Max von Sydow’s career stretched from the 1950s through Hollywood blockbusters, giving him plenty of chances to die on screen. Working often with Ingmar Bergman, he delivered unforgettable performances in films like The Seventh Seal, where he literally plays chess with Death before meeting his end. Across decades of roles, those kinds of memorable exits became a defining thread in his filmography. | © 20th Century Studios
Christopher Plummer is forever tied to The Sound of Music, though that role was one of the rare ones where death wasn’t part of the story. Over his long career, he racked up 26 on-screen deaths, especially in crime and war films where survival chances were slim to begin with. Even his voice work wasn’t spared, his villain in Up meets a dramatic end, making for one of Pixar’s darker moments. | © 20th Century Studios
Jack Palance made a career out of playing villains, especially in Westerns, where his menacing presence made him the perfect bad guy. That meant his characters were usually destined for a showdown they wouldn’t survive. Even in lighter fare like City Slickers, he still wound up among his 28 on-screen deaths. | © 20th Century Studios
Mickey Rourke broke out in the ’80s, then made a major comeback with roles in Sin City, The Wrestler, and Iron Man 2. He often plays tough, troubled characters who fight hard but can’t always escape their fate. That mix has led to 28 on-screen deaths, making survival a rare outcome in his filmography. | © Searchlight Pictures
Michael Biehn is best remembered for his roles in The Terminator and Aliens, and neither of those characters made it out alive. Add in years of work across action and horror films, and his on-screen death count climbs to 29. With so many appearances in shootouts and monster battles, it’s almost expected that his characters rarely see the credits roll. | © Orion Pictures
Mark Hamill will always be remembered as Luke Skywalker, a role that even saw him die heroically in The Last Jedi. Beyond Star Wars, he popped up in plenty of low-budget horror films where his characters often met nasty ends. His prolific voice acting career adds to the total, too, with animated roles like the Joker racking up several on-screen deaths of their own. | © Lucasfilm
Bela Lugosi cemented his place in film history as Dracula in 1931, a role that ends with the Count finally being destroyed. That breakout part typecast him into horror throughout the ’30s and ’40s, where he often played monsters or villains. With so many tragic roles, he tallied 38 on-screen deaths, even adding Frankenstein’s monster to the list once. | © Universal Pictures
Eric Roberts has one of the busiest résumés in Hollywood, with more than 600 roles to his name. That sheer volume of work, combined with his knack for playing villains, has led to 38 on-screen deaths. In The Dark Knight, for instance, his mob boss Sal Maroni survives Batman breaking his legs, only to meet his end in a car crash thanks to Two-Face. | © Warner Bros. Pictures
Lance Henriksen has built a career out of memorable supporting roles, and plenty of them end with his character’s death – 41 times, to be exact. Fans know him from The Terminator and Aliens, where Bishop’s fate plays out across multiple films until he finally meets his end in Alien 3. Other standout deaths came in cult favorites like Near Dark, The Quick and the Dead, and fittingly, Dead Man. | © Anchor Bay Entertainment
Danny Trejo has appeared in over 400 projects, and with 41 on-screen deaths, his characters don’t have the best survival rate. He often plays tough villains or shady side characters, which usually puts a target on his back. One of his most memorable exits came in From Dusk Till Dawn, where his vampire bartender gets staked by a guy named Sex Machine. | © Miramax Films
Boris Karloff became a horror legend in the 1930s and 1940s, famously embodying monsters like Frankenstein’s creature and the Mummy, roles that rarely made it out alive. His knack for tragic villains and monsters naturally meant a high on-screen death count. Even outside horror, he met violent ends, like his gangster role in the 1932 Scarface, where he’s gunned down before the finale. | © Universal Pictures
John Hurt became almost as famous for his death scenes as for his performances, with 43 of his roughly 200 roles ending fatally. He excelled at playing fragile or tormented figures, seen in films like The Elephant Man, 1984, and Snowpiercer. And no list of movie deaths is complete without his chest-bursting end in Alien, still one of cinema’s most unforgettable moments. | © 20th Century Studios
Vincent Price built a legacy as horror’s most iconic leading man, with his unmistakable voice and presence elevating every film he touched. Across his career, his characters died nearly 50 times, often in twisted or tragic ways. Memorable endings came in House of Wax, The Fly, The Abominable Dr. Phibes, and even his final role as the Inventor in Edward Scissorhands. | © 20th Century Studios
Dennis Hopper racked up 48 on-screen deaths thanks to a career filled with intense, often villainous roles. His most infamous turn as Frank Booth in Blue Velvet ended with a violent demise, fitting for a character so unhinged. Even lighter projects weren’t safe, with his role in Super Mario Bros. also meeting a deadly end. | © Paramount Pictures
Christopher Lee holds the record with an unmatched 70 on-screen deaths. His long career as Dracula and other horror villains helped rack up that total, and even in later years, he kept the streak going. Fans saw him fall as Saruman in The Lord of the Rings and Count Dooku in Star Wars, cementing his reputation as cinema’s ultimate doomed character. | © Lucasfilm
Some actors just can’t catch a break on screen, no matter how big the role. These stars built careers full of unforgettable performances, