KILLED OFF: 22 TV Character Deaths That Left Fans SHATTERED

[Caution: Contains spoilers. Some episodes were broadcast many years back, while others are extremely fresh from the past few months.]

In the eyes of many viewers, television characters can become familiar faces akin to long-standing acquaintances. Consequently, when such characters meet an untimely end within their fictional realms, it can still be a profoundly affecting experience.

Over time, many successful TV series have ended prominent characters’ lives during their peak periods, for a variety of motives. Perhaps an actor wanted to move on; possibly the plot demanded it; maybe the creators were adhering to the original storyline; or in some instances, there were issues with unprofessional conduct off-screen.

Regardless of the cause, viewers frequently experience deep emotions when their favorite characters leave, especially since the series isn’t concluded yet. Here, we’ve compiled a list of 22 heart-wrenching television deaths that have left a lasting impact. Ranging from Henry Black’s emotionally charged homecoming in M*A*S*H to Glenn Rhee’s gruesome demise at the hands of Negan’s bat Lucille on The Walking Dead, to Logan Roy’s death during the fourth season of Succession and Joel’s brutal fate on The Last of Us, each departure left a strong impression. Continue reading for more details. (This article was initially published in 2023, but has since been updated.).

Joffrey Baratheon, ‘Game of Thrones’

As a gamer, I’d say: “Well, my gaming avatar wasn’t having a jolly time at the royal wedding. In Game of Thrones, things took an unexpected turn when King Joffrey (played by Jack Gleeson) was poisoned at his own wedding feast. Poor Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage), my favorite character, got framed and thrown in jail, but it wasn’t him who did the deed. The real culprits were none other than Lady Olenna Tyrell (Diana Rigg) and Lord Petyr Baelish (Aiden Gillen).

Logan Roy, ‘Succession’

In the initial episode, he narrowly cheated death, but during the fourth season, the Roy family’s matriarch and media tycoon met his end three episodes later. While on a business trip to Sweden, Logan (portrayed by Brian Cox) was discovered unconscious in the restroom of his private jet. Despite immediate medical aid and numerous attempts at resuscitation, he ultimately succumbed to his injuries with his children dialing in from various locations to bid their farewells over the phone. As the Emmy-winning series reaches its conclusion, there are still seven episodes remaining for the family to navigate through the repercussions of Logan’s passing.

Gus Fring, ‘Breaking Bad’

Giancarlo Esposito learned some tough truths during the Season 4 finale of AMC’s “Breaking Bad” when its creator, Vince Gilligan, informed him that his character, drug kingpin Gus, would meet a gruesome end in the season finale. Esposito said, “He gave me fair warning. I replied, ‘Well, OK, as long as it’s fantastic!’ He said, ‘It will be! We want to blow your face off!’ We both felt that it was typical of Gus to survive an explosion for a few moments – he would adjust his jacket and straighten his tie before collapsing. Vince came up with this brilliant way for me to depart – I must give him full credit.

Lane Pryce, ‘Mad Men’

In the TV series ‘Mad Men’, Lane Pryce (played by Jared Harris) had a traumatic experience with Don Draper (Jon Hamm). After discovering that Lane had forged a company check in Don’s name, Don confronted him. The encounter was so intense that Harris commented, “It’s a bad time when someone invites you to their office and says ‘Come on up’.” As they reached the office, showrunner Matt Weiner warned him, “I have something I want to tell you,” to which Harris responded with a sense of foreboding, “Uh-oh.” Weiner then apologized and offered him some excellent brandy. Ultimately, Lane chose to take his own life rather than resign from his position.

Will Gardner, ‘The Good Wife’

In the episode “Dramatics, Your Honor” of “The Good Wife”, the character Will Gardner, an attorney at Lockhart Gardner, was fatally wounded by a gunshot in court, inflicted by his disturbed client. Later, he was confirmed dead at the hospital.

Charlie Harper, ‘Two and a Half Men’

Following an acrimonious and public departure from CBS’ “Two and a Half Men”, show creator Chuck Lorre scripted the exit of troubled actor Charlie Sheen by having his character, Charlie Harper, get struck by a fast-moving subway train. This paved the way for Ashton Kutcher’s Internet tycoon to join the series.

