Summary

• The most characters survive in the 2021 reboot of Wrong Turn, where three make it to the end alive.
• There is at least one movie in the Wrong Turn franchise where no characters survive at all.
• The Wrong Turn movie with the lowest kill count was the 2003 original.

The Wrong Turn movies are known for intense, bloody violence and creative dismemberment via the franchise's cannibal killers, and — due to the very high body count — there were only a few survivors throughout the six existing movies. The original Wrong Turn was released in 2003, becoming a modest box office hit. The others were released direct to video until the franchise was rebooted with 2021's Wrong Turn going for a more grounded and serious tone.

Drawing from the cannibal horror sub-genre, which was popularized by movies like Wes Craven's The Hills Have Eyes, the Wrong Turn movies combine elements from that with classic slasher movie tropes from the 1970s and 1980s. They also employ a level of violence in later films that is more akin to "torture porn" movies like Saw and Hostel. While the cannibals made for some of the most sadistic killers in horror movie history, there were some would-be victims that did manage to escape their wrath.

Wrong Turn (2003)

Survivors: Chris & Jessie

The first Wrong Turn movie finds Chris Flynn (Desmond Harrington) lost on some backroads where he gets into a car accident with another car stranded out in the middle of nowhere. It is eventually revealed that they were all lured into a trap with the cannibal killers residing in the woods hunting them. While Chris is the first character introduced in the movie, Jessie Burlingame (Eliza Dushku) makes for the horror movie Final Girl.

The 2003 original features a smaller kill count than some of the later Wrong Turn movies

The 2003 original features a smaller kill count than some of the later Wrong Turn movies, with only a small cast of characters for the cannibals to pick from. However, the cannibals do make short work of the victims, with all of them dead in the end save for Chris and Jessie who manage to make their way back to the main road. While it appears as though they also succeeded in killing the cannibals, a post-credit scene reveals Three Finger is still alive.

Wrong Turn 2: Dead End (2007)

Survivors: Jake & Nina

Wrong Turn 2: Dead End began the movie's direct-to-video journey while also leaning into the more comedic side of the franchise. However, it is still mostly a horror movie, and the gore is increased in this second installment with a lot of creative kills. The second Wrong Turn movie follows the crew and stars of a survival reality show filming in the woods when they become targeted by the cannibals living there.

Despite the fact that he is responsible for killing the majority of the cannibals, he himself is offed in the climax.

The sequel to Wrong Turn has a lot of fun subverting expectations of who will survive and who will not. For example, Henry Rollins is the most recognizable name in the movie, playing a former marine turned host of the reality show. Despite the fact that he is responsible for killing the majority of the cannibals, he himself is offed in the climax. Instead, the athletic and noble Jake (Texas Battle) and the meek Nina (Erica Leehrsen) survive. Also, for the second movie in a row, Three Finger is Wrong Turn's only surviving cannibal in the end.

Wrong Turn 3: Left For Dead (2009)

Survivors: Alex

Wrong Turn 3: Left For Dead is another sequel that increases the body count and provides even bloodier kills. The third Wrong Turn movie begins with the standard premise of the franchise — a group of teens on a camping trip get attacked by the cannibals and are quickly killed, except for Alex (Janet Montgomery). Wrong Turn 3 then shifts to a storyline about a group of prisoners and guards who get stranded in the same woods when their prisoner transfer journey goes wrong.

The movie ends with Nate returning to the woods to get the stolen money that was left behind, only to be killed by Brandon, who is subsequently killed by Three Finger

Alex eventually meets up with this group and warns them about the killer cannibals, who quickly descend on the survivors. In the end, all the bad guys are killed off, with Alex escaping the woods along with heroic cop Nate (Tom Frederic) and convict Brandon (Tom McKay), who insists he is innocent. However, the movie ends with Nate returning to the woods to get the stolen money that was left behind, only to be killed by Brandon, who is subsequently killed by Three Finger, leaving Alex as Wrong Turn 3's sole survivor.

