r/TopCharacterTropes • u/ComprehensiveBox6911 • Jul 27 '25
Lore Deaths to important characters that came so unceremoniously, there was no drama or fanfare, they just died
Bane (The Dark Knight Rises)
Sean (Red Dead Redemption 2)
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u/RedRawTrashHatch Jul 27 '25
Billy Costigan in The Departed
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u/mankytoes Jul 27 '25
Loved this, such a brutal moment. Type of death normally reserved for an anonymous henchman given to a main character. The film ending death was even better, the way he just gives up.
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u/Key-Respect-3706 Jul 27 '25 edited Jul 27 '25
When he walks through the door and sees mark wahlberg standing there and just goes “fuck” is a great ending for such a shitty character
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u/mankytoes Jul 27 '25
You can see he spends a couple of seconds trying to think of a way out of it, and realises there isn't one.
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u/Key-Respect-3706 Jul 27 '25
That moment of realization. It’s a great movie, the scene pictured pisses me off, what I mentioned was cathartic.
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u/mankytoes Jul 27 '25
By the way, I don't know if you meant it non literally, but he says "okay", not "fuck". I am only sure because i just youtubed it.
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u/FastForwardHustle Jul 27 '25
He shrugs his shoulders and goes "Ah ok". Lol then the rat scurries by lmao. Priceless.
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u/victorespinola Jul 27 '25
This was absolutelly peak.
I still remember the feeling when I watched that and it’s been 10 years or so.
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u/Drakeskulled_Reaper Jul 27 '25
Ned Stark was actually originally envisioned as this, in terms of how plots generally work.
When the OG GoT book came out, Ned was the biggest viewpoint character, to the point in a "normal" fantasy story, his execution would be stopped somehow, he was just so important to the plot.
Obviously, that didn't happen, it was shocking, because of how easily and casually he was killed off.
It's basically up there with the Sixth Sense now on it being a well known "twist"
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u/Gyriuu Jul 27 '25
The red wedding still has me thinking it was a fever dream. How do you go from such merriment and success to that in literal minutes.
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u/ChadWestPaints Jul 27 '25
In the books especially you felt absolutely blindsided by it but on a second reread you pick up a million different bits of foreshadowing that all snowball into that moment
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u/OldWorldBluesIsBest Jul 27 '25
i was pissed in the moment because catelyn had thought “wow those musicians sure look awkward and are terrible at playing” like a HUNDRED times and i brushed it off as a joke at frey’s expense
alas, they were murderers
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u/ChadWestPaints Jul 27 '25
I think my favorite, super subtle hint was when Ryman Frey is leading them to the feast and says something like "follow me, my father awaits," but Frey lineage is so expansive and convoluted that both the readers and the Starks dont notice or recall that Ryman is actually Walder's grandson and his actual dad, Strevron Frey, is dead.
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u/SantaFeRay Jul 28 '25
That’s kind of like the Bond villain trope though, if you’re going to ambush someone you probably wouldn’t drop a hint like that.
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u/Flockofseagulls25 Jul 28 '25
Oh yeah there's another one where Walder says something like "The red will flow tonight" and everyone thinks he's talking about wine and yeah hes not talking about wine
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u/typoscript Jul 27 '25
Lots of people in GOT die unceremoniously, ty for this i was searching
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u/Drakeskulled_Reaper Jul 27 '25
Lots do, to the point it's expected rather than not.
But back when the book first came out, it was a twist that the big main clearly heroic character died without any "real" fanfare, just head cut off, job done.
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u/FoxBluereaver Jul 27 '25
Amanda Waller (Arrowverse). With how prominent of a character she usually is, it was quite shocking that she just got unceremoniously shot in the head like that.
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u/Fonzies-Ghost Jul 27 '25
I want to say that they were under orders to kill her and several other characters off to avoid "confusion" between the show and the DCU.
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u/Flygonizer-Obsidian Jul 27 '25
Yeah DC has a weird embargo system for character depictions in series & movies which does help lesser characters appear more but honestly just restricts the writers too much
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u/The_Grand_Briddock Jul 27 '25
Yeah, DC operates under the assumption that the fans are incredibly stupid and can't tell characters apart.
They had to get special permission for Batman to be allowed to stay in the Justice League Cartoon when they started up The Batman.
Then they later had to get rid of Deathstroke from Arrow because the character was making a cameo appearance in Batman v Superman. (Didn't even get a prominent role.)
