Final Destination 5 is a 2011 American 3D supernatural horror film directed by Steven Quale and written by Eric Heisserer.

[3] Final Destination 5 was theatrically released on August 12, 2011, and on DVD on December 27, 2011, by Warner Bros. Pictures and New Line Cinema.

After being interrogated by FBI agent Jim Block, the survivors attend a memorial service for their deceased co-workers where they are being watched by coroner William Bludworth.

Later, Candice dies during her gym practice from a chain reaction that causes her to fall off the uneven bars and snap her spine.

At the same time, Sam and Molly fail to save Olivia, who falls out of a window to her death at an eye surgery clinic.

[11] According to Heisserer, Final Destination 5 was always meant to be a prequel, set before the first film; the idea having come from franchise producer Craig Perry.

Heisserer said that one major problem he encountered while writing the film was coming up with good death sequences, believing that managing to do so in the world of Final Destination is "ridiculously hard".

[23] Law & Order: Criminal Intent's Vance plays FBI agent Jim Block while Wood, who is starring as Steffy Forrester in the soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful, portrays co-worker Olivia Castle.

[25] Final Destination 3 star Chelan Simmons revealed that the opening scene would be filmed on the Lions Gate Bridge in Vancouver.

Miles Fisher also released a tie-in video for his single "New Romance" which features the key actors in the film in a Saved by the Bell parody in which most are killed in freak accidents, in keeping with the series.

[27] The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) in the UK ruled that the original theatrical poster, which had been used on buses and trains during the summer, "was likely to cause fear and undue distress to children".

Warner Bros. countered by stating that the poster "accurately reflected the content of the film in an appropriate manner without causing excessive fear or distress".

They also added that the poster's dark grey and black colors were "unlikely to engage the attention of young children", and that the "surreal" image did not feature people, blood or display any real-life violence.

Starring the main cast of Final Destination 5 and featuring Fisher's original song "New Romance", the video parodied the 1990s sitcom Saved by the Bell and included a clue to the plot of the film.

The site's critical consensus reads, "It's still only for the gore-thirsty faithful, but Final Destination 5 represents a surprising return to form for the franchise.

[36] Richard Roeper stated in his review "From the opening credits to the final kill this film displays a great use of 3D.

He described Final Destination 5 as "a clean, glossy thriller shot in native 3D (not post-conversion) that maximizes the technology without straining the audience's credulity or their constitutions."

He also stated "Calling anything the 'best 3D horror film' has the ring of crowning the world's tallest midget, but Quale uses 3D almost shockingly well.

In his review of Final Destination 5, Roger Ebert said "[...] the special effects do an excellent job of beheading, incinerating, vivisecting, squishing and so on.

"[40] "Final Destination 5 contain some of the most fun effects ever seen that purely enhance the thrills and bloody spills, rather than detract from them," stated Lisa Giles-Keddie from uk.real.com.

Boxoffice Magazine said in praise, "viewers connect to both the relatable pain of everyday injury and the gory gratification of a well-constructed, larger-than-life set piece.

"[47] The opening bridge collapse has garnered considerable critical acclaim, with many stating it as being on par with the pile-up sequence from Final Destination 2.

[49] USA Today commented on the sequence, saying "The effect is terrific and reminiscent of the bridge destruction from Mission: Impossible III.

"[51] In a review for MSN.com, Kat Murphy said "the fifth chapter starts out with a slambang catastrophe", then stated that the bridge collapse is "skillfully orchestrated", and "this sequence is actually enhanced by 3D: Holes in the disintegrating bridge seem to pull the gaze down—dizzyingly—to the river below, and jagged camera angles on hanging railings and sliding debris muddle our sense of what's up, what's down.

[54] The Advocate stated that "Director Steve Quale and writer Heisserer stage the bridge's collapse in swift but exacting detail.

[56] In 2017, John Squires, writing for Bloody Disgusting, gave five reasons as to why Final Destination 5 is the franchise's best sequel, highlighting the opening sequence, the inventive death scenes, the level of gore in the film, the new mythology to defeat Death and the ending encompassing scenes from the first film.

In early 2011, Tony Todd said in an interview with Dread Central that if Final Destination 5 was a success at the box office, then two sequels would be filmed back-to-back.