#20. Donnnie From The Big Lebowski
The Big Lebowski, the movie where nothing gets resolved because nothing barely happens. After a series of events that go from absurd misunderstandings and fake kidnappings to a bowling ball fight with Flea from the Red Chili Peppers himself, the character Donnie, played by Steve Buscemi, collapses out of nowhere in a parking lot and dies of a heart attack.
It is beyond shocking that a character from a Coen Brothers' movie actually died, and it is even more shocking that it was the one played by Steve Buscemi. However, we must admit that the movie is kind of lighthearted and irrelevant, so Donnie's death wasn't so heartbreaking. The character dies when the movie was minutes away from ending, I think the directors remembered they had to kill Buscemi a little too late!
#19. Hoagie From Tag
Have any of you watched the comedy film Tag? If you have, you probably remember the moment in which we find out that Hoagie, played by Ed Helms, had terminal cancer. In one of the last scenes, the group of friends plays their last game of tag right outside the hospital.
Since the movie is a slapstick comedy, nobody expected so much drama. The audience was left shook when they found out that the main character had been suffering from cancer the whole movie. Even though the last scene shows the gang gathered at the cancer ward, we never actually find out whether Hoagie is going to make it or not.
#18. Ned Plimpton From The Life Aquatic
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou may well be one of the most bizarre movies ever made. Throughout the movie, airline pilot Ned Plimpton, played by Owen Wilson, tries to connect with a famous undersea documentalist called Steve Zissou, played by Bill Murray. Ned believes Steve might be his father, but before finding out the truth, he suddenly dies in a helicopter crash right after tracking a giant shark and rescuing one of his mates from pirates.
All throughout the movie, there are jokes about the helicopter being a piece of junk, but we sure were not expecting this joke to be paid with the death of an important character. And it's not even like the crash happens during a super high-stakes action scene! Instead, it happens unexpectedly while Ned and Steve where having some quiet alone time.
#17. General Zod From Man Of Steel
Even if you haven't watched Man of Steel, you're probably familiar with the movie because of all the memes that have been made. In the movie, Superman, played by Henry Cavill, struggles to stop the plans of villain General Zod, played by Michael Shannon, who is secretly attempting to vaporize the Helpless Metropolis citizens. That is until our hero Superman gets his hands on Zod’s neck. Well...we won't go into details but let's just say the Earth shook during that snap.
We can't say that this death took us completely by surprise, as villains usually die in movies. However, the audiences were nonetheless shocked to see good guy Superman kill someone in such a morbid and sinister way. He killed him with his bare hands, for crying out loud!
#16. Cyclops From X-Men: The Last Stand
The last installment of the original X-Men trilogy features the death of many major characters, including Famke Jansen’s Jean Grey and Patrick Stewart’s Professor X. But none of them shocked us more than when team leader Cyclops, played by James Mardsen, is killed just 10 minutes after the beginning of the movie.
But why was he written off the script so quickly? Well, the producers were kind of upset with Marsden for taking a role in Superman Returns, which was being filmed at the same time. Therefore, they decided to kill his character before the movie even began rather than working around Marsden's schedule. He had it coming!
#15. Russell Frankin From Deep Blue Sea
In the mystery film Deep Blue Sea, Rusell Franklin, a moneyman played by Samuel L. Jackson, pays a group of scientists to try and find the cure for Alzheimer’s. This process involves, for some reason that is never mentioned, genetically engineering a bunch of sharks at an undersea base. You probably can guess where this is going.
When the sharks naturally break lose, Franklin tries to motivate the survivors with an inspiring speech, but as you might be expecting, a shark bites him in half before he even finishes. This scene was parodied uncountable times, but the first time you watch it, his death really takes you by surprise.
#14. Ned Stark From Game Of Thrones
Any Game of Thrones fans out there? Played by Sean Bean, Ned Stark didn't even make it to the end of the first season, and maybe that's the reason why his death took as by surprise. He was killed on episode 9, and up to that point in the show, Ned had been the main character.
