***WARNING: SPOILER ALERT***
Writers of books, movies, and TV shows are ruthless (I’m looking at you, Shonda Rhimes). Characters are killed off for the sake of plot points, while others are just killed off. Some shows, movies, and books are famous for their numerous deaths of fan-favorite characters that are close to our hearts. Maybe grab the Kleenex box, because below is my (long) list of the saddest fictional deaths, categorized.
Harry Potter
I have literally nothing to say about any of these deaths because they all have me completely wrecked. I tried to write on each character and I couldn’t. I cry uncontrollably when I watch The Deathly Hallows Part II, and I lost track of how many times I’ve read the books. I say that Harry Potter is my childhood, and it is too close to my heart to even have words for these deaths.
Fred Weasley
Remus Lupin
Sirius Black
Dobby the House Elf
Professor Dumbledore
Cedric Diggory
Severus Snape
Hedwig
Game of Thrones
Robb Stark
The Red Wedding is when we saw how ruthless George R.R. Martin is. (Also, I miss Richard Madden’s face.)
Jon Snow (sort of)
Yes, Jon Snow was brought back to life, but in the time in between, all our hearts were ripped out.
Shireen Baratheon
Really Stannis? Your own daughter. I never liked Stannis; he was the worst of the Baratheon brothers. This scene completely broke my heart because he literally sacrificed her to the Lord of Light and he never even captured the Iron Throne.
Hodor
“Hold the door.” *SOBS*
Viserion the Dragon
Daenerys lost one of her children. Also, mostly upset that the Night King now has a dragon.
Ned Stark
The second biggest shock of the show/books (behind the Red Wedding). While it was necessary to the plot, HE WAS THE FREAKING MAIN CHARACTER!
Khal Drogo
This was another shocking death because he seemed so invincible. Again, it was important to the plot, but Dany is one of my favorite characters and she was so broken.
Rickon Stark
I think we can all agree that Ramsay Snow/Bolton was the worst and that Rickon did not deserve to die.
Grey’s Anatomy
Derek Shepherd
We all miss him. Shonda, you are a savage for ripping our hearts out. McDreamy will always hold a special spot in our hearts.
Mark Sloan
RIP McSteamy, RIP my heart. He was a dynamic character, and his “revival” while in the hospital was such a tease.
Lexie Grey
The plane crash was the worst thing to ever happen. Lexie was so pure and she didn’t deserve to die.
Denny Duquette
I absolutely loved Denny as a character, and his death broke my heart.
George O’Malley
Ugh, the realization that John Doe was George because he’s 007. He was a slightly problematic character, but his death was so sad.
Henry Burton
Henry was a ticking time bomb, but he stole my heart (and Teddy’s) while he was on the show.
The Hunger Games
Rue
We knew her death was coming, but that did not make it any easier.
Prim Everdeen
This was SAVAGE! It was Prim; she was the perfect little cinnamon roll.
Finnick Odair
He stole all our hearts and was one of my favorite characters, so this one still stings.
Cinna
Cinna didn’t even die in combat. This one hurt.
Mags
Again, we knew she was going to die, but she was Finnick’s mentor and she should not have died inside another arena.
Miscellaneous
Augustus Waters – The Fault in Our Stars
“Okay? Okay.” This was such a plot twist and his character was so amazing, I’m still heartbroken.
Ellie – Up
The entire prologue of Up is told so beautifully, and the character shift in Carl when she passes is plausible and realistic.
Finn Hudson – Glee
The fact that Finn died on the show because the actor, Cory Monteith, died makes this 100 times worse. This was my favorite show in middle school and into high school, so the reality of the death is so much sadder.
Angel – Rent
This is one of my favorite musicals, and while Angel is such a positive character, her death is tragic. Collins’ reprise of “I’ll Cover You” at her funeral completely wrecks me.
Poussey Washington – Orange is the New Black
Her death was so uncalled for, so unjustified, and I’m still mad about it. I can’t wait to see what happens in the next season.
Mufasa – The Lion King
*Sobs over my entire childhood*
Gwen Stacey – The Amazing Spider Man 2
Her death, while foreshadowed and hinted at throughout the movie, was so unexpected. It also hurts more because Emma Stone and Andrew Garfield were dating while this was filmed and I can’t imagine how acting that out would feel.
Jenny – Forrest Gump
Forrest was such an innocent, genuine character, and the only person who ever understood and loved him died. Awful.
Bobby Singer – Supernatural
Bobby was Sam and Dean’s father figure, and he was very underappreciated by them. I hated seeing my favorite characters die.
Jack Dawson – Titanic
There was room for two, Rose. There was room.
Tris Prior – Divergent (Allegiant)
I have never been so angry at the end of a book than I was at the end of Allegiant. I did not see the last movie, so I don’t know how it plays out on the screen, but the book was tragic.
Bob – Stranger Things
What a cinnamon roll. Bob was amazing, and I’m so sad.
Jay Gatsby – The Great Gatsby
Gatsby’s character was overall tragic. He had just reunited with Daisy after waiting for her for years, and then he was shot. Thank you F. Scott Fitzgerald, thank you very much.
Honorable Mentions
Noah and Allie at the end of the Notebook. It was more sweet than sad; they were old and lived a good life.
Rose and Amy and Rory on Doctor Who. None of them actually died, but they were sent back in time or to another universe, never to be seen again.
Bruce Wayne in The Dark Knight Rises. It is pretty clear that Batman doesn’t actually die, but in the few minutes when we don’t know that, it’s horrible. I absolutely love this trilogy, so for me, this is a very sad faked death. Alfred’s speech at Bruce’s funeral always gets to me.
The many times Sam and Dean Winchester have died in Supernatural. They just keep coming back to life, so we know they won’t stay dead.
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