6 Movies Where Pretty Much Everyone Dies

When going to the movies, we typically prefer endings in which everybody lives “happily ever after.” But on occasion, we don’t mind watching a bunch of characters get whacked. And we aren’t talking about the Marvel Extended Universe where everybody dies but we know they’ll be back in subsequent movies. There are certain movies where practically everybody — both the heroes and villains — meets their end and we can say in great confidence that they’re never coming back. Think “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” where almost all of the characters had to die since there would have been no other way to explain why they weren’t included in the previous Star Wars movies that took place after the events of this film.

300

Everybody is familiar with Zack Snyder from all the DC Extended Universe films he directs, but it was the 2007 box office smash 300 that initially put him on the map. Based on the Frank Miller comic series, the movie is about 300 heroic Spartan soldiers who hold out against an invading force of 300,000 Persians. This David-and-Goliath story is super violent and full of good old fashion gory action.

Who Dies: Well, 299 of them. But at least they took tens of thousands of Persian soldiers with them.

Who Makes It Out Alive: Dilios ends up getting injured, but fortunately he has the strength to return to Sparta and ends up living to tell the brave story of the overwhelmingly outnumbered Spartan soldiers who made their last stand.

The Hateful Eight

It’s probably not a big surprise that the death toll is high in the typical Western movie. After all, pretty much all of the main characters are packing heat and eager to send their foes to an early grave. Although violence has always been a key element to Quentin Tarantino films, he really takes things up a notch in 2015’s The Hateful Eight, a story about eight strangers who are trying to survive a huge winter storm together. Spoiler Alert: none of them do.

Who Dies: The whole lot of them!

Who Makes It Out Alive: Not a single one!

Reservoir Dogs

Although Reservoir Dogs didn’t bring out huge audiences to the theaters the way Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill did, it was nonetheless the movie that truly defined him and as a result, tends to be the absolute favorite among his fans. The focus on lengthy dialogue, pop-culture references, and of course lots of dead bodies would ultimately become the trademark of most of his films.

Who Dies: Almost every “Dog” meets his demise, except…

Who Makes It Out Alive: Mr. Pink (Steve Buschemi) survives, but he does end up in a pair of handcuffs.

The Cabin in the Woods

This horror satire, which came out in 2012, has a good time making fun of all the goofy tropes found in slasher films. The plot is essentially a cat and mouse game in which a group of young people has to outsmart a shadowy organization determined to sacrifice them to some ancient order. The fact that it never takes itself seriously is precisely why audiences enjoyed it as well. It’s also a pretty smart film, completely understanding that viewers are in on the joke.

Who Dies: Pre-Thor Chris Hemsworth, Sigourney Weaver, Bradly Whitford, and Richard Jenkins all meet their demise.

Who Makes It Out Alive: Dana and Marty make it to the end, but when the Ancient Ones arrive, it is implied that they don’t have much longer to live.

Easy Rider

If you’re a big fan of gritty 1970s movies like The Godfather, Chinatown, and Taxi Driver, you have the Dennis Hopper-directed Easy Rider to thank. It was an unexpected hit that helped lead to a new area in Hollywood where previous conventions were thrown out the window and replaced with plots where anything goes. This is the movie that introduced Jack Nicholson and all of his potential to the world.

Who Dies: All of the main guys: Billy (Hopper), Wyatt (Peter Fonda), and George (Nicholson).

Who Makes It Out Alive: Secondary characters we could care less about.

Scarface

Directed by Brian De Palma and written by a fresh-faced Oliver Stone, everybody remembers that iconic quote “Say hello to my little friend” even if you’ve never actually seen the movie. Scarface tells the story of a Cuban refugee Tony Montana (Al Pacino) who comes from nothing and becomes a wealthy, influential figure in the drug trade before meeting an anti-heroic death.

Who Dies: Aside from Tony, his sister Gina and most of his henchmen earn a one-way ticket to the bone yard.

Who Makes It Out Alive: Drug lord Alejandro Sosa, Elvira (Tony’s ex), Georgina (Tony’s mom), and Sosa’s hitman “The Skull” make it out alive.