How One Twist In Final Destination 3 Could Have Changed The Franchise! (Photo Credit – Prime Video)
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Spoiler Alert: The following article discusses major plot points from Final Destination 3 and Final Destination: Bloodlines.
Final Destination 3 nearly threw fans a curveball that could’ve flipped the franchise on its head. While the third installment stuck close to the deadly blueprint, vision, escape, then Death playing catch-up, it almost took a sharp left turn right at the end.
Instead of leaving us with that subway crash tease, the original ending would’ve dropped a bombshell: cameos from two Final Destination 2 survivors, Kimberly (AJ Cook) and Officer Burke (Michael Landes). So, what went wrong? According to producer Craig Perry (per Digital Spy), they had the plan in place. They even wrote it out, and one of the two actors was ready to go
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But the other wasn’t available, and they didn’t want to do a half-baked version. As Perry put it, “To have just one of them leaves an open ending which would make no sense in Death’s overarching plan.” Makes sense—if Death’s cleaning house, it’s going all in.
The Missed Final Destination Crossover That Could’ve Changed Everything
This wasn’t just a fun Easter egg. The scene was supposed to show Kimberly and Burke, who survived the log truck chaos in Final Destination 2, meeting their end in the same subway accident as Wendy (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), Julie (Amanda Crew), and Kevin (Ryan Merriman). All of them, in one final gut punch, gone in a flash.
Sure, throw in a mash-up and call it fan service—because clearly, cheating death twice just wasn’t enough. A neat little bow of doom would’ve reminded us all: Death doesn’t care how creative your plan is. Unfortunately, scheduling didn’t align. One actor was down, and suddenly the whole payoff wasn’t worth it. Perry and the team decided to stash the idea for later, and that was undoubtedly the right move.
— Final Destination Updates (@Final_Updatess) May 17, 2025
Final Destination: Bloodlines Landed The Twist Which Stole The Show
Instead of wasting the trick on Final Destination 3, the franchise waited—and nailed it in Final Destination: Bloodlines. That film pulled off a jaw-dropper of an ending when it revealed that the characters weren’t ahead of Death’s game. Sam (Nicholas D’Agosto) and Molly (Emma Bell) end up on Flight 180—yep, the plane that started it all. Talk about full circle.
It was bold, clever, and completely unexpected. For fans, it clicked instantly. The flash of Alex (Devon Sawa) from the first film on board made it clear what was coming. Turns out Final Destination 5, or Final Destination: Bloodlines, was playing 4D chess—yep, a sneaky prequel the whole time. Just what we needed, another reminder that Death’s been ten steps ahead since day one.
It’s easy to imagine the train reveal in Final Destination 3 would’ve been cool, but it would’ve lacked the punch. Kimberly and Burke were memorable, but they weren’t the icons that Alex was. The plane twist just felt bigger, cleaner, and much more haunting.
Perry summed it up perfectly: “We pocketed it because we knew that there was a really interesting idea about the cause and effect in the world of Final Destination, and then it managed to perfectly land in Final Destination 5.”
