Top 30 Unexpected Horror Movie Deaths

Final Destination (2000)

The thing about the Final Destination series is that the deaths are always wildly televised. Theyre often presaged by an enormous, Rube Goldberg-esque build-up, complete with many clever fake-outs and telegraphs. But thats certainly not the case with Terry, which is why her death comes as such a huge surprise. Even if first-time viewers dont know the style of the Final Destination franchise, her death still works in the form of a hugely effective jump scare. While arguing with Alex and Carter, Terry backs into the street and is absolutely smoked by a speeding bus. She even tells Carter to drop dead right before doing so herself. Thats just cinema right there.

10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)

We knew that Howard Stambler wasnt the most trustworthy of men, but we didnt expect straight-up murder. Michelle and Emmett are kept inside Howards bunker, supposedly because the outside air has become toxic following an alien invasion. What follows is a genius game of mental cat and mouse, as both Michelle and Emmett try to gauge Howards mental state and the accuracy of his story. Howard discovers that some of his tools are missing and scares the two with a vat of acid, hoping that they will confess. Emmett does so and is immediately shot in the head by Howard. The directing here is beautiful, the out-of-focus gun coming into frame just as the camera is focusing on Michelles relief. The irony is cruel.

28 Weeks Later (2007)

One of Jeremy Renners first major roles was that of Doyle, a sniper working the resettlement of London. Doyle is portrayed as a capable and heroic man, gunning down zombies and soldiers alike and serving as a protective father figure to both Andy and Tammy. Theres just no way this dude was going to die. But, this is a horror movie. Doyle and the group find a car but are unable to start it. And thats when soldiers with flamethrowers arrive with the orders to kill anything that moves. Doyle gets out to push start the car, but hes hit by the flamethrowers in the process. Andy and Tammy can only watch in horror as their new dad burns to death in front of them.

Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)

Even horror movies have a line, and that line is often children. Many horror movies refuse to even include children, let alone kill them off, but Halloween III pulls no punches. Novelty store owner Buddy Kupfer is invited to the Silver Shamrock factory after selling the most masks for the company. They are taken into a secret test room and manipulated by the factorys owner, Conal Cochran, who hopes to ritualistically sacrifice children on Halloween using masks that are embedded with a microchip containing fragments of Stonehenge. Yeah this movie goes places. Anyway, Little Buddy is subjected to this deadly plan and he dies when the pumpkin mask activates and basically melts his head. Not a great way to go.

Dont Look Now (1973)

Throughout Nicolas Roegs seminal horror film, John and Laura Baxter are grieving the drowning of their young daughter, Christine. They travel to Venice, where John experiences a number of eerie visions of a child in a red coat - the same coat that Christine was wearing when she died. In the famous climax of the film, John finally corners this figure and has it turn around. He discovers that its not his daughter, but a creepy dwarf-like woman who immediately slashes his throat. Its a brilliant bit of misdirection, subverting the implied supernatural elements of the film and killing our hopes of a possible reunion. What a wicked, wicked way to end a film.

Drag Me to Hell (2009)

Bank loan officer Christine Brown denies a loan to an elderly Roma woman. The woman then curses Christine with Lamia, a powerful demon who will torment her for three days before dragging her to Hell. By the end of the film, Christine believes that she has won, having put the cursed button in the Roma womans grave. But she is then given an envelope with the button and realizes with horror that she accidentally used the wrong envelope in her offering. Realizing that the curse is not broken, she is dragged to Hell. Her death literally kills the false sense of resolution that had been building and cleverly subverts the curse genres penchant for redemption arcs. Sorry, there is no redemption here. Only death.

Barbarian (2022)

You dont cast Bill Skarsgård in your little indie horror movie only to kill him off in the first forty minutes. Well, apparently you do, because thats exactly what Barbarian did. Tess finds a hidden room in the basement of the AirBNB and goes inside, only to encounter a horrified Keith, who tells her that someone else is down there. Just then, a monstrous woman bursts out of the darkness and bashes his head against the wall. And thats it for the big name star. Not only that, but the tone shift is remarkable, going from slow-burn tension to full-out monster horror. Theres also no setup whatsoever for the killer - she just appears out of nowhere and murders him, the complete randomness amplifying the horror.

The Exorcist (1973)

While hes not in the film for long, Father Merrin is depicted as a veteran exorcist and a man of great spiritual strength. When he is brought in to help with Regans exorcism, he is regarded as the ultimate authority. If anyone can defeat Pazuzu and save Regan, its this guy. But the story brilliantly subverts these storytelling tropes, and Merrin dies of a heart attack off-screen. There is no dramatic confrontation between him and the demon, no awesome battle of wits - the wise mentor just dies, and the demon is still inside the little girl. His abrupt death is enormously unsettling, displaying the enormous power of Pazuzu and the weakness of men against it. Luckily, his death inspires Karras to save the day.

Jaws (1975)

Quint is a modern Captain Ahab, a grizzled and capable but ultimately naive man who tries defeating the forces of nature. And, like Ahab, this obsession ultimately proves to be his downfall. Jaws jumps onto his boat and devours Quint, and he screams in total agony as hes eaten alive and dragged into the water. The sudden brutality of his death is shocking. Its over in the span of a minute, and it remains horrifically graphic and upsetting to this day. Viewers also expect characters like Quint to survive, or at least die in a more heroic Youre going down with me manner. Instead, Quints death is chaotic and desperate. There's no triumphant moment of victory - just raw terror, and he dies screaming.

Seven (1995)

We expected a number of people to die throughout Seven, but Tracy Mills was certainly not one of them. Tracy is Davids wife, and she only has a peripheral role, well away from Davids life of danger. Her death was the last thing on anybodys mind. But now shes in the annals of movie history, her sick demise heralding one of the greatest twist endings in movie history. John Doe murders her out of Envy and ships her severed head in a box, causing David to lose his mind. David in turn murders John, representing Wrath and causing John to win. The pregnancy twist adds a further depth of unimaginable horror, cementing the movies reputation as a relentlessly depraved and unforgettable thriller.

"Scream 2" (1997)

Ok, let's be honest: we all expected Randy Meeks to bite the big one by the end of the first "Scream" film. This character, played by Jamie Kennedy, was built up as being a horror movie aficionado, and so (because irony) we thought that he was doomed for sure. Wes Craven's creation was all about subverting expectations, however, so when Randy survived the first film, we thought he might be a series fixture going forward. Alas, this was not to be; Meeks was slaughtered by Ghostface in Gale's news van, with the entire ordeal being caught on tape. It's a shocking and brutal scene that genuinely caught us off guard.

"Life" (2017)

Derivative of "Alien" or not, this underrated 2017 film did a great job at baiting-and-switching its audience, both with its downer ending and the high body count. Ryan Reynolds' Rory Adams was front and center throughout much of the film's marketing, yet his character is the first to die, and in spectacularly gory fashion no less! The newly discovered alien organism enters Rory's mouth and goes to town, feasting on his insides before breaking out, bigger and badder. We're not really used to seeing a star of Reynolds caliber go out like this, but we gotta admit: it paints a memorable mental picture.

"The Rage: Carrie 2" (1999)

This is another horror movie character who survived the first film only to die in the sequel. Although in Snells case, it took twenty-plus years for her number to come up. "The Rage" was a 1999 follow-up to Brian De Palma's classic adaptation of the Stephen King story, and featured a grown up Sue Snell in her new role as a high school guidance counselor. She realizes the potential danger in Rachel Lang, a student who seems to possess the same telekinetic powers as Carrie White. She might not be the protagonist, but Sues journey is central to the films plot, so when she's killed as a result of Lang's burgeoning rage, the sense of shock and loss is very real.

"Friday the 13th" (2009)

The world of horror cinema is populated by many different archetypes, including the "Final Girl." This is usually an intelligent, capable female lead who serves as the heroine and (usually) our lone survivor. The "Friday the 13th" franchise is no exception to this rule, having introduced various memorable Final Girls over the years. Jenna Montgomery is something of an anomaly, however, in that she's set up for a large part of the 2009 franchise reboot film as the lead, only to be killed by Jason Voorhees at the film's climax. It honestly comes out of nowhere, for better or worse, leaving Clay Miller and his sister Whitney as the film's only survivors.

"Jeepers Creepers" (2001)

The "Final Girl" trope in horror films may be well established, but the idea of a "Final Guy" never really gained as much steam within the genre. Male characters in horror films never seem truly safe, and rarely have we received a more stinging reminder than with the demise of Darry Jenner, one of the two leads in Victor Salva's controversial "Jeepers Creepers" franchise. We invest a lot of time following Darry and his sister Trish around. And despite our horror movie conditioning, we even get attached! Because of this connection, we expect to see them both come out on top against The Creeper. B ut Justin Long's character ends up abducted, maimed and killed in the monster's lair.

