10 Great Movie Characters Who Die At The Beginning
Stealing the show in the first 20 minutes.
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00:00Character deaths can create a huge emotional impact, especially when the character who
00:04dies has played a large role in the story for a while.
00:07However, sometimes a character dies before they have a chance to make much of an impression
00:12in audiences' minds.
00:14Early character deaths can be a great way to establish that no one in a story is safe,
00:18and even characters who seem like they will be around for a while won't necessarily make
00:22it out of Act 1.
00:23That said, some characters are still able to become great despite early deaths.
00:27So with that in mind then, I'm Ellie with WhatCulture, here with 10 great movie characters
00:31who die at the beginning.
00:3310.
00:34Bella Faulkner in Hunt for the Wilderpeople
00:38Hunt for the Wilderpeople, directed by Taika Waititi of Jojo Rabbit and Thor Ragnarok
00:42fame, follows an unlikely father-son duo, Hector Heck Faulkner and Ricky Baker, as they
00:48find themselves as the targets of a manhunt.
00:51The two share a zany yet heartfelt adventure throughout the film.
00:54However, they would have never been brought together in the first place without Heck's
00:57wife, Bella Faulkner.
00:58It is Bella's idea to take in Ricky in the first place, and between her and Heck, she
01:02is far more eager to have him around.
01:04In fact, Heck appears cold towards Ricky at first, with Bella playing mediator in all
01:09of their conflicts.
01:10Bella's kind, hard, and hilarious portrayal by Rima Tiwiata leads to some sweet and silly
01:15moments such as her performance of the Ricky Baker birthday song.
01:19Unfortunately, Bella's early death kickstarts the film, shattering the possibility that
01:23the three of them could be a happy family after all.
01:25Once she is gone, it becomes evident how impactful she was at keeping the peace between the two
01:30leads.
01:319.
01:32Ajak in Eternals
01:34The MCU's Eternals features ten title characters.
01:38It's only natural that one of them would barely make it past the opening credits.
01:41Salma Hayek's Ajak is the Eternals' powerful leader.
01:44With healing abilities and communications with the celestial Arishem, she keeps them
01:48safe and hidden during their centuries on Earth.
01:51However, Ajak's leadership skills and healing capabilities are not enough to keep her safe
01:55during the film's runtime.
01:57When Cersei, Sprite, and Icarus seek her out, they discover that Ajak has been murdered.
02:01This is not Ajak's final appearance in the film.
02:04She appears several times through flashbacks, solidifying her powers both as an Eternal
02:08and as a mentor figure to the rest of her family.
02:11In one powerful scene, she tells Icarus that humanity's devotion to each other, such as
02:15the undoing of the Snap, inspired her to try and stop the Emergence, which will destroy
02:19all of humanity.
02:20Angered that Ajak is questioning the Eternals' purpose on Earth, Icarus feeds her to the
02:25Deviants, leading to her death and the plot of the film.
02:28Though Ajak does not stay alive on screen for long, her impact on both the audience
02:32and the Eternals is huge.
02:348.
02:35Heather Chandler in Heathers
02:38Heather Chandler is one of the three title characters of the 1989 film, Heathers.
02:42Chandler leads a clique of four high school girls, three of whom share the same first
02:46name, Heather.
02:47The fourth member, Veronica Sawyer, grows tired of Chandler's cruelty and bullying and
02:51vows to take her down.
02:52Veronica teams up with a boy at school named JD to get revenge on Chandler.
02:56The two offer her a fake hangover cure in order to cause her to vomit, but Veronica
03:00accidentally hands her a mug filled with Drain Clean as she believes JD made as a joke.
03:05Chandler drinks the concoction and instantly dies.
03:08Despite her early out, Heather Chandler quickly establishes herself as a great cinematic Queen
03:12Bee-esque villain.
03:13She commands every one of her scenes, towering over her subordinates, including Heather Duke,
03:18Heather McNamara, Veronica, and any student who dares cross her path.
03:23Chandler is so powerful that even after her death, wearing her signature red scrunchie
03:27signifies possessing her power within the school.
03:30The late Kim Walker turns Heather Chandler into a memorable villain-turned-victim in
03:34what little screen time she has.
03:377.
03:38Mufasa in The Lion King
03:40Mufasa's death in the 1994 film The Lion King became infamous for, no pun intended, scarring
03:47nearly every child who ever saw the movie.
