Episodes

  • Dr. Ellie Sattler from Jurassic Park
    Sep 10 2025

    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 mirror the themes of control, reproduction, and nature fighting back, and how Ellie holds her own in a narrative obsessed with male legacy.

    Spoiler warning: This episode contains spoilers for Jurassic Park, chaos theory tangents, and a whole lot of respect for women who know their way around a T-Rex paddock.

    Theme by Max Anson

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    46 mins
  • Emerald from Nope
    Sep 3 2025

    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. Emerald isn’t trying to be your hero; she’s trying to get the shot.

    Spoiler warning: This episode contains major plot spoilers, alien theories, and Oprah shots.

    🎵 Theme by Max Anson

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    1 hr and 8 mins
  • Mia from Evil Dead (2013)
    Aug 27 2025

    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 horror lens, and leads to one of the most cathartic rebirths we’ve ever seen on screen (chainsaw included). Plus: how her arc does/does not echo Ash’s, why the gore works as metaphor, and survival lessons we definitely hope we never need to use.

    Spoiler warning: This episode is raining blood and spoilers.

    Getting Offed: Youtube Instagram Bluesky

    ShElite Showcase: Youtube Instagram

    You can watch our guest appearances here

    Theme by Max Anson

    Visit us at www.final-girls.com

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    1 hr
  • Zephyr from Dangerous Animals
    Aug 20 2025

    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 episode contains spoilers, gory details, and oceanic food-chain dread.

    Theme by Max Anson

    Visit us at www.final-girls.com

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    59 mins
  • Melanie from The Birds
    Aug 13 2025

    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 horror? Is it camp? Is it a cautionary tale about chasing a man? Either way, Melanie earns her spot in the Final Girl canon.

    Spoiler warning: We’re spoiling the plot, the pecking, and the psychological warfare. You've been warned.

    BUY SARAH'S BABY BOOKS! www.oddbirdbooks.co

    Theme by Max Anson

    Visit us at www.final-girls.com

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    1 hr and 6 mins
  • Carly from Mom and Dad
    Aug 6 2025

    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 outsmart, outrun, and outlast the two people who supposedly love her most.

    Spoiler warning: This episode contains spoilers, screams, and one very deranged use of a sledgehammer.

    Theme by Max Anson

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    45 mins
  • Crystal from The Hunt
    Jul 30 2025

    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 you haven’t seen The Hunt, you might want to pause here and go watch, because we’re spilling blood and secrets.

    Theme by Max Anson

    Visit us at www.final-girls.com

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    47 mins
  • Claire from What Lies Beneath
    Jul 23 2025

    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 supernatural thriller taps into gothic horror, gaslighting, and the terror of not being believed.

    Spoiler Warning: If you haven’t seen What Lies Beneath, go watch it before you take a bath.

    Theme by Max Anson

    Visit us at www.final-girls.com

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    56 mins