"A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors" (1987)

Remember how we mentioned earlier that Wes Craven loved to subvert the expectations of horror fans? Consider this another great example. "Dream Warriors" is a fan favorite sequel to Craven's 1984 classic, a film that already shocked audiences with its killing of Tina Gray and Glen Lantz. Heather Langenkamp's heroic Nancy Thompson returns here as a hospital intern who helps Kristen Parker and The Elm Street Kids face off against Freddy Krueger. Although Nancy and her new friends succeed in defeating Freddy, she suffers fatal wounds in the battle, and we see her somber funeral shortly before the film's conclusion.

"The Omen" (1976)

Who says that good always has to triumph over evil? Fans of "The Omen" franchise know that Damien Thorn usually gets the upper hand against those who seek to destroy the spawn of The Devil. This idea is hammered home quite effectively in the first film from 1976, which follows Damien's adopted father Robert as he discovers the truth behind his Satanic son. In the films climax, Robert is poised to make the ultimate sacrifice as he prostrates Damien on a church altar, ceremonial dagger raised high to murder the boy he now knows to be the Antichrist. The police intervene before Robert can finish the deed, however, fatally shooting him down. This leaves Damien free to return, older and wiser, for future "Omen" sequels.

"The Shining" (1980)

Dick Hallorann is another famous example of a Stephen King character suffering a very different fate onscreen than he did on the printed page. It's no secret by now that King himself disliked Stanley Kubrick's 1980 adaptation of "The Shining," with the fate of Hallorann's character being just one of the changes the director undertook during filming. Much is made on screen of Dick's contact with Danny Torrance, and his journey to rescue him from his father in The Overlook Hotel. In the novel, Dick succeeds and ends up being a character mentioned in other King stories, such as "It" and "Insomnia." Kubrick, however, gives Scatman Crothers' Hallorann an ignoble end at the blade of Jack Torrance's axe.

The Descent (2005)

This British horror film is full of terrifying surprises and jump scares. And the movie wastes no time in sending the audience a curveball, when Paul and Jessica Carter are killed in a car accident on their way home from a whitewater rafting trip. Having only just met the characters a couple of minutes ago, audiences werent expecting such a sudden end for the father and daughter duo. Sarah survives the crash, but is left in a grief stricken state before shes even embarked on the movies main event. Its this use of psychological elements that make the whole experience of watching The Descent so scary.

"The Cabin in the Woods" (2011)

Wait...Thor can't die!? The God of Thunder himself, Chris Hemsworth, bit the dust when he played Curt Vaughan in the 2011 horror comedy "The Cabin in the Woods." And no one saw it coming. Then again, given the film's playful homage to horror movie clichès and conventions, it's also perhaps not so surprising that writers Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard went this route. The fact that Curt's All American good looks and confident swagger would've surely made him the hero of most movies isn't lost on the filmmakers as they have him fall to his death after hitting a force field with his motorcycle - undercutting a moment of would-be heroism. Seeing Hemsworth meet such an ignoble demise was definitely a curveball.

"Pitch Black" (2000)

Played by Radha Mitchell, Carolyn Fry is established as a character in need of redemption early in the film. A commercial pilot, she almost sacrifices the lives of her passengers in an effort to save herself during a crash landing. Soon after however, it becomes clear that this was out of character, as she seems generally guided by a moral compass. When Fry makes the decision to try and save Vin Diesel's Riddick from the clutches of light-sensitive alien creatures, we're led to believe that she's been redeemed, and now in the clear for the end credits. However, she's killed by one of the beasts almost as soon as she's recovered Riddick, making her sacrifice something of a bittersweet one for the audience.

"Us" (2019)

When characters go to friends for help in a horror movie, it rarely ends well for the friends in question. But, proving yet again that hes a modern master of horror filmmaking, writer/director Jordan Peele subverts our expectations. Its not the Wilson family doppelgangers who show up at the Tylers house, but a sadistic group of doppelgangers of their very own. This adds a whole new dimension to the film, taking the threat from an isolated incident to a widespread one. The scene is made all the more impactful by the excellent use of music, compounded with the brutality of the attacks. It's just one of the elements that made "Us" so damn satisfying.

"Deep Blue Sea" (1999)

Sure, this next scene on our list may be a meme today, but it's important to remember just how surprising this death was back in the late 90s. "Deep Blue Sea" was an otherwise unmemorable killer shark movie with one very memorable death sequence. Here, Samuel L. Jackson's Russell Franklin delivers a long and passionate monologue to the cast about sticking together against the genetically mutated sharks that are threatening their lives. Then, just as hes beginning to outline his plan, Franklin is torn away by a CGI shark and dragged to his death in an unintentionally hilarious moment. It isn't often we get to see Nick Fury taken out with such impunity, so we'll take this one as a bit of unexpected comedy gold.

