Top 20 Scenes Where the Villain Saves the Hero In Movies

“Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker” (2019)
Played by Domhnall Gleeson, General Hux is a major power player within the First Order, serving directly under Supreme Leader Snoke. Fearing the Republic’s influence within the galaxy and wishing to rule it himself, he stops at absolutely nothing to wipe them out. Well, until “The Rise of Skywalker.” Hoping to spite and undermine the authority of Kylo Ren, Hux supplies the Resistance with information and later helps Finn, Poe, and Chewbacca escape execution by shooting the Stormtroopers. Of course, he’s later killed for his deception, but at least he went out on a good note.

“Alien vs. Predator” (2004)
The crossover event we all needed, “Alien vs. Predator” saw a glorious showdown between the two pop culture giants - and, of course, humans just had to get themselves involved, too. It almost costs Alexa her life, as she is confronted by a predator named Chopper. The Arctic guide is kicked into a pillar and seemingly resigns herself to her violent fate, but luckily, a Xenomorph is there to pierce Chopper through the torso. And then that little mouth thing gets to work and finishes off the giant predator for good. It’s everything we wanted the crossover to be - loud, scary, and bloody.

“The Amazing Spider-Man” (2012)
This franchise has always been good at showing the complexities of its villains. Most of them don’t necessarily want to be bad - they are simply manipulated or influenced by some type of outside force. Such is the case with Lizard, the transformed Dr. Connors who was attempting to make a breakthrough in limb regeneration before things went a little sideways. Connors gets into a huge fight with Spider-Man and the hero nearly falls off Oscorp Tower. Luckily, he’s saved in the nick of time by the very man he was fighting, who has returned to normal thanks to a dispersed antidote.

“The Chronicles of Riddick” (2004)
The entire “Riddick” franchise concerns uneasy alliances, and that is certainly present throughout “Chronicles.” The titular hero is often the target of bounty hunters, and in this movie his pursuer is a griseled man named Toombs. Riddick is ordered to be killed by Lord Marshal, who leads a group of religious fanatics known as the Necromongers. But Riddick escapes, and Mashal’s forces hunt him down. Enter Toombs, who wants Riddick for himself. He destroys Marshal’s vehicle, captures Riddick, and brings him to the prison moon of Crematoria. Money talks, and Riddick is worth a heck of a lot.

“The Purge” (2013)
Anything goes in “The Purge.” That’s kind of the whole idea. In an alternate universe, the US is ruled by the New Founding Fathers of America, who seek to lower crime rates. To do so, they make all crime, including murder, completely legal for one night. This is known as The Purge, and as you can expect, it results in all sorts of shenanigans. The Sandin family are accosted by a group of masked assailants who break into the house and commit various acts of violence. Luckily, they are saved by their arriving neighbors, who kill the various gang members. Of course, this is not out of some noble act of morality, but because they want to kill the Sandins themselves.

“In the Line of Fire” (1993)
A good old fashioned thriller, “In the Line of Fire” is about Secret Service Agent Frank Horrigan attempting to stop an assassination on the President. The assassin is a disillusioned ex-CIA agent named Mitch Leary. In one gripping sequence, Horrigan chases Leary across a series of rooftops. At one point, Leary jumps onto a high lip. Horrigan pursues but, due to his age, is unable to pull himself up. Leary arrives and offers his hand to Horrigan, who is perilously dangling dozens of feet in the air. He then swings him onto a nearby fire escape, effectively saving his life. Maybe he just loves the thrill of the chase too much and wasn’t willing to give it up.

“Jurassic Park” (1993)
The T-Rex is the undeniable star of “Jurassic Park,” even though he’s, you know, a human-eating monster. In the engrossing climax of the film, the heroes are trapped in the visitor center and accosted by a group of raptors. And as we learned earlier in the film, courtesy of the late Muldoon, raptors are no joke. Funnily enough, it’s these little guys who come the closest to killing our heroes, but the big bad T-rex arrives just in the nick of time and saves the day by devouring the creatures. Hey, a save is a save, however unintentional it may be!

