Top 20 Major Family Guy Characters Who Tragically Died
#20: Jess Schlotz
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“Dead Dog Walking” “Family Guy” has a tendency to off single-episode characters after their storylines are through. But this flame of Brian’s actually gets a two-episode arc. Practically allergic to commitment, Brian marries Jess only because she has terminal cancer. However when it’s revealed she’s been cured, Jess celebrates her new lease on life by gorging on food. Her new attitude makes her insufferable, leading to Brian letting her choke on nachos. This death is a fakeout, however, and her survival causes their marriage to deteriorate further, culminating in her trying to put him down. They ultimately make up, but the epilogue reveals that she inexplicably passed away for real. Honestly, based on their toxic relationship, we’re kinda glad.
#19: Paddy Tanniger
“Hell Comes to Quahog” You likely don’t know this character by name, but you probably remember his catchphrase. A fleeting presence in the early seasons, Paddy Tanniger could always be counted on to respond to any situation with, “Big whoop, want to fight about it?” Whether it’s rhyming words, bad movies, or general verbiage, the pugnacious Paddy was always looking to throw punches, even though no one really felt the same. While Paddy was something of a humorous if fleeting distraction for viewers, he apparently wasn’t very popular in the writers room. So much so that in Season 5 when Brian and Stewie take a tank to Superstore USA, they make sure to double tap Paddy along the way, ending his tenure on the show for good.
#18: Mrs. Wilson
Top 10 Major Characters of Family Guy Who Tragically Died
“Tales of a Third Grade Nothing” While Mrs. Wilson only has a speaking role in one episode, she’s notable for being voiced by the late, great Debbie Reynolds, whose daughter Carrie Fisher was a regular on the show. While we’ll be getting into Fisher’s character later, Mrs. Wilson first appears in the Season 7 episode where Peter has to retake the third grade in order to get a promotion at work. Mrs. Wilson was his teacher then, and he’s not much kinder to her now. While Mrs. Wilson isn’t shown dying, she does reappear in Season 20 when Peter hallucinates virtually every character the show has killed off. This is likely due to Reynolds’s passing in real life, and it’s nice the show remembered to include her character.
#17: Vern & Johnny
“Saving Private Brian” While Paddy was hated within the “Family Guy” production staff, Vern and Johnny were killed off apparently because they were hated by everyone else. A pair of Vaudevillian performers, these two would cut into any situation. First Vern would try some kind of gag, fall on his face - sometimes literally - and have Johnny pick up the slack on the piano. But apparently viewers weren’t as fond of them as Seth MacFarlane, so MacFarlane had Stewie shoot them dead. While Stewie assures they won’t be back, that wasn’t actually the case, as they appeared from beyond the grave a couple times. Apparently, Johnny went to Hell, but we don’t really wanna get into the why of that…
#16: New Brian
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“The Man with Two Brians” No, this isn’t the new dog the Griffins temporarily replace Brian with when the latter is dead for a couple episodes, but the one Peter replaces Brian with a few seasons earlier when he thinks his pal is getting too old. Without a unique name of his own, New Brian is chipper to a fault, meaning it’s his fault he’s too chipper. While his popularity prompts old Brian to leave, Stewie isn’t nearly as enamored. He tries to get New Brian to scram, prompting the dog to counter, revealing he did some ghastly things to Stewie’s bear Rupert. This was a bridge too far, as Stewie’s then seen hauling his body out to the curb. There’s only one Brian, and that’s Brian.
#15: Derek Wilcox
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“And Then There Were Fewer” There’s quite a few characters who are taken out for good in the murder mystery episode. While introductory characters like Stephanie and Priscilla were no great losses, Derek probably deserved better. While admittedly a little boring, Derek at least provided a suitable foil to Brian’s ex Jillian, whom he married a couple seasons earlier. But he should’ve known better being a tertiary character with a killer in the house. In an attempt to contact outside help, Derek takes his phone onto the outside terrace in search of a signal. Trouble is, the killer, later revealed to be Diane Simmons, follows him and clocks him with a Golden Globe. Jillian is devastated, and Diane even has the gall to comfort her in the moment.
