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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 episode explores the final girl's journey in detail, from the creative escape scenes that have become cult favorites to the narrative complexities that define their battles against overwhelming odds. Final Girls celebrates the spirit of women who fight back, inviting listeners to rethink classic horror tropes and appreciate the empowering narratives that make these characters enduring cultural icons.

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  • 26 episodes
  • weekly
  • Avg 55 min
  • English
Counted on this page — what you have heard stays on this device, so it is not something the list can be paged by.
  • Wednesday · 54 min

    Rocky from Don't Breathe

    Rocky from Don’t Breathe (2016) fits all the definitions of a Final Girl, yet this movie is still deeply unpleasant and a very difficult watch. But she does have some great moments, and in this episode we cover all of them. We also dive into ladybug tattoos and the trope of Detroit as shorthand for urban blight, as well as how gross visuals are fun in Evil Dead ways but not in story lines that feature SA. Listen now! Join our Patreon! For only $5/month, get TWO extra podcast episodes – including Final Daddies, Final Cats, Final-ish Girls, discussions, panels, and more! But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • September 9 · 51 min

    Trish from Jeepers Creepers

    Which is scarier: The Creeper, or Justin Long’s early 2000s tribal rose tattoo? This week we’re covering a highly requested Final Girl, Trish from Jeepers Creepers (2001). Trish is road tripping it home from college with her kid brother, Derry, and his garbage bags of laundry when they encounter a creepy truck and its creepier driver. And instead of minding their business, Derry forces them to investigate, which sets off a chain of events that puts one of the coolest, scariest horror villains on their tails. Is Trish the ultimate Final Girl because of her boldness and bravery? ***CONTENT NOTE*** We understand that this may be an episode some listeners will want to skip because of the horrific crimes of the filmmaker. We completely understand and support you passing this week, if that’s you. We do not discuss him or his crimes in the episode; we focus entirely on Trish’s journey. Like many podcasters who cover entertainment, we are always trying our best to ethically navigate an industry full of predatory male executives while still giving props to badass femme characters, as well as the hundreds of people involved in production who pour their hearts into the art form we all love. Check us out on Sean’s Horror Corner, covering all four of the Jeepers Creepers movies: Jeepers Creepers Jeepers Creepers 2 Jeepers Creepers 3 Jeepers Creepers Reborn Jeepers Creepers Franchise Review LIVE Join our Patreon! For only $5/month, get TWO extra podcast episodes – including Final Daddies, Final Cats, Final-ish Girls, discussions, panels, and more! But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • September 2 · 58 min

    Natalie from Urban Legend

    Natalie from Urban Legend (1998) hits all the Final Girl marks: she’s not believed when she figures out the killer’s pattern, she does Final Girl Research in a library, she has past trauma that is slowly uncovered, and she survives some brutal attacks from The Killer. She also navigates an environment with terrible sex advice and a roommate who constantly sexiles her, and we consider that final girl energy too. This movie is a solid, cozy entry in the suite of meta 90s teen slashers, and we especially love the stacked cast and want to take Robert Englund’s urban legends class very badly. Tell us - what’s your favorite urban legend? Join our Patreon! For only $5/month, get TWO extra podcast episodes – including Final Daddies, Final Cats, Final-ish Girls, discussions, panels, and more! But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • August 26 · 46 min

    Brianna from Candyman (2021)

    Tell everyone! And carry an EpiPen! This week we’re examining the artful world of Brianna from Candyman (2021) and her journey to figuring out who the Candyman is and what his relationship is to her boyfriend Anthony. This movie is heavy-handed about police brutality, racism, gentrification, and more, but in our opinion, there are a LOT of people who need to hear these messages so we support the ultra clear delivery completely. We also discuss if Bri would really own a branded merchandise pen from a laundromat (honestly, probably not, she’s too chic for that) and how visually gorgeous this movie is. Please check out the film’s supplemental social impact content at candymanmovie.com/impact Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • August 19 · 59 min

    Amy from The Ruins

    When we were watching The Ruins again, we both had the same thought: maybe DON’T be one of THOSE tourists who takes photos of locals like they’re props and then proceeds to visit an unmapped area that those same locals told you not to visit (in flip flops, too, by the way.) This week we’re covering our Final Girl Amy’s vacation from hell, cursed ruins, spooky vines, having a med school boyfriend, crude leg amputations, and why you also shouldn’t wear your favorite earrings to lounge by the pool unless it’s for a specific party aesthetic. (Obviously, we learn a lot about what NOT to do from this one.) Listen to our Tucker and Dale vs. Evil episode on Students of Horror! Buy Sarah’s witchy baby books! Visit her website! Join our Patreon! For only $5/month, get TWO extra podcast episodes – including Final Daddies, Final Cats, Final-ish Girls, discussions, panels, and more! But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • August 12 · 1 hr 6 min

    Elizabeth and Stevie from The Fog (1980)