03:49The character makes such a large impact that it's hard not to be scarred by his death,
03:53even as an adult.
03:54Mufasa, Simba's father, is voiced by the incomparable James Earl Jones.
03:59He quickly proves himself to be a just king and kind father.
04:02He is protective of Simba and firm with him when he steps out of line and visits the elephant
04:07graveyard, in doing so disobeying Mufasa and endangering himself.
04:11It is evident that so long as Mufasa is around, Simba will be safe.
04:14Of course, Mufasa is then shortly killed by his younger brother, Scar, in an attempt to
04:19take the throne.
04:20Scar knocks Mufasa into a stampede of wildebeest, where he is trampled to death.
04:24If his fall was not painful enough, seeing Simba paw helplessly at his father's corpse
04:29is heartbreaking.
04:30Mufasa returns to Simba in a vision later on in the film, reminding his son and the
04:35audience that he'll always be with Simba.
04:38Number 6.
04:39Juan in Moonlight
04:41Despite having only 20 minutes of screentime, Mahershala Ali won his first Oscar for Barry
04:46Jenkins' 2016 film Moonlight.
04:50Watching the film, it's easy to see that awarding his portrayal of Juan is one of the best decisions
04:54the Academy has made in recent years.
04:56Juan exclusively appears in the first of the film's three segments, titled Little.
05:00Juan, a drug dealer, takes Little, a young boy named Chiron, under his wing.
05:05Juan introduces Little to his girlfriend Teresa, and the two genuinely care for him.
05:10He also helps Little swim and teaches him that there is nothing wrong with being gay.
05:14When Little asks Juan if he is a drug dealer, he says yes, hanging his head in shame.
05:19Instantly after that, Part 1 of the film ends, and it cuts to Part 2, titled Chiron.
05:23Juan is nowhere to be seen in Part 2, and before long, it becomes apparent that he has
05:27died.
05:28This hits hard, and is especially jarring given the quick transition between the two
05:32segments and Ali's powerful performance.
05:355.
05:36Uncle Ben in Spider-Man
05:39Spider-Man's signature catchphrase, with great power comes great responsibility, is almost
05:44as famous as the wall-crawler himself.
05:46That simple yet powerful sentence has guided Peter Parker throughout his time behind the
05:50Spider-Man mask.
05:52Uncle Ben is the man who first taught him that lesson.
05:55Uncle Ben first appeared in the 1962 comic book Amazing Fantasy No. 15, dying in order
06:00to motivate his super-powered nephew.
06:03Ben then made his way to many of the Spider-Man film adaptations.
06:06Played by Cliff Robertson in the Sam Raimi Spider-Man films and Martin Sheen in the Mark
06:10Webb films, Uncle Ben's early death always hits hard.
06:14Peter's uncle is shown as an abundantly kind man, and Peter's failure to save him is a
06:19heartbreaking lesson in taking responsibility.
06:22Uncle Ben's death is a reminder for Peter to always do all he can, and his impact throughout
06:26all forms of Spider-Man media proves that he is an incredible character in his own right.
06:324.
06:33Vizzini in The Princess Bride
06:35For a character who dies so early in his film, Vizzini from The Princess Bride says more
06:40than his fair share of hilarious one-liners.
06:43Played by Wallace Shawn, Vizzini is hired to kidnap Princess Buttercup and murder her
06:47in order to start a war.
06:49After a mysterious man in black defeats his two hired goons, Inigo Montoya and Fezzik,
06:53the man confronts Vizzini himself.
06:55The two engage in a battle of wits, at which Vizzini claims to excel, for Buttercup's life.
07:00Vizzini hilariously overthinks the simple question the man in black asks him, which
07:04cup has the poison?
07:06Vizzini causes the man to look away, then switches the cups.
07:09When he and the man in black drink, Vizzini laughs hysterically, thinking he has outsmarted
07:13the man, only to instantly die once it's revealed that both cups were poisoned and the man in
07:17black was immune.
07:18Wallace Shawn's portrayal of Vizzini, the foolish mastermind, is unbelievable.
07:22Shawn convinces audiences that Vizzini is arrogant enough to think he is the smartest
07:27man in the world.
07:28Plus, his plethora of catchphrases are always a delight to hear.
07:31The fact that Vizzini only places fourth on this list is inconceivable.
07:353.
