on direction, because Death isn’t a monster or a masked figure with a knife. It has no physical form. It’s the clever insert shots and buildup that generate real suspense.”
With Final Destination: Bloodlines, the franchise not only returns but does so with more flair, terror, and creativity than ever before. It’s a bold evolution that respects the roots of the series while daring to raise the stakes—quite literally—to new heights.
