Top 20 Accidental Movie Deaths
Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the Top 20 Accidental Movie Deaths. For this list, we’ll be looking at the most notable cases where a film character’s demise came inadvertently, whether it was by their own hand or someone else’s. However, we won’t be including animated movies on this list. Beware of major spoilers ahead! Do you know of any other misfortunate deaths in movies? Share them with us in the comments below!
#20: Stunned & Done
“The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!” (1988)
“The Naked Gun” follows Lt. Frank Drebin, played by the late great Leslie Nielsen, as he stumbles his way through a case. Given all the over the top slapstick gags running throughout the film, it should come as no surprise that the villain’s death is played up for laughs. During the climax, Drebin wounds Ludwig with his wrist gadget. He then plainly states that the antagonist is only stunned and will be fine…seconds before he goes down over a ledge. The fall likely does the trick, but in typical “Naked Gun” fashion, it doesn’t stop there. A bus, a steamroller, and a marching band all play a part in solidifying his death.
#19: Cliffside Drop
“Casper” (1995)
Despite being based on a friendly cartoon character, this “Casper” adaptation features some pretty devious characters. One of them is Carrigan, the pampered owner of the mansion trying to locate its hidden treasure. Once she realizes that having a ghost on her side would make things easier, she attempts to use her car to kill her attorney and minion, Dibs. She gets what’s coming to her when she misses, collides with a tree, and steps right off the edge of a cliff. However, unlike most deaths, that doesn’t cut her screen time short. Indeed, Carrigan gets a ghost on her side – herself. Needless to say, the price was steeper than she intended.
#18: Luck of the Irish?
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“Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story” (2004)
There’s nothing like the death of a mentor to give a sports movie an extra dose of drama. “Dodgeball” took that expectation and crushed it under the massive weight of comedic irony. With his gym about to be swallowed up by a corporate giant, Pete and his friends enter a dodgeball competition to save it. They’re helped by Patches O'Houlihan, an irate and eccentric legend of the game played by Rip Torn. Patches’ methods are certainly abnormal, but they work wonders for the team. Just when things are looking up, and directly after Pete says Patches gives them a great shot at winning, the coach is crushed by a casino sign reading ‘The Luck of the Irish.’ Talk about an unlucky twist of fate…
#17: Friendly Fire
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“Starship Troopers” (1997)
Friendly fire is an unfortunate reality of military combat. But we doubt any viewer was expecting it during a training sequence. In this sci-fi satire, humankind clashes with a deadly species of giant extraterrestrial bugs. As such, Earth’s military forces take things pretty seriously, especially training. During combat practice, the troops are given live ammo with their targets firing lasers back at them. Feeling a need to earn the best score, protagonist Rico’s team shows no patience when fellow trainee Breckinridge’s helmet causes him to mess up. Unfortunately, Rico removes the helmet, and, as an inattentive ally is hit with a laser, she accidentally strikes Breckinridge – yikes.
#16: Sydney Barringer's Complicated Fall
“Magnolia” (1999)
Featuring a massive group of characters who are all unknowingly connected, Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Magnolia” is a brilliant study in coincidence. In fact, the opening illustrates how strange and unlikely things can happen through three tales of improbable chance. One of these concerns Sydney Barringer, a young man who tries to take his own life. After he jumps, his mother inadvertently discharges a weapon aimed at his father, thinking it was unloaded. She misses and instead fires out the window, right where her son – who had, ironically, loaded the weapon – happens to be falling. While a safety net would have saved his life from the jump, he couldn’t survive that.
#15: Rat Poison
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“Dumb and Dumber” (1994)
Even if Harry and Lloyd did intend to murder someone, we highly doubt they’d be clever enough to pull it off. Most of “Dumb and Dumber” hinges on the bad guys believing the two to be much smarter than they are. After all, that’s why henchman Mental initially wants to harm them with rat poison. The goon, however, has an ulcer he treats with pills – which is more consequential than it sounds. When the always-clueless Harry and Lloyd load his food up with peppers as a joke, things go badly – and fast! Actually trying to help, Harry then grabs what he thinks are Mental’s meds for him…only for them to turn out to be the aforementioned poison.
