These losses still sting. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most emotional deaths to have occurred in superhero movies.
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00:00Welcome to WatchMojo and today we're counting down our picks for the most emotional deaths
00:13that have occurred in superhero movies.
00:15We'll be unpacking tons of spoilers, so consider this your warning.
00:2720.
00:28Loki – Avengers Infinity War
00:39For years, fans have known Loki as the MCU's resident trickster.
00:44But through years of carefully crafted character development, Loki became somewhat of a hero
00:49in the eyes of many.
00:50His status as a redeemed character makes his eventual death at the hands of Thanos that
00:55much more heartbreaking.
00:56The Mad Titan strangling the life out of the Norse God as a helpless Thor is forced to
01:01watch its next level savagery.
01:03Considering this all happened within the very first moments of Infinity War, it quickly
01:07let us know that this movie wasn't playing around.
01:10Though Loki would inevitably return as a time-traveling variant, the death of the main Loki remains
01:15a devastating loss in the MCU.
01:2519.
01:27Lila – Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
01:37Despite this movie's strong themes of finding family and acceptance, Guardians 3 is arguably
01:43the darkest MCU movie to have come in recent years.
01:46You don't need to look any further than the death of Lila for proof.
01:49Rocket's childhood friend and fellow test experiment for the High Evolutionary never
01:54knew a life beyond her cage.
01:56While she and her other friends finally got released, thanks to Rocket's ingenuity,
02:00the heartfelt moment quickly turned into a bittersweet one.
02:03As she's shot down by the High Evolutionary, Rocket's horror mirrors our own at the soul-shattering
02:09scene.
02:10We all hoped to see Lila and the rest of Batch 89 one day reunite with Rocket, but as this
02:14moment tragically proved, it just wasn't meant to be.
02:2418.
02:32Aunt May – Spider-Man No Way Home
02:43Struck down by a fatal attack from the Green Goblin, Aunt May's death proves to be an
02:48incredibly heartbreaking moment in Peter Parker's life.
02:51But while it's defined by being gut-wrenching, it's also defined by the lines of wisdom
02:56May imparts to Peter with her dying breath.
02:58Her death isn't just the death of a loved one that shocks the fans, it's something
03:02that pushes Peter to his absolute brink as he seeks nothing but revenge against the multiversal
03:08Green Goblin.
03:09Consequently, the death is one of No Way Home's first dominoes to fall, which push Peter into
03:14some of the loneliest territories the character has ever reached in the MCU.
03:2517.
03:29Jean Grey – X2, X-Men United
03:41Though Cyclops and Wolverine are often quite different, one thing they morbidly have in
03:46common is their shared grief over the death of Jean Grey in X2.
03:49To prevent the water that spilled from a broken dam from wiping the X-Men out, Jean decides
03:54to sacrifice herself.
03:55She holds the water back just long enough to let their jet leave and eventually drowns
03:59in the flood.
04:00The haunting sacrifice understandably leaves the X-Men in shambles.
04:04The gravity of the situation is really felt when we see Cyclops sobbing into Wolverine
04:09of all people's shoulders.
04:11Even though Jean returned in Last Stand, her death at Alkali Lake would send ripples across
04:15the team.
04:2116.
04:24Phil Coulson – The Avengers
04:31When S.H.I.E.L.D.
04:32agent Phil Coulson was brutally killed by Loki in The Avengers, it was a pretty bleak
04:36moment.
04:38Created solely for the MCU, his appearances as a side character in various of the franchise's
04:43early movies made him someone that eagle-eyed fans enjoyed spotting.
04:47Despite only being a supporting character, the weight of his inevitable demise was felt.
04:52In fact, his death was a consequence that every Avenger grappled with.
04:56The moment even helped the team earn their name as they'd avenge Coulson by thwarting
05:01Loki and the Chitauri invasion.
05:03Though even death wasn't quite the end for Coulson, it proved to be an impactful one
05:0815.
05:19Howard and Maria Stark – Captain America Civil War
05:29Tony Stark knew that his parents passed away in a fatal car accident, and that's a very
05:34disturbing way to die on its own.
05:36However, the whole truth makes their deaths even more sinister.
05:40Footage given by Baron Zemo reveals that the accident was hardly an accident.
05:44The Winter Soldier would engineer their crash and later ensure that they're killed.
05:48Seeing Tony's visible anger bubble up to the surface is heartbreaking.
05:52What makes it even worse is that Captain America knew what Bucky did.
05:56So much for their friendship.
05:58But if you were Team Cap, you couldn't help but feel bad for Iron Man here.
06:0514.
