It’s not uncommon to see deaths in superhero movies, but that doesn’t make them any less hurtful. We are pretty used to bad guys meeting their demise (that’s what everyone wants to see, actually), but when a superhero meets his end it’s a whole different story. It means his or hers whole arc ends and there will be no more adventures, plot twists, and love stories with that character. Not to mention the equally devastating deaths of human heroes without superpowers! Here are 9 superhero movie deaths we still can’t get over.
Groot (Guardians of the Galaxy)
How could a character with only one line gain so much love? Yet this is exactly what happened with Groot, who could only utter ‘I am Groot’, but turned out to be one of the most charismatic and caring characters we’ve ever seen. He sacrificed his life to save the whole team in the end of the movie, when they were crash-landing. He protected them with his own tree-body!
Spider-Man (Avengers: Infinity War)
This young Spidey made everyone fall in love with him, the minute we first saw him in the movies. Seeing him literally turn into dust was one of the hardest things ever! Avengers: Infinity War was a real tear-jerker, killing off dozens of superheroes we all came to love so much. Still, watching Tony holding young Spider-Man in his arms was just too much!
Agent Coulson (The Avengers)
Agent Coulson met a horrible death at the hands of Loki, the God of Mischief, in The Avengers movie. He was aiming his powerful weapon at Loki, but the trickster was behind him all along, creating an illusion in front of the agent. Loki stabbed Agent Coulson from behind and the man died a little after Fury arrived to help. This was the defining moment that brought the whole team – Captain America, Black Widow, Thor, Hulk, Hawkeye, and Iron Man together as they now had something to avenge for.
Steve Trevor (Wonder Woman)
The end of Wonder Woman was a real tear-jerker as we were watching Steve Trevor say his good-byes to Diana who was still unconscious after a hard fight. He whispered “I love you” and rushed to the plane that was about to blow up. He managed to get up into air and died along with the blasted plane. Diana was hurt and furious, which helped her unleash her true powers and take down Ares. But at what cost!
Yondu (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2)
When we first saw Yondu he seemed like another bad guy, who had some history with Peter Quill, but chose to work against him, rather than help him save the galaxy and whatnot. In the second movie we’ve learnt that Yondu was a real father figure to Peter and although he initially kidnapped him to give to Ego, he never handed the boy and raised him to be a space adventurer. He loved him after all! Yondu sacrificed his life for Peter after Ego’s death when the two ended up in open space with only one space suite.
Gwen Stacy (The Amazing Spider-Man 2)
You may or may not like Marc Webb’s reboot of the classic Spider-Man story, but I think we can all agree that the chemistry between Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy was out of this world. They were such a perfect match! That’s why watching Spider-Man failing miserably to save the life of the person he cared most of all hurt so much. In the end of the movie his beloved woman died, leaving all the viewers devastated.
Thanos (Avengers: Endgame)
This movie was so painful to watch – a whole army of superheroes got turned into dust! Still, one of the most powerful moments in the movie is the demise of Thanos himself. As he finally won and got the Infinity Gauntlet embedded with six Gems, he snapped his fingers in the final act of destruction, only to see nothing happen. Then it was the Iron Man’s turn to snap fingers – it turned out the Gems were already in his hand. Thanos was devastated, watching solemnly as his huge army turned into dust in a blink of an eye, until he himself dissolved into thin air.
Black Widow (Avengers: Endgame)
Of all the characters that met their end in the last two Avengers movies, Black Widow’s death hit fans the most. Despite her wrongdoings in the past, she had a heart of gold and helped everyone in need. When it was time to choose who would survive and go for the Soul Stone – she or Hawkeye – she didn’t hesitate for a moment. Natasha gave her life so Hawkeye could meet his family once again!
Jean Grey (X-Men: The Last Stand)
It turns out Jean Grey had a darker alter-ego supressed inside her mind by Professor Xavier. Once things got heated, Phoenix revealed herself, boasting powers that could destroy everything. In the end of the movie, when she and Magneto storm Alcatraz to release the mutants that are held there, Phoenix gets out of control, wreaking havoc everywhere. Logan is the only person who can withstand her powers and come close enough for a kill. Just when he reaches her, Jean Grey resurfaces one last time, begging to save her and everyone else by taking her life. Despite loving her, Logan stabs Jean Grey in the final act of mercy.