Ned’s death was devastating and unexpected, but at the same time necessary, as it helped us understand the rules of Game of Thrones. Basically, anyone can die at any time, no matter how important their character is or how much the fans love them, so you better be ready for it.
#13. Chubbs From Happy Gilmore
In the comedy film Happy Gilmore, aging former golf pro Chubbs, played by Carl Weathers, tries to teach Happy Gilmore, played by Adam Sandler, that it is possible to win without assaulting anyone. Happy then thinks it is a good idea to gift Chubbs a severed alligator head to show his gratitude. But the gift scared Chubbs so much that he falls out of an open window and dies.
To be fair, Chubb’s death is actually a kind of joke, since he comes back later as a ghost to encourage Happy. But since the movie is an Adam Sandler comedy, watching a beloved character die in such a tragic way was not something we were expecting.
#12. Spider Man From Avengers: Infinity War
Out of all the dustings triggered by Josh Brolin’s Thanos and his finger snap, none was more shocking that Tom Holland’s Spider-Man. They did it, Marvel actually made us watch a teenage boy die! It was pretty damn shocking, to be honest.
And not only does Spider-Man die at the very end, but he also turns to ashes right in Tony Stark’s arms. “I don’t wanna go, Mr. Stark” are the superhero's last words. Can you think of a more heart-wrenching line than that?
#11. Branson From Alien: Covenant
James Franco’s character in the horror-sci-fi film Alien: Covenant, Captain Branson, dies in one of the film's opening scenes. Can you guess how he gets killed? Well, you'd never guess it: he gets burned in his space bed. It was shocking, but mostly disappointing to all the Franco fans that had bought the ticket just to see him.
But do you know what the funny part is? Despite appearing for just a few seconds, Franco is actually the most recognizable actor in this film, as Danny McBride's and Michael Fassbender's characters left much to be desired. We would’ve been cool if he had been killed towards the end of the movie, but did he really have to die so fast?
#10. G-Baby From Hardball
In the 2001 drama film Hardball, Keanu Reeves plays Conor O’Neill, a heavy gambler who must coach an inner-city league team in order to satisfy his immense gambling debts. As to the plot, it's just another little league comedy movie.
However, the audience is left in shock when the youngest member of the team, G-Baby, played by DeWayne Warren, gets killed by a stray bullet. I seriously doubt that anyone who went to see Hardball expected to see an 8-year-old boy get shot.
#9. Landfill From Beerfest
This movie is a silly comedy that goes hand to hand with other films like Super Troopers. In this movie, Landfill, played by Kevin Heffernan, is part of the American Beerfest team, which is training to defeat the German team on the Substance Abuse Olympics.
What's shocking about this movie is how unexpected Landfill's death is and how out of place it is, especially considering it's nothing but a goofy family comedy. But what's most shocking is that the character is immediately replaced by Gil, his twin brother. And when Gil joins the team, he insists that refer to him as “Landfill”. That's a bit messed up, don't you think?
#8. Wash From Serenity
The 2005 film Serenity is based on the TV series Firefly, which was extremely popular among young teens at the time. In fact, if you grew up during the early 2000s, I'm sure most of your friends had a replica Firefly sword in their apartment! The movie follows a crew of good rogues and their attempt to uncover an intergalactic conspiracy. Wash, a pilot character played by Alan Tudyk, is shot with a gigantic harpoon by space cannibals just as the final act of the film starts.
You might be wondering, was Wash one of the lead characters of the film? Well, he was just about everyone’s favorite character! And he doesn't even get an emotive moment as he dies, not even some final words, he just dies. The fans were not amused, I'll tell you that!
#7. Spider-Man From Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse
No less than seven different Spider-Persons are featured in Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse. How crazy is that? They are from alternate dimensions and come together to stop the Kingpin, voiced by Liev Schreiber, who tries to collapse the universe to resurrect his dead family.
