# Last Shift
**Last Shift** is a 2014 American horror film directed by Anthony DiBlasi and written by DiBlasi and Scott Poiley, in which a rookie police officer's final overnight shift at a closing police station becomes a supernatural nightmare.[1](https://www.kinoafisha.info/en/movies/8361003/) [Juliana Harkavy](https://www.edgepedia.org/juliana-harkavy) stars as officer Jessica Loren, with Joshua Mikel as cult leader John Michael Paymon.[2](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/last-shift) The film premiered on 25 October 2014 at the Frightfest Halloween All-nighter in London and received a United States home-video release on 6 October 2015.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2965466/releaseinfo/) • [4](https://dailydead.com/qa-with-last-shift-director-anthony-diblasi/) DiBlasi later remade it as *Malum* (2023).[5](https://independenthorrorsociety.com/director-interview-anthony-diblasi/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Director and writers | Anthony DiBlasi, directing and co-writing with Scott Poiley[1](https://www.kinoafisha.info/en/movies/8361003/) |
| Premiere | 25 October 2014, Frightfest Halloween All-nighter, London[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2965466/releaseinfo/) |
| US release | 6 October 2015, Blu-ray and DVD from Magnolia Home Entertainment[4](https://dailydead.com/qa-with-last-shift-director-anthony-diblasi/) |
| Lead cast | Juliana Harkavy as Jessica Loren; Joshua Mikel as John Michael Paymon[2](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/last-shift) |
| Runtime and rating | 87 minutes; rated R[6](https://www.netflixmovies.com/last-shift-2014) |
| Production company | Skyra Entertainment[6](https://www.netflixmovies.com/last-shift-2014) |
| Remake | *Malum* (2023), reimagined by DiBlasi and Poiley with Welcome Villain Films[5](https://independenthorrorsociety.com/director-interview-anthony-diblasi/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
Rookie officer Jessica Loren is assigned the last shift at a police station that is closing permanently, and is ordered to remain until a hazmat crew arrives to collect biomedical evidence.[2](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/last-shift) During the night she hears knocking, finds a homeless man who refuses to leave, and takes distress calls from a woman named Monica, though the dispatcher confirms that all emergency calls are being routed to the new station.[6](https://www.netflixmovies.com/last-shift-2014) The station's danger comes from its past: cult leader Paymon and two of his followers committed suicide there on the night of their arrest, and the officer finds herself confronting the supernatural remnants of the cult.[7](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYpg3pu1CnI) • [4](https://dailydead.com/qa-with-last-shift-director-anthony-diblasi/)
## Production
DiBlasi came to co-writer Scott Poiley, a producer on his earlier films *Cassadaga* (2011) and *Missionary* (2013), wanting to make a low-budget, contained, traditionally scary film.[8](https://robertvgalluzzo.com/we-talk-last-shift-with-director-anthony-diblasi/) He has said the initial idea was a story set around a police station dispatcher alone and trapped in the station, chosen partly as a way to push what sound design could convey.[4](https://dailydead.com/qa-with-last-shift-director-anthony-diblasi/) Early script drafts centered on the dispatcher as the main character.[9](https://www.kinopoisk.ru/film/770917/)
**Location and schedule.** DiBlasi shot the film in an abandoned police station in [Sanford, Florida](https://www.edgepedia.org/sanford-florida), keeping the production small and focused on atmosphere and sound design.[6](https://www.netflixmovies.com/last-shift-2014) Filming took 10 days, all overnight, with much of the movie shot hand-held; the script was written around the location.[9](https://www.kinopoisk.ru/film/770917/) • [10](https://www.screamhorrormag.com/anthony-diblasi-talks-the-last-shift/) DiBlasi rejected a found-footage approach, saying he preferred a hand-held style that feels organic without adopting that narrative form.[10](https://www.screamhorrormag.com/anthony-diblasi-talks-the-last-shift/)
The crew included cinematographer Austin F. Schmidt, composer Adam Barber, and editor Anthony DiBlasi.[1](https://www.kinoafisha.info/en/movies/8361003/) • [11](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2965466/fullcredits/)
## Release and reception
After the October 2014 London festival premiere, the film reached home video in the United States on 6 October 2015 from Magnolia Home Entertainment.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2965466/releaseinfo/) • [4](https://dailydead.com/qa-with-last-shift-director-anthony-diblasi/) It was added to Netflix in the United States on 5 November 2015 and removed on 5 November 2018.[12](https://usa.newonnetflix.info/info/80046698)
