If You Like The Final Destination Movies, Thank This Kentuckian

One of my favorite things to do is curl up on the couch with my hubs and watch a scary movie. I don't mean just any scary movie either. I want one that is going to make me afraid to go to the bathroom alone. One that will pop up in my head when I least expect it to give me goosebumps. This has only happened a handful of times.

1. The Sixth Sense

My middle school self had nightmares for months over that one. Now, living with a pre-teen boy, I'm reminded of the creepy mom ghost every time I go into the kitchen to find the cabinet doors all opened.

2. The Ring

After watching this one in high school, I literally slept in my parents' room. Still to this day, if I am trapped in a room with a fly, I am searching for a TV that daggum girl could crawl out of. Even though I haven't watched a VHS tape in about a decade.

3. Final Destination

I'm pretty sure this movie had a similar effect on everyone who watched it. I would bet money that when you end up on the highway behind a logging truck, you change lanes ASAP. I know I sure do!

Who Created the Final Destination Franchise?

Did you know that the mastermind behind this storyline and movie series came from right here in Kentucky? Jeffrey Reddick is a screenwriter and film director from Jackson, KY. He graduated from Breathitt County High School and also went to Berea College.

When he was 14 years old, Reddick befriended the founder of New Line Cinema, Robert Shaye. He submitted a script for a prequel to his favorite film, Nightmare on Elm Street. It was returned unopened, but Reddick wrote back insisting Shaye take a look at his writing.

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Luckily, Shaye was impressed by his perserverance and they kept in touch until Reddick was old enough to snag an internship at New Line. For over a decade, he worked there learning the ins and outs, and then in 2000, the company produced Reddick's first studio project, Final Destination.

Is Final Destination Based on a True Story?

In an interview with Collider, Reddick shared his inspiration for the story.

"I was flying home to Kentucky, and I read an article about a woman who was on a flight. She was in Hawaii, I think, and her mom called her and said, ‘Don't take the flight you're on tomorrow. I have a bad feeling about it.’ So she switched flights, and the plane that she was supposed to be on crashed. And so that put the idea in my head, which is interesting because what struck me about that is that it made me think about premonitions in a way, because I do believe there are people out there that have gifts, whether it's psychic kind of gifts or whatever. I've never been able to levitate. I've tried it. After reading X-Men, I tried it many times and failed. But I do believe that people have gifts, and I do believe in fate.”

 

 

He went on to create the Final Destination sequel and has since worked on other great horror films and animated series for Netflix. In that same interview, he shares that his passion now is helping independent filmmakers bring their movie ideas to life. Like New Fear's Eve that was created right here in Owensboro by local production company Blood Moon Pictures.

Eric Huskisson and P.J. Starks wrote, directed, and filmed the movie in town with several special guests and local actors. Jeffrey Reddick is listed as producer, and he even makes some great appearances. Here's the official trailer.

So now when you find yourself behind a logging truck, you'll think of Final Destination, change lanes, and then remember that the man responsible is a Kentuckian with ties to good ole Owensboro!