Glenn Rhee, ‘The Walking Dead’

Among numerous unexpected deaths, Glenn Rhee’s (Steven Yeun) passing left fans particularly stunned. As a long-time character in AMC’s drama, his sudden demise was profoundly affecting. In the seventh season premiere, Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), wielding his bat Lucille, took Glenn’s life. Interestingly, this on-screen death mirrored how Glenn perished in Robert Kirkman’s comic book series. The episode also depicted the gruesome end of Abraham Ford (Michael Cudlitz) at Negan’s hands.

Adriana La Cerva, ‘The Sopranos’

In the fifth season of “The Sopranos”, Adriana (Drea de Matteo), who had been hesitantly cooperating with the FBI for many years, ultimately confessed everything. However, this act led to a betrayal as her boyfriend Christopher (Michael Imperioli) exposed her to the family. Silvio Dante (Steven Van Zandt) carried out the unpleasant task, disappearing Adriana into the woods, from where she was never found again.

Ned Stark, ‘Game of Thrones’

For fans of “Game of Thrones” unaware of George R.R. Martin’s books, the beheading of lead character Ned Stark (played by Sean Bean) in the first season came as a shock, as the HBO fantasy series took an unexpected turn by eliminating its main protagonist early on.

Charlie Pace, ‘Lost’

In the third season, Dominic Monaghan’s character Charlie Pace performed an extraordinary act of self-sacrifice for his fellow castaways. As Desmond (Henry Ian Cusick) started having prophetic dreams about Charlie’s death, the former drug addict and aspiring musician chose to die by drowning to save the others. Later on, Charlie’s character was seen in flashbacks and as a guide to his friend Hurley (Jorge Garcia), reappearing also in the season finale.

Edie Britt, ‘Desperate Housewives’

Nicollette Sheridan’s character, Edie Britt, met an unfortunate end due to an accident involving a power line, following the revelation of her husband’s plot for retaliation. However, off-screen, there was equally intense drama surrounding her exit: The actress filed a lawsuit against ABC and the creator/executive producer of Desperate Housewives, Marc Cherry, alleging that she was let go after reporting his alleged abusive behavior towards both cast members and crew, as well as physical assaults on set. In October 2013, the court declined her attempt to reopen the trial.

Derek Shepherd, ‘Grey’s Anatomy’

In the final episode of season 11, the character played by Patrick Dempsey, who was Meredith Grey’s husband and longtime love interest (Derek Shepherd), was written off the show. However, he made a brief appearance in a dream sequence during the premiere of season 17, and returned for an additional episode. It was Dempsey’s choice to leave the long-running medical drama early, as he still had a year left on his contract. Executive producer James D. Parriott, who was brought back to oversee Dempsey’s exit, recalled in Lynette Rice’s book “How to Save a Life: The Inside Story of Grey’s Anatomy,” that there were issues with human resources. These problems weren’t related to sexual misconduct, but rather Dempsey behaved aggressively and intimidatingly on set, causing some cast members to suffer from PTSD as a result.

Mark Greene, ‘ER’

In 2008, the beloved character of Dr. Mark Greene, played by Anthony Edwards, was written off the show following his diagnosis with a severe type of brain cancer. This poignant farewell for the character occurred a year after he was initially diagnosed and provided an opportunity for him to marry Dr. Elizabeth Corday (portrayed by Alex Kingston) and witness the birth of their child.

Gary Shepherd, ‘Thirtysomething’

For eager fans anticipating whether Nancy (Patricia Wettig) would recover from her illness and go into remission, a piece of positive news from the hospital was quickly overshadowed when they learned that Peter Horton’s character, Gary, tragically passed away in a car accident.

Kenny McCormick, ‘South Park’

The phrase ‘Oh my God! They killed Kenny!’ became famous on the TV show ‘South Park,’ as they often found ways to kill off the character Kenny McCormick, from being bitten by Ozzy Osbourne to being beaten by spastic monkeys, across almost 80 episodes. However, in 2001, creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker decided to end Kenny’s life permanently, through a slow and painful death due to a muscular disease. At the time, Stone mentioned it was an ‘easy decision.’ He added that many people might not have noticed, but he had grown tired of the character. Soon after, Butters took over as Stan’s friend.

George O’Malley, ‘Grey’s Anatomy’

It wasn’t only me who felt a pang in their heart when T.R. Knight’s character, George O’Malley, couldn’t speak following a bus accident and instead identified himself by writing “007” on the hand of one of his friends on the ABC medical drama. His departure from the show came after Knight chose to terminate his contract with Grey’s Anatomy, due to disagreements about reduced screen time behind the scenes.

Prue Halliwell, ‘Charmed’

In the third season, character Prue Halliwell (played by Shannen Doherty), one of the three witch sisters, was killed off by Shax, an assassin serving the malevolent Source of All Evil. Reports suggested tension between Doherty and her co-star Alyssa Milano, although Doherty refuted these claims. Milano did acknowledge some challenging days on set. To replace Doherty, actress Rose McGowan was introduced as a long-lost Halliwell sister to continue the storyline.

Marissa Cooper, ‘The O.C.’

At the conclusion of season three on “The O.C.”, Mischa Barton’s character Marissa Cooper intended to move to Greece and live with her father. During this time, her vengeful and intoxicated ex-boyfriend Kevin Volchok (played by Cam Gigandet) caused a car accident as he drove them to the airport, resulting in a deadly crash. The creator of the series, Josh Schwartz, later explained that the decision to kill off Marissa was primarily creative: “It stemmed from our creative need to feel that this was her destiny and she embodied a tragic heroine. A significant part of the Ryan/Marissa storyline revolved around Ryan’s attempt to save her from a fate she couldn’t escape.

Rita Morgan, ‘Dexter’

Julie Benz’s character, Rita Morgan, had suffered the most as a victim throughout her life due to the serial killer with a moral code, Dexter Morgan (played by Michael C. Hall). Following her confrontation with John Lithgow’s Emmy-winning character, The Trinity Killer, Dexter discovered his wife, Deb (Jennifer Carpenter), dead in a blood-filled bathtub, with their son Harrison sitting nearby – mirroring an emotionally charged scene from Dexter’s childhood.

Henry Blake, ‘MAS*H’

Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake, portrayed by McLean Stevenson, experienced one of the saddest and emotionally charged deaths in TV history. As Stevenson decided to depart the series at the end of season three, it was agreed to utilize his character’s exit in a significant manner, according to creator Larry Gelbart. “M*A*S*H” wasn’t about everyone having a good time or happy endings; rather, it was about the harsh realities of war. Consequently, Blake receives his discharge, bids farewell, and departs by helicopter. In the final scene of the episode, Radar (Gary Burghoff) delivers the tragic news that Blake was killed when his plane was downed over the Sea of Japan. The character’s fate came as a shock to many, including much of the cast and crew.

Nicholas Brody, ‘Homeland’

In a memorable statement, one character aptly described Brody (played by Damian Lewis) as being remarkably resilient, much like a cockroach – that is, until the Showtime series dramatically ended his life in the third season finale by hanging him before an enraged crowd. Although Brody met his end as a hero, his actions during his turbulent three-year stint as a terrorist and informant left some questions about his motives unanswered. Yet, Brody wasn’t completely written out of the story: In the fourth season’s episode “Redux,” he made an appearance in Carrie’s (Claire Danes) drug-induced illusion.

Joel Miller, ‘The Last of Us’

In keeping with the narrative of the video game, the second episode of season two in the series “The Last of Us” saw Abby, portrayed by Kaitlyn Denver, deliver a tragic end to Joel, played by Pedro Pascal. For those new to the story via the HBO series, Joel’s death might have been unexpected, while hardcore gamers knew it was Abby’s mission to avenge her father’s demise by brutally killing Joel. For the cast, this turn of events was a moment they had long anticipated. As co-creator Craig Mazin shared with THR, “Pascal had been eagerly awaiting the scene because it had been such a looming aspect for so long. However, I also know that it was difficult for him and Bella [Ramsey] as they have developed such a deep bond on set.

2025-04-23 00:58