With this year’s Final Destination: Bloodlines threatening to bring a major horror franchise of the 2000s rushing back into the hearts and minds of the people, just when we need it the most, there’s hardly a better time than to look back at the franchise that was. The five-film series, which kicked off in 2000 with a movie adapted from an X-Files spec script and follows Death’s increasingly elaborate design to claim the lives of people who somehow avoided disaster, is one of the most thrillingly consistent franchises of the modern age, so this was a particularly tough ranking to hammer out.

The Entire Final Destination Franchise Ranked

#5 The Final Destination (2009)

I have a chinchilla-level soft spot for The Final Destination, and it’s not just because of its extreme willingness to objectify male characters at the same level as the female characters, but even I must agree with the general populace on this one. It’s demonstrably at a lower level than the others. There’s no appearance by franchise stalwart Tony Todd (RIP), for one thing, and the questionable 2009 CGI is also incredibly damaging for a franchise that is primarily a delivery system for horrible onscreen deaths. That said, there is something charming about the brutal efficiency of its storytelling. It’s painting in strokes so broad it almost becomes a fable, and it is still more clever than it gets credit for in its Rube Goldberg approach to Death, especially in the way that most people become undone by their own good luck tokens.

#4 Final Destination 2 (2003)

Final Destination 2 is definitely the movie in the franchise that I’ve flip-flopped on the most over the years. Its conceit, following Death tracking down people whose lives were saved by characters from the first movie who shouldn’t have been alive in the first place, is solid. Plus, it has that unimpeachable opening sequence with the 18,000 car pileup on the freeway. However, there’s a lot of running around in circles between the death sequences that never amounts to much, A. J. Cook delivers one of the blander protagonist performances in a franchise that isn’t exactly known for textured and interesting leads, and the mini-premonitions she has during the main part of the movie are chintzy and goofy.

#3 Final Destination 3 (2006)

Forgive me for the inexcusable pun, but this one is a roller coaster ride. Mary Elizabeth Winstead delivers a solid leading lady performance, it’s downright nasty to its dead meat characters, and the “prophetic photos” trick is a fun way to get the characters involved in trying to stop their own deaths. This one also suffers from a severe lack of Tony Todd (he has a voice-only cameo at the theme park in the beginning), but at least it remembers that the franchise sometimes gives Death a theme song (“Rocky Mountain High” in the first movie, “Dust in the Wind” in FD5). The one they chose here – “Turn Around, Look At Me” by The Lettermen – is maybe the most perfectly creepy oldies needle drop this side of “Tiptoe Through the Tulips.”

#2 Final Destination 5 (2011)

This miraculous sequel is not only deeply interested in ways to push the premise of the franchise forward (“take a life, steal their remaining time” is one of the most narratively satisfying approaches to giving the dead meat characters something to do), it also contains some of the best pre-death sequences in the franchise. Every installment has at least one terrific Rube Goldberg sequence where random events pile up into a violent death (the beauty parlor in TFD, the fire escape in FD2, and the tanning beds in FD3 come to mind). Still, there has hardly been a better tension-building setpiece than the “sharp screw falling on the balance beam” scene in this movie. It harnesses the wicked glee that is always present in Death’s fuckery throughout the franchise, but it also captures the way that some of the most effective horror comes from the most mundane, everyday threats.

#1 Final Destination (2000)

It’s very common for any ranking to have the first movie at the top, but frankly, I don’t know that this is the case for Final Destination. Because all the movies are so good, and the sequels are bigger and splashier (sometimes literally), the original 2000 installment can get short shrift. And sure, later on they found more ways to push the envelope of what is set up here, but it is set up so damn effectively. What this movie lacks in the slickness of the sequels, it makes up for with brutality. Moments like seeing a strangled teenager’s veins burst in his eyes or the miserable way that Ms. Newton clings to life until she just can’t anymore during her kitchen misadventure have a profound power. This is by far the most emotionally excoriating installment in the franchise, where the weight of the deaths is felt by the characters in a real way, rather than just as yet another link in the supernatural slasher chain the movie is building.

The franchise’s ability to play on common real-life fears is also introduced with one of its brashest set pieces. That Flight 180 explosion is second only to Final Destination 2’s logging truck for lodging right in the back of your brain for the rest of your life.

Three years ago today, Horror Press slithered its way out of the birth canal and onto the popcorn-covered floor of [insert your local indie movie theater]. Covered in embryonic fluid, Raisinets, and sticky miscellaneous floor fluids, Horror Press has come a long way. You’ve been with us through our first steps, the terrible twos, countless festivals, two podcasts, numerous giveaways, Horror 101s, rankings, retrospectives, lists, and so much more. We’ve appreciated your support along the way, but we want you to know that we’re just getting started. Our third year is already starting off with a bang and we plan on making it bigger, badder, and bloodier.

