Final Destination: Bloodlines spoilers follow.
Final Destination: Bloodlines director Adam Stein has revealed how they pulled off one of the movie's best deaths.
The sixth instalment of the popular horror franchise hit cinemas earlier this month, following a new victim who tries to find a way to save her family from the grisly deaths that await them all.
One of the goriest deaths was reserved for Anna Lore's character Julia, who met her demise after a series of unfortunate mishaps landed her in the back of a garbage truck, where her head was crushed by the vehicle's compactor.
Taking to Instagram, Stein shared a behind-the-scenes video showing how they achieved the effect, along with a detailed explanation in the caption.
"The incredible SPFX team at @pacwestspfx built the inside of a garbage truck with a very special feature… a crusher that retracts when it goes around a head. Metal rods with rubber tips formed a flat surface," he wrote.
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The filmmaker continued: "This video shows me testing it out in prep to make sure it was comfortable enough for @anna_lore to use on the day.
"We filled the interior with trash and Anna climbed around in there — we threw her in garbage and crushed her head on her first day of the shoot!"
Stein explained that the VFX teamed then replaced the metal rods with a metal plate after her head was 'crushed', "erasing the magic trick".
"And of course, they added all the juicy bits," he added. "We tried crushing a makeup SPFX head of Anna as well but it didn’t look as good as this gag.
"The most amazing piece of trivia here: Anna’s performance was so intense that as she 'died' she actually cried a single tear… and it’s in the movie! It’s hard to see it through all the blood but it’s there!"
Related: Final Destination: Bloodlines sets impressive new record with strong Rotten Tomatoes rating
In another post, Stein explained how they made it look like Julia's arm was ripped off during the chaos, revealing that the actor had a fake arm strapped to her shoulder while her real arm remained hidden.
"The fake arm was remote triggered to tear in half at the right moment," he captioned some behind-the-scenes photos of the team practicing the effect.
"The first picture shows a practice arm during prep, and the second picture was the day we shot the scene, with Anna in costume and wearing the camera-ready arm that was sculpted to match her real arm. It tore off, leaking blood. Great work by the @mastersfxstudios team here."
Final Destination: Bloodlines is out now in cinemas.
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Social Executive, Entertainment Portfolio After completing her joint honours degree in Journalism and English Literature at Cardiff University, Iona joined Digital Spy as a Content Production Intern in 2022, where she wrote across both news and features, specialising in TV and movies. Following her internship, Iona continued contributing to the site as a freelance reporter, becoming social executive for the Hearst UK entertainment portfolio in summer 2025. Iona now leads the DS social channels, covering red carpets with stars such as Paul Mescal, Austin Butler, and more.