06:08Aaron Davis – Spider-Man Into The Spider-Verse
06:18Aaron Davis' death is one that hits his nephew Miles Morales hard and into the Spider-Verse.
06:23The villain otherwise known as the Prowler gets into an altercation with Spider-Man,
06:28not knowing he's actually Miles.
06:30When he does, Aaron stops their fight.
06:32While he comes to his senses, it's his decision to stop fighting which sadly cost him his
06:36life.
06:37Kingpin's merciless execution of Aaron rattles Miles and furthers his hatred of the Kingpin.
06:43In a twisted way, the loss of his uncle and the burden associated with it makes Miles
06:47that much more similar to Peter.
06:5713.
06:58Gamora – Avengers Infinity War
07:12Lots of sacrifices were made in Infinity War.
07:15But one choice fans didn't expect Thanos to make would be killing his own adoptive
07:20daughter, Gamora.
07:21The decision was one that the Mad Titan had to make to acquire the Soul Stone.
07:25While it was a tough choice, he ultimately went through with it.
07:29By tossing her off a cliff, the Guardian of the Galaxy meets her end.
07:33Even though Thanos took many individuals under his wing, it's clear that Gamora was the
07:38only one he actually cared about.
07:40He even shed a few tears when he realized what had to be done.
07:43Despite that, spilling of Gamora's blood shows that Thanos is hardly father of the
07:47year.
07:4812.
07:49Yondu – Udonta – Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
08:08While he may have only been a supporting character in the first film, Yondu gets a much more
08:13fleshed out role in this sequel to the beloved Marvel series.
08:16Initially a grumpy ne'er-do-well who kidnaps a young Peter Quill from his home planet,
08:21we learn that the reason behind it is much more touching than you would think.
08:27The film reveals that Yondu actually grew to care for the boy, and raised him as his
08:31own once he learned that Peter's actual father was not to be trusted.
08:43It's this new bond that makes it all the more touching when he sacrifices his life
08:47for Peter's.
08:5211.
08:56Nina and Magda – X-Men Apocalypse
09:06During the beginning of the ninth installment of the X-Men film series, we see Erik Lensher
09:10living a quiet and normal life in Poland with his wife and daughter.
09:14But when local officers find out who he really is and accidentally kill his family, they
09:19cause him to reawaken as Magneto.
09:31Believing he has no good left in him, Magneto joins Apocalypse in his quest to destroy the
09:35world.
09:40It's this tragic event that causes Magneto to fully believe again that humans and mutants
09:49can never coexist, a staple of the character.
09:52And Michael Fassbender's grief as the conflicted mutant is absolutely gut-wrenching.
09:5510.
09:56Jonathan Kent – Man of Steel
10:06In the first film of the DC Extended Universe, we got a much darker origin story for Clark
10:10Kent.
10:11While in the original 1978 film Jonathan Kent died of a heart attack, this version went
10:16the more climatic route providing a heavier emotional wallop.
10:20While helping people escape from a tornado, Jonathan is injured and unable to escape.
10:31Growing up, Clark was always taught by his father to hide his abilities from others,
10:35afraid of how they might react.
10:37It's these lessons that stop Clark from saving his father, even though he easily could
10:42have.
10:43With one final lesson, Clark is left to watch his father be swept away.
10:509.
10:53Rachel Dawes – The Dark Knight
10:59Originally played by Katie Holmes in 2005's Batman Begins, Maggie Gyllenhaal took over
11:04the role for this revered superhero sequel.
11:07Playing the love interest of both Bruce Wayne and Harvey Dent, it would have been easy for
11:11this character to be two-dimensional.
11:12However, Gyllenhaal brought a fearless ferocity to Rachel that made you truly care about her.
11:18She serves as one of the only links Bruce has left to his childhood, and her death by
11:22the hands of the Joker nearly mentally breaks Batman.
11:30Had Batman not been misdirected by the villain, he may have been able to save her.
11:34It's this what-if scenario that makes her demise even sadder.
11:408.
11:43Doctor Octopus – Spider-Man 2
11:52Say what you will about Marvel's villains, but back in 2004, Alfred Molina gave us an
11:58authentic and touching performance as one of Spider-Man's most notorious baddies.
12:03It's the nature of this villain's creation that makes him so heartbreaking.
12:07Starting off as a kind mentor to young Peter, Otto Octavius loses his mind in an experiment
12:12gone wrong when four mechanical arms are bonded to his nervous system.
12:24The same experiment takes the life of his wife, all in the pursuit of science.
12:28It's only when he tries to recreate the experiment that he sees the error of his ways
12:33and gives his own life to save many.
12:457.
