Terrible mistakes in killing off a character in a tv show or film

[caj]

What are some examples where they made a terrible mistake in killing off a character in a tv show or film?

[Synestra]

I never watched The 100, but the amount of backlash that show got for killing Lexa is well known even outside of its fandom. It was all over the internet and came up in numerous panels at various Cons.

On that same note, I want to say Tara in Buffy the Vampire Slayer... her death does fit under the "Bury your Gays" trope too, but I understood the reasoning was to culminate Willow's dark story line. The writers also wanted to bring her back, but just couldn't due to the actress not being available.

I'd probably also say Cottonmouth on Luke Cage. I know his death paved the way for Mariah's turn into a villain in Season 2, but Mahershala Ali's performance was just so good.

[Gaastra]

Alien 3--They still get hate from it.

Pacific rim 2-When are studios going to learn killing your main heroes off "between films" only ticks the fans off.

Gijoe 2--Gijoe fans rejected the film refusing to see it after they kill everyone off including duke and bragged about in the trailer. Good job guys. No shock the toys bombed. no kidding. You ticked your fanbase off. What did you think was going to happen?

Not a death but the a-team movie crushed the van and was really dumb and put it in the trailer. Many fans see the van as part of the team and it ticked them off. The movie bombed. Should not have done that.

[caj]

Definitely Bobby Ewing on Dallas.

It was such a bad decision that TPTB decided to wipe out an entire season of the show ("it was all Pam's dream") in order to get the character back on the show.

While the season where he came back was a great one, viewers were insulted by the ridiculous idea and the ratings dropped.

[ChrisIII]

Alien 3--They still get hate from it.

Pacific rim 2-When are studios going to learn killing your main heroes off "between films" only ticks the fans off.

Gijoe 2--Gijoe fans rejected the film refusing to see it after they kill everyone off including duke and bragged about in the trailer. Good job guys. No shock the toys bombed. no kidding. You ticked your fanbase off. What did you think was going to happen?

Not a death but the a-team movie crushed the van and was really dumb and put it in the trailer. Many fans see the van as part of the team and it ticked them off. The movie bombed. Should not have done that.

I don't think they killed off the main character from the first Pacific Rim, they just kind of had him vanish (They did however almost kill him off). However they did kill Mako off and made Newton the bad guy...

[AndrewCrossett]

Wash in the Serenity movie.

His death really seemed like checking the "main character death" box. Joss Whedon's biggest storytelling flaw is his overuse of the "beloved character snuffs it" trope to establish emotional resonance. There are other ways to do it. I think he himself admitted killing Wash might have been a mistake. Unfortunately it's not the Buffyverse where dead characters can be brought back.

[titanfan]

I don't think they killed off the main character from the first Pacific Rim, they just kind of had him vanish (They did however almost kill him off). However they did kill Mako off and made Newton the bad guy...

I read the Pacific Rim one and assumed they were talking about Mako lol.

Laurel on Arrow. Even though they eventually created the excellent Black Siren character, I think them killing off Laurel changed the show forever and not for the better.

George on Grey's Anatomy.

With Bobby on Dallas, how did they not write his original death open ended? That was the biggest crime.

In GI Joe 2, they edited out the scene where they show the list of the dead names that included the Season 1 cast, some of them were supposed to be brought back if there was ever a 3rd...

[Frontier]

Laurel on Arrow. Even though they eventually created the excellent Black Siren character, I think them killing off Laurel changed the show forever and not for the better.

Yeah, I think Laurel's death and the fallout turned a lot of people off Arrow.

[Synestra]

Wash in the Serenity movie.

His death really seemed like checking the "main character death" box. Joss Whedon's biggest storytelling flaw is his overuse of the "beloved character snuffs it" trope to establish emotional resonance. There are other ways to do it. I think he himself admitted killing Wash might have been a mistake. Unfortunately it's not the Buffyverse where dead characters can be brought back.

