We won't be needing them anymore, anyway! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most impactful deaths of major characters in TV finales. Spoiler alert!
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00:00 I want this.
00:03 Welcome to WatchMojo and today we're counting down our picks for the most impactful deaths
00:09 of major characters in TV finales.
00:13 Spoiler alert.
00:14 You have my kuii.
00:17 Number 10.
00:18 Betty Draper - Mad Men We don't actually witness Betty Draper die
00:22 in the finale of Mad Men, but the writing is so on the wall.
00:26 In a show where almost everyone smokes, Betty is the sole person to be diagnosed with lung
00:31 cancer by the series' end.
00:32 "Well, I took a look at your x-ray and it may be more serious than just the rib."
00:36 "How serious?"
00:40 Although the character had previously had a cancer scare in the show's fifth season,
00:44 her diagnosis wouldn't come until Mad Men's penultimate episode.
00:47 "You have to do something."
00:48 "Do what?"
00:49 "What do you think would happen if Nelson Rockefeller got this?"
00:52 "He would die!"
00:53 The disease was even more of a death sentence in 1970 than it is today, and Betty's refusal
00:59 of chemotherapy on top of her poor odds of survival sealed her fate.
01:03 "I'm not going to waste the rest of my time arguing about this."
01:06 She spends her final moments on screen making arrangements for her children and her own
01:11 funeral before lighting up one last cigarette.
01:15 Number 9.
01:16 Stephen Salvatore - The Vampire Diaries Death is sort of an everyday occurrence on
01:21 The Vampire Diaries.
01:22 Damon Salvatore is shown dying eight times throughout the series, while his brother,
01:27 Stephen's death count is in the thousands.
01:29 Nonetheless, the deaths in the show's finale are meant to stick.
01:33 The first to die is Stephen, who selflessly sacrifices himself for his brother.
01:38 He clings to life long enough to meet with Elena one last time, telling her that Damon
01:43 will now age alongside her before letting go and reuniting with his best friend Lexi
01:48 in the afterlife.
01:49 "Wow.
01:50 That was beautiful.
01:51 That was beautiful."
01:52 "It's feeling epic."
01:56 After the characters, and fans, have had time to grieve this loss, a flash forward
02:01 shows Elena and Damon's future together, ending with another emotional death that reunites
02:06 the pair with their deceased loved ones.
02:08 "Hello brother."
02:10 Number 8.
02:12 Daenerys Targaryen - Game of Thrones To say that Game of Thrones' final season
02:19 is a disappointment is an understatement for many fans.
02:22 And at the center of many debates about the show's downfall is fan favorite character,
02:27 Daenerys Targaryen.
02:36 After maintaining an idealistic desire for a better Westeros for seven seasons, the Mother
02:41 of Dragons seemingly goes mad with power.
02:44 She kills innocents and burns cities.
02:49 It gets to the point that her lover, Jon Snow, grows concerned about her actions and kills
02:54 her to end the carnage.
02:59 While many fans were disappointed to see her go, others still maintained that the death
03:04 was actually one of the better parts of a lackluster finale.
03:07 Regardless of where you fall, the strong emotions elicited by the scene are simply undeniable.
03:13 Number 7.
03:17 Jax Teller - Sons of Anarchy Sometimes death is the only logical way to
03:22 end a character's story.
03:23 That's definitely the case for Jax Teller, who had become a wanted man by the end of
03:27 Sons of Anarchy.
03:29 Throughout the series, Jax killed several people, including his own mother, and even
03:34 forced his wife to relapse in order to maintain custody of his son.
03:38 He knows he doesn't have a chance of escaping the barrage of law enforcement after him,
03:43 and that he wouldn't deserve to escape if he could.
03:50 Resigned to his fate, Jax bids farewell to his crew before boarding his father's motorcycle
03:55 for one last ride.
03:56 His death is simultaneously harsh and bittersweet, mirroring his dad's final moments on the
04:02 same interstate.
04:10 Number 6.
04:11 Debra Morgan - Dexter The relationship between Dexter and Debra
04:15 Morgan was always...complicated.
04:18 The first season's finale forced Dexter to choose between Deb and his long-lost brother,
04:23 who he had just discovered was the ice truck killer.
04:25 He chose his sister in that moment, and continued to protect her throughout the show.
04:32 Unfortunately, the Dexter finale introduces a new dilemma.
04:37 After a life-saving surgery goes awry, Deb suffers a major stroke in his left brain area.
