How To Watch The Final Destination Movies In The Correct Order

When "Final Destination" hit theaters in the year 2000, few were eyeing it as the flagship film in a big-screen franchise — if only because its title essentially deemed there shouldn't actually be one. But in the early 2000s heyday of teen horror flicks, the film struck a serious chord with audiences, becoming a legit staple of the era, and the sort of low-risk box office success story studios simply cannot ignore. The film, of course, also left things a little open-ended, making the possibility of a sequel more likely than not.

"Final Destination 2" made its way to theaters in 2003, and proved just as successful as its predecessor. Not surprisingly, more sequels followed, with new "Final Destination" flicks arriving in 2006, 2009, and 2011 respectively. Though the five-film "Final Destination" series has been dormant for more than a decade, Hollywood players still believe there's life to be found in the franchise, with Warner Bros. recently announcing the development of a sixth entry. 

While little is known about the upcoming sequel, fans of the franchise are understandably thrilled to see "Final Destination" make a return. Many are also no doubt plotting a full franchise binge before the new film hits theaters. And if you're among them, you should know there are a couple of different ways you can approach that re-watch. 

The most obvious way to approach your "Final Destination" deep dive is, of course, by order of the films' individual releases. And if you choose that way, it's a fairly simple task with most of the "FD" movies (save for the 1st and 4th) baring a number that signifies their place in the order. 

• Final Destination (2000)
• Final Destination 2 (2003)
• Final Destination 3 (2006)
• The Final Destination (2009)
• Final Destination 5 (2011)

As most of the "Final Destination" flicks are relatively self-contained, you don't necessarily have to watch them in that order to understand what's happening. And given the almost unfathomable level of bloodletting that tends to unfold, there are understandably not many survivors around for a return franchise trip, though Ali Larter reprised her "Final Destination" role for the first sequel, and Tony Todd has appeared in three films as savvy mortician William Bludworth. Likewise, the general setup of the films doesn't change much, with each starting with the main character seeing a horrific vision of their impending death.

Those opening scenes tend to be opulently over the top too. The first film opens with a harrowing plane explosion, a heart-stopping logging truck disaster starts the second, and a grisly roller coaster crash rings in the third. As for the fourth film, it begins with a motor racing speedway massacre. And the fifth "FD" release kicks off with a deadly bridge collapse, which easily ranks among the most terrifying of the lot.     

Now, as easy as it might be to just sit down and watch each of the "Final Destination" films in the order they were released, it turns out that's not the way to do it if you want to experience the story in chronological order. And as counterintuitive as it is, you'll need to watch the last "Final Destination" flick first, followed by the first four.

• Final Destination 5
• Final Destination
• Final Destination 2
• Final Destination 3
• The Final Destination

The good news is, from there you can forge ahead in order of release the first four entries in the franchise do indeed arrive in chronological order. As for "Final Destination 5," it sort of is, and is not a legit prequel to the first film. No, the fifth "Final Destination" movie doesn't set up the hows and whys behind the people receiving these visions of their deaths. But it does connect itself to the first "Final Destination" in its final moments, depositing its main characters Sam Lawton and Molly Harper aboard the doomed Paris-bound flight from "Final Destination."

As it stands, that narrative payoff actually works pretty well whether you watched "Final Destination" before "Final Destination 5" or not. For those who watched the original first, it's a pretty fun little callback to the franchise's origins. And for those who screen the fifth film first, it serves as a genuinely clever pseudo-franchise opener that sets the table for all the carnage to come. Here's hoping the next chapter finds a similarly clever way to wink back at the films that came before.