Wrong Turn 4: Bloody Beginnings

No Survivors

Wrong Turn 4: Bloody Beginnings serves as a prequel that explores the origins of Three Finger and the cannibal family. However, that aspect of the story is relatively brief and it is mostly just a setup for the similar story of young victims coming across the cannibals and paying the price. The movie begins with the cannibals' early days in a mental facility before cutting to years later with the facility shut down and a group of people deciding to spend the night there to escape a storm. Unfortunately for them, the cannibals never left.

Wrong Turn 4 marked a darker and more cynical turn in the franchise

Wrong Turn 4 marked a darker and more cynical turn in the franchise, with it becoming the rare slasher movie where no one survives. The movie plays on the hopelessness of the story with one character, Lauren (Ali Tataryn) attempting to go for help on her own only to freeze to death just before reaching the road. The final moments of the movie make it appear as though Kenia (Jenny Pudavick) and Sara (Tenika Davis) will make it out alive, escaping on snowmobiles, only to be decapitated by a trap right before the credits roll.

Wrong Turn 5: Bloodlines (2012)

Survivors: Lita (Likely Killed Later)

Wrong Turn 5: Bloodlines is also set before the events of the original movie and introduces a new character into the mythology of Three Finger and his family. Though not only one of the mutated cannibals, Maynard (Doug Bradley) is an equally sadistic character who serves as a mentor and father figure for them. The fifth Wrong Turn movie follows a group of friends coming to a small town for a festival only to run across Maynard. When it results in Maynard getting arrested, Three Finger and his brothers exact bloody revenge.

Wrong Turn 5 continues the dark path of the previous movie with no mercy shown for the main characters.

Wrong Turn 5 continues the dark path of the previous movie with no mercy shown for the main characters. Billy (Simon Ginty) sets up his own heroic redemption arc only to be immediately killed brutally while Sheriff Angela Carter (Camilla Arfwedson) seems like the final girl only to receive her own brutal death. Technically, Lita (Roxanne McKee) is alive at the end of the movie, but she is last seen being abducted by the cannibals so it is unlikely that she will survive long.

Wrong Turn 6: Last Resort

Survivors: Danny

The final movie in the original Wrong Turn franchise, Wrong Turn 6: Last Resort, follows a group of friends who go to visit a hot springs resort in the Appalachian Mountains which one of them has inherited. The 6th Wrong Turn movie continues the trend set by Maynard in the previous movie as there are villains in this movie working alongside the mutated cannibals who use the resort as a trap for their victims.

Despite his friends and girlfriend getting killed, Danny decides to take over his family's resort.

Wrong Turn 6: Last Resort had a different kind of survivor in Danny (Anthony Illot), who discovers that the inbred cannibals are his family. He is told about his lineage and their subversive, violent ways. Despite his friends and girlfriend getting killed, Danny decides to take over his family's resort. He's not the traditional survivor and serves to include an interesting aspect by prompting the discussion of nature vs. nurture.

Wrong Turn (2021)

Survivors: Jen, Sam & Darius

After five entries that went direct-to-video, the Wrong Turn franchise returned to theaters with the 2021 reboot simply titled Wrong Turn. While it marks another hiking horror movie, it also feels completely different from the rest of the franchise as it doesn't feature the sadistic cannibals as the villains. Instead, the movie follows a group of friends who go hiking off the trail in the mountains and come across a hidden community of mountain people.

The movie explores the idea of different communities clashing with the young main characters striking first and killing one of the mountain people and then being punished as a result. Jen Shaw (Charlotte Vega) is forced to become part of the mountain community until she is rescued by her father, Sam (Matthew Modine) while her friend Darius (Adain Bradley) decides to stay behind as part of the community.

The climax of the movie finds Jen back in her normal life only for the mountain community's leader to show up to take her back. The movie seems to end with the typical downbeat Wrong Turn ending as Jen is driven away by the villains, returning to the community. However, as the credits roll, the RV they are driving in goes out of control and crashes, only for Jen to emerge, suggesting she killed the others.