04:48 Rather than see her suffer, Dexter decides to cut off her oxygen and allow her to die.
05:00 It wasn't clear what became of Dexter after this merciful act, until New Blood, the 2021
05:06 miniseries, showed fans where the anti-hero ended up, and how he too meets his maker.
05:13 Number 5.
05:14 Barry Berkman - Barry From a narrative standpoint, Barry's final
05:18 season is the most ambitious yet.
05:21 It takes a hard left turn five episodes in, introducing a shocking time skip that sees
05:25 Barry and Sally living an isolated family life.
05:28 Although the former hitman initially seems content to settle down, news of a biopic about
05:33 his life causes him to backslide.
05:37 He sets out to kill the man he believes to be responsible, only to find himself on the
05:41 opposite end of a gun.
05:43 His final words say it all.
05:45 The biopic moves forward with Barry as its hero.
05:49 It's an ending that is as ironic as it is tragic, and perfectly mirrors some of the
05:53 misplaced idolization of Hater's character in the real world.
06:01 Number 4.
06:02 Frank Gallagher - Shameless By the series finale, Frank has had his fair
06:06 share of near-death experiences.
06:08 A lifetime of substance use disorder and alcohol poisoning leads to his body shutting down
06:13 in the final season, with the patriarch even developing alcohol-related dementia.
06:18 Apparently, this downfall was always in the cards for Frank, but the real world introduced
06:22 a new element to the shameless finale, COVID-19.
06:30 After surviving liver disease, almost drowning, and even attempts on his own life, Frank Gallagher
06:35 ultimately dies in a hospital bed from COVID complications.
06:39 The topical death came as a shock to some, but it actually makes a lot of sense.
06:43 In the end, everything added up and COVID was simply the final nail in his coffin.
06:50 Number 3.
06:51 The Fisher Family - Six Feet Under This HBO show begins with the death of a funeral
06:56 home director, so it only makes sense that it ends with one as well.
07:00 Following the death of his father, Nate Fisher becomes co-owner of Fisher and Sons Funeral
07:04 Home and spends the next five seasons of Six Feet Under trying to make the best of the
07:09 life he's been given, despite marital troubles and a distressing diagnosis.
07:13 It's a stroke that ultimately does him in, nine episodes into the show's final season.
07:21 The next three episodes largely center on the Fisher family's grief, which is only
07:26 compounded in the series finale.
07:28 After a moving farewell dinner for Claire, the show flashes forward to reveal how every
07:33 major character will meet their end.
07:48 Number 2.
07:49 Walter White - Breaking Bad While some protagonist's deaths come as a
07:53 complete shock, Walter White seems doomed from the start.
07:56 He is diagnosed with cancer in the series pilot episode and soon after leaps headfirst
08:02 into the dangerous world of meth manufacturing.
08:10 As he becomes more well-known within the darkest corners of his community, his inexplicable
08:14 new career choice becomes just as much of a death sentence as his disease.
08:18 The final season continuously ramps up the intensity until the teacher-turned-kingpin
08:23 is fatally wounded while saving Jesse from his captors.
08:29 In spite of the irreparable damage he's left in his wake, he dies with a smile on
08:34 his face, happy to have had some control over his inevitable fate.
08:45 Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
08:49 Enoch "Nucky" Thompson - Boardwalk Empire Jimmy Darmody's son exacts his revenge on
08:55 Nucky.
08:56 Sabrina Spellman - Chilling Adventures of Sabrina In a show about witches, it's a
09:05 shock that this death wasn't followed by a resurrection.
09:14 Norman Bates - Bates Motel John Rhys - Person of Interest
09:28 This heroic death was anything but anticlimactic.
09:55 Tony Soprano - The Sopranos It's impossible to deny the impact of The
10:04 Sopranos' final episode, even if its death scene is still a huge point of contention.
10:10 Tony and his family meet up for a meal at a diner.
10:14 Fans were on the edges of their seats, eager to see if the mob boss would finally get his
10:19 comeuppance.
10:20 Unfortunately, they were met with a shocking cut to black.
10:28 The final moments, or lack thereof, have been the subject of endless debate post-finale,
10:34 and series creator David Chase didn't seem eager to clear things up.
10:38 That is, until a 2020 interview in which Chase seemingly accidentally referred to the ending
10:42 as a "long-planned death scene."
10:45 Definitive?
10:46 Maybe.
10:47 We'll never know for sure.
10:50 Which of these deaths hit the hardest?
10:52 Let us know in the comments down below.
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11:14 (upbeat music)