#14: Pearl Burton
“Brian Wallows and Peter’s Swallows” Calling Pearl a major character is a bit of a stretch, given that she only appears in one episode, but she nevertheless makes an impact, at least on Brian. A cantankerous elderly woman Brian is forced to spend time with for community service, Brian warms up to her after learning her past as a singer. The pair form a friendship, and Brian convinces the agoraphobic Pearl to leave her house. Tragically, Pearl is almost immediately hit by a truck. While in the hospital, Brian uses a virtual headset to show her the two of them living out a possible life together. It’s a very sweet relationship that ends too soon.
#13: Jonathan Weed
“Mr. Saturday Knight” Mr. Jonathan Weed was Peter Griffin’s boss during the early seasons on the show when he worked at a toy factory. After Peter becomes worried he won’t advance in his career there, he invites Mr. Weed over for dinner. His mustachioed superior is actually won over by the evening’s meal and even promotes Peter. However, the shock causes Brian to choke on his food. After the food is ejected from Brian’s mouth, it lands in Mr. Weed’s mouth, causing him to choke to death. This is admittedly more of a comedic death than tragic one, though. And Mr. Weed’s death did open up the opportunity for Peter to try a variety of other jobs.
#12: Thelma Griffin
“Mom’s the Word” Here we have another instance of a character being put to rest after their voice actor sadly did the same. The incomparable Phyllis Diller voiced Peter’s mother Thelma for three episodes in the mid-to-late 2000s. Thelma by all accounts was a hard-smoking, high-roller kind of gal, and clearly passed down many traits to Peter. A couple years after Diller’s passing in 2012, “Family Guy” addressed her absence by revealing Thelma had died of a stroke. While we didn’t get to see enough of Diller as Thelma, we’ll always remember the episode where the latter shacks up with Tom Tucker, prompting a very strange stepfather-stepson type of situation.
#11: Doug
“The Candidate” The most recent entry on this list, Doug served as the preschool rival to Stewie from Season 17 to Season 21. Voiced by Chris Parnell of “Rick and Morty” fame, Doug was smug, privileged, and most of all insufferable. He constantly looked to rub Stewie’s nose in whatever he was doing, be it his connections or his bachelorhood. Things come to a head in “The Candidate,” where the two rivals run for Class Snack Captain. The episode otherwise plays out like usual, with Doug and Stewie tarnishing the other’s reputation. The epilogue later reveals Stewie won the election due to stronger constituents. Oh, and one other reason…
#10: James Woods
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“And Then There Were Fewer” Yes, James Woods is an actor in real life, but he also voiced a version of himself on the show for many years. Albeit, an exaggerated, horrendous version of himself. We probably don’t need to fill you in on the specifics, as Woods’s appearances making life insufferable for the Griffin family made for some of the most memorable episodes, but his sins come back to bite him in the murder mystery episode. The primary target, Woods is ultimately stabbed by his old flame Diane. However, this being a cartoon, he was inexplicably brought back to life a season later. Due to Woods’s real-life controversies, the show has ostensibly cut ties, making it doubtful his animated self will appear again.
#9: Bertram
“The Big Bang Theory” Stewie may hate his mother most, but he’s got another mortal enemy in the family – his half-brother, Bertram. As brilliant as Stewie and possibly more vindictive, Bertram clashes with Stewie several times. Their final encounter sees Bertram attempt to erase Stewie from existence by killing his ancestor – Leonardo DaVinci. The pair’s final battle in Renaissance Italy is an entertaining one, with an aerial battle using DaVinci’s flying machines. However, Stewie ultimately finishes Bertram off with an arrow to the head and a terrible pun. The real tragedy though is that we’ll never get to see these two match wits again.
#8: Francis Griffin
“Peter’s Two Dads” Francis Griffin is Peter’s chronically cranky Irish father. Highly critical of his son and his family, Francis comes to Meg’s birthday party in his final episode. In a horrifying accident, Peter falls off the stairs while riding a unicycle and crushes his father, leading to his death. While we learn later in the episode that Francis was actually Peter’s stepfather, it doesn’t cancel out how traumatic the event is. Franics may not have been the nicest man around, but he did raise Peter and, if he were anyone else, that might have messed him up.