#14: Poor Aim
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“The Other Guys” (2010)
When danger comes to New York City, it falls to an unsuspecting duo of misfit officers to stop it – but only because the traditional hero cops accidentally ended their own lives. Allen and Terry pale in comparison to egotistical detectives Danson and Highsmith, played to a tee by Dwayne Johnson and Samuel L. Jackson respectively. As parodies of unstoppable heroes, Danson and Highsmith think they can survive anything life throws at them. During a high stakes chase, the duo plan to catch up to the criminals by jumping from a rooftop. They have a plan, but it’s a bad one. That may have worked in a traditional action movie. But here, their poor aim results in them going splat.
#13: Bad Under Pressure
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“World War Z” (2013)
After a zombie virus outbreak, the US government begins bringing together the necessary minds to develop a vaccine. One such mind belongs to virologist Andrew Fassbach, who travels with Brad Pitt’s Gerry and others to South Korea, where the outbreak was first documented. Fassbach believes pinpointing its source is the key, but it seems he isn’t great when it comes to dealing with high pressure situations. As soon as any undead show their faces, he runs back into the group’s aircraft, only to lose his balance, fall, and mistakenly fire his weapon…at himself. It’s an almost weirdly comical death in a fairly serious movie. And he seemed so smart beforehand…
#12: Mighty Machete
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“Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story” (2007)
“Walk Hard” spoofs a great deal of things from the Johnny Cash biopic, “Walk the Line.” This seemingly includes the traumatic childhood death of Cash’s brother. While in one movie, it’s a horrific accident Cash was made to feel guilty for, in the other it’s a macabre joke. As the young Dewey Cox spends time with his brother, Nate, the two begin to play-fight with their father’s machetes. As Dewey winds up for a swing, the sheath flies off and poor Nate suffers the consequences. Even though he should’ve died instantly, Nate’s upper half stays alive long enough to have a conversation with his sibling. Talk about being cut down in your prime.
#11: Death by Steamroller
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“Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery” (1997)
Although this death seems entirely avoidable, the punchline is that it isn’t. While making what should be a thrilling escape, super spy Austin Powers and his partner Vanessa commandeer the slowest getaway vehicle imaginable: a steamroller. As Austin yells at guards to get out of the way, one becomes frozen in fear and repeatedly screams as he’s about to die. In a wonderful case of comedic framing, we see that not only is there plenty of time for the man to move out of the way, but plenty of space for Austin to avoid him. Of course, neither do what they should, resulting in one of the more memorable jokes in the movie.
#10: Double Tap
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“Meet Joe Black” (1998)
It doesn’t matter how cute the person you just met at a coffee shop is; don’t stop for one last look in the middle of a busy street. Take this entry as a cautionary tale! After flirting in a coffee shop, Brad Pitt’s character is nearly run over by one car – crisis averted, right? Well, not quite, as he’s then promptly bounced between two others. It’s obviously meant to be dramatic, especially as Death itself later takes over the deceased’s body. But honestly, the two characters constantly looking back at one another and the ragdoll physics at play make the whole scene pretty humorous. Just ask the Internet!
#9: A Very Real Explosion
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“Tropic Thunder” (2008)
Film history is filled with directors who would do anything to accomplish their vision. And “Tropic Thunder” takes great fun in showing how horribly that could go wrong. With his movie’s budget inflating and the egos of his cast uncontrollable, director Damien Cockburn needs a quick solution. So he puts his cast in the wilderness, using covert cameras to finish filming. Unfortunately, the place he takes them to is occupied by a violent gang. It isn’t long before Damien takes a wrong step onto a land mine, and well, he doesn’t survive. Tragically hilarious, the group believes it another ruse and continues acting accordingly.
#8: Reactionary Violence
“Burn After Reading” (2008)
Joel and Ethan Coen know how to make death funny, and the demise of Brad Pitt’s Chad in “Burn After Reading” is irrefutable proof. Pitt plays one of two clueless gym workers who stumble upon what they believe to be confidential CIA intel. Their exploitation plans hit a snag when Chad breaks into analyst Osbourne Cox’s home. While he’s there, Osbourne’s wife’s secret – and paranoid – lover Harry shows up. Finding Chad hiding in a closet, Harry completely freaks out and takes him out in a rather grisly way. It’s definitely a shocking murder, but it isn’t intentional or premeditated. Is it just us or does that somehow make it worse?