    This week our friends from Chopping It Up are joining us to break down John Carpenter’s 1980 spooky cult classic, The Fog! Get ready to learn A LOT about this movie and its two Final Girls, Elizabeth (Jamie Lee Curtis) and Stevie (Adrienne Barbeau.) We go into how much we love the idea of being a radio DJ in a lighthouse, the way Carpenter decided to make a ghost story about fog, how to get unstuck from the mud in your car, the tea behind Barbeau and Carpenter themselves, and the coziness of Northern California coastal towns. We also decide that we all would happily hitchhike with Kurt Russell. Check out Chopping It Up! IG: @choppingituphorrorpod Bluesky: @choppingitup Join our Patreon! For only $5/month, get TWO extra podcast episodes – including Final Daddies, Final Cats, Final-ish Girls, discussions, panels, and more! But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • August 5 · 50 min

    Rachel from The Ring

    If you knew you had seven days to live, would you spend them chasing LEAD after LEAD like our Final Girl Rachel in The Ring (2002) and Kellie? Or would you be like Sarah and say eff it, and catch a plane to Bali for your remaining days? This week we’re tracking Rachel’s grim, wet, blue/green journey through Seattle, in a movie that could literally just be titled “Final Girl Research: The Movie.” Also: did you recognize the guy who plays Noah from Britney Spears’ Toxic music video? Join our Patreon! For only $5/month, get TWO extra podcast episodes – including Final Daddies, Final Cats, Final-ish Girls, discussions, panels, and more! But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • July 29 · 1 hr 3 min

    Grace from Ready or Not

    “Pacts with the devil - real or bullsh*t?” That is the question on everyone’s mind in Ready or Not (2019) and especially for our ICONIC Final Girl Grace. Grace sets the FG standard - she’s got moxie, resourcefulness, and commitment (our top three ingredients) on LOCK. We dedicate this episode to all of the badass listeners who have requested a Grace episode over the past year and a half! Join our Patreon! For only $5/month, get TWO extra podcast episodes – including Final Daddies, Final Cats, Final-ish Girls, discussions, panels, and more! But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • July 22 · 49 min

    Karen from Child's Play

    I’m Chucky!!! Wanna play? No? Actually, we totally get it, because otherwise you might get stuck like our Final Girl Karen saving grown-ass men from a killer doll in Child’s Play (1988). Karen shows us lots of things about how to be a Final Girl, like you should definitely keep a first aid kit handy and sometimes, you need to take matters into your own hands, especially when there’s a manbaby detective assigned to your case. Listen to Kellie’s Movie Postmortem episode on the Sam Raimi Spiderman movies! Listen to Kellie’s Halloween is Forever episode on Child’s Play! We changed our Patreon! We now only have ONE level for $5. This level has TWO extra podcast episodes per month. But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • July 15 · 47 min

    Stokely from The Faculty

    Angsty goth girls unite! Stokely is our Final Girl in 1998’s teen horror cult classic The Faculty, and this week we’re chasing her story like the queen alien who chases Frodo through the gymnasium. This movie has one of the most STACKED casts of all time, including YOUNG JON STEWART WITH A GOATEE??? We also cover whether Planet Hollywood is still a thing and the Cabin in the Woods/the Faculty easter egg fan theory. Go Hornets! We changed our Patreon! We now only have ONE level for $5. This level has TWO extra podcast episodes per month. But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • July 8 · 55 min

    Carrie from Carrie (1976)

    Carrie White is Burning in Hell! This week, we unpack the telekinetic Final Girl victim/villain arc of Carrie White from the 1976 film Carrie. This movie is a hard watch because really, who hasn’t been relentlessly bullied at some point in their life? We also cover the religious psychosis that conditioned her to be scared of her body and whether or not we should consider getting Carrie insurance on our houses. Remember: the greatest revenge on a bully isn’t trapping them in a gym, but a life well lived. We changed our Patreon! We now only have ONE level for $5. This level has TWO extra podcast episodes per month. But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • July 1 · 1 hr

    Lynn from The Sixth Sense

    We’re back from our travels and PUMPED to talk about one of our favorite performances in a horror movie of all time - Toni Collette as Lynn in The Sixth Sense (1999). This was one of the most grounded, realistic portrayals of a mother’s fear and exhaustion we’ve ever seen. Even if she’s not a Typical Final Girl™, we think she’s deserving of the title because she shows that bravery is doing the thing despite the fear, and strength and courage look different for every single person. Also, Bruce Willis is Bruce Willis-ing hard in this movie and we’re here for it. Except for his sexy dance. We changed our Patreon! We now only have ONE level for $5. This level has TWO extra podcast episodes per month. But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • June 24 · 53 min

