Final Destination 7 Lands New Director as Franchise Rolls On
The Final Destination franchise has always been proof that death never really takes a holiday, and now it looks like New Line Cinema is gearing up for another round. After Final Destination: Bloodlines became both the highest-grossing ($314 million worldwide) and best-reviewed entry in the series, a seventh installment is officially on the horizon.
While Bloodlines directors Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein have stepped away from the sequel, the studio has reportedly set its sights on a fresh name: Belgian filmmaker Michiel Blanchart. Sources indicate that New Line is in final talks with Blanchart, though no official offer has been made just yet. If confirmed, Final Destination 7 would mark his English-language feature debut.
Blanchart arrives with an impressive résumé. His first feature, Night Call, an action crime thriller, dominated the Magritte Awards—Belgium’s equivalent of the Oscars—winning 10 out of 11 nominations and setting a record for the ceremony. Horror fans may also recognize his short You’re Dead, Hélène, a twisted love story about a man trying to break up with his ghost girlfriend. The short earned international acclaim and was shortlisted at the 2023 Academy Awards for Best Live-Action Short. It also caught the attention of Sam Raimi, who has been attached to produce an English-language adaptation.
Meanwhile, the script for Final Destination 7 is in the hands of Lori Evans Taylor, who co-wrote Bloodlines with Guy Busick. That film reinvigorated the franchise with a new protagonist, Stefanie (played by Kaitlyn Santa Juana), a college student plagued by recurring nightmares that turn out to be visions of the grisly deaths awaiting her loved ones. It also featured a poignant final performance from franchise icon Tony Todd as William Bludworth, the enigmatic mortician who has long served as a guide—and sometimes warning—for the doomed survivors. Todd’s send-off in Bloodlines was hailed by critics and fans as one of the most emotional moments in the series.
The Final Destination series has always thrived on its unique formula. Rather than a traditional slasher, each film pits its characters against the inevitability of fate itself, staging elaborate, Rube Goldberg-style death sequences that keep audiences both horrified and entertained. From the infamous plane crash in the 2000 original to rollercoasters, collapsing bridges, and NASCAR mayhem in later entries, the franchise has built a reputation for creative carnage. Bloodlines pushed that reputation even further, marrying brutal spectacle with a more emotionally grounded story that connected with audiences worldwide.
That puts Final Destination 7 in an intriguing position. Blanchart’s background suggests a filmmaker with a flair for stylish tension and darkly comedic horror, traits that could give the series its next big jolt. Given the franchise’s track record of success at the box office, New Line is no doubt hoping to strike while the iron (or scythe) is hot.
No casting details have been confirmed yet, and plot specifics remain under wraps. With Bloodlines closing out Tony Todd’s long-running role, fans are already speculating about whether Final Destination 7 will introduce a new guiding figure for the survivors or take the mythology in an unexpected direction.
For now, the only certainty is that death will be back, and it will not be denied. Stay tuned—because if there’s one thing this franchise has taught us, it’s that fate always finds a way.