"Scream" (1996)

She was the iconic face on the film's poster, and the celebrity who did a lot of the promotional interviews, but Drew Barrymore was one of the first characters to die in Wes Craven's 1996 horror classic, "Scream." This was a calculated move on the part of Craven and Co., as it not only capitalized on Barrymores star power when initially marketing the film - Barrymore originally signed on to play the heroine - but also served as one of the genre's most shocking and unexpected deaths. Becker is initially set up to be the movie's heroine, so when she's gruesomely murdered by Ghostface in the opening sequence, it hit audiences and critics alike with surprise. And you know what? It still works brilliantly today.

"Hereditary" (2018)

Writer/director Ari Aster has mastered the art of killing characters unexpectedly. We considered the death of Josh for Asters 2019 film "Midsommar", but we're going to go with the film that first put him on the horror movie map, 2018's "Hereditary." Young Charlie Graham's death is unexpected not only because of her age and her central role in the film, but also due to the brutality and realism of the scene. Charlie's nut allergy causes a medical emergency, but this isn't what kills her. Instead, it's a combination of her head being stuck out the window of a speeding car and a telephone pole that do the shockingly gruesome trick. The audience is left reeling as the Graham Family attempts to deal with their grief.

"A Quiet Place" (2018)

The death of a child, whether on-screen or off, is a delicate subject, even in the world of horror movies. 2018's "A Quiet Place" opens up with such a scene, depicting the swift and shocking death of Beau, the youngest member of the Abbott Family. The little boy is taken by one of the otherworldly creatures who have devastated the earth in the year 2020. The mysterious race of aliens is drawn to sound, so we know that Beau's toy jet is going to make noise the second he steals the batteries from behind his father's back. But given his age and the conventions of storytelling, we kept expecting a last minute rescue. Instead, we get the devastating death of a child mere minutes into the film.

"Night of the Living Dead" (1968)

The casting of African-American Duane Jones as the lead of George A. Romero's "Night of the Living Dead" was reportedly not intentionally designed to be a commentary about race relations in America; but this hasn't stopped critics from intellectualizing the director's classic horror film in the decades since its 1968 release. The image of Ben's lifeless body piled high upon the other corpses in the fire is a haunting and disturbing image to this day. Sure, Jones may have been mistaken for one of the undead and shot by the traveling mob outside, but the connection between the actor's talent and screen presence during a time of such heavy social unrest has made it a death that still manages to shock and surprise today.

"The Mist" (2007)

The death of children in film is something that needs to be handled very carefully. There's no denying the shock value when such an instance occurs, however, as evidenced by the gut-punch ending to Stephen King's "The Mist." Billy Drayton actually survives King's original story, but this 2007 adaptation instead places the young boy, his father David and others in a situation where David is forced to make an ultimately tragic decision. He chooses to mercy-kill his son and everyone in the car before the mist creatures attack, intending to let the creatures finish him. After David commits the heartbreaking act, however, the mist recedes to reveal that rescuers have arrived and that his son neednt have died.

"Psycho" (1960)

Wes Craven wasn't the first filmmaker to kill off his leading lady in a horror film. The Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock, had done it years earlier with his unforgettable horror classic, "Psycho." We spend quite a bit of time learning about Marion Crane's backstory as a woman with a past...and a secret. The sexual politics of 1960 were very different when compared to the modern day, making the depiction of Janet Leigh's lead as a sexually active woman with a morally flexible attitude towards larceny somewhat scandalous for the time. Equally shocking was the decision to kill her off before the halfway mark, in a shower scene that has gone on to become the stuff of horror movie legend.

"Alien" (1979)

It's a scene that's been copied and parodied to death, yet it remains an all time iconic moment for science fiction and horror cinema. Kane wasn't set up as the hero of Ridley Scott's "Alien," but that doesn't mean that his death scene was any less shocking for audiences and cast members alike. Just watch Veronica Cartwright's reaction as Lambert when the Xenomorph bursts through Kane's chest. It's clear that she's just as shocked and horrified as we are to see this incubating creature hit the silver screen in all of its toothy glory. The scene was similarly replicated throughout the franchise's history, but there's just something special about that first time.

Did you see any of these deaths coming? Let us know in the comments below!