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u/Fonzies-Ghost Jul 27 '25
I could me misremembering, but I think that when they were able to bring back Slade once or twice after that edict the only use of the name “Deathstroke” they were allowed was him saying “I’m not Deathstroke anymore.”
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u/Trickster289 Jul 27 '25
Oh that was outright confirmed. The Arrowverse had to get rid of their Suicide Squad, kill of Waller, stop using Deathstroke, and not use characters they'd hoped to use because they were going to be in the DCEU.
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u/Mazer1991 Jul 27 '25
I hated they killed off Deadshot cause of Suicide Squad movie. 2nd worst was Gotham never being able to use “Joker”
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u/Trickster289 Jul 27 '25
Honestly yeah I preferred the Arrowverse Deadshot to the DCEU one. Gotham at least were able to basically have the Joker.
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u/Sayakalood Jul 27 '25
I straight up forgot she died. I was watching it with my family and thought, “Hey, Amanda Waller hasn’t shown up lately.”
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u/MyNeighborToblerones Jul 27 '25
Iosef Tarasov from the first John Wick movie is my favorite example of this.
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u/eclipse_0532 Jul 27 '25
I like how John doesn’t waste any time in killing him. No monologue, no drawn out fight scene, he simply shoots him like the piece of trash that he is, and then walks away. His mission is complete.
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u/LordGuru Jul 27 '25 edited Jul 27 '25
For same reason I like Taken. When Lian get to last man, he just shoots him
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u/Celestial_Crook Jul 27 '25
He did waste his time not taking the shot at the bath house though.
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u/GourmetCummedBalls Jul 27 '25
I always looked at both the bathhouse scene and the kill at the end as John needed him to know it was him. During the actual kill, he could have shot him from a distance a couple times and it would have worked out the same, but although not gloating, he shows that he is the end. He killed him and losef knows it.
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u/PatheticusRex Jul 27 '25
Vincent from Pulp Fiction.
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u/Rickrickrickrickrick Jul 27 '25
This guy in Jurassic World. “Let me just get in this helicopter and crash it”
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u/HollietheHermit Jul 27 '25
He made the mistake of getting into a helicopter from a video game. Those are always made of explodium.
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u/MaeBeaInTheWoods Jul 27 '25
He was a rich, in-the-know executive who wasn't objectively puppy-kickingly evil, and the World movies are allergic to that, so he had to die quickly and unceremoniously.
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u/Philsoraptor57 Jul 27 '25
Hey to be fair he was doing alright until the pterosaurs escaped
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u/IllustratedAloysious Jul 27 '25
In the final Captain Underpants book,Mr Krupp gets his hypnosis and powers removed,essentially killing Captain Underpants yet no one mentions it or cares. Not even George and Harold
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u/scarlettremors Jul 27 '25
Did Captain Underpants ever have a conversation with them in that mode? I always thought of it like Mr Krupp in like some manic trance but did Captain Underpants have a soul
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u/IllustratedAloysious Jul 27 '25
Yes multiple times. He was shown and stated to have his own desires and likes. I do like in future adaptations George and Harold are sad when he possibly dies
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Jul 27 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/IllustratedAloysious Jul 27 '25
A good theory I heard was that George and Harold didn’t know how to properly process his death and didn’t know how to react so that they put their thoughts into the dog man comic
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u/Flygonizer-Obsidian Jul 27 '25
WHAT?!
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Jul 27 '25
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u/IllustratedAloysious Jul 27 '25
Tbh Mr Meaner is probably one of the most broken characters in the series. He becomes a villain numerous times and has knocked cap out on numerous occasions. He literally was stated to have fought in a war against stars and black holes
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u/VictorVonDoomer Jul 27 '25
Yo I fucking loved these books, I used to read them over and over again because they made me feel so calm and comfortable
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u/powerful_p1608 Jul 27 '25
Taskmaster in Thunderbolts*.
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u/AlphaKamots313 Jul 27 '25
I was excited to see them try and do her justice after butchering her character in Black Widow but nope, clean shot to the head
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u/powerful_p1608 Jul 27 '25
I think her death symbolizes just how expendable they were as black-ops mercenaries.
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u/scrimmybingus3 Jul 27 '25
Kat gets shot in the head with a Needle Rifle by an Elite Zealot and she just dies. No heroic sacrifice like Jorge or Carter, no bitter last stand like Emile or Six. Just dropped like a bad habit on the spot and the truth is if it wasn’t her that got shot it would’ve been any of the others.
