31 Times The Deaths Of Movie Characters Were Unnecessary and Hurtful

On television, death is unavoidable.

Maryjane

• Published in Film & TV
• April 30, 2022

As a hard fan of movie series, I'm deeply aware of the importance of character deaths. Such favorite character deaths can advance the plot, advance other character arcs, and move the audience to tears (and sometimes, cheers).

However, these deaths can also be unnecessary and illogical at times. Show producers may decide to kill off a character primarily for sensationalism, or the actor may have been vilified by the network, studio, or cast and crew of the show—and their character suffers as a result.

Shortsighted producers decided to kill off these loved characters far too soon. In many of these cases, backstage strife played a role in a character's demise.

Alternatively, some producers may have thought they were being unpredictable by using the death of a character to catch the viewers by surprise. Most of the time, they make the desired impression on viewers, but it is sometimes perceived as unnecessary by viewers.

You'd think show producers would have figured it out by now. Don't kill off our favorite TV characters unless there's a compelling reason.

But it seems to happen every year. We've compiled a list of 31 movie characters whose deaths were unnecessary and ruined the entire show.

Be warned! This is likely to rekindle your rage and bitterness about television shows you thought you had forgiven.

1. In the movie 13 Reasons Why, when Justin Foley was diagnosed with HIV/AIDS and he died

"He was just trying to get his life back on track. Quitting drugs, getting into uni, opening up about his sexual assault, and things were great with Jessica. Then his mom died and a few months later he also died. I remember I was so devastated when I watched the last episode."

—s463b03bd4

2. The 100: When Lexa and Clarke slept together, but then, Lexa was killed by a stray bullet

"Lexa being killed off was some bullshit."

—mercedesamd91

3. When Jasper poisoned himself before dying in Monty's arms in The 100

"He was a happy teen that developed depression and PTSD due to everything he went through and witnessed. He was clearly suffering, and no one other than his best friend seemed to care or help him. The show could've explored his mental health, due to him being the only 'realistic' character who showed how their journey on Earth negatively impacted their mental health. But instead the writers decided to have him kill himself."

—xdaniellax

4. When Clarke shockingly shot and killed Bellamy in The 100

"I will NEVER forgive this one. I refuse to even acknowledge the final season exists because to have such an incredible character arc for this guy, from criminal to soldier to protector to leader, only for him to be written off for most of the season and then kill him five minutes after he comes back?! And for him to be killed by Clarke, who went on most of that journey with him, who was his platonic — and romantic, in my opinion — soulmate, over something so trivial?! The worst written and unnecessary ending for a character ever."

—foragoodtimenotalongtime

5. When Logan died right when he and Veronica were finally happy in the movie Veronica Mars

"100000000% devastated by Logan Echolls. I don’t care if they needed to get back to more mystery and less romance. He didn’t have to die for them to do that. And then, they never made more of the show to top it all off!"

—pamelal4802dcefb

6. In the movie Killing Eve, when Villanelle was shot and killed

"I’m heartbroken, TBH. SHE DIDN'T HAVE TO DIE AT ALL. Villanelle and Eve finally got their happy ending. They understood each other and I think they could've been really good together. I get that the show needed to end but this wasn’t the way. I WANT ONE F**KING HAPPY ENDING FOR THE GAYS. STOP KILLING US."

—squid_nuggs

7. In the movie Orange Is the New Black, when Poussey died after CO Bayley restrained her

"Poussey from OITNB doesn’t need to be said because it has been said enough but I’m gonna say her anyway."

—rugratfromspace

8. In Orange Is the New Black again, when Pennsatucky died of a drug overdose

"Just as she was growing into the person she should be, she was killed off. And what she'd feared didn't happen anyway! She passed the test!"

—vix_da_vixen

9. In Buffy the Vampire Slayer, when Tara was killed by a stray bullet

"It's been 20 years and I’m still not over it. The set up of the episode, the shock of it happening! For her entire time on the show, Amber Benson was always billed as a guest star. And when she finally got her own title sequence in the opening credits, she was killed off that very episode. It was such a shock that she got killed, and even though the Dark Willow storyline was great, Tara didn't need to die in that way."

—jossyy

10. In Buffy the Vampire Slayer, when Anya was stabbed during the final battle

"I'm still sad over it. It happened so randomly at the very end."

—bella132

11. When Carl was bitten by a walker after saving a new survivor in The Walking Dead

"It was done purely for shock value and made no sense. He meant more (to me, at least) to the series than Judith because we actually got to see Carl grow up. RIP Carl, you deserved better."

—twinityy

12. In Supernatural, when Dean died during the series finale

"After 15 years of character development, the writers tore it all down in the series finale by killing him off in a stupid hunt. He deserved to live and find a shred of happiness, because that was the legacy of Castiel's sacrifice (and don't EVEN get me started on that)!"

—saraho4a20298d2

13. In Supernatural, when Castiel saved Dean's life, only to die when he was consumed by the Empty seconds later

"Castiel sacrificed himself to save Dean from death, and then Dean died an episode later, making Castiel's death all for nothing."

—lookuphereiam

14. When Maeve was abducted by Diane, and Diane killed herself and then Maeve in Criminal Minds

"Spencer Reid finally found the love of his life, and she was killed off before they could even have a date. He didn't even get to hug her or anything. Why couldn't the writers just let Spencer be happy?"

—doofenshmirtzevilinc

15. In Once Upon a Time, when Hades was about to kill Regina, but Robin jumped in and died

"There were so many deaths on that show (way, WAY more than you would think), but most of them were justifiable for the storylines. But I don’t think this one was. It was simply sad, and the show went severely downhill afterwards."