#7: Muriel Goldman
“And Then There Were Fewer” Diane’s body count just keeps stacking up, and we haven’t even gotten to her yet! The wife of local pharmacist Mort Goldman, Muriel isn’t much more pleasant, making her a prime candidate for the chopping block. In the murder mystery episode, suspicion ultimately falls on her, leading her to flee and run off on her own. Unfortunately, she ends up seeing too much, prompting Diane to silence her for good. Her death comes off as no great loss to anyone, least of all Mort himself, but he’s only been known to really value one thing, and it sure wasn’t her. It should be mentioned though, that more than many deceased characters, she’s since been referenced quite a lot.
#6: Horace
“Save the Clam” The original bartender of Peter and his friends’ local watering hole, the Drunken Clam, Horace didn’t have the biggest personality in town, but he did… serve… beer… a lot. The guy wasn’t very memorable, okay? But his death was! When the Drunken Clam regulars play a game against Goldman’s Pharmacy, the opposing team brings in Jerome, a ringer. Jerome hits Horace’s pitch so hard that it kills the bartender! The guys don’t have much of substance to say at Horace’s funeral, though not for a lack of feelings on Quagmire’s part, but they’re very upset that the Clam is almost closed. Thankfully for them, Jerome makes amends by buying the bar.
#5: Diane Simmons
“And Then There Were Fewer” Yep, and now we finally get to the mastermind behind the entire aforementioned killing spree, Quahog’s Channel 5 news anchor Diane Simmons. Her attempts to get revenge on James Woods for dumping her for a younger woman spiraled into further killings to cover her initial murder. And just when she looks poised to do the same to Lois, Diane is shot from afar – by Stewie! If anyone’s going to kill Lois, it’s him! Diane’s fall from grace is a sad one, and she was an entertaining part of the show’s extended cast.
#4: Rupert
“Dog Bites Bear” Rupert is Stewie’s beloved teddy bear and arguably his best friend, apart from Brian - even if he can’t talk back. Unfortunately, Brian is jealous of the time Stewie spends with Rupert, and drunkenly tears the bear apart. Stewie is understandably heartbroken, leading the two of them to make a trek up a mountain in Vermont to lay Rupert’s ashes to rest. The duo’s eulogy for the departed stuffed animal is surprisingly moving. And while Brian does buy Stewie a new bear on the way home, the original is looking down on them from the afterlife… along with Paul Walker.
#3: Brian Griffin
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“Life of Brian” Speaking of the Griffin family dog, Brian has also died during the show… several times, in fact. However, our pick goes to the one most of us thought would stick. After Stewie destroys his time machine, he and Brian play hockey in the street. Tragically, Brian is struck by a car. He has time for one last farewell to the Griffin family before he passes away. Although Brian stays dead for a few episodes, Stewie finds a way to avert his death and save him soon afterwards. Although this is arguably the most emotional onscreen death – his goodbyes still make us choke up – the fact that it isn’t permanent keeps it from being as impactful as it could have been.
#2: Angela
“Pawtucket Pete” Another of Peter’s bosses, Angela was his supervisor at the Pawtucket Brewery. Although generally dissatisfied with his performance, she did have a soft spot for him… a little too much of one, actually. Angela met an untimely end, due to her voice actress, the late Carrie Fisher, passing away in real life. Allegedly dying due to going swimming too soon after eating, Angela’s eulogy is delivered by Peter. Although he begins the speech quoting various sitcom theme songs, he concludes it with a profoundly moving tribute that refers to Fisher herself. It’s just a shame Peter delivered it at the wrong funeral.
#1: Mayor Adam West
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“Adam West High” A staple on the show for many years, Adam West played a wackier version of himself on “Family Guy.” Like our last entry, when the actor passed away, so too did the character. To honor his memory, the characters pay tribute to him in various ways, from a video montage made by Peter to getting the high school renamed in his honor. It’s too bad nobody went to his funeral though. Still, the guy doesn’t seem to hold a grudge, since his ghost seems to save Brian and Quagmire from falling off a cliff. Rest in peace you strange, kooky man.
