Kimberly Corman
Encyclopedia
Kimberly "Kim" Corman is the visionary of Final Destination 2, portrayed by A.J. Cook. She is a college student from White Plains, New York
, and is one of the survivors of the Route 23 pile-up. She is the seventh survivor of Route 23 to die.
Kimberly was born in White Plains
, New York
to Michael Corman. She is very close to her father, especially after her mother's death during a carjacking
. Kimberly continues to blame herself for what happened since she stayed behind from her mother in an appliance store to watch a newsfeed about Tod Waggner's suicide. Her mother was shot in their car when it was hijacked by street thugs. She is attending college with her friends Shaina McKlank, Dano Estevez and Frankie Whitman, and was originally going to spend her spring break
with her friends in Daytona Beach, Florida
with her friends.
In the film, Kimberly decided to take Route 23 as a shortcut to Florida
. While driving, Kimberly had an ominous vision of a highway pile-up caused by a log truck derailment at the end of the vision a mysterious truck runs into her car. Stalling her car sideways to prevent other drivers from going further, Kimberly and a handful of other drivers watches closely as vehicles ahead crash one another and explode in the highway. To her surprise, another truck (the same truck that killed her at the end of her vision) smashes her SUV with her friends still in it, killing them, although she is rescued by Officer Burke. Kimberly and other survivors are interrogated by Officer Burke afterwards, with Kimberly explaining her vision's similarity to Alex Browning's vision, and that now they are all in Death's List. The survivors disregard this until survivor Evan Lewis died in his apartment later that night, alarming everyone of the incoming danger in their lives. With Burke's help, Kimberly consult the help of Clear Rivers (the only survivor of Flight 180 that time) to save the remaining others. Nevertheless, their attempts prove unsuccessful. Clear leads Kimberly and Officer Burke to mortician William Bludworth, who helps the latter by claiming that new life
can defeat Death. Kimberly realizes that pregnant survivor Isabella Hudson can save them, however this proves false since Isabella was meant to live even in the premonition. After two more deaths, Kimberly sacrifices herself for Officer Burke's safety by driving the van she is riding to a lake, however Officer Burke rescues her and sends her to a hospital for recovery. Thinking she and Officer Burke finally cheated Death, they went to a picnic with the Gibbons family, who tells them how their son Brian Gibbons was saved from Death by the survivors. To everyone's surprise, Brian is incinerated nearby due to a barbecue grill malfunction.
However in an alternate ending for Final Destination 3, a newspaper article revealed that Kimberly and Officer Burke were shredded into bits by a wood chipper after an unmanned vehicle crashed into the windows of the hardware store they were in. The couple managed to sneak into the back door until Kimberly's coat was slowly sucked by the woodchipper. Officer Burke helps Kimberly, yet their efforts were ineffective.
, who previously starred in the 1999 film The Virgin Suicides
. Director David Ellis
and producer Craig Perry were amazed by her sensitivity and vulnerability in her performance, and she was hired instantly. Ellis and Perry praised her act, with Perry stating that "[they] were at the beginning of what's going to be a long successful career for her." Ellis describe her role as "a girl who can have some fun cause they're going on a trip and they'll gonna have a good time, yet someone who can stand up to Clear, to come and challenge Clear on a race, and to bother with Clear." The character's surname was based by writer Jeffrey Reddick
to American director Roger Corman
, who directed the horror comedy film The Little Shop of Horrors
. Originally, Kimberly and her father Michael's surname was Burroughs (in honor of Canadian actress Jackie Burroughs
, who starred as Kate Flynn in the acclaimed crime thriller film The Grey Fox) instead of Corman in the original script, but the writers decided to change it in the script revision.
of Variety
said that "the giddy sequences also help in getting past the generally awful thesping, led by Cook, whose blurry grasp of emotions betrays Ellis' apparent disinterest in his actors." Dustin Putman of TheMovieBoy.com commented about Cook's emotional scenes:
White Plains, New York
White Plains is a city and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located in south-central Westchester, about east of the Hudson River and northwest of Long Island Sound...
, and is one of the survivors of the Route 23 pile-up. She is the seventh survivor of Route 23 to die.
Kimberly was born in White Plains
White Plains, New York
White Plains is a city and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located in south-central Westchester, about east of the Hudson River and northwest of Long Island Sound...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
to Michael Corman. She is very close to her father, especially after her mother's death during a carjacking
Carjacking
Carjacking is a form of hijacking, where the crime is of stealing a motor vehicle and so also armed assault when the vehicle is occupied. Historically, such as in the rash of semi-trailer truck hijackings during the 1960s, the general term hijacking was used for that type of vehicle abduction,...
. Kimberly continues to blame herself for what happened since she stayed behind from her mother in an appliance store to watch a newsfeed about Tod Waggner's suicide. Her mother was shot in their car when it was hijacked by street thugs. She is attending college with her friends Shaina McKlank, Dano Estevez and Frankie Whitman, and was originally going to spend her spring break
Spring break
Spring break – also known as March break, Study week or Reading week in the United Kingdom and some parts of Canada – is a recess in early spring at universities and schools in the United States, Canada, mainland China, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, the United...
with her friends in Daytona Beach, Florida
Daytona Beach, Florida
Daytona Beach is a city in Volusia County, Florida, USA. According to 2008 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the city has a population of 64,211. Daytona Beach is a principal city of the Deltona – Daytona Beach – Ormond Beach, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which the census bureau estimated had...
with her friends.