Ah, I knew there was one I was forgetting (which is ironic since I mentioned a death from Buffy in my first post in this thread).

Wash's death definitely pissed off a lot of Firefly fans.

[Jokerz79]

Yeah, I think Laurel's death and the fallout turned a lot of people off Arrow.

Given the show had issues with writing for Laurel they could had gone forward undamaged by her death IMO especially given the introduction of Dinah Drake but making Laurel's last moments giving Olicity her blessing was just the worst and the major issue making what should had been Laurel's goodbye into a victory to one Fan base again JMO.

[TriggerWarning]

I never watched The 100, but the amount of backlash that show got for killing Lexa is well known even outside of its fandom. It was all over the internet and came up in numerous panels at various Cons.

I do watch The 100, its a much better show than one would expect given it was adapated from YA books. The whole thing over Lexa was so ridiculous. Lexa's role on The 100 was only a recurring character that only appeared on a handful of episodes each year. The actress, Alicia Debnam-Carey, had just landed one of the lead roles on Fear the Walking Dead which was a huge step up for her pay and profile wise. They tried to make it work with her being on both shows and were able to for season 1 of FtWD as it was short and filmed at a different time than The 100. But season 2 of FtWD and whatever season it was of The 100 at the time (three or four I think) were going to be filmed at the same time. The shows are filmed several thousands miles apart and in different countries so it became increasingly impossible for Debnam-Carey to be in both shows and of course she is going to choose FtWD since its such a bigger show with an obviously better paycheck and higher profile for her. Which left The 100 in a bind as the nature of her role and character isn't one where they could write her out by having her go visit a distant family member or put her in a coma. It was death or recast her character. The FtWD dead show runners were actually extremely gracious in re-arranging their shooting schedules to allow Debnam-Carey to be available long enough to give Lexa a proper sendoff and then to later return during the season finale in a special appearance as a ghost vision in Clarke's head (Clarke was Lexa's girlfriend). Meanwhile Fear the Walking Dead is still going and Debnam-Carey is one of only two characters still left from season one and as such is one of the two main characters on the show so I'd say she made the right career choice.

Furthermore, this was hardly the only gay relationship on The 100. There is a front and center gay male relationship and Clarke has had flings with other girls since Lexa so they aren't hiding any sort of LGBT stuff.

[TriggerWarning]

Laurel on Arrow. Even though they eventually created the excellent Black Siren character, I think them killing off Laurel changed the show forever and not for the better.

I would disagree with this completely. Laurel was the worst character on Arrow and its not even close. Black Siren is a far more interesting character. I don't think some of the decisions made in the show in regards to her character are buyable, no way does Dinah ever forgive her and I don't see Quentin accepting her as his daughter the way he did, but she is still better than Laurel.

[Tofali]

Sergeant James Doakes in Dexter. Who clearly was a bad cop but compared to Dexter i felt the story needed someone to disrupt his life. After his death for me that show lost a lot of tension and it just felt like a love letter to the compulsions of a neighbourhood serial killer.

[caj]

Shane in The Walking Dead.

I didn't like the decision to have him go off the deep end and try to kill Rick. Rick was his best friend. Sure there was jealousy, but Shane was a fascinating character who would've been great going up against The Governor or Negan.

[KNIGHT OF THE LAKE]

Sergeant James Doakes in Dexter. Who clearly was a bad cop but compared to Dexter i felt the story needed someone to disrupt his life. After his death for me that show lost a lot of tension and it just felt like a love letter to the compulsions of a neighbourhood serial killer.

I’ll defend this a bit. Doakes died when he should have. His character was a big thorn in the protagonists side in season 1 and in season 2 he finally nailed him and had him dead to rights and got swerved and it was a huge culmination of his plot line. If he survived, he would have looked just as incompetent as every other cop on Dexter. Dexter as a show just really should have ended a lot sooner. It was downhill after Trinity. Have the cops onto him in season 5 and it end with his secret coming out and Deb offing him