Before dying every season on Chucky, Devon Sawa met a fictional demise in another series. I’m talking about Final Destination, the fan-favorite horror franchise that the actor played an instrumental role in launching. Unlike many of his co-stars from the first film, the Casper actor survived the series of elaborate onscreen deaths. However, in a disappointing turn for fans (including myself), his character met an anticlimactic offscreen demise by a brick in the sequel. Now, the Idle Hands actor is finally opening up about why he did not return for the sequel, a choice that led to his character’s death.
Final Destination may not top the list of the best films from the 2000s, but it has cultivated a solid following thanks to its creatively staged death sequences. The franchise has since spawned four follow-ups, with another FD sequel currently in development. Although logically, Devon Sawa’s character, Alex Browning, should have returned for the first sequel, series creator Jeffrey Reddick revealed that initially, bigger plans were in order for Alex that ultimately were not pursued. In an exclusive interview with Comicbook.com, Sawa finally addressed why he didn’t return to the franchise:
It just didn’t work out. I wasn’t in…I just wasn’t really capable of working. Then I took some time out of the business. My agents talked to the producers. They ended up discussing going a different way. Maybe I thought I’d come back for the third, but then I never… it just didn’t work out. There was no hard feelings with anybody. I’ve seen every single movie since I went to a couple of the premieres. They’re great films. I’m very happy for them. Teo, who played my son in the first season of Chucky, is actually going to be one of the leads in the newest one, and I can’t wait to see him. It couldn’t have happened to a better guy. I think he’s a super talented young fellow, so yeah, I love those films.
It’s a shame the OG star couldn’t return for the film. One could certainly argue that more could’ve been done with Alex. While the OG flick fleshed him out relatively well, it could’ve been fun to see his further attempts to avoid a run-in with death.
On the bright side though, what an exciting passing of the torch. Many have already heard that Final Destination 6 has its cast set, and hearing that Chucky’s Teo Briones is set to be one of the leads is a cool twist in the ongoing lineage of horror movies.
The latest installment in the series, Final Destination: Bloodlines, is currently in production. The film boasts a diverse cast, including Brec Bassinger of DC’s Stargirl, The Flash’s Kaitlyn Santa Juana, Richard Harmon of The 100, Anna Lore from Gotham Knights, Owen Patrick Joyner of Julie and the Phantoms, Max Lloyd-Jones from The Book of Boba Fett, Rya Kihlstedt from Obi-Wan Kenobi and Tinpo Lee of The Manor. As of now, a release date for the film has not yet been announced.
The creator of the franchise has hinted that the sixth movie will break new ground by altering the mechanics of death itself, setting it apart from previous entries. There’s even the possibility of getting inventive by revising the Now and Then alum’s character’s fate, potentially bringing him back into the fold. Given the genre’s history of unexpected twists—where iconic figures like Jason and Freddy routinely escape death—such a comeback wouldn’t be out of place. Devon Sawa has expressed interest in returning to the franchise, making it the perfect time for such a dramatic revival. So let’s right this offscreen death wrong!
We will have to see if the actor has any place in the upcoming horror movie, which is set to premiere exclusively for those with a Max subscription. However, know that he also appears in all three seasons — albeit as differing characters — of the TV Series Chucky, which is now streaming with a Peacock subscription.