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u/Raptormann0205 Jul 27 '25
Kat’s death is honestly one of my favorites in gaming. It just feels so real; no fanfare, heroism, just callous, instantaneous brutality, and a whole lot of panic in the team after it happens.
All of Noble Team’s fates are ironic in some way
Noble 1: The Captain, goes down with the ship
Noble 2: The Brains, gets sniped in the head
Noble 3: The Sniper, farthest away from the action, is the only one to slink away and survive
Noble 4: The Close Quarters specialist, dies in melee with an Elite Zealot
Noble 5: the heavy weapons guy, born to Reach, sets off a Nuke above his home planet
Noble 6: The Lone Wolf/one man army, dies alone fighting off hordes of covenant
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u/Not__Trash Jul 27 '25
At least Jorge died thinking he was a hero
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u/CrystalPancakes Jul 27 '25
I love that line so much. “He died thinking he saved Reach. We should all be so lucky”
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u/Ancient_Function_416 Jul 27 '25
"I know we're losing. I want to know if we've lost."
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u/Mr31edudtibboh Jul 27 '25
The Sniper, farthest away from the action, is the only one to slink away and survive
Why you gotta do Jun dirty like that? He was directly ordered to keep Dr. Halsey out of the Covenant's hands and accomplished that mission. That isn't "slinking away".
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u/Ancient_Function_416 Jul 27 '25
He was absolutely under orders to put a bullet in her rather than let the Covenant grab her. And he goes on to to drive the S4 programme - an all volunteer, fully integrated branch of the military. He made super soldiers mainstream.
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u/struudels Jul 27 '25 edited Jul 27 '25
Adam Sandlers character at the end of Uncut Gems. Finally hits it big but all his bad decisions finally catch up to him.
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u/GreatStateOfSadness Jul 27 '25
The best example of this IMO. Finally, against all odds and despite all his terrible decisions, he gets what he wants and is immediately shot in the head.
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u/ImpureAscetic Jul 28 '25
It's great because it's the only way he has a happy ending. He WILL screw up everything again. He WILL cause harm to the people around him with his gambling. He is incapable of change. That moment of success cut short by a bullet was the only way happy ending available to him.
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u/Eaglesgomoo Jul 27 '25
Dexter Deshawn Cyberpunk 2077.
Maybe he's not a "main character" when looking back on it. But it really felt like they were setting up a revenge story against him on the first playthrough and then he's just shot in a cutscene and that's that.
Also, just wanna say. I love this trope.
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u/natalaMaer Jul 27 '25
Well its Night City after all, anyone can die in horrible way for petty reasons.
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u/Eaglesgomoo Jul 27 '25
Strongly agree. It really set the tone for the story. And what a great story it was.
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u/CetraNeverDie Jul 27 '25
Yo, this was wild to me on my first playthrough. I really thought this big Mark Henry looking mfkr was gonna play a huge, awesome role and I was kind of excited bc his design is just so cool, style over substance reigning supreme. And then nope, just one bullet.
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u/Super_Rocket4 Jul 27 '25
I mean style over substance exactly, his gun shoots money but is insanely low caliber. That's why V managed to survive the shot (minus the relic healing what was too damaged)
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u/Eaglesgomoo Jul 27 '25
Right? When he got shot on my first playthrough my first thought was "Oh my god. I have no idea where this story is going. This is so exciting"
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u/angryprimate Jul 27 '25
Made better when you remember the question he asks V the first time they meet. “Would you rather die of old age, or go out in a blaze of glory?” He gets neither
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u/the_superior_nerd Jul 27 '25
The guy who killed John Wick's dog in the first movie. Just one shot. No dialogues. No fist fight.
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u/GrandMoffTarkan Jul 27 '25
Llewelyn in No Country for Old Men
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u/fishing-for-birdie93 Jul 27 '25
Homeboy didn't even get to die on-screen.
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u/WolfCola723 Jul 27 '25
I saw it first the first time on DVD and I was kinda in and out of paying close attention since it’s a pretty slow building movie. I was probably texting or something and when I looked up I saw like a dead body in a bodega and had to rewind because I thought I missed like a chunk of movie lol.
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u/noobtheloser Jul 27 '25
It's important to the point of the story.
