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PODCAST

Final Girls

Sarah Spurlock and Kellie Nicole Hill

Final Girls is a dynamic podcast that dives deep into the world of horror by examining one iconic final girl per episode. Co-hosted by Kellie and Sarah — both UC Davis alumni with strong academic backgrounds — each installment dissects the tropes, triumphs, and challenges of these resilient characters. Drawing from Kellie’s expertise in Human-Computer Interaction and Film, and Sarah’s insights from History and Political Science, the show brings a unique blend of sharp analysis and genuine passion to

tv & film film reviews

All Episodes

01:00:56

Sister Barnes and Sister Paxton from Heretic

Final Girls ·

2025/10/22

We’re entering the twisted trap of Heretic (2024), a psychological survival thriller that pits two Mormon missionaries against a villain who tests their belief in God and themselves. We dig into what makes Sister Barnes and Sister Paxton unlikely Final Girls: their young and indoctrinated moral rigidity, growing doubts, and eventual transformation from passive believers into active resistors. Plus: we unpack the film’s commentary on purity, obedience, and the dangers of not asking questions.Spoiler

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52:27

Laurie from Halloween

Final Girls ·

2025/10/15

She babysat, she survived, and she started it all. This week, we go back to where the slashing started (Haddonfield, 1978) to honor the OG Final Girl, Laurie Strode. Played with brilliance by Jamie Lee Curtis, Laurie is smart, watchful, responsible… and unknowingly marked. As her friends get picked off one by one, Laurie arms herself with knitting needles, coat hangers, and sheer willpower to face down the Boogeyman.We dig into the birth of the Final Girl trope, how Laurie’s character helped define

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26:36

Sarah's Minisode: Season of the Witch(y Movies)

Final Girls ·

2025/10/08

It's the Season of the Witch! For this minisode, Sarah is diving into her favorite fictional witches, both from horror and non-horror TV and film. Witches are far more than just magical beings who cast spells; they fight the patriarchy together and work tirelessly to create a better, more just world for all. Because if she's not using magic for the greater good, is she even a witch?So grab your favorite magical potion or drink and get comfy, because we're about to summon some feminine power

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20:52

Kellie's Minisode: 31 Shudder Originals for October

Final Girls ·

2025/10/01

It's finally October! For this minisode, Kellie is serving up a horror buffet straight from Shudder’s vault. In this minisode, she counts down 31 Shudder Originals from the past decade, one for every night of the spookiest month of the year. Consider this your guide to streaming survival for the season. Grab your popcorn and stay spooky!Visit us at final-girls.com.

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15:15

Final Cats Minisode: Jonesy from Alien

Final Girls ·

2025/09/24

In our inaugural Final Cats minisode, our claws are out for one of horror’s most beloved survivors: Jonesy, the orange tabby who prowls the Nostromo in Alien. While Ripley faces down the perfect organism, Jonesy earns his own place in Final Cat history by keeping calm in the face of interstellar terror. From his iconic hisses at the Xenomorph to his safe ride home in the escape pod, we unpack how Jonesy embodies survival, luck, and pure feline vibes.Join us as we purr over his legendary status and

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01:42

Season Two Announcement

Final Girls ·

2025/09/17

Scream Things, prepare to sharpen your knives and grab your flashlights, because Final Girls is gearing up for Season Two just in time for spooky season! We're taking a few weeks to enjoy our favorite time of year with friends and family (and, of course, eat/drink all things pumpkin-flavored.) Dropping right before Halloween, our brand-new season of iconic Final Girls will come with fresh frights and plenty of blood-soaked analysis. Until then, stay spooky!xoxoSarah and Kellie

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46:07

Dr. Ellie Sattler from Jurassic Park

Final Girls ·

2025/09/10

This week, we’re heading to Isla Nublar to celebrate one of the most iconic women in sci-fi horror: Dr. Ellie Sattler. Played by Laura Dern, Ellie is more than just a paleobotanist, she’s a feminist force who critiques patriarchal hubris, outruns velociraptors, and rescues the boys when things go sideways.We dig into the gender politics of Jurassic Park, including how Ellie’s intelligence and assertiveness challenge the male egos around her. We also talk about how the film’s all-female dinosaurs

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01:08:25

Emerald from Nope

Final Girls ·

2025/09/03

This week, we’re spotlighting the one and only Emerald Haywood from Jordan Peele’s Nope (2022) — a Final Girl who rides in late, steals the scene, and never lets go of the spotlight. As Hollywood’s skies darken with something sinister, Em becomes the beating heart of a story about spectacle, survival, and sibling solidarity. We break down how Emerald flips expectations as a Final Girl: vibrant, flawed, funny, and fearless. We dig into the film’s themes of exploitation, visibility, and legacy

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59:48

Mia from Evil Dead (2013)

Final Girls ·

2025/08/27

She came to detox. The forest had other plans. In Fede Álvarez’s brutal 2013 reimagining of Evil Dead, Mia isn’t just fighting addiction, she’s fighting off ancient demons and the literal fires of hell. This week, we’re joined by two incredible guests and friends, Matt from Getting Offed and Katie from ShElite Showcase, to dig into Mia’s Final Girl arc and all the blood-soaked symbolism it unleashes.We dissect how Mia’s journey flips the possession trope on its head, reframes addiction through a

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58:48

Zephyr from Dangerous Animals

Final Girls ·

2025/08/20

In Dangerous Animals (2025), Zephyr is a closed-off American surfer chasing freedom on the open Australian water, but when a shark diving boat operator picks her as his prey, she has to battle something far more sinister than what’s lurking beneath the surface. This week, we dive into Zephyr’s Final Girl arc from self-contained loner to reluctant warrior, and we unpack how the film delivers one of the most feral third-act fights and transformations we’ve seen in a long time. Spoiler warning: This