On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds a 100% Tomatometer from 9 critics and a 51% Popcornmeter audience score from more than 1,000 ratings.[13](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/last_shift) On IMDb it rates 5.8 out of 10 from about 29,000 votes.[14](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2965466/) Critics have noted the film's ambiguity between a story of ghostly vengeance and a tale of psychological breakdown; Anton Bitel of *Little White Lies* wrote that it leaves "the disoriented viewer to call the difference."[13](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/last_shift) Reviewers have also singled out its makeup effects and claustrophobic single-location atmosphere.[13](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/last_shift)
## Remake
DiBlasi and Poiley had discussed a sequel or prequel for years before Welcome Villain Films, whose founders were fans of *Last Shift*, approached them about revisiting the world.[5](https://independenthorrorsociety.com/director-interview-anthony-diblasi/) The result was *Malum*, released theatrically on 31 March 2023.[15](https://www.horrorgeeklife.com/2023/04/04/exclusive-malum-director-and-star-talk-about-reimagining-last-shift/) DiBlasi described the remake as changing the lead character's motivation completely: in *Malum*, Jessica Loren becomes a police officer specifically to solve the mystery of her father's death, and the film expands the backstory and mythology of the cult, which the original had kept minimal.[15](https://www.horrorgeeklife.com/2023/04/04/exclusive-malum-director-and-star-talk-about-reimagining-last-shift/) • [16](https://www.creativescreenwriting.com/cswcms/horror-is-more-than-scaring-people-it-needs-an-emotional-tug-anthony-diblasi-talks-malum/) Rotten Tomatoes describes *Malum* as "a bold and expanded reimagining" of the 2014 film.[17](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/malum)
## Other films with similar titles
*The Last Shift* (2020) is an unrelated American comedy-drama directed by Andrew Cohn, starring [Richard Jenkins](https://www.edgepedia.org/richard-jenkins) as an aging fast-food worker training his replacement on the graveyard shift; it was released in theaters on 25 September 2020 and grossed $790,000 in the United States.[18](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_last_shift) A separate horror feature titled *The Last Shift*, with DiBlasi attached as director, was scheduled to shoot in [Louisville, Kentucky](https://www.edgepedia.org/louisville-kentucky) in 2022.[19](https://www.productionlist.com/production/the-last-shift)
## References
1. [Last Shift 2014, Kinoafisha](https://www.kinoafisha.info/en/movies/8361003/)
2. [Last Shift streaming, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/last-shift)
3. [Last Shift (2014) Release info, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2965466/releaseinfo/)
4. [Q&A with LAST SHIFT Director Anthony DiBlasi, Daily Dead](https://dailydead.com/qa-with-last-shift-director-anthony-diblasi/)
5. [Director Interview: Anthony DiBlasi, The Independent Horror Society](https://independenthorrorsociety.com/director-interview-anthony-diblasi/)
6. [Last Shift (2014) on Netflix, NetflixMovies.com](https://www.netflixmovies.com/last-shift-2014)
7. [Last Shift (2014) Official Trailer, Magnolia Selects, YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYpg3pu1CnI)
8. [We Talk LAST SHIFT With Director Anthony DiBlasi, Robert V Galluzzo](https://robertvgalluzzo.com/we-talk-last-shift-with-director-anthony-diblasi/)
9. [Последняя смена (2014), Кинопоиск](https://www.kinopoisk.ru/film/770917/)
10. [Anthony DiBlasi Talks The Last Shift, SCREAM Horror Magazine](https://www.screamhorrormag.com/anthony-diblasi-talks-the-last-shift/)
11. [Last Shift (2014) Full cast & crew, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2965466/fullcredits/)
12. [Is 'The Last Shift' on Netflix?, New On Netflix USA](https://usa.newonnetflix.info/info/80046698)
13. [Last Shift, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/last_shift)
14. [Last Shift (2014), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2965466/)
15. [Exclusive: 'Malum' Director and Co-Star Talk About Reimagining 'Last Shift', Horror Geek Life](https://www.horrorgeeklife.com/2023/04/04/exclusive-malum-director-and-star-talk-about-reimagining-last-shift/)
16. [Anthony DiBlasi Talks 'Malum', Creative Screenwriting](https://www.creativescreenwriting.com/cswcms/horror-is-more-than-scaring-people-it-needs-an-emotional-tug-anthony-diblasi-talks-malum/)
17. [Malum, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/malum)
18. [The Last Shift, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_last_shift)
19. [The Last Shift, Production List](https://www.productionlist.com/production/the-last-shift)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Horror films (individual works) › Psychological horror films › Psychological horror films, 2010s and later*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license