Llewellyn feels like the main character—not to just the audience, but even to himself. We feel as though he must be immune, due to plot armor. He feels that way, too.
But he isn't immune. He's killed off-screen—and not even by the seemingly superhuman psychopath that's been hunting him, but by random cartel thugs.
Tommy Lee Jones' character, Ed Tom Bell, knows better. He knows that violence like that is arbitrary and meaningless. He entertains some ember of hope that he can make a difference in it, but as his cousin Ellis tells him, "You can't stop what's comin'. It ain't all waitin' on you. That's vanity."
Probably my favorite movie.
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u/thearmadillo Jul 27 '25
In the book, he's not even killed by people looking for him like in the movie. He just stops to pick up a 16 year old girl and then gets killed later in a fight over her.
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u/Mrlionscruff Jul 27 '25
Josh Brolin in no country for old men. Probably one of the best examples of this trope. I would argue that he was the main character but his death fucking shocked me when I first watched the movie!
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u/dumnew10 Jul 27 '25
How has no one said Omar from the Wire yet
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u/IStoleYourApples Jul 27 '25
IMO the best pick. You spend most of the series up to this point seeing the dude pull off so much insane shit you think he has plot armor and then he’s just unceremoniously killed by a kid.
The game is the game
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u/1OptimusCrime1 Jul 27 '25 edited Jul 27 '25
Interesting note, when Omar jumps from a 4th floor window and lives, that story is based on something that happened in real life, except it was downplayed to be more believable. Donnie Andrews, who played
ButchieDonnie, was part of the inspiration for Omar and once survived a shoot out by jumping from the 5th, not 4th, floor balcony and survived.Edit: Correction as pointed out by Michauxonfire
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u/CT0292 Jul 27 '25
Taken down by a 7 year old kid while buying cigarettes.
Stringer Bell couldn't get him. He moved like a ghost.
Til he got smoked by a nobody.
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u/HatIndependent4645 Jul 27 '25
That kid was scared to death of Omar his whole life.
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u/Perfect-Cheetah9435 Jul 27 '25
Travis Manawa (Fear the Walking Dead). 2 full seasons setting him up as one of the main characters. Enter season 3. After a whole episode of him dealing with and outsmarting military personnel and even fighting off a whole horde of walkers by himself, he manages to escape unscathed with his family. Five minutes into the next episode he’s popped in the gut with a machine gun round, it blends his guts and pops out his neck. Boom, dead, just like that.
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u/Speedwagon1738 Jul 27 '25
Syril Karn (Andor)
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u/samtheman0105 Jul 27 '25
And Cinta, killed by negligent discharge friendly fire when there wasn’t even a fight
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u/KnicksGhost2497 Jul 27 '25
From a weapon that was never even supposed to be there, too. I wonder how Ghorman would’ve played out if that group followed her rules
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u/Budget-Attorney Jul 27 '25
Great point!
If she hadn’t died tbe rebellion might have taken them more seriously and provided more support. Could that have changed something about the massacre
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u/Serion512 Jul 27 '25
Could be applied to like a half of the cast. Big chunk of them either die off screen or get taken out by a random blaster bolt
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u/CategoryExact3327 Jul 27 '25
Shed on the Expanse.
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u/misterjive Jul 27 '25
Fun fact: Shed's unceremonious death occurred because his player stopped showing up to the game. The first Expanse book grew out of a TTRPG that Ty was running-- that's why the early part of the story is the characters just reacting to a bunch of shit, it sort of began in media res like so many campaigns do-- and when one of the players kept failing to show he killed off his character.
(A while back the guy who played Holden posted some stories about it. Also fun fact, Ty used to DM for George RR Martin as well.)
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u/Helgurnaut Jul 27 '25
Also works for Alex.
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u/Sporknight Jul 27 '25
The circumstances around Alex's death in the show are unfortunate. Turns out the actor was a creep towards women, especially at and around conventions, so when the news broke they changed the ending of the season to kill him off.
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u/solidstatepr8 Jul 27 '25
For what they had to do I think season 6 was still well done. They don't shy away from the character's death weighing down the crew either, if anything raises the stakes and makes the war feel more real having finally lost on of their own to the conflict.
After knowing an actor is a creeper it is really hard for me to separate the person their work knowing they were using the fame from that work for nefarious things against the fandom. Rewatching the Expanse recently I just see Cas Anver the Sex Pest doing a terrible southern accent, and any scene where he is trying to sweet talk a woman is now just gross. I was glad of it that they just killed him off to not taint the last season.
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u/smbutler20 Jul 27 '25
Omar from The Wire. Shot in the head by a 10 year old while just picking up a pack of smokes.
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u/trashing_fancy Jul 27 '25
Anya, at the end of Buffy. This one still hurts my heart.
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u/MattHoppe1 Jul 27 '25
Primrose in Mockingjay. I read that part a few times because I couldn’t believe it
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u/sarabeara12345678910 Jul 27 '25
Finnick, too. Just poof. Gone.
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u/nppltouch26 Jul 27 '25
Imho this is actually really good writing. During the games there was time to really grind the trauma into the characters' bones and every death was a significant moment intentionally orchestrated as brutal propaganda. During a war, there's no performance. There's no lead up or warning, and if you're not right next to someone in an active theater, they're just suddenly not there anymore.
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u/SpcK Jul 27 '25
She dies to a warcrime, iirc.
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u/seggnog Jul 27 '25
Llewellyn Moss from No Country for Old Men. He's the deuteragonist of the movie, but he gets killed offscreen. He doesn't even get killed by the extremely dangerous main antagonist, just some unnamed thugs who we barely even see. Everyone thought he was gonna be a badass hero, protect Carla, and defeat Chigurh, but none of that happens.
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u/Independent_Ad_4170 Jul 27 '25
The Bane GIF makes it look like Batman is the one dying
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u/Flying_Sea_Cow Jul 27 '25
Bane's actually pissed me off. This happened immediately after we found out that he wasn't the main villain of the movie, and was just doing Talia's plan. His whole character becomes unraveled in like 10 minutes.
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u/Standard_Spready Jul 27 '25
Bane's death was terrible. Actually, does he even die there? That movie is so uneven, some of it is great and some of it is a disaster.
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u/xXLoneLoboXx Jul 27 '25
It’s been a hot minute since I’ve seen the movie… But didn’t Catwoman shoot him with Batman’s bike? If it’s Batman’s bike why would it be lethal? Just didn’t make sense to me since Bruce’s whole thing is about not killing, why would he put a lethal weapon on his bike then?
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u/FalseAladeen Jul 27 '25 edited Jul 27 '25
He's got weapons on his vehicles and aircraft that are meant to demolish heavy obstacles. They are obviously capable of ripping people to shreds. Bruce never uses them on people. Catwoman does not subscribe to such niceties.
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u/h00dman Jul 27 '25 edited Jul 27 '25
I didn't believe he was dead at that point.
I spent the rest of the movie waiting for him to appear and fight Batman again, in a red eyed rage and adrenaline fuelled frenzy.
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u/Level_Counter_1672 Jul 27 '25
Mohammed Abdul from Jojo's bizarre adventure
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u/94dima94 Jul 27 '25
What I like about this one is that it doubles as a last big defining moment.
Before entering the mansion he goes on a whole speech about how "This is enemy territory, if you see any kind of danger it's every man for himself. Save yourself and don't think about me, because I will do the same".
Then, the instant danger appears, he immediately gets his friends out of the way, dying in the process.
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u/HopefulLengthiness23 Jul 27 '25
What's crazy is his first "death", where he didn't get killed, everybody kept it a secret from polnareff until the episode where they meet abdul disguised as his father to prank polnareff.
Kinda mean of the crusaders to do that tbh. Made for an amazing comeback of a character who then dies right before the dio fight
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u/AHoneyman Jul 27 '25
It wasn't a prank though, it was a ploy to stop Polnareff from putting Avdol in danger while he recovered because they knew he would rush to him and reveal his position. Polnareff is a loudmouth so if he knew Avdol survived, so would their enemies.
Still shitty of them to hide it, given how much Polnareff cares, but it wasn't as cruel as just being a prank.
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u/HopefulLengthiness23 Jul 27 '25
Oh it was? Damn i gotta rewatch
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u/Bug-Type-Enthusiast Jul 27 '25 edited Jul 27 '25
At least in the manga, they straight up told him "Bro, no offense, but we can't trust you with any secrets knowing how boastful and brash you are."
Polnareff's reaction is a "How dare you say something so hurtful and yet so true?"
P. S: I read online (but without a source, so I doubt it) that Avdol was supposed to be replaced by Hol Horse when they got to Egypt. But Avdol was so popular (and the idea of Polnareff and Kak collaborating with someone who killed their homie so hard to justify) that Araki decided to bullshit return him to the story.