In the film, Kimberly decided to take Route 23 as a shortcut to Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. While driving, Kimberly had an ominous vision of a highway pile-up caused by a log truck derailment at the end of the vision a mysterious truck runs into her car. Stalling her car sideways to prevent other drivers from going further, Kimberly and a handful of other drivers watches closely as vehicles ahead crash one another and explode in the highway. To her surprise, another truck (the same truck that killed her at the end of her vision) smashes her SUV with her friends still in it, killing them, although she is rescued by Officer Burke. Kimberly and other survivors are interrogated by Officer Burke afterwards, with Kimberly explaining her vision's similarity to Alex Browning's vision, and that now they are all in Death's List. The survivors disregard this until survivor Evan Lewis died in his apartment later that night, alarming everyone of the incoming danger in their lives. With Burke's help, Kimberly consult the help of Clear Rivers (the only survivor of Flight 180 that time) to save the remaining others. Nevertheless, their attempts prove unsuccessful. Clear leads Kimberly and Officer Burke to mortician William Bludworth, who helps the latter by claiming that new life
Birth
Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring. The offspring is brought forth from the mother. The time of human birth is defined as the time at which the fetus comes out of the mother's womb into the world...
can defeat Death. Kimberly realizes that pregnant survivor Isabella Hudson can save them, however this proves false since Isabella was meant to live even in the premonition. After two more deaths, Kimberly sacrifices herself for Officer Burke's safety by driving the van she is riding to a lake, however Officer Burke rescues her and sends her to a hospital for recovery. Thinking she and Officer Burke finally cheated Death, they went to a picnic with the Gibbons family, who tells them how their son Brian Gibbons was saved from Death by the survivors. To everyone's surprise, Brian is incinerated nearby due to a barbecue grill malfunction.
However in an alternate ending for Final Destination 3, a newspaper article revealed that Kimberly and Officer Burke were shredded into bits by a wood chipper after an unmanned vehicle crashed into the windows of the hardware store they were in. The couple managed to sneak into the back door until Kimberly's coat was slowly sucked by the woodchipper. Officer Burke helps Kimberly, yet their efforts were ineffective.
Casting
The role of Kimberly Corman was given to Canadian actress A. J. CookA. J. Cook (actress)
Andrea Joy "A.J." Cook-Andersen is a Canadian actress best known for her role as Supervisory Special Agent Jennifer "JJ" Jareau in the CBS crime drama Criminal Minds...
, who previously starred in the 1999 film The Virgin Suicides
The Virgin Suicides
The Virgin Suicides is the 1993 debut novel by American writer Jeffrey Eugenides. The story, which is set in Grosse Pointe, Michigan during the 1970s, centers on the suicides of five sisters. The Lisbon girls' suicides fascinate their community as their neighbors struggle to find an explanation for...
. Director David Ellis
David R. Ellis
David Richard Ellis is an American film director and former stuntman.-Life and career:Ellis was born in Hollywood, California. He began his career in the film industry as a supporting actor in juvenile roles; his big screen debut was in the 1975 Kurt Russell film The Strongest Man in the World...
and producer Craig Perry were amazed by her sensitivity and vulnerability in her performance, and she was hired instantly. Ellis and Perry praised her act, with Perry stating that "[they] were at the beginning of what's going to be a long successful career for her." Ellis describe her role as "a girl who can have some fun cause they're going on a trip and they'll gonna have a good time, yet someone who can stand up to Clear, to come and challenge Clear on a race, and to bother with Clear." The character's surname was based by writer Jeffrey Reddick
Jeffrey Reddick
Jeffrey Reddick is an American screenwriter best known for creating The Final Destination series. He also wrote the horror film Tamara and the remake of Day of the Dead. Raised in Jackson, Kentucky, he graduated Breathitt County High School in 1987 and attended Berea College...
to American director Roger Corman
Roger Corman
Roger William Corman is an American film producer, director and actor. He has mostly worked on low-budget B movies. Some of Corman's work has an established critical reputation, such as his cycle of films adapted from the tales of Edgar Allan Poe, and in 2009 he won an Honorary Academy Award for...
, who directed the horror comedy film The Little Shop of Horrors
The Little Shop of Horrors
The Little Shop of Horrors is a 1960 American comedy film directed by Roger Corman. Written by Charles B. Griffith, the film is a farce about an inadequate young florist's assistant who cultivates a plant that feeds on human flesh and blood. The film's concept is thought to be based on a 1932...
. Originally, Kimberly and her father Michael's surname was Burroughs (in honor of Canadian actress Jackie Burroughs
Jackie Burroughs
Jacqueline "Jackie" Burroughs was an English-born Canadian actress.-Life and career:Born in Lancashire, England, Burroughs acted in live theatre at Ontario's Stratford Festival...
, who starred as Kate Flynn in the acclaimed crime thriller film The Grey Fox) instead of Corman in the original script, but the writers decided to change it in the script revision.
Reception
Cook's performance met mixed reviews among critics. Robert KoehlerRobert Koehler
Robert Koehler was a German-born painter and art teacher who spent most of his career in the United States of America.-Biography:...
of Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
said that "the giddy sequences also help in getting past the generally awful thesping, led by Cook, whose blurry grasp of emotions betrays Ellis' apparent disinterest in his actors." Dustin Putman of TheMovieBoy.com commented about Cook's emotional scenes:
Taking over where Devon Sawa's Alex took off, A.J. Cook (2001's "Out Cold") is serviceable as the premonition-fueled Kimberly, but doesn't evoke enough emotion in the scenes following the brutal deaths of her close friends.Nevertheless, Robin Clifford of Reeling Reviews stated that "Cook was strident as the catalyst that sparks events with her premonitions of disaster and her fervent desire to cheat the Reaper."