“Transformers: Dark of the Moon” (2011)
Leonard Nimoy stars as Sentinel Prime, the mentor of Optimus Prime and a skeezy double agent working for the Decepticons. This results in an uneasy alliance between Optimus and Megatron, who serves as leader of the Decepticons. Megatron is successfully manipulated by Carly, who makes him believe that Sentinel is vying for power and will soon depose Megatron as leader. Optimus is defeated by Sentinel in the climactic battle, but when the latter is about to deliver the killing blow, he is shot from behind by an approaching Megatron. And how is he thanked? He’s decapitated by Optimus. Harsh.

“War for the Planet of the Apes” (2017)
By the time this third entry in the reboot series comes around, apes and humans have entered an alliance and serve beside each other in the Army battalion Alpha-Omega. One of the gorillas is Red, who has turned against his kind and now searches for Caesar’s colony. But he has a wicked change of heart when it comes time for the big action set piece. As he watches the soldiers slaughter his fellow apes, Red has a sudden realization and turns against humankind by killing Preacher and saving Caesar. It’s a brilliant sacrifice, allowing Caesar and the apes to escape while he takes a bullet in the head for his betrayal.

“Spider-Man 3” (2007)
The third “Spider-Man” film is filled with complex villains, including Harry Osborn, who wishes to kill the titular hero and avenge his father’s death. He becomes New Goblin and targets Peter throughout the film - that is, until his butler reveals that Norman was impaled by his own glider. While Spider-Man was present at the time, he wasn’t personally responsible. With this realization, Harry finally comes to his senses and returns to his old pal Peter - both figuratively and literally. Spider-Man is seemingly defeated by the tag team of Venom and Sandman, but he’s saved when Harry arrives on his glider and takes care of business.

“The Hunger Games” (2012)
When care packages appear at the Cornucopia, every tribute left in the Hunger Games comes sprinting towards them. After a near-miss with another tribute, Katniss makes a break for it and grabs her bag. As soon as she leaves, however, Clove comes right at her and puts a knife to her throat. Instead of killing Katniss, Clove torments her over Rue's death. Clove's words get the best of her however when Thresh brutally kills her. Katniss is in shock, but Thresh insists he saved her as payback for Rue. The act of goodwill in the midst of a bloodbath makes this moment both intense and moving.

“South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut” (1999)
After Saddam Hussein and Satan musically reconcile their relationship, they come to the surface to take over earth. Armed with hellfire and demons, the evil pair quickly make humanity bow down to their power. Saddam, however, hogs all the glory for himself, upsetting Satan as he goes back on his promises. When Saddam is backed into a corner, he uses the same line on Cartman that he used to win Satan back. Broken-hearted, Satan finally stands up for himself and throws the dictator to a fiery grave. Between the bizarre power dynamic and Satan's personal triumph, this finale is oddly satisfying.

“Casino Royale” (2006)
When Le Chiffre loses all of his investor's money in a game of poker, he is forced to take drastic measures. Tying Bond to a chair, Le Chiffre proceeds to torture him by whipping his (ahem…) family jewels. James doesn't break however, refusing to give Le Chiffre his bank password despite the agony. Bond even toys with his captor, asking him to scratch his itch, finding the strength to laugh. Bringing an unexpected but welcome end to the pain is the sudden arrival of Mr. White, who, after informing Le Chiffre that he has lost his trust, promptly shoots Bond’s torturer. The utillitarian Mr. White might not be the savior Bond wants, but when tied to a chair, best not to be too picky.

