23 Epic Movie Theater Moments That Left Viewers Awestruck, Heartbroken, Or Laughing Hysterically

These movies won't fail to take you for a spin and leaving you in awe.

Maryjane

• Published in Film & TV
• June 14, 2022

Haven’t we all made and heard those “loud” reactions to defining movie moments because they were so grand? They are the scenes that make such movies even more captivating and loved.

They didn’t fail to take you for a spin, leaving you in awe. There's no disputing that Tony Stark's death in Avengers: Endgame was the greatest film moment to which everybody reacted loudly and with tears in their eyes (I'm judgmental if you didn't).

Tony's death was unexpected, and we are still grieving. The theater was initially filled with people's reactions, and then there was tranquility all over the theater.

Furthermore, we were all rooting for Prince Hans and Anna, hoping that Anna was correct about him. But when he confessed to faking his love for Anna in order to achieve his unfulfilled dream, it broke our hearts as well as Anna’s, causing much gasping in the theater during the scene.

We felt nostalgic while recalling such monumental movie theater moments, and we couldn’t help but share them with you. Sit back and relax; we have got your back on this because we have compiled for you a list of 23 movie theatre moments that were so epic that they left viewers in deep shock and heartbreak.

1. Tony Stark dying in Avengers: Endgame:

"My sister-in-law blew her nose and the whole theater laughed. You could tell there were sobs everywhere."

—slytherinpride1010

2. Bella's life in limbo in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part I

"I went to see The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part I in the theater with my parents, and toward the end where you aren't supposed to know whether she'll live or not, somebody in the theater yelled out, 'She ain't dead!' The whole audience was laughing for the rest of the movie, and even as we were all leaving the theater. It was just perfect timing. I actually ended up watching a marathon on TV the other day with my mom, and she stayed up late, just so I could re-create the moment."

—chrish93

3. This Black Panther scene

"When W'Kabi asks Okoye, 'Would you kill me, my love?' and she responds, 'For Wakanda? Without question.'

Someone in my theater yelled 'Do it, girl! Do it!'"

—heytheremimi

4. Kristoff saying he would propose to Anna in Frozen 2

"The whole cinema whooped."

—kermitzefrog

5. Buzz and Woody saying goodbye in Toy Story 4

"I went to see Toy Story 4 in the theater, and when Buzz and Woody said goodbye, a little kid in the back said, 'Bye Woody, I love you.'"

—meerkat02

6. Dumbledore death in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

"I saw it on opening night in the theater, and the whole room gasped and there was audible crying going on. Also me. I was crying."

—kckt

7. Miguel singing "Remember Me" to Mama Coco in Coco and she sings along

"I was in tears and you could hear people bawling loudly all over the theater."

—panapuerboli

"It destroyed everyone in the theater and we all dissolved into ugly sobs. Still my favorite Pixar movie 💙."

—abigaeljoyceanderson

8. Thanos killing Loki in Avengers: Infinity War

"The communal gasp when Thanos kills Loki at the very beginning of Avengers: Infinity War. I noticed it more the second time around as I was too busy gasping along with everyone else the first time around."

—jemsnation

9. Rey and Kylo Ren kissing in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

"When Rey kissed Kylo Ren, all the 'NOOOOOOOOS' in the theater. I still keep hoping they will redo that ending."

—stacieschomackers

10. Black Panther, Okoye, and Shuri reappearing in Avengers: Endgame

"My whole theater stood up and yelled 'Wakanda Forever!'"

—glitterytable23

11. Augustus, Hazel, and Isaac having a pre-funeral wake in The Fault in Our Stars

"There was not a dry eye in the theater. I remember the elderly couple in front of me saying, 'I didn't know it was going to be so sad.'"

—liozzo22

12. Brad Pitt's character gettin hit by a car in Meet Joe Black

"In high school, a couple of friends and I saw Meet Joe Black in a theater and early in the movie, when Brad Pitt's character is hit by a car, a girl yelled 'Nooooo, not Brad Pitt!'"

—jcjchc13

13. Nemo's family being attacked in Finding Nemo

"Seeing Finding Nemo on opening weekend. After the barracuda attack in the beginning, the theater was dead quiet and then someone yelled out, 'Goddamnit, Disney, why is it always the fucking mom?!' everyone laughed and it broke the tension of the moment."

—marif4e152f170

14. This scene in Sex and the City

"The entire theater gasped."

—dawnae

15. All about this memorable Paranormal Activity screening

"I watched Paranormal Activity the weekend it opened and there were a bunch of lads behind me and my friends just generally being loud and annoying. When the film started ramping up the scares they got quiet, but then about a third of the way through, the girl gets dragged off the bed and down the hall by the ghost or whatever it was and one of these lads just went, 'NOPE. F*CK THAT. I'M OUT' and left. Everyone in the cinema laughed and I bet he never heard the end of it from his mates..."

—bexsticles

16. Monica and Quincy finally hooking up in Love and Basketball

"I was in college when Love & Basketball came out, and almost every woman in the theater gasped during the scene when Monica and Quincy FINALLY linked up and had sex. Like we were all like same girl, SAME lol."

—jaida

17. Aragorn cutting off the huge Uruk-Hai's head in The Lord of The Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

"The whole theater went completely quiet for a second and then an explosion of happy cries and clapping erupted from all the kids in the audience. It was so great, I have never experienced that before and I haven’t since."

—amyso80

18. Landon breaking down to his dad in A Walk to Remember

"I remember going to see A Walk to Remember in theaters with my family. I was a 'too cool' teen who was terrified of just generally showing emotion. I held it in for so long, but when Landon broke down in tears to his dad I let out what can only be described as a guttural sob. I was instantly embarrassed, but my sob literally broke the floodgates and I immediately heard cries all around the theater."

—moxietttt123

19. Learning Adelaide was replaced by her double the whole time in Us

"The twist in the 2019 movie Us. Everyone lost their absolute shit, including me. Amazing."

—s4nri0wh0r3

20. Edward taking off his shirt in The Twilight Saga: New Moon

"I was at the midnight premiere of New Moon. When Edward took off his shirt, and was about to step into the sun in public, a girl behind me went, 'Oh my god, is that a third nipple?!' Everyone cracked up."

—kellyl47b378eb7

21. Joker killing Murray Franklin in Joker

"When Joaquin Phoenix shot Robert De Niro on national television on a late night show in Joker. The entire theater audibly gasped when that happened."

—m4255f9f32

22. Bill and Harry showing up in Mamma Mia!: Here We Go Again

"The best Mamma Mia! theater moment was in Here We Go Again, when Bill and Harry show up during 'Dancing Queen.' My crowd went WILD. Also when Cher showed up."

—em1231

23. Billy getting shot in The Departed:

"The theater was silent when I saw The Departed. But when Leo’s character got shot, it happened so quickly and out of the blue that I remember hearing the whole theater gasp."

—crystalgem80

For movie directors, the success of any film is determined by the reactions of the audience, and when the theater is filled with "Woahs" and "Nooos," we know they've done an excellent job. You can easily evaluate the film based on the reactions of the audience in the theater.

Which of these is your favorite movie theater moment? Tell us in the comments section!

Maryjane