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01:05:59

Melanie from The Birds

Final Girls ·

2025/08/13

This week, we're heading to Bodega Bay to talk about The Birds (1963) and our sharp-tongued, fur-coat-wearing Final Girl, Melanie Daniels. What begins as a flirty little prank quickly turns Hitchcockian nightmare when birds begin attacking violently, relentlessly, and without explanation. We dig into the gender politics of Melanie’s transformation from socialite to survivor, the icy dynamics between the women in Mitch’s life, and how the film weaponizes nature and femininity in equal measure. Is it

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45:08

Carly from Mom and Dad

Final Girls ·

2025/08/06

Your parents always said they brought you into this world… and in this one, they’re ready to take you out. This week, we’re unraveling the unhinged chaos of Mom and Dad (2017) and spotlighting Carly, our Gen Z Final Girl who’s just trying to survive a sudden epidemic turning parents into murderers. (And yes, that includes her own.) We dig into the film’s wild tonal shifts and what it says about generational tension and parental rage. With Nicolas Cage and Selma Blair going full feral, Carly has to

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47:14

Crystal from The Hunt

Final Girls ·

2025/07/30

They picked the wrong girl. This week, we’re heading into the blood-soaked battlefield of The Hunt (2020) to talk about Crystal, arguably one of the coolest, calmest, and most calculated Final Girls we’ve ever seen. Crystal doesn’t scream or run. She barely even blinks. And yet, she delivers one of the most cathartic, quietly feminist takedowns in recent horror history. We unpack the film’s satire of class warfare and political extremism and Crystal’s refusal to play that game.Spoiler warning: If

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55:53

Claire from What Lies Beneath

Final Girls ·

2025/07/23

When your house is haunted, but so is your marriage. This week we’re talking about Claire Spencer from What Lies Beneath (2000), the gaslit, ghost-seeing housewife who learns the call is coming from inside her relationship. We get into Claire’s eerie Final Girl arc and why trusting your gut might be the most dangerous thing you can do when your husband’s hiding skeletons in more places than one. We also dive into the film’s Hitchcockian vibes if Hitchcock ever went full ghost story, and why this

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33:30

BONUS: Heather from The Blair Witch Project

Final Girls ·

2025/07/17

LIVE FROM GHOULIECON! ✨ We’re lost in the woods with Heather Donahue from The Blair Witch Project (1999), the chaotic queen of found footage and one of the most debated Final Girls in horror history. Is she a control freak? A victim of misogyny? Or just the only one trying to not die in the woods? We recorded this episode LIVE in front of an audience at GhoulieCon on July 20, and it was an extra special one because our Scream Things picked Heather as our Final Girl for this episode. Spoiler Warning:

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54:30

Julie and Karla from I Still Know What You Did Last...

Final Girls ·

2025/07/16

They still know what you did and we still don’t know why this movie exists. This week, we’re talking about Julie & Karla from I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, aka the sequel that proves not every Final Girl deserves a follow-up. We hated this movie (not even in a fun way), but trust: it made for one of our most chaotic, laugh-out-loud episodes yet. We get into the offensively fake voodoo plotline, the zero chemistry friendship, the paper-thin plot, and why this movie aged like milk. Plus:

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48:54

Julie from I Know What You Did Last Summer

Final Girls ·

2025/07/09

Julie James (Jennifer Love Hewitt) goes from small-town golden girl to haunted survivor in I Know What You Did Last Summer, a film that asks: what if your worst mistake came back with a hook? This week, we unravel Julie’s guilt, paranoia, and transformation from trembling honor student to one of the most iconic Final Girls of the late ’90s. We talk about the wave of post-Scream slashers, Y2K fashion, that iconic screaming-in-the-street scene, and why this movie is pure seaside teen trauma.Spoiler

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53:09

Senator Roan from The Purge: Election Year

Final Girls ·

2025/07/02

For Final Girls' 4th of July episode, we're diving into a character who isn't just a survivor; she’s a force. In The Purge: Election Year (2016), Elizabeth Mitchell’s Senator Charlie Roan transforms personal trauma (watching her family murdered during a Purge) into a fierce political campaign to abolish the ritual once and for all. This week, we discuss Senator Roan's Final Girl energy, whose platform puts her directly in danger. We also ponder whether she's really the star of this movie, and if

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44:44

Tammy from 28 Weeks Later

Final Girls ·

2025/06/25

Tammy may not be the most famous Final Girl, but in 28 Weeks Later (2007), she’s sprinting for her life through one of the bleakest apocalypses ever put on screen. This week, we delve into Tammy’s fight to survive the Rage Virus outbreak, her dual roles as both caretaker and survivor, and her remarkably concise Final Girl arc in the final ten minutes.Spoiler Warning: The infection spreads fast, and so do the 28 Weeks Later spoilers. Proceed at your own risk.If you're loving Final Girls, leave us a

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01:12:03

Dani from Midsommar

Final Girls ·

2025/06/18

Sometimes healing means burning it all down. For our summer Solstice episode, we’re not going it alone. This is our very first episode with guests, and we couldn’t be more excited to welcome our friends Cory and Rossa from Broomsticks and Bloodshed to the pod! Together, we step into the sun-drenched nightmare of Midsommar (2019), where grief blooms into ritual and heartbreak transforms into something far more powerful.We unpack Dani’s earthy catharsis, the film’s lush, unsettling symbolism, and how

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46 results

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