—jakeclements

16. In Chicago Fire, when Shay was suddenly killed during an explosion

"She was such an icon on Chicago Fire. When the show started 10 years ago, she was just this main character who was a lesbian and it was never some tragic story, which you often get with LGBTQ+ characters and storylines. She was always just herself. And her and Severide’s friendship was, to this day, one of the best written platonic relationships I’ve ever seen. I miss her so much, man."

—foragoodtimenotalongtime

17. In The Originals, when Hayley died while protecting Hope

"For me, Hayley Marshall is one character on a very LONG list of characters that didn't deserve to die."

—dalyn9706

18. In The Originals, when Elijah chose to die alongside his brother Klaus

"It always made sense to me why Klaus had to die — he did it to save the world and his daughter Hope. But Elijah...like...what?! It was such a letdown to see him go after he struggled to be honorable to protect the people he loved in TWO different series. It was such a spur of the moment, impulsive decision which was so out of character for him. I'll honestly never get over it."

—laurengarafano

19. In Money Heist/La Casa de Papel, when Tokyo sacrificed herself

"I’m still not over Money Heist completely unnecessarily killing off Tokyo during the Season 5: Part 1 finale. While previous deaths on the show were extremely painful, at least it felt like there was a narrative reason for why they happened, and the deaths propelled the other characters forward. Tokyo’s death was ENTIRELY for the shock factor of a 'finale' moment and she deserved the happy ending that the rest of the team got. It wasn’t the saddest death on the show (that would be Nairobi!!) but it was the most pointless one for sure."

—jenniferabidor

20. In On My Block, when Oscar about to leave, only for him to be shot

"In the last season he was so hopeful and had such a beautiful redemption arc. Although it might not have been completely realistic, I would have loved for him to have escaped from his past."

—ninablack

21. In The Last Kingdom, when Thyra knew she would die in a fire set by Tidman, and she stabbed herself

"She had suffered and gone through so much and was finally able to find some peace and happiness with Beocca, only to die in such a shocking, cruel, and devastatingly unnecessary death that mirrored the traumatic death of her family, which she was forced to witness years earlier."

—bundtcake12

22. In South of Nowhere, when Clay was killed during a drive-by shooting

"He was the best character on the show. I was devastated when it was revealed he was killed at the shooting at the prom."

—dougfancy101290

23. In Bones, when Sweets suffered massive internal trauma and died

"I know John Francis Daley was leaving to direct a film and couldn't film the series more, but Sweets could have easily temporarily left and then returned to the show. Sweets was just about to have a baby, for goodness sake."

—nameless_demon

24. In Grey's Anatomy, when George was hit by a bus

"He could have said his goodbyes to his friends at Seattle Grace and just left, but no, he was hit by a bus for shock value. George was one of the good ones and deserved better, and we should have let him join the army and kick ass saving lives over there! I'm still pissed and I don’t care how much time goes by."

—rachway

25. In Grey's Anatomy, when Lexie was crushed underneath a plane

"It was SO heartbreaking!! To kill off such a wonderful, likable character like Lexie, only for the writer to make Meredith have ANOTHER secret sister who is also a doctor was just a slap in the face for me who’d watched it religiously since Episode 1. Lexie and Mark should have lived and been together, but just left Seattle. I can’t bring myself to rewatch the plane crash episodes, once was enough."

—jenniferh4e24263bc

26. In Downton Abbey, when Sybil suddenly died right after giving birth

"Controversial opinion but Julian Fellowes should have stuck to his original plan to have only three seasons so the actors wouldn't have felt trapped and they wouldn’t have had to be killed off. Sybil's — and Matthew's — death was the product of actors wanting to leave and the show not finding a better way to write them off."

—alipie26

27. In Girl From Nowhere, when Nanno was stabbed numerous times by Waan

"I don't know when Season 3 is coming out, and she could somehow be okay, but I still found it cheap to have her brutalized and murdered by that narcissistic sociopath Yuri, especially after showing more of her powers this season. It made me hate Yuri even more because she crossed a huge line. So unless they rectify that, I am putting it out there."

—tanyam44ab2253d

28. In The Vampire Diaries, when Stefan ripped Enzo's heart out

"After everything she went through over the course of the series, Bonnie Bennett deserved a happy ending with Enzo, and the show couldn't even give her that. Enzo's death during the final season was so not necessary to the overall plot and it was just used to add more heartbreak for Bonnie. Also, Bonnie could've still stabbed Stefan with the cure without Enzo dying, too."

—noradominick

29. In The Vampire Diaries, when Tyler begged Damon but he still ripped into his throat

"I know everyone will say Enzo, but Tyler was legit not necessary. It did nothing for the plot! They didn't even bring him back for a full episode or explain anything. It was a small quick scene and it was pointless. They would have been better off not even bringing him back."

—jaymaccall25

30. When Allison died in Scott's arms in Teen Wolf

And now she's coming back for the movie?! What was the point of this death then?

- beesandqueens

31. In Game of Thrones, when Daenerys was stabbed by Jon Snow

"They built up her character for years only to have her go mad in a couple episodes. She should have lived and there should have been some major conflict concerning the rightful heir to the throne. We learn that Jon Snow is a Targaryen but absolutely nothing happens with that. Everything was too rushed, so her death felt so unnecessary." 

—asheville_turkey

On television, death is unavoidable. Almost every movie, from The Walking Dead to Money Heist, has explored the subject in some way.

The demise of a fan-favorite character is always heartbreaking, but there are times when it’s understandable. They contribute to the overall drama and suspense, and the characters' legacy is never forgotten.

Maryjane