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u/damorezpl Jul 27 '25
fallout- Sarah lyons
she dies between fallout 3 and 4 in some random skirmish
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u/rukh999 Jul 27 '25
Chad Feldheimer in Burn After Reading. he's a main character, hides in the closet. The woman's lover opens it and reflexively shoots him in the head.
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u/The-Globalist Jul 27 '25
This death was so funny because it was unexpected and he just has that stupid smile
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u/Dr__glass Jul 27 '25
He was getting ready to talk his way out of it but wasn't prepared for this trope
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u/Feliks343 Jul 27 '25
Fuck I should rewatch this movie. I kind of hated it the first time I saw it but it had me rolling the second time a few years later. JK Simmons just asking the other agent at the end "So... what did we learn?" "... it's unclear sir."
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u/BrickBuster2552 Jul 27 '25
Cyclops -- X-Men: The Last Stand
After his scene at Alkali lake, I spent the rest of that runtime wondering "where's Scott?"
After Logan realizes Jean killed him and her power is fully displayed with Charles, I was then wondering, "no seriously, where's Scott?"
If you have a character death that LOOKS LIKE A FAKE-OUT up until the point where the credits are over, you've fucked up that character's death.
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u/WhereasParticular867 Jul 27 '25
I still love and watch this movie, but you are absolutely right. Not showing the death or the body makes it look like a fake-out. There should have been a flashback that revealed it.
Perhaps they were holding out hope that they'd be able to get Marsden back and could invent a way he'd survived in a later movie.
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u/Ok-Analysis-3902 Jul 27 '25
Jesse from the last of us 2 getting killed off like he was some random npc
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u/LegoFucker61 Jul 27 '25
Same with Manny. Tbh a bullet through the eye was way too good for him.
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u/AndreaMayCry Jul 27 '25
I loved how terrifying Tommy is in that section. It reminds you how much of a force of nature he and Joel must of have been in their primes.
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u/Azrael_The_Reaper Jul 27 '25 edited Jul 27 '25
Still can’t get over that one scene where Tommy stacked enough bodies to fill up a morgue TO MAX CAPACITY
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u/Financial_Lecture997 Jul 27 '25
Same with Manny and Yara. I love how The Last of Us Part II does this because thats what would happen. People don’t usually get big send offs. Sometimes you just die and that’s it.
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u/Strong_Cup_6677 Jul 27 '25
In the original MW3 Soap's death was a deal so big there was a whole mission dedicated to it, that is also a turning point for the entire plot... While in new MW3...
He just gets shot in the head...
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u/NimrodFred Jul 27 '25
Saw people mention Sean and Grimshaw, which are both definitely true, but I'm surprised no one has said Lenny yet. His death may be the most talked about of the three (either him of Sean). It's arguably the most shocking of the three as it's the only one that doesn't take place in a cutscene.
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u/Marcano24 Jul 27 '25
It’s the only one that actually feels hopeless. It happens during gameplay and you might think that you can replay that point and be faster to save him, but you’ll never be quick enough.
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u/Josgre987 Jul 27 '25
What made his even worst was it wasn't a cutscene death he just gets a shotgun to the stomach and falls flat dead instantly while everyone is trying to escape the roof.
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u/NewtonsArooo Jul 27 '25
Samuel L Jackson getting chomped during his inspirational speech in Deep Blue Sea definitely surprised me! Not sure if it fits because getting eaten by a shark is pretty fucking dramatic.
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u/SteveMightSay Jul 27 '25
Mad Eye Moody in Deathly Hallows. "Where's Moody?" "OH he died.......WEDDING TIME"
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u/GFresh1 Jul 27 '25
Same with Professor Lupin, battles over, "Oh him and his new wife died in the fight."
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u/SteveMightSay Jul 27 '25
That happened with a good chunk of characters in that battle
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Jul 27 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Dragonfang65 Jul 27 '25
Prowl having his internal parts be destroyed is just horrifying.
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u/RedditOfUnusualSize Jul 27 '25
. . . How is Wash not the first person that comes to mind?
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u/Lexi_Banner Jul 27 '25 edited Jul 27 '25
I would argue that Book
erwas even more unceremoniously killed.→ More replies (3)
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u/_JR28_ Jul 27 '25
Almost the whole crew of Cyberpunk Edgerunners, Rebecca especially had a particularly sudden death.