We’re talking about an animated movie, so nobody expected any gory deaths. Besides, Spider-Man is pretty much the friendliest superhero ever, so how could he ever get killed? We sure didn’t expect the Kingpin of Crime to beat one Spider-Man to death at the very beginning of the film!
#6. Marvin From Pulp Fiction
Vince and Jules, played by John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson, infiltrate a gang of petty thieves with the help of Marvin, played by Phil LaMarr, to reclaim a briefcase that to this day we don’t know what was inside. After they’re done, on the ride home, Vince turns around to ask Marvin something, but “accidentally” shoots him right in the face.
Probably one of the most memorable moments in the film, Marvin’s death is so unexpected that it's even kind of funny. This is also the moment that launches "The bonnie Situation", the only chapter of Pulp Fiction that is just comedic, thus drastically changing the tone of the film.
#5. The Wren From Cube
This movie is about a group of strangers who wake up in some sort of futuristic prison, constructed of a maze of cube-shaped rooms that are full of traps. The first stranger to introduce himself is The Wren, who tells the others that he is a legendary escape artist and that he has broken out of seven maximum security prisons. Soon after this braggy introduction, he triggers a trap and gets his face melted by acid.
This definitely came as a shock, as he dies even before all the rest of the characters are done being introduced. But actually, what The Wren's death is trying to convey, is the severity of the Cube’s defenses. Sure, it was a little harsh, but it got the job done.
#4. Hicks And Newt From Alien 3
Alien is one of the most iconic horror film franchises ever, and that's a fact. This famous trilogy follows the steps of space marine Hicks, child survivor Newt, and the hero Ellen Ripley, as they ride off into the intergalactic sunset. We came to love Ripley, especially after all those horrible insects she managed to kill in the first two films of the franchise. But what happens in the third installment?
In Alien 3, Hicks and Newt are killed even before the opening credits finish. This was shocking and heartbreaking for every Aliens fan, who had been anxiously waiting for the release of the film for several years and wondering what new adventures their favorite heroes would face. The most shocking death was Newt’s , don't you think?
#3. Billy Costigan And Colin Sullivan From The Departed
Leonardo DiCaprio’s character, Billy Costigan, is an undercover cop who successfully infiltrates a Boston crime family and tries to bring his mate, Colin Sullivan, to justice. Costigan has Sullivan handcuffed and pretends to be taking him to jail, but just as he's walking out of the elevator, he is instantly shot in the head by another cop.
Billy Costigan didn’t even get to finish his line of triumph before getting shot. Then, we get to see Sullivan arriving safely to his apartment, after getting out of some trouble. When he arrives, he is ambushed by Dingman, played by Mark Wahlberg, who was one of Costigan’s superior officers, and he shoots Sullivan mid-sentence.
#2. Vincent Vega From Pulp Fiction
John Travolta's character Vincent Vega is pretty much the main character of Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction. He appears in every one of the movie's chapters, one of them being the memorable moment when he stabs Mia Wallace, played by Uma Thurman, with an adrenaline shot. Regardless of this, midway through the film, Vincent is found pooping in a bathroom by Butch, played by Bruce Willis. Remember what happens in that scene?
Butch then shoots Vincent with a machine gun and leaves. Pulp Fiction has this curious style of time-shifting narratives, which was an absolute novelty back when it was released in 1994. So it isn't at all surprising that audiences were shocked when the main character was killed and then reappeared like nothing.
#1. Prince Oberyn From Game Of Thrones
The red Viper of Dorne, Prince Oberyn, played by Pedro Pascal, amazed Game of Thrones’ fandom for the entirety of season four. At some point, he decides to fight for Tyrion, played by Peter Dinklage, in a trial by combat against Gregor Clegane, since this last one had murdered his sister a few years before.
Oberyn then proceeds to humiliate Clegane and dismantles him. But right when he is about to deliver the killing blow, Clegane manages to trip Oberyn to the floor, gets on top of him and crushes his skull like a bug. Nobody can say they saw that coming.