Movies
The Best ‘Final Destination Bloodlines’ Kill Was a Clever Homage to ‘Final Destination 5’ [Images]
Now playing in theaters, Final Destination Bloodlines is loaded with carnage candy, but there’s one particular kill scene that we selected as the movie’s very best for a reason.
THIS ARTICLE CONTAINS SPOILERS. PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK…
It’s the death of fan favorite character Erik Campbell (Richard Harmon) that hurts the most, with the lovable asshole literally sucked into an MRI machine, folded in half, and gorily speared through the torso by a metal wheelchair that’s sucked in behind him. In an article this week, Jenn Addams calls it “one of the most brutal executions in franchise history.”
Jenn describes the gnarly hospital scene, “An MRI machine surges to research level power. Metal objects begin hurtling forward including the multiple piercings adorning Erik’s body. Earrings, nose rings, nipple rings and a Prince Albert all rip through his tender flesh, but they’re nothing compared to the large wheelchair he’s pulled into the room. The assistive device pins Erik to the machine and bends his body backwards as it’s sucked into the cylindrical chamber. Bones and organs puncture his tattooed flesh as the wheelchair slowly pulls his torso apart.”
It’s painful just to read that, isn’t it? But did you spot the Easter Egg homage to previous franchise installment Final Destination 5 in the gruesome dismemberment of Erik Campbell?!
Erik is rocking a tattooed skull on his torso, and the skull is cleverly impaled by the twisted metal of the wheelchair as he’s sucked into the aforementioned MRI machine. The nasty imagery creates a near identical replica of the official poster art for Final Destination 5 (seen below), which also featured a giant skull being impaled through the eye and mouth holes.
And yes, that tribute was intentional!
In response to a fan pointing out the homage on Twitter, Final Destination Bloodlines makeup FX artist Todd Masters quote-tweeted the observation with a simple “good eye.” And a photo of the original concept drawing for the death that Masters shared on Instagram this week (below) makes it clear that the kill scene was indeed designed as a Final Destination 5 homage!
Did you spot any other references to past Final Destination movies in Final Destination Bloodlines? There are certainly more than a couple of them. Comment below and let us know!
Head over to Fangoria for insights and behind the scenes images from Masters and his team.
Good eye! https://t.co/hMFQA8wIHu
— Todd Masters (@ToddMasters) May 19, 2025
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Before updating the video nasty Faces of Death, director Daniel Goldhaber and writer Isa Mazzei explored the dangers of online life in tech-thriller Cam, their feature debut that was acquired by Netflix in 2018 after making waves on the festival circuit.
At the end of last year, the Netflix exclusive quietly departed from the streaming platform, left without another streaming home.
It’s not an isolated story; Mike Flanagan’s Hush also left streaming entirely for a period until it was finally picked up on both physical media and other streaming services.
While the tech-thriller currently isn’t available to watch on Netflix, Tubi, Hulu, or any other platforms, that’s not a problem for Cam thanks to a very cool move by Goldhaber: the director has made his breakout film accessible to watch online for free via his website.
As his site notes: “CAM is unfortunately not currently available to view on any platforms, so you can watch it here if you like :).“
No subscriptions or fees necessary, just hit play.
Cam follows Alice (Madeline Brewer), who works as an online cam girl obsessed with her ranking on the cam site. The higher her ranking goes, the more it draws unwanted attention, and Alice soon finds herself replaced on her own show with a doppelganger.
Written by Mazzei, a former camgirl, it uses the horror thriller premise to examine the life of a sex worker; Alice’s career ambition is directly at odds with the shame it brings to her family, and how she tries to spare them from it by keeping them in the dark. It only compounds her danger when the doppelganger enters the equation in Goldhaber’s engaging thriller.
For a deep dive into the treacherous world of Cam, listen to Horror Queers’ episode on it now.
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