The horror-loving community is abuzz with excitement as Final Destination Bloodlines, the sixth film in Jeffrey Riddick’s renowned Final Destination series, gears up for its release on May 16, 2025. After a 14-year hiatus since Final Destination 5 (2011), this installment promises to deliver even more ingeniously gruesome interpretations of Death’s relentless pursuit.
Originally conceived as a re-imagined take on the franchise in light of the fifth film’s success, Final Destination Bloodlines has evolved into a direct sequel. It cleverly intertwines with familiar faces and storylines, featuring Tony Todd reprising his iconic role as William Bludworth for what will be his final appearance. Starring Kaitlyn Santa Juana, the film has already garnered an impressive Rotten Tomatoes score of 92%, marking it as one of the most acclaimed entries in the series. While critics have praised its intense premonition sequences, opinions on the film’s conclusion remain varied.
Staying true to the franchise’s beloved formula, the narrative kicks off with the protagonist experiencing a dreadful premonition of a catastrophic event that claims numerous lives, including her own. By dodging this impending disaster, she sets off a chain reaction, compelling Death to recalibrate and pursue those spared. The ensuing carnage showcases Death’s creativity in delivering gruesome fates as it seeks those who dared to cheat it, while simultaneously forcing the survivors to navigate the harrowing rules dictated by Death itself.
What Happens In Final Destination Bloodlines?
The film launches in the year 1968 with one of the series’ most impactful opening premonitions. Young Iris Campbell (Brec Bassinger) and her boyfriend Paul (Man Lloyd-Jones) are present at the grand opening of the Skyview Tower Restaurant when Iris perceives a vision of a cascading disaster—sparked by a child’s mischief—leading to the tower’s collapse and mass fatalities. Interestingly, this haunting premonition recurs in the dreams of her college student granddaughter, Stefani Reyes (Juana).
Stefani sets out to reconnect with her estranged grandmother, Iris (Gabrielle Rose), only to discover that Iris lives in a state of hyper-vigilance, convinced that Death is omnipresent. Residing in a remote cottage, she has fortified her home against the inevitability of Death itself. Iris attempts to pass on her insights regarding Death’s patterns to Stefani through an extensively compiled guidebook. However, when Stefani dismisses her warnings, Iris ultimately sacrifices herself to validate her claims about their family’s precarious existence.
In the wake of Iris’s death, Stefani is compelled to convince her family, including her uncle Howard (Alex Zahara), his children Erik (Richard Harmon), Julia (Anna Lore), and Bobby (Owen Patrick Joyner), along with her estranged mother Darlene (Rya Kihlstedt) and younger brother Charlie (Teo Briones), that they’re all marked by Death. The stakes heighten after Howard suffers a gruesome lawnmower accident during a family gathering, yet disbelief persists among the survivors.
While Erik manages to elude Death’s grasp on two occasions, a shocking family secret is revealed. Sadly, Julia’s fate aligns with the ominous predictions derived from Iris’ notes, leading to her gruesome demise. In a bid for survival, Stefani forms an alliance with Charlie and Darlene to save cousin Bobby.
The trio seeks assistance from Iris’s old friend, who turns out to be William Bludworth (Tony Todd), the very boy Iris saved in 1968. Bludworth partakes in a poignant farewell, imparting the cryptic advice that “Only new life can beat death.” This sparks an outrageous plan orchestrated by Erik, involving a medical death experience for Bobby in a desperate attempt to sever Death’s hold. Tragically, their plan spirals out of control, resulting in Erik’s shocking accidental death alongside Bobby.
How Does Final Destination Bloodlines End?
As expected from a Final Destination film, the climax is marked by chaos and bloodshed. With the family tree of their uncle erased, Stefani and her mother Darlene face an ominous fate. Darlene opts to take shelter in Iris’s heavily fortified cottage, determined to evade Death. However, as they make their way to safety, a catastrophic RV crash interrupts their journey, and a chaotic sequence of events ensues with Stefani’s seatbelt jamming, trapping her just as Death eagerly awaits them.
As the cottage erupts into flames, the ensuing explosion propels the RV into a nearby water body, where Stefani finds herself struggling for breath. Darlene and Charlie fight valiantly against the inferno, but as Darlene frees Charlie from the wreckage, she faces her tragic end when a lamp post crushes her. Amidst the chaos, as Charlie rescues the unconscious Stefani from drowning, they inadvertently satisfy the mysterious death-defying rule presented by JB—Stefani’s rebirth grants her and Charlie an unexpected reprieve from Death.
Days later, on the much-anticipated day of Charlie’s senior prom, a new character named “Dr. Reddick” —a nod to the series creator—is introduced. A shocking revelation unfolds when Stefani learns that she hadn’t technically died but had merely lost consciousness. This haunting realization dawns on them as a derailed train—echoing the events of Final Destination 3—careens through their neighborhood. The siblings narrowly escape, yet a subsequent calamity occurs when a cargo of wooden logs from the train crashes down, extinguishing Stefani and Charlie’s lives, culminating in the end of Iris’ bloodline.
As the credits roll, a visually striking red line connects Final Destination Bloodlines to the broader franchise, presenting a theory that the individuals who perished in the previous films are potentially descendants of those who attended the Skyview hotel—saved by Iris’s premonition. This poignant revelation posits the series as an ongoing narrative of Death’s relentless pursuit in the aftermath of actions taken back in 1968.