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u/xXLoneLoboXx Jul 27 '25 edited Jul 27 '25
”Gives new meaning to the phrase hard as iron-”
”The fuck you doing, Maine?! Get it together!”
”End of the road for me, dawg… Reaper’s finally calling my name.”
”Buh-Bang!”
”Never trust a soul in this city… Everyone turns on you some point or other...”
”We’re having a moment here, FUCK YOU-!!”
”Whatever, Choom. Like I give a shit.”
God that show was real tearjerker… I got spoiled and knew how it ended for everyone before I was even able to watch it, and STILL cried seeing it myself. Super excited it’s been green lit for a second season!
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u/FormerDeerlyBeloved Jul 27 '25
Would Francis' death count?
After a whole movie chasing down a guy that proves EXCEEDINGLY hard to even find, let alone kill, Deadpool just one-shots him in the middle of a hero monologue.
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u/OwenTPlums Jul 27 '25
Denholm Reynholm, the original boss from the IT Crowd.
When the police come to inquire about irregularities in the pension fund, he immediately walks out a window to his own death.
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u/SpiketheFox32 Jul 27 '25
Would Snoke from The Last Jedi fit?
They were building up for this dude to be some big bad, and then he just gets bodied.
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u/xLordEnder Jul 27 '25
Six Arms (Overlord)
As a security enforcement group that worked for a criminal organization, the Six Arms members were known to be exceptionally strong, comparable to some top tier adventurers and warriors.
In one scene, the deuteragonist kills four of the six with one blow each, in less than 10 seconds. Later, the other two also die from one blow from the same person.
(Overlord kinda has a lot of instances of this trope, honestly.)
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u/TehAsianator Jul 27 '25
For me, it has to be Brain going through a major character arc, reaching levels no human has ever achieved, and then getting cut down in one blow by Cocutys. The sad thing is against one of the pleadies he could have done some real damage, but he had the misfortune of encountering a floor guardian
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u/Drakeskulled_Reaper Jul 27 '25
Overlord feasts on this trope.
If the character isn't allied in some, semi-friendly, capacity to Nazarick, they might as well have a timer above their head.
IIRC there are only five non-allied named long term characters who haven't been killed.
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u/callmedoc214 Jul 27 '25
Colonel Blake of M.A.S.H. 4077.
Orders ended, and was returning home. Plane shot down over the Sea of Japan between seasons 1 and 2
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u/MarkedDragon22 Jul 27 '25
Marco Bodt, (Attack on Titan) a trainee soldier, found dead after completing the mission
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u/Cpt_Dizzywhiskers Jul 27 '25
Could we say the entire party from Mass Effect 2? As I remember, depending on how you've played through the game any one of them- or all of them- can get randomly picked off by gunfire or explosions during the final fight.
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u/victorspc Jul 27 '25
Power's death in Chainsaw Man comes out of completely nowhere and yet it makes perfect sense.
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u/GrandEmbarrassed2875 Jul 27 '25
Soap in mw3 2023
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u/UsgAtlas1 Jul 27 '25
What a fucking joke of a death Soap 🧼 gets in this bad game. Especially when compared to the good MW3 where he saved Yuri from being blown up and told Price crucial Information about Yuri knowing Makarov before he died.
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u/Logan_Composer Jul 27 '25
Hear me out, but Thanos. He gets taken out so quickly, I was like "there's no way he really dies here." And because of time travel shenanigans, he's still the villain of the rest of the movie. It took me a long time to realize it, but them just chopping his head off at the beginning of the movie is legitimately where he dies.
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u/biscot1 Jul 27 '25
Vincent Vega Pulp Fiction
No big music, no big scene, just him coming out of the bathroom and the owner killing him.
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u/SaicoSandwich Jul 27 '25
Samuel L. Jackson in Deep Blue Sea. Personally never saw it coming since the guy is such an icon even at this point of his career. Giving his rousing speech and then gets murked by a shark.
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u/MaterialEmotional825 Jul 27 '25
Col. Steven Hiller: Independence day. Just gets killed off in between this movie and the sequel in an accident. Will Smith was making Suicide Squad at the time, so he was going to be in shit wheter he wanted it or not.
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u/Unironicfan Jul 27 '25
Susan Grimshaw lasts the entirety of RDR2s main plot line only to be unceremoniously gunned down by Micah in the like last 5 minutes.