Skip to content

Top Navigation

EW.com EW.com
    • All TV
    • TV Reviews
    • TV Reunions
    • Recaps
    • What to Watch
    • Winter TV
    • Comedy
    • Crime
    • Drama
    • Family
    • Horror
    • Reality
    • Sci-fi
    • Thriller
    • All Movies
    • Movie Reviews
    • Trailers
    • Film Festivals
    • Movie Reunions
    • Movie Previews
    • All Music
    • Music Reviews
    • All What to Watch
    • What to Watch Podcast Episodes
    • TV Reviews
    • Movie Reviews
    • All BINGE
    • EW's Binge Podcast Episodes
    • Recaps
    • The Bachelor
    • The Last of Us
    • RuPaul's Drag Race
    • You
    • The Masked Singer
    • Yellowstone
    • Saturday Night Live
    • Outer Banks
    • All The Awardist
    • The Awardist Podcast Episodes
    • Oscars
    • Emmys
    • Golden Globes
    • SAG Awards
    • Grammys
    • Tony Awards
    • All Books
    • Book Reviews
    • Author Interviews
    • All Theater
    • Theater Reviews
  • Podcasts
  • Gaming
    • All Events
    • Comic-Con
  • Celebrity
  • Streaming

Profile Menu

Subscribe

Explore EW.com

EW.com EW.com
  • Explore

    Explore

    • The Fast and the Furious cast: Where are they now?

      The Fast and the Furious cast: Where are they now?

      Catch up with Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, and the rest of your favorite stars from the film that kicked off the hit franchise. Read More
    • How Grant Gustin runs The Flash — and the Arrowverse — across the finish line 

      How Grant Gustin runs The Flash — and the Arrowverse — across the finish line 

      The actor explains why he decided to end the CW’s last remaining Arrowverse show after nine seasons, and teases what to expect from next week’s epic series finale. Read More
    • Michelle Yeoh on the significance of American Born Chinese and her 'respectful' goddess action scenes

      Michelle Yeoh on the significance of American Born Chinese and her 'respectful' goddess action scenes

      The Academy Award winner previews the Disney+ action comedy series rooted in Chinese mythology: “Our culture, our heritage, is so steeped with history and beauty." Read More
  • TV

    TV

    See All TV
    • TV Reviews
    • TV Reunions
    • Recaps
    • What to Watch
    • Winter TV
    • Comedy
    • Crime
    • Drama
    • Family
    • Horror
    • Reality
    • Sci-fi
    • Thriller
  • Movies

    Movies

    See All Movies
    • Movie Reviews
    • Trailers
    • Film Festivals
    • Movie Reunions
    • Movie Previews
  • Music

    Music

    See All Music
    • Music Reviews
  • What to Watch

    What to Watch

    See All What to Watch
    • What to Watch Podcast Episodes
    • TV Reviews
    • Movie Reviews
  • BINGE

    BINGE

    See All BINGE
    • EW's Binge Podcast Episodes
    • Recaps
    • The Bachelor
    • The Last of Us
    • RuPaul's Drag Race
    • You
    • The Masked Singer
    • Yellowstone
    • Saturday Night Live
    • Outer Banks
  • The Awardist

    The Awardist

    See All The Awardist
    • The Awardist Podcast Episodes
    • Oscars
    • Emmys
    • Golden Globes
    • SAG Awards
    • Grammys
    • Tony Awards
  • Books

    Books

    See All Books
    • Book Reviews
    • Author Interviews
  • Theater

    Theater

    See All Theater
    • Theater Reviews
  • Podcasts
  • Gaming
  • Events

    Events

    See All Events
    • Comic-Con
  • Celebrity
  • Streaming

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Home
  2. Movies
  3. The 14 most shocking early character deaths on the big screen

The 14 most shocking early character deaths on the big screen

Author Maureen Lee Lenker
By Maureen Lee Lenker September 24, 2018 at 10:00 AM EDT
Skip gallery slides
FB

1 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

We hardly knew ye

gallery
Credit: Getty Images; Jon Pack/Amazon; Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock

Some movies seem to delight in pulling the rug out from under their viewers, taking a beloved character or a huge star and killing them off in the first third of the film. You come in expecting to see an A-list actor headlining a project (often because they were featured heavily in promotional materials), and then wham! Suddenly they're gone. Here are 14 of the most shocking early exits in films — and it should go without saying that there are SPOILERS to the max throughout, so click through at your own risk.