While it’s important to look forward to what’s to come, I also want to take a moment and look back at all of the quality content that’s gotten us this far. From gay sharks, to a unique look at Martyrs, to an interview with Jennifer freaking Kent, we’ve covered a wide variety of topics. It’s time to put on your party hat (like Leo in that episode of Twin Peaks where Bobby and Shelly dress him up when he’s comatose) and join us as we highlight what makes Horror Press, well, Horror Press!

A Look Back at Some of Our Favorite Articles at Horror Press

Gay Jaws!

Queer historian of American horror cinema Abigail Waldron wrote one of our most controversial articles in the history of Horror Press. In March, Abigail asked the question, “Is it time for a queer Jaws remake?” This article caused tons of…debate among horror fans across social media. Many of the responses were from readers who merely read the headline, but those who read the article were treated to an incredibly well-written thought experiment. If you happened to miss this article when it came out, now’s your time to check it out.

Angry Aliens!

One of the co-hosts of the Horror Press Podcast, Eli BadCritic, took on the task of ranking the Alien franchise in the most Eli way possible! If gay Jaws didn’t get people in a tizzy, this one sure did! Ridley Scott’s Alien is one of the most prolific Sci-Fi horror films ever, but where does it rank for Eli? We’ve had many franchise rankings here at Horror Press but none as contentious as this one!

Castle On A Hill

Luis Pomales-Diaz is unquestionably one of the powerhouses at Horror Press. From Smile 2, Terrifier 3, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, A Quiet Place: Day One, Longlegs, and countless others, Luis has made sure to cover many of the heavy hitters to grace the silver screen last year. Aside from his unwavering love for the Chucky series, Luis wrote an editorial on something that I, and many fans my age, care deeply about: Dark Castle Entertainment. Dark Castle initially set out to remake the films of famed horror filmmaker William Castle. As far back as I can remember, some of my earliest horror movie memories are of Dark Castle films. If you are also a fan of the Aughts classics, then give Luis’ editorial a read. You won’t regret it!

Final Girls Support Group

Many of us use horror as an escape from the real world, some of us use it for entertainment, and some of us use horror to help the grieving process. Writer Ian Carlos Crawford crafted a brilliant look into his relationship between horror and grieving. This is the article that drew my attention to Horror Press and prompted me to ruin Curator of Everything Horror Press James-Michael Fleites’ life. Horror has the unique ability to cover a wide variety of topics and handle each one of them differently; sometimes all you need to make yourself feel comfortable is an hour and a half of good ole hack-n-slash.

Michael Myers and Me

Sharai Bohannon has been incredibly busy between her countless podcasts and numerous bylines. Her Shudder streaming guides have been incredibly helpful and well-received by both fans and casual horror enjoyers. While not scouring through Shudder’s insanely awesome catalog, Sharai has written one of the most deeply personal editorials on Horror Press. Check out her article about her insatiable love for Halloween and the undeniable tether she has to the masked killer.

Too Much Paranormal Activity

We all know that Paranormal Activity was the film to singlehandedly kickstart the mid-aughts obsession with found footage. Writer/podcaster Brennan Klein, who has a penchant for 80’s slashers, took on the daunting task of watching and ranking ALL of the films in the Paranormal Activity franchise. This isn’t the only franchise he tackled, Brennan has also ranked franchises like Leprechaun, Blair Witch, and The Amityville Horror! He also took a task that many would be too afraid to broach when he covered the Top 10 Child Deaths in Horror.

Hellraiser and You

Brooklyn-based Bash Ortega has a history of interviewing quite a few exciting voices in horror. From the crew behind Black Eyed Susan on AI and consent, prolific filmmaker Bertrand Mandico on his queerly fantastic She Is Conann, and the writer/director Alex of one of my Letterboxd Top 4 Alex Phillips on All Jacked Up And Full Of Worms! And that’s to name a few. One of my favorite editorials from Bash is their deep dive into Hellraiser and all the kinky shit that lurks below the surface.

Disturbing Movies

Toward the end of 2023, James-Michael shared an article with me that pissed me off. Buzzfeed saw fit to put out an article on the most disturbing movies of all time. Now, I’m not one to gatekeep horror by any means, but it was clear all they did was google “disturbing movies” and hastily put together a list they thought would pass for casual horror fans. It did not. This led me to watch 50+ movies I had never seen before and revisit movies I have seen before…I didn’t sleep for a month. I’m proud of all of my articles on Horror Press, but this one takes the cake. (Though my interview with Larry Fessenden is definitely the runner-up!)

This is all just the tip of the iceberg. There are countless amazing articles from the Horror Press writers and there is so much more to come! Thank you for joining us along the way and we hope to keep your skin crawling for years to come.

Hail Raatma!