#7: Unnecessary Mayhem
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“Tucker & Dale vs. Evil” (2010)
There’s probably no topping “Tucker & Dale vs. Evil” when it comes to accidental deaths. The titular country bumpkins are only interested in fixing up their new vacation home. But a few run-ins with college kids who have seen too many scary movies leads to deadly disaster. When one of the students gets hurt, Tucker and Dale take her to safety. Since the group thinks the duo are really dangerous, they waste no time mounting an assault. The giant misunderstanding leads to numerous inadvertently self-inflicted — and rather gruesome — deaths. From self-impalement to a wild wood chipper-based demise, most of the deaths throughout the film happen entirely by accident. It’s truly an unhinged sight to behold.
#6: A Piercing Demise
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“Spider-Man” (2002)
We love the comedic timing of Vulture’s accidental incineration of Shocker in “Homecoming”. But if we can only pick from one of Spidey’s big screen adventures, we’re going with Sam Raimi’s groundbreaking 2002 flick. During the climactic fight between Spider-Man and Green Goblin — aka Norman — the hero gains the upper hand. But Norman didn’t get to be known as Peter’s nemesis for nothing. He puts on a sad face and pretends to be remorseful while secretly preparing to take Peter out. Unfortunately for Norman, who clearly didn’t think about where his glider would end up, the protagonist’s ‘spider-sense’ kicks in. With one swift backflip, the villain’s reign of terror unexpectedly comes to a piercing end.
#5: An Unfortunate Gift
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“Happy Gilmore” (1996)
Revenge can make a pretty sweet gift, but there’s no denying Happy should’ve thought things through here. In this ‘90s sports comedy, the titular ill-tempered golfer is taught by Chubbs Peterson, a retired pro whose hand was bitten off by an alligator. Throughout the movie, Chubbs shares his wisdom with Happy, which is greatly beneficial. To show how grateful he is, Happy takes out the alligator responsible for ruining his mentor’s career and delivers its head to him. Naturally, the present comes as a pretty big shock that sends Chubbs fatally stumbling backward. It’s pretty surprising, and though Happy is understandably upset, it’s the push he needs to win in the end.
#4: Fun with Gasoline
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“Zoolander” (2001)
In the world of “Zoolander”, the male models aren’t exactly the smartest bunch. That’s why they make perfect pawns in criminal dealings. But before any of that, their low levels of intelligence are expertly showcased in one of the funniest death scenes ever put to film. With Derek Zoolander down on his luck, his like-minded pals suggest a joyous outing to take his mind off things. Their fun culminates in a playfight at a gas station. Things escalate as they go from using squeegees to gas hoses, with Wham!’s “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” playing throughout. It’s an exceptionally silly scene until one of them decides to have a smoke, leaving Derek without any friends to lean on.
#3: The Witch Melts
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“The Wizard of Oz” (1939)
If ever there was a villain who got what was coming to her, it’s the Wicked Witch from “The Wizard of Oz.” She spends much of the movie tormenting Dorothy and her friends and being particularly nasty to the brainless Scarecrow – all for a pair of shoes! Though the Wizard sets our group on a mission to retrieve the antagonist’s broomstick, things don’t go as planned. Dorothy and co. winds up within the villain’s grasp. The Witch takes the time to light the Scarecrow up in flames, only to bring about her own downfall when Dorothy saves him. With one splash from a bucket of water, she becomes nothing more than a harmless puddle.
#2: An Ill-Advised Practical Joke
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“Zombieland” (2009)
Throughout their journey, Tallahassee, Columbus, Wichita, and Little Rock come across countless zombies. But that’s to be expected in a film like this. What none of them – and no moviegoer – expected, however, was to hang with Bill Murray. The group crashes at the comedian’s mansion once they make it to Los Angeles. After geeking out over Murray, who disguises himself as a zombie so he can go out, Tallahassee and Wichita encourage him to prank the nervous Columbus. This goes about as well as one might guess, ending with a fatal hole in the actor’s chest. Hey, we’d feel bad if we mistakenly killed Bill Murray too, but since this is fictional, we can say that the character’s last moments are hilarious.
#1: Marvin’s Bad Luck
“Pulp Fiction” (1994)
When going into a Quentin Tarantino movie, you can expect a sizable amount of brutal deaths. This has always been true, and one of the most well-timed demises is found in “Pulp Fiction.” While obtaining their boss’ briefcase from a group of double-crossers, Vincent and Jules are surprised to find one foe’s bullets miss them entirely. They then grab survivor Marvin and flee the crime scene while debating divine intervention. At an impasse, Vincent turns to get Marvin’s take on the question, before unintentionally firing his weapon at the poor guy. Everything from the camera position to the mid-sentence accident to the duo’s reaction to Marvin’s fate is delightfully dark.