1 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

Oscar Isaac and Olivia Wilde in Life Itself

lifeitself_day9-1016.CR2
Credit: Jon Pack/Amazon

Life Itself is not at all the movie many viewers were expecting it to be (at least from the trailers). Early teasers for the film painted it as a family drama and love story between Oscar Isaac's Will and Olivia Wilde's Abby. It is — for about 15 minutes. Then Abby is steamrolled by a bus (shock No. 1), and not long after, a seriously depressed Will takes his own life in his psychiatrist's office (shock No. 2). Those who came to this movie wanting their fill of dreamy romantic gestures got much more misery than they bargained for. Having our expectations upended like this was even more painful than the film's blistering reviews.

2 of 15

3 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

Janet Leigh in Psycho

Janet Leigh Screaming in Psycho Shower Scene
Credit: Getty Images

When Psycho was released, Janet Leigh was easily the biggest star attached — which made it all the more shocking when she was slashed to death in a shower less than halfway through the film. The twist changed moviegoing forever: Previously, audiences could walk into a screening at any point in its running time, but director Alfred Hitchcock expressly forbid that policy to preserve his film's secrets. Somewhat ironically, more than 50 years later, Leigh is best remembered for the abbreviated role.

3 of 15

Advertisement
Continued on next slide.
Advertisement

4 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

John Hurt in Alien

alien
Credit: 20th Century Fox

John Hurt's Kane, an officer aboard the interstellar vessel Nostromo, makes a shockingly early departure from Alien as the film's first victim. Audiences will likely never be able to shake the image of an alien bursting out of Hurt's chest, a moment signaling the true threat of the titular extraterrestrial. Hurt told EW how his fellow cast members were unaware of just how the practical effects of the moment would go down, making their looks of panic and disgust quite real.

4 of 15

Advertisement

5 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

Ryan Reynolds in Life

Ryan Reynolds
Credit: Columbia Pictures

What is it with movies with "life" in the title? Ryan Reynolds was pumped heavily in trailers for this 2017 film alongside costar Jake Gyllenhaal, but within the first couple of scenes he's devoured by the mysterious life force the crew of scientists and researchers discovers on Mars. Another cruel twist of fate for moviegoers hoping for some eye candy from a film, only to see the heavily promoted star meet a quick and horrifying end.

5 of 15

6 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

Drew Barrymore in Scream

Film and Television
Credit: Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock

If a movie has a twist death, odds are the star is featured prominently in promotional materials. In 1996, Drew Barrymore was the biggest star attached to Scream, appearing in the foreground of the movie poster and frequently in trailer clips. It was all a ruse when she turned out to be slashed to death (after a tortorous phone call) in the first 15 minutes. Barrymore's unexpected onscreen death was iconic and left us always answering "no" when someone asks if we like scary movies.

6 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement
Continued on next slide.
Advertisement

7 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

Leonardo DiCaprio in The Departed

THE DEPARTED, Leonardo DiCaprio, 2006. ©Warner Bros./courtesy Everett Collection
Credit: Everett Collection

Any Martin Scorsese movie comes with the assumption that there will be some shocking, brutal deaths — and even though it comes near the end of the film, not the opening, there are few as gut-wrenching as DiCaprio's demise in The Departed. After going undercover for the police as a member of the Irish mob and trying to do right by his brothers on the force, Billy Costigan is coldly betrayed and gunned down in an elevator. We'll never let go, Leo!

7 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement

8 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

Kate Winslet in Contagion

CONTAGION
Credit: Warner Bros.

The disquieting posters for Contagion featuring a sickly Gwyneth Paltrow hinted that her character would be a goner from the get-go. But no one expected another big female star in the 2011 film to also bow out in the first third. As Dr. Erin Mears, Kate Winslet goes to investigate the growing epidemic and succumbs to infection herself, even suffering the indignity of burial in a mass grave. With its buzzy cast and interlocking storylines, they should've considered naming this one Death Actually.

8 of 15

Advertisement

9 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

Kevin Costner in The Big Chill

Big-Chill-head-(1)
Credit: Columbia

Before he broke out as one of the biggest stars of the 1980s, Kevin Costner made a crucial blink-and-you'll-miss-it appearance in The Big Chill. His character Alex's suicide is what brings the group of college friends together, spurring the events of the film, and it's Costner's body we see in unidentifiable close-ups in the film's opening montage as the morgue prepares his corpse. The actor was more involved in shooting, featuring in flashbacks when his character was still alive, but director Lawrence Kasdan ultimately cut all Costner's scenes from the film. We heard it through the grapevine that Costner's career turned out just fine in the long run, though.