    Deena from Fear Street 1994

    This episode is a love letter to nostalgic millennials who saved up their chore money for the Scholastic Book Fair. This week, we’re covering Deena from Fear Street 1994 (2021), a charming trilogy based on the Fear Street novels by R.L. Stine. Deena’s an angsty feminist punk Final Girl whose story isn’t just about surviving a killer curse, but also aggressively defending her culturally unaccepted relationship with the girl she loves. Will she save her girlfriend and beat the curse of Sarah Fier? Is Shadyside vs. Sunnyvale the same as Pawnee vs. Eagleton? Will we see a Babysitters Club revival? What are Sarah and Kellie’s old AIM screen names? Listen to find out! We changed our Patreon! We now only have ONE level for $5. This level has TWO extra podcast episodes per month. But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • June 17 · 1 hr 11 min

    Maddie from Hush

    Double Trouble! This week we’re teaming up with Maggie and Kassie from Skip or Scream Podcast to dive into the Final Girl journey of Maddie from Hush (2016). In this film, our Final Girl lives by herself in the middle of the forest, you know, like you do. Because of her hearing impairment, she has to fight like a Final Girl in some alternative ways, and some very classic ways, and we think she’s a badass all around for it. Check out Skip or Scream: Instagram Patreon Spotify Apple Podcasts Our episode on Totally Killer on Skip or Scream We changed our Patreon! We now only have ONE level for $5. This level has TWO extra podcast episodes per month. But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • June 10 · 54 min

    Trish and Valerie from The Slumber Party Massacre

    You’re invited to our Slumber Party! Just please don’t bring strawberry daiquaris, because who drinks those with pizza, honestly (other than Trish and her friends). This week we’re covering Trish and Valerie, the two Final Girls from the 1982 slasher cult classic The Slumber Party Massacre. This one follows all of the sleazy slasher beats, but it was written and directed by women, and we have quite a bit to say about it (namely, how doofy and loser-y the guys are all in it). But our First Amendment Rights™ will not be violated like Diane’s, you can count on that. We changed our Patreon! We now only have ONE level for $5. This level has TWO extra podcast episodes per month. But don't think of it that way. Think of it as a tip, like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • June 3 · 57 min

    Pumpkin from Forbidden Fruits

    CODE DILL! Kara joined us for Sarah’s bday episode to cast some cute dark magic and dive into the coven from Forbidden Fruits. This movie is Mean Girls meets Heathers meets The Craft meets a tiny bit of Clueless, and two of the three of us are here for it. Goat's milk, thigh gaps, rose petals, bone casts, truffle oil, bitch slap, blood clots, juice press. Bee emoji, Couple emoji, Red heart emoji, Red question mark emoji. PLEASE LEAVE US A RATING AND REVIEW! 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon

  • May 27 · 1 hr

    Skye from Smile 2

    This week, we're analyzing the Final Girl journey of Skye from Smile 2 (2024), an overworked and lonely NYC pop star fighting multiple demons - but only one of them is supernatural! This is a very rewatchable movie in a franchise we hope will only get better and better. But how does her Final Girl story measure up? We changed our Patreon! We now only have ONE level for $5. Our Patreons get TWO extra podcast episodes per month. But don't think of it that way. Think of this as a tip, or like getting us a Diet Coke (for Sarah) or coffee (for Kellie). 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon. Please leave us a rating or review! :)

  • May 20 · 51 min

    Asia from They Will Kill You

    They Will Kill You (2026) is part Quentin Tarantino, part Sam Raimi, part Wes Anderson, and we're here for all of it. This week we’re continuing our month of listener requests with a VERY recent Final Girl -- Asia, a bona fide badass who has come to save her sister from a satanic cult in a creepy art deco hotel in NYC, only to discover they are a far more difficult villain to vanquish than she imagined. Spoilers ahead! PLEASE LEAVE US A RATING AND REVIEW! 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon!

  • May 13 · 52 min

    Kirsty from Hellraiser

    Who are we, you ask? Demons to some, angels to others 😈 This week, we’re analyzing Kirsty’s Final Girl credentials in one of the most iconic franchises in horrorstory, Hellraiser (1987). She’s the trifecta of Final Girl resourcefulness with a perfect blend of physical strength, intellectual capability, and emotional awareness. We just wish she had a lot more screen time in this one. Listen to (or watch) Sarah’s guest appearance on Getting Offed, in which we talk about the Hellraiser theme song! Listen to Sarah and Kellie’s guest appearance last year on Blood in the Cornfields, in which we discuss Kirsty in Hellraiser 1 and 2! PLEASE LEAVE US A RATING AND REVIEW! 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon!

  • May 6 · 51 min

    Beth from Evil Dead Rise

    Come get some!!! This week we’re talking about Beth, the feral Final Girl from Evil Dead Rise (2023) and soon-to-be mom. Beth learns very quickly how to engage those mama bear instincts and protect her nieces and nephew from Deadites taking over the building, but how does she measure up to Ash’s legacy, or the legacy of her more recent predecessor, Mia? How is she with a chainsaw? Only you can decide, although we have some opinions if you wanna hear them. Happy Mother’s Day! PLEASE LEAVE US A RATING AND REVIEW! 💕 Find us at final-girls.com and check out our Patreon!

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