Final Destination Bloodlines review (2025)

August 3, 2025 Jeffrey Lyles Brec Bassinger, Final Destination: Bloodlines, Kaitlyn Santa Juana, Rya Kihlstedt, Teo Briones, Tony Todd

Final Destination Bloodlines is the sixth film in the always deviously fun horror franchise. The series features the most original horror movie boogeyman in death itself. There’s something very meta about the franchise’s concept of trying to cheat death to live a little longer. It’s a relatable premise that echoes the sentiment of most viewers.

It’s been 14 years since Final Destination 5. Was there any way for Final Destinations Bloodlines to possibly freshen up the franchise and potentially spark a relaunch of the series?

Bloodlines might not be the series’ best effort, but it should thrill longtime fans and maybe even win over some new ones. Best case, Final Destination Bloodlines enthralls audiences enough to check out the previous installments while clamoring for another sequel.

Screenwriters Jon Watts (Spider-Man: No Way Home) and Lori Evans Taylor & Guy Busick craft plenty of new wrinkles to avoid making Bloodlines feel too familiar and predictable. That’s not easy for the sixth film in a franchise no matter how long of a gap between installments.

The film opens with Iris (Brec Bassinger, Stargirl) and her boyfriend, Paul (Max Lloyd Jones) heading to the grand opening of a swank new high-rise restaurant tower. In true series fashion, Iris starts noticing peculiar details that seem increasingly like warnings of a horrific tragedy. Iris doesn’t heed the warnings and the restaurant and all of its patrons die gruesome and painful deaths.

Directors Adam B. Stein and Zach Lipovsky lean harder into the gory side of the death scenes. In previous chapters, there would be some pretty gruesome deaths, but that was more the exception than the norm outside of the initial premonition sequence. In Final Destination Bloodlines there’s no subtlety to death as the kills are almost cruel. It almost plays out as if death had serious beef with the victims and wanted to take them out in the most vicious manner possible.

Fast forward several decades to Iris’ granddaughter, Stefani (Kaitlyn Santa Juana), who’s been plagued by visions of that massive tragedy. Of course, that incident couldn’t have happened since Stefani is actually alive and mostly well. The nightmares are costing Stefani sleep, which is seriously putting a damper on her studies at college. It’s time to get some answers.

Stefani can’t get much insight from her father (Tinpo Lee), who doesn’t have fond memories of his mother-in-law and less for his ex-wife, Darlene (Rya Kihlstedt), who left Stefani and her younger brother, Charlie (Teo Briones), years ago. Stefani does get a lead from her aunt, which leads her to Iris (Gabrielle Rose). Recognizing the end is near for her, Iris gives Stefani her playbook in hopes that she can stave off death even if she’s got to be in an isolated fortress like her grandmother.

Naturally, the family is skeptical about Stefani’s warnings right up until the point they realize her paranoia was justified.

Stein and Lipovsky stage some deliciously complicated and complex death scenes. They rightfully understand the audience is in on the “gag” that death is relentless and will use anything at its disposal no matter how seemingly innocuous as a deadly murder weapon.

The biggest issue with Final Destination Bloodlines is that by its nature, the potential victims are limited to one family. Usually in the franchise there’s some less likable characters whose deaths are to some extent satisfying since they scoffed at the idea of cheating death and clash with the main character. That’s not really the case here and the idea of an entire family tree being pruned is somewhat morbid. Especially when the family genuinely cares and looks out for each other.

Final Destination Bloodlines benefits from a strong cast who aren’t written like morons. The characters are actively all working on fighting off death in a believable manner, which makes their all but inevitable deaths sting to a greater degree.

Some backgrounds in Final Destination Bloodlines look artificial as if they’d gotten an AI assist or was just rendered completely in AI. This is prevalent in outdoor scenes, which just look a little too pristine and fake. With more intimate backdrops this is far less of an issue as the film progresses, but it is noticeable.

Easily the most heartwarming scene — which is an odd thing to say about any Final Destination movie — is the appearance by series regular the late Tony Todd.

Final Destination Bloodlines was the final role for Todd, whose voice wasn’t nearly as booming and his stature not nearly as imposing. Still, this was a fitting last performance for him as he helped to legitimize the franchise for horror fans.

Final Destination Bloodlines delivers some wild and gory death scenes with the franchise’s dark humor fully intact. Hopefully it won’t be another 14 years for the next “final” addition to the series.