07:36The Comedian in Watchmen
07:39The Comedian's death is the first thing to happen in Zack Snyder's 2009 film adaptation
07:44of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' comic book Watchmen.
07:47The film sees the Comedian, aka Eddie Blake, played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan.
07:52The story opens with Rorschach investigating the Comedian's murder.
07:55As we learn more about the Comedian, aka Eddie Blake, the bigger question than who killed
08:00him becomes how did it take so long for this man to get murdered?
08:03The Comedian has no redeeming qualities whatsoever.
08:06He does not hesitate to murder innocent people, and has the audacity to blame Dr. Manhattan
08:11for not stopping him.
08:12He commits sexual assault against the Silk Spectre, only to receive a satisfying beating
08:16from hooded justice after the fact, and it is implied that he murdered John F. Kennedy.
08:21The man deserved what was coming.
08:23Despite knowing his ultimate fate, it is impossible for audiences to sympathize with the Comedian.
08:28He is well-written in that he is impossible to like in any way, and if audiences knew
08:32him before the film began, they might have a different reaction to his fall from that
08:36window.
08:372.
08:38Ellie in Up
08:39Pixar's 2009 film Up swept audiences away with its opening scene.
08:44In it, we meet two children, Carl and Ellie, who make plans to go to South America, which
08:49Ellie describes as America but South.
08:51It's an adorable introduction to the film, and it's a venture leading man.
08:55Then audiences are treated to one of the greatest sequences in Pixar history.
09:00Carl and Ellie get married, start a life together, build a house, spend time together in love,
09:04prepare to become parents, learn that they cannot have children, and grow old together.
09:08Unfortunately, Ellie becomes sick and passes away, leaving Carl to sit alone at her funeral
09:13as the scene comes to a close.
09:15The montage contains no dialogue, but Michael Giacchino's score packs a heavy emotional
09:19punch.
09:20Throughout the film, Carl tries to make it to South America in Ellie's honor.
09:24Ellie's bravery, charm, and passing are a large part of why Up is so fondly remembered.
09:28Though the rest of the film is wonderful, it never comes close to the sheer beauty of
09:33the opening scene with Ellie.
09:351.
09:36Mia Fey in Ace Attorney
09:39In Takashi Miike's 2012 film Ace Attorney, an adaptation of the visual novel Phoenix
09:44Wright Ace Attorney, audiences quickly meet Mia Fey, protagonist Phoenix Wright's boss
09:49and mentor.
09:50Mia quickly proves her competence in court when she almost instantly solves the case
09:55for Phoenix, proving his client Larry Butes innocent.
09:58Phoenix himself is not a great lawyer at this point, fumbling papers on his desk and missing
10:02easy contradictions, but as long as he has Mia on his side, he should be fine.
10:06Of course, shortly after this trial, Mia is murdered, and Phoenix is responsible for
10:10defending Mia's younger sister, Maya, who has been charged with Mia's murder.
10:14To make matters worse, Phoenix finds himself up against the fearsome prosecutor Miles Edgeworth
10:19without the help of his trusty mentor.
10:21However, Mia once again saves the day during this trial where Maya channels her spirit
10:25to provide Phoenix with some much-needed guidance.
10:28Mia effectively avenges her own murder by allowing Phoenix to earn Maya a not-guilty
10:33verdict and causing the arrest of her actual killer, Red White.
10:37Mia again provides aid from beyond the grave for Phoenix throughout the film's final trial,
10:41in which we learn why she was killed.
10:43Mia found a key piece of evidence that could close the book on a 15-year-old unsolved case
10:47called DL-6.
10:48In the film's climax, Maya is able to finally channel Mia again, and Phoenix finds the piece
10:53of evidence Mia died for, hidden in the statue used to kill her, managing to solve the DL-6
10:59case once and for all.
11:00Even without her spirit being channeled, Mia plays an active role in the Ace Attorney film
11:04after her death.
11:05Mia is the mastermind behind Phoenix's defense, while also placing enough faith in him to
11:10allow him to grow into his own.
11:12And that concludes our list.
11:14If you can think of anything that we missed, then do let us know in the comments below.
11:17And while you're there, don't forget to like and subscribe and tap that notification bell.
11:21Also, head over to Twitter and follow us there at WhatCulture, and I can be found across
11:24various social medias just by searching Ellie Littlechild.
11:27I've been Ellie with WhatCulture.
11:29I hope you have a magical day, and I'll see you real soon.