9 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement
Continued on next slide.
Advertisement

10 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

Mufasa in The Lion King

mufasa
Credit: Disney

No ’90s kid suffered a more devastating moviegoing moment than having to accept the murder of Mufasa as part of the "circle of life." James Earl Jones lent his formidable acting chops to the role of Simba's dad, ruler of the Pride Lands. And though his ghost plays an important role later in the film, we still never really got over his devastating early demise. We dare you to watch Simba snuggle up to his dad's body without crying. (Even writing this blurb has us reaching for the tissue box!)

10 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

11 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

Alec Guinness in Star Wars

MSDSTWA EC007
Credit: Everett Collection

Alec Guinness had a knighthood and an Oscar to his name when he signed on to a science-fiction film from a relatively untested director starring a trio of unknowns. When it came to marquee-worthy stars, Guinness was the project's only hope. The only thing more surprising than his agreeing to do the role was his character's shocking surrender to death at the end of the second act. Obi-Wan Kenobi has remained an iconic figure in the Star Wars mythos, but Guinness didn't always love being associated with the blockbuster franchise. That said, he did briefly return (in spectral form) in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.

11 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement

12 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

Kristin Scott Thomas and Emilio Estevez in Mission: Impossible

MI1996
Credit: Paramount

The first Mission: Impossible film opens with quite the star-studded IMF team, including Kristin Scott Thomas (whose fame reached new heights with The English Patient that same year) and Emilio Estevez. But audiences couldn't get too comfortable — the starry agents were dispatched by the end of the first sequence, leaving Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) wrongly accused of their murders. The film also set an important precedent: If you want to live, it's probably best not to be involved in any of Hunt's opening missions in the franchise.

12 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement
Continued on next slide.
Advertisement

13 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

Loki in Avengers: Infinity War

null
Credit: Chuck Zlotnick/©Marvel Studios 2018

Audiences were anticipating some character casualties in Infinity War, but fan favorite Loki's (Tom Hiddleston) brutal death in the opening sequence made it clear Thanos (Josh Brolin) did not come to play. Loki has been presumed dead numerous times before, but his onscreen end felt a lot more permanent this time around. On the plus side, reports recently emerged that Hiddleston could return for a Loki-focused streaming series.

13 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

14 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

William Holden in Sunset Boulevard

Gloria Swanson desperate while William Holden is preparing his bags
Credit: Mondadori Portfolio/Getty Images

William Holden's star was on the rise when he landed his Oscar-nominated role in Sunset Boulevard, and while trailers for the film made it clear that murder played a role in the storyline, audiences were in for quite the shock when the movie opened with Holden's dead body floating in a swimming pool. The film uses its entire running to explain how Holden's Joe Gillis got to that point, but it was disturbing to start the film knowing one of its biggest stars wouldn't survive until the end.

14 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement

15 of 15

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message

Cloris Leachman in Kiss Me Deadly

KISS ME DEADLY, from left: Ralph Meeker, Cloris Leachman, 1955
Credit: EVERETT COLLECTION

Cloris Leachman was already a Broadway star and making headway on television when she earned her first big movie role in the 1955 noir Kiss Me Deadly. Her screen time was short, though, as her mysterious trench-coat-wearing hitchhiker met her demise early in the film, setting the central mystery in motion. The title could certainly refer to her, but there's lots of kissing and death in the film, so who really knows?

15 of 15

Advertisement
Advertisement
Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

  • By Maureen Lee Lenker @themaureenlee

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 15 We hardly knew ye
    2 of 15 Oscar Isaac and Olivia Wilde in Life Itself
    3 of 15 Janet Leigh in Psycho
    4 of 15 John Hurt in Alien
    5 of 15 Ryan Reynolds in Life
    6 of 15 Drew Barrymore in Scream
    7 of 15 Leonardo DiCaprio in The Departed
    8 of 15 Kate Winslet in Contagion
    9 of 15 Kevin Costner in The Big Chill
    10 of 15 Mufasa in The Lion King
    11 of 15 Alec Guinness in Star Wars
    12 of 15 Kristin Scott Thomas and Emilio Estevez in Mission: Impossible
    13 of 15 Loki in Avengers: Infinity War
    14 of 15 William Holden in Sunset Boulevard
    15 of 15 Cloris Leachman in Kiss Me Deadly

    Share & More

    Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message
    EW.com

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
    • Advertise this link opens in a new tab

    Connect

    Subscribe to Our Newsletter
    Meredith© Copyright 2023 Meredith Corporation. Entertainment Weekly is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation All Rights Reserved. Entertainment Weekly may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab Do Not Sell My Personal Informationthis link opens a modal window
    © Copyright EW.com. All rights reserved. Printed from https://ew.com

    View image

    The 14 most shocking early character deaths on the big screen
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.