One of 2025’s Best Horror Movies Is Killing the Competition on Streaming
Final Destination Bloodlines is killing it again as the commercial and critical success has made the move, and without losing a step, to streaming. The latest installment in the 25-year-old franchise was one of the summer’s biggest surprises financially, at the box office, not to mention the impression it made on critics and audiences alike. However, since directors Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein’s legacy sequel debuted on HBO Max (Aug. 1) and HBO (Aug. 2), the must-watch horror hit has been dominating the streaming charts. In fact, as of Sunday, Aug. 3, Bloodlines is the top movie on HBO in every country around the world, (per FlixPatrol), except for Turkey, in which Alper Mestçi’s Mexican Standoff reigns at No.1.
Final Destination Bloodlines, which carried a production budget of $50 million, debuted in theaters on May 16 with the second highest-grossing opening weekend numbers of the summer movie season to that point ($51.6 million), only trailing the $74.3 million made by the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s second release of 2025, Thunderbolts*. Furthermore, Bloodlines represents the franchise’s best moneymaker around the globe with a total worldwide take of $285.3 million. Plus, the Final Destination sequel is the second highest-grossing horror movie of the year globally, behind only Michael B. Jordan and Ryan Coogler’s must-see collaboration, Sinners ($365.9 million). Bloodlines also left its mark on the critics, who are usually very harsh when it comes to reviewing scary films.
Final Destination Bloodlines is “Certified Fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes as the film registers 93% on the Tomatometer against 224 reviews posted by critics. Meanwhile, as evidenced by the movie’s enormous financial success, audiences were also quite taken with the horror sequel. Bloodlines boasts a “B+” CinemaScore, which is a fantastic grade for most scary films. Plus, the latest installment in the Final Destination series is “Verified Hot” on Rotten Tomatoes as Bloodlines currently registers 87% on the Popcornmeter against 5,000+ verified ratings. Yes, 2025 is a great time to be a faithful follower and enthusiast of the horror genre, but, as it turns out, the talented filmmakers behind Final Destination Bloodlines were intent on ruining everyday experiences for those who had the courage to watch their bloody awesome movie.
'Final Destination Bloodlines' Directors Want to "Ruin" Real-Life Situations
After debuting as the No. 1 movie at the box office back on May 16, it became obvious quite quickly that Final Destination Bloodlines was going to be a runaway hit financially. However, it’s some of the creative choices which the film’s directors, Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein, made which will undoubtedly haunt the memories of those who’ve seen the bloody good time either in theaters or via HBO’s platforms. In fact, Lipovsky and Stein set out to “ruin” everyday situations for those who enjoyed watching their scary flick. Stein said in an interview with Time:
“One of the very first things we talked about when we started working on the movie was, what can we ruin for people? So, a big part of the creative process was identifying those common, everyday experiences that will stick with people for the rest of their lives. It can be something as simple as a cup full of ice or something as specific as the song ‘Shout,’ which is going to make you think about this movie anytime you hear it at a wedding from now on.”
Final Destination Bloodlines is now available on both HBO and HBO Max. However, whether scary movie fans want to stay in and stream from the comfort of their own homes or head out to theaters, there is plenty of worthwhile horror content to consume. For those who don’t mind paying for box office tickets, I Know What You Did Last Summer’s controversial twist ending, courtesy of Jennifer Kaytin Robinson’s courageous creative choice, is worth the price of admission all on its own.
Plus, for those who don’t subscribe to any of the major streaming services, some of the best horror hits, like the classics Hellraiser (1987) and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), along with fantastic gems which may have flown under the radar, like the insanely talented Andrea Niada’s must-see Home Education (2023) and Jack Dignan’s can’t-be-missed After She Died (2022) are all currently available to watch absolutely free on Tubi.
Sources: FlixPatrol, Time, The Numbers, Rotten Tomatoes