12:46Steve Trevor – Wonder Woman
12:53Audiences flocked to 2017's Wonder Woman to watch Gal Gadot kick butt.
12:58But they were also surprised to discover Chris Pine's charismatic and compassionate Steve
13:02Trevor.
13:03While the two may be from completely different worlds, it's their shared concern for humanity
13:08that makes them such a compelling pair.
13:10Steve proves time and time again that he will do anything it takes to stop this great war,
13:16including giving his own life, which he eventually does as he stops a plane full of deadly toxins
13:21from killing innocent people.
13:23Only moments before does Steve tell Diana that he loves her, making it truly tragic.
13:386.
13:39Gwen Stacy – The Amazing Spider-Man 2
13:50While fans of the comics may have seen this one coming, there's no denying that Gwen's
13:55death dealt a massive emotional blow to audiences.
13:58Emma Stone is completely charming as Peter Parker's love interest, and actually has
14:02a pretty great chemistry with co-star Andrew Garfield that was built upon over two movies.
14:08So when she perishes during the fight with Green Goblin, with Spidey's web reaching
14:12her only just too late, you're genuinely sad to see her go.
14:16While The Amazing Spider-Man 2 may have had its fair share of criticism, this is one thing
14:21that it definitely got right.
14:275.
14:30Thomas and Martha Wayne – Batman Begins
14:37Quite possibly the most famous death on the list, the murder of Bruce Wayne's parents
14:41shapes him into the man that he will become.
14:50While we may have seen their death before, it's in Christopher Nolan's darker reimagining
14:55that we get them as more fleshed out characters.
14:57Through flashbacks, we see Thomas give Bruce advice on how to deal with fear.
15:01It's this advice paired with the nature of their death that set Bruce on the path
15:06of becoming Batman.
15:07Not only is it an incredibly important death scene, it is also deeply moving as Thomas'
15:12last words to his son are not to be afraid, setting the tone for the rest of the trilogy.
15:204.
15:23Ben Parker – Spider-Man Where Bruce Wayne had the death of his parents,
15:32Peter Parker had the death of his uncle.
15:34After getting ripped off at an underground wrestling tournament and refusing to stop
15:38a robber as a way of revenge, Peter stumbles upon a crime scene where his uncle has been
15:43shot by that very same robber.
15:48Taking his advice about power and responsibility to heart, Peter learns from the traumatizing
15:52event of his uncle dying in his arms and decides to use his abilities for good.
15:57A warm and caring presence in his nephew's life, Peter becomes the Spider-Man as a way
16:02to honor all of the qualities that his uncle stood for.
16:093.
16:11The Vanished – Avengers Infinity War Nothing in superhero movies has quite come
16:22close to the devastating amount of mass death portrayed in the final stretch of Infinity
16:26War.
16:27With Thanos managing to achieve his goals, half of the universe is successfully wiped
16:31out of existence.
16:32Admit that Major Culling are several major heroes.
16:36The likes of Star-Lord, Black Panther, Doctor Strange, and even Spider-Man get struck down.
16:42These deaths are thankfully reversed in Endgame, but the impact of the situation can never
16:47be forgotten.
16:48The vanishing of half of all life in what's known as the blip remains easily the darkest
16:53era in MCU history.
17:002.
17:03Tony Stark – Avengers Endgame You couldn't get a more perfect send-off
17:17than the one Iron Man got in Endgame.
17:20Using his last bits of strength to wield the Infinity Gauntlet, he successfully stops Thanos'
17:25plans for good.
17:27On one hand, Tony Stark's full-circle sacrifice cements him as one of Marvel's mightiest
17:31heroes.
17:32On the other hand, the loss of Iron Man is one that we as fans still have yet to fully
17:37recover from.
17:38Heck, Endgame was so traumatizing that one audience member in China had to trade their
17:42time in the theater for time in the hospital.
17:44It's simply undeniable that Iron Man's death marked an end of an era, and his absence
17:50is one we're still desperately trying to come to terms with.
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18:161.
18:18James Logan Howling – Logan Although Hugh Jackman had said that he wanted
18:252017's Logan to be his final portrayal of Wolverine, that didn't stop the character's
18:30death from being shocking.
18:36During a fight with his own clone, Logan sacrifices himself so that Laura and the new mutants
18:41can escape to safety.
18:43What makes this death scene so poignant is the relationship that he and Laura begrudgingly
18:47build upon over the course of the film.
18:49The two grow to care immensely for one another, bonding over one tragic event after another.
18:55While the loss of Professor X is devastating in its own right, it's the death of the
18:58nearly indestructible Wolverine that left audiences sobbing.
19:09Which death hit you the hardest?
19:11Make sure to grieve in the comment section below.