Two of the Best Horror Franchises Ever Are Finally Making a Return This Year, After More Than a Decade

The horror genre sees a lot of reboots, revivals and requels, so the fact that we’re getting two surprising franchise titles in 2025 is impressive. First, Final Destination: Bloodlines is the first title in its series in nearly a decade and a half, premiering on May 16th. Then on June 20th, we’ll get 28 Years Later — our first return to this zombie-infested world since 2007.

Videos by ComicBook.com

It’s no surprise to see big franchises leaning on title recognition and nostalgia, but the way it’s done in the horror genre can feel distinct from other blockbusters in some ways. Whether it’s a hard reboot, soft reboot or a belated sequel, horror filmmakers are often praised for respecting their audiences’ intelligence and taking creative approaches to their premises. In the cases of 28 Years Later and Final Destination: Bloodlines, expectations are high in that sense.

Final Destination: Bloodlines

The sixth Final Destination movie brings a new creative team to the franchise — screenwriters Guy Busick and Lori Evans Taylor, and directors Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein. The nature of these movies makes it hard to keep recurring characters around for long, so the only confirmed returning cast member is Tony Todd as William Bludworth. The focus on this mysterious character is the most exciting part of this movie’s premise we’ve heard about so far.

Bludworth appeared in Final Destination, Final Destination 2 and Final Destination 5. He is the owner of Bludworth Funeral Homes, and seems to have supernatural knowledge of the nature of death. He often warns characters about their situations when they narrowly avoid death and begin experiencing premonitions. According to a report by Bloody Disgusting, Bloodlines will explore William Bloodworth’s backstory, including flashbacks to his childhood that will explain his connection to death.

We don’t have a trailer for Final Destination: Bloodlines yet, but it has already given us an incredible behind-the-scenes story. Sources close to the project told The Hollywood Reporter that the studio struggled to settle on a director for this revival until Lipovsky and Stein put on an outrageous display in a video call. The two staged and pre-recorded a stunt for the interview to make it look like they were killed in a freak accident — much like the ones that befall characters in these movies. They made it look like the fireplace behind them got out of control, with flames spreading to the mantel. They barely put out the fire, but after that a ceiling fan broke off and fell, appearing to decapitate the two filmmakers.

This passion for the franchise is reportedly what put Lipovsky and Stein over the edge to get the job directing this movie. Hopefully, that familiarity and enthusiasm comes through in the finished product as well. Final Destination: Bloodlines hits theaters on on May 16th.

28 Years Later

Just over a month later, we’ll get the highly anticipated sequel 28 Years Later. The movie brings back original screenwriter Alex Garland and director Danny Boyle after the two were absent from 28 Weeks Later in 2007. The duo created this franchise in 2002 with the low-budget hit 28 Days Later. Now, they have big plans for the series’ future.

There’s a lot we don’t know about the post-apocalyptic world of 28 Years Later, where the infection that turns people into zombies is known as the “rage virus.” According to the movie’s official synopsis, the virus has now gone global, with small groups of survivors existing only through “ruthlessly enforced quarantine.” The community this story will focus on has settled on a small island, which is only connected to the mainland by a small, heavily-guarded causeway.

The film stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jodie Comer and Ralph Fiennes — all of whom are newcomers to the franchise. However, it also has original star Cillian Murphy reprising his role as Jim from 28 Days Later. The extent of his role is unclear, but he has also been added to the cast of the next movie, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple. That complicates fans’ speculation that Jim has been infected himself.

We’ll have the answers soon, as 28 Years Later and The Bone Temple were shot back-to-back. The Bone Temple is scheduled for release on January 16, 2026, with another film reportedly in development. After lying dormant for years, this series is rising from the dead with a vengeance, and fans online are clearly excited. 28 Years Later debuts on June 20th.

Streaming

One of the best things about these two revivals is that it gives fans an excuse to binge-watch the other movies in anticipation. For those interested, 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later are available only on PVOD stores for rental or purchase. You can find them on Apple TV, Fandango at Home and Prime Video, or in physical media.

The Final Destination series is tricky to track down as well. The first movie was added to Paramount+ on January 1st, but the second and third movies are only available to stream on PVOD stores. The fourth movie, titled The Final Destination, is streaming now on Max. For Final Destination 5, you’ll have to go back to PVOD stores.