3 From Hell brought writer and director Rob Zombie's Firefly Family trilogy to a close, managing to brutally kill off lots of people along the way. It's likely that no matter how many films Zombie directs over the course of his career - and he's only 55, so that career could theoretically continue for quite some time to come - he'll always be remembered most for giving the world the Fireflies. A makeshift clan of killers, the Firefly Family were first introduced in Zombie's debut film House of 1000 Corpses.
Originally a large group of villains, 2005 sequel The Devil's Rejects saw the Firefly Family get whittled down to a core trio of Otis (Bill Moseley), Baby (Sheri Moon Zombie), and Captain Spaulding (the late, great Sid Haig). This move made sense, as the three were the clear standouts among the Firefly pack in the prior movie. The Devil's Rejects also saw an odd thing happen though, as Zombie's sadistic murderers became the heroes by default when put up against a revenge-fueled sheriff willing to match them in the violence department.
After nearly 15 years of being thought by fans to have died at the end of The Devil's Rejects, Otis, Baby, and Captain Spaulding returned for one last hurrah in 2019's 3 From Hell. Joining them was a new relative named Foxy (Richard Brake), brought in to fill the void left by an ailing Haig. The Fireflies ultimately survived 3 From Hell, but not without going through hell themselves along the way.
Is 3 From Hell the End for the Firefly Family?
The plot of 3 From Hell is pretty simple. Otis and Baby escape from prison, after having miraculously survived getting shot full of holes at the end of The Devil's Rejects. Once outside, they hook up with Foxy, and head down to Mexico to escape from the American authorities. Down south, they also run into trouble, encountering a Mexican crime lord that happens to be the son of a past victim. Things look bleak, but they prevail, kill their enemies, and walk off into the sunset.
It seems like the perfect ending to the Firefly story, outside of the fact that Haig's health led Captain Spaulding's role to be reduced, and the character executed offscreen. It's hard to think where Otis, Baby, and Foxy could go from here, as they'll likely either get caught by American law enforcement or kill enough people to run afoul of the Mexican police. It's also unclear if Baby's mental state will continue to deteriorate. That said, Rob Zombie has not committed to never doing another Firefly film, as potentially misguided as that may be to attempt.
3 From Hell Made the Fireflies Antiheroes, Not Villains
3 From Hell completed a strange transition for the Firefly Family that began with The Devil's Rejects. In that film, Otis, Baby, and Captain Spaulding were still very much terrible people, but when put up against an arguably worse person, they became oddly sympathetic. It helped that all three performances were charismatic, making them easy to like despite their evil deeds. In 3 From Hell, Otis, Baby, Foxy - and Spaulding in his brief appearance - are clearly the "heroes" of the film, with most of their victims either unlikable jerks or people who stupidly chose to cross the Fireflies while knowing the potential consequences, or both.
This metamorphosis from staunch villains into antiheroes was cemented by 3 From Hell's third act, as the Fireflies spend their time getting drunk, having sex with prostitutes, and not really doing much else but having a grand old time. That is until the crime lord, Aquarius, shows up to target them for death. Sure, they had wronged him previously, but the audience is given no reason to sympathize with him, and is clearly meant to root for Otis, Baby, and Foxy to overcome his assault. The Fireflies are the protagonists of 3 From Hell, and nearly the entire story is presented through their viewpoint. They may not be "good guys," but they're definitely heroes of their own tale.
The Firefly Family May Be Evil, But So Is The System Itself
Many viewers are likely to disagree with this message, but 3 From Hell really seems to want to say that while the Firefly Family aren't good people, the system that opposes them is also far from good. This is an extension of a theme that Sheriff Wydell began in The Devil's Rejects, as a lawman who repeatedly breaks the law during his pursuit of the Fireflies, and once he catches them, tortures and attempts to murder them without charge or trial. While they're guilty of many crimes, and Wydell has an understandable personal animus toward them over the death of his brother, that's not how the justice system is supposed to work. This is furthered by the fact that the police again attempt to - and at first glance did - summarily execute the Fireflies at the end of The Devil's Rejects.
In 3 From Hell, this theme is driven home even further, with the Fireflies encountering corrupt prison guards, corrupt wardens, dismissive parole boards, and a system perfectly happy to execute Baby's father Captain Spaulding. Sure, it was in response to his crimes, but many opponents of the death penalty would argue that there's never an acceptable reason to kill someone, and that responding to murder with government-sanctioned murder is trying to make two wrongs make a right.
When the Fireflies get to Mexico, things aren't any better, as Aquarius controls the local area, despite being a criminal himself, having likely bribed the corrupt Mexican authorities. The owner of the hotel they stay at also readily sells them out for money, and their only real friend there, Sebastian, gets killed by Aquarius' men. The Firefly Family may be evil, but when they're seemingly surrounded by other forces of evil, some of which are willing to do even worse things than they have, doesn't being evil kind of make sense? To try to be good would be to leave themselves vulnerable to the other, greater evils sharing the world with them.