Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

The Saddest Fictional Character Deaths Of All-Time

Make us preferred on Google

A good story—whether it's a book, movie, manga or TV show—can really draw us in.

We can get invested in the story to the point we begin to have real feelings about the characters.

That's why having a favorite character die can cause real grief.


Redditor Iridescent126 asked:

"What was the saddest fictional character death for you?"

Spock

"Spock, in Wrath of Khan."

- Lisa_Anns_Ass

"'I have been, and always shall be, your friend'.”

- MadMacs77

"'Of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most... human'."

- bozoconnors

Star Trek GIF Giphy

Stoick the Vast

​"Stoick the Vast How to train your dragon"

"Dude literally just reunited with his wife after over 15 years of being gone and spends a total of about 15 minutes with her. Cause of death: basically took a bullet in the chest to protect his son."

- 24Nitro-gamer

"I saw it in theatres and a bunch of kids started to cry. Not like sniffing but out loud wailing. It added to the atmosphere."

- ThePurpleMister

"I cried, 20-something y.o. dude just ugly crying"

- leotushex

The Iron Giant

"​The Iron Giant will ALWAYS have me ugly crying when he goes up to stop the missle"

- muhfckinuhhh

Iron Giant GIF Giphy

Where The Red Fern Grows

"The dogs in 'Where the Red Fern Grows'."

- johnny*mseed

"Came here to say this. This book destroyed me in grade five but also really demonstrated grief in such a profound way."

- such_sweet_nothing

Bubba

"Bubba in Forrest Gump. That whole scene had me wrecked."

"From Bubba's weak, 'I wanna go home,' to Forrest's narration saying he died by that river in Vietnam while showing him holding Bubba....."

"God damn, I'm crying just thinking about it."

- ChuckZombie

Forrest Gump GIF Giphy

Saving Private Ryan

"Saving Private Ryan has two of the saddest, most brutally gut wrenching deaths I’ve ever seen on screen in Wade and Mellish."

"Wade trying to talk the guys through his injury that goes from panic and terror to acceptance of his own death as he cries out for his mother and says 'I want to go home'? Jesus Christ."

"Mellish is brutal for all the more uncomfortable and raw reasons you’d imagine. War is horrific. Young men are sent off to die, and their lives are cut short for no reason."

"It’s tragic and heartbreaking, and this is one of the only movies to really nail that feeling"

- Tuna-No-Crust

Ellie From Up

"Ellie from 'UP' gets me everytime"

- MaterialScientist420

"Sometimes I wonder how movies ever took off when the first ones were short with no sound."

"Then I remember the time a 10 minute animation with no dialogue absolutely wrecked me. It's a god-damned masterpiece and I hate it."

- cycloptian_tit

Up GIF Giphy

​M*A*S*H Had A Few

​"Henry Blake. MAS*H. The scene in the operating room. The actors weren’t told about it, just called back for one last scene shoot and Radar walks in and tells them. The silence is amplified by the sounds of instruments still working. Haunting"

- Salami_sub

"Piggy backing off this, the guy they tried to keep alive so his kids wouldn't remember Christmas as the day their dad died. That one gets me just thinking about it."

- GaussfaceKilla

"I just saw that one like a month ago! That was totally heartbreaking. Hawkeye spins the clock forward to twelve o five December twenty sixth and they all conspire to forge his death certificate"

- The_Dynasty_Group

​My Girl

"'He can’t see without his glasses'"

- peesherman42

"What made this especially shocking/sad is that the entire movie was a huge bait-and-switch, but in a really effective way."

"At the time, 11-year old me thought -- based on the trailers and the marketing -- that I was about to watch a lighthearted coming-of-age movie."

"And while it does have some of that, boy did it have a macabre edge to it."

- Geekboxing

​Littlefoot's Mom

"​Littlefoot’s mother’s death"

- 2-DMan

"My son fell in love with this movie when he was 3 or 4, and every time that part would come on I would have to leave the room because no matter what age I am, I will always get emotional. Something about the music and the overall vibe that really just punches me in the gut."

- isurfnude4foods

"The music plus the quote 'Let your heart guide you. It whispers, so listen closely'. It's so beautiful and tragic."

- fiofo

Land Before Time GIF Giphy

The sign of a great story is how it can touch our hearts and sometimes break it.

So what was the saddest character death for you?

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Screenshot of Joey Jones
Fox News

Fox News Host Slammed After Criticizing 'Weak' Sailors Complaining About Deteriorating Conditions Aboard USS Lincoln

Fox News host Joey Jones was criticized for his complaints about the "weak" U.S. Navy sailors who have complained about the conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, which has been deployed in the Middle East since November of 2025.

Jones is a Marine veteran who spent eight years in the military and served in both Iraq and Afghanistan. He was seriously wounded by an IED in Afghanistan in 2010, sustaining severe injuries to his arms and wrists and losing both legs above the knee.

Keep Reading Show less
screenshot of AI Elon Musk as Austin Powers
@elonmusk/X

Elon Musk Brutally Dragged After Sharing Bizarre AI Slop Video Of Himself As Austin Powers

On Wednesday, AI content creator DFF posted another of their parody videos on X mocking a major political figure.

The politics of DFF aren't specified, as they appear to mock just about everyone, but the Trump administration and their allies seem to be frequent targets. The account name DFF stands for "Dumb F*ck Finder" and their bio reads "Fighting DumbF*ckery 24/7 via AI-powered music vids & memes. Don’t Be a DumbFxck."

Keep Reading Show less
Screenshot of Scooby-Doo inspired Donald Trump Reflecting Pool video
@b..dub7/TikTok

Someone Made A Video Of Trump Enlisting The Scooby-Doo Gang To Solve The 'Mystery Of The Reflecting Pool'—And It's Too Good

Social media users can't get enough of a satirical AI-generated video of the gang from Scooby-Doo helping President Donald Trump figure out what happened to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

The renovation of the Reflecting Pool has become a debacle, marked by recurring algae blooms, workers resorting to pouring hydrogen peroxide into the water to combat the problem, and a political blame game in which some Republicans have attempted to pin responsibility for the mess on Democrats.

Keep Reading Show less
Rosario Dawson (left) revealed her cameo was cut from Tom Holland’s (right) Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
Ernesto Ruscio/Getty Images; Sony/Marvel Studios

Rosario Dawson Reveals Her Cameo In 'Spider-Man: Brand New Day' Was Cut—And Her Mom's Reaction Has Fans Cackling

Fans expected Spider-Man: Brand New Day to deliver its share of surprise cameos, but one familiar Marvel face apparently got caught in the editing web.

In resurfaced footage from July’s GalaxyCon in Raleigh, North Carolina, 47-year-old Sin City and Ahsoka star Rosario Dawson told fellow actor Vincent D’Onofrio that she had slipped back into her Daredevil scrubs as Claire Temple for the blockbuster.

Keep Reading Show less
Jamie Lee Curtis
Errich Petersen/SXSW Conference & Festivals/Getty Images

Jamie Lee Curtis Clears The Air After Saying She Had An 'Awful' Experience Filming 'New Girl'

Every actor has their preferences when it comes to stage production, and Jamie Lee Curtis is no exception, especially when it comes to comedy.

Curtis was recently touring to promote and answer questions about her latest show, Newlyweds on NBC, which she co-created with Black-ish and Ugly Betty's Gail Lerner. The Freakier Friday actress explained that she was excited to create a story that centered around older characters and finding love later in life, following a couple portrayed by Tea Leoni and Tim Daly.

Keep Reading Show less