“Blade Runner” (1982)
Taking revenge for his fallen comrades, replicant Roy Batty chases Deckard through a building in a game of cat and mouse. Batty terrifies Deckard throughout the hunt, even punching through a wall to break some of Deckard’s fingers. Unable to shoot, Deckard jumps off a rooftop as he tries to escape from Batty. Hanging from a beam, Deckard stares in fear as Batty watches him struggle to survive. Right as Deckard falls however, Batty grabs and lifts him to safety. Having instilled in Deckard the same fear that all replicants feel, Batty surprisingly spares his life as a lesson in power, responsibility and compassion.

“Star Trek Into Darkness” (2013)
When the hostile Klingons turn on the crew of the Enterprise, almost killing Uhura, a lone gunman comes to the rescue. With the help of the very man they were pursuing, John Harrison, the crew of the Enterprise slowly gains the upper hand. Harrison shoots down Klingon soldiers and even a ship, easily overpowering all those who dare oppose him. Of course, given his terrorist activity, his decision to fight the Klingons doesn't make sense at first. While it turns out that Harrison is in fact Khan, and that he only rescued them to save his frozen shipmates, the fact remains that Kirk, Uhura and Spock wouldn't have survived without his help.

“X2” (2003)
On their way back to Xavier's mansion, the iconic X-men aircraft is tailed by a swarm of jets. Storm's tornadoes eventually get rid of the fighters, but not before a few missiles are fired off, and while Jean Grey manages to knock out one rocket, the Blackbird is ultimately hit by a second one. As the ship hurtles towards the ground, Rogue is sucked out of the X-jet - only surviving thanks to Nightcrawler’s quick-thinking. Even so, the X-Men are hurtling towards certain doom when the Blackbird suddenly repairs itself. Their hero? Magneto, who then also stops the jet from crashing. Though he saves his enemies in the name of an alliance, Magneto still can’t help but make a joke at their expense.

“Collateral” (2004)
In this neo-noir action thriller, hitman Vincent forces Max to drive him around to his assassinations, tying his hands to the wheel at their second stop of the night. Yelling for help, Max calls over some thugs who attempt to rob him. The men take Max's wallet and Vincent's briefcase, unaware of who they're messing with. Vincent returns just in time, hollering to get his briefcase back. Just when it seems like Vincent might be in trouble, he guns down the thieves like it's nothing. Since losing the briefcase would've likely gotten Max killed, Max is arguably saved from Vincent by Vincent.

“A View to a Kill” (1985)
As part of his plot to flood Silicon Valley, Bond villain Max Zorin plants a bomb in a mine along several fault lines. Zorin's partner and henchwoman May Day guards the mine, only to be trapped with James Bond when Zorin collapses the tunnels. Betrayed and in danger, May Day decides to help James remove the bomb as revenge. When their handcar's brake malfunctions, May Day sacrifices herself by riding out with the bomb to make sure it detonates safely. Foiling Zorin's plan, May Day is proof of just how dangerous a woman's scorn can be.

“Captain America: The Winter Soldier” (2014)
Even while the two trade blows, Captain America refuses to give up on his old friend Bucky Barnes. Bucky, for his part, can't shake his conditioning or his anger and continues to attack until Steve falls into the Potomac River. Unconscious from the brawl, Captain America sinks quickly and appears to drown. Just when Steve seems as good as dead however, a metallic hand comes through the water to save him. In a move that proves the real Bucky Barnes is still in there, The Winter Soldier drags Steve from the river before walking away. Not only does Steve live to fight again, but he gets further reason to believe in his friend.

“Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi” (1983)
In this iconic scene, Luke defeats his father, Darth Vader. Looking at the fallen Sith lord’s severed hand and his own robotic appendage, he finds himself at a crossroads. The Emperor encourages him to give in to his dark impulses and finish the job, but Luke ultimately denounces the Dark side. Disappointed, the Emperor tortures his would-be new apprentice. As Luke screams in pain, Vader can't help but be moved by his son's suffering. Turning on his Sith master, Vader throws The Emperor to his death, taking the brunt of the electric shock in the process. Vader's sacrifice, coupled with his character shift, combine to make this a powerful and moving moment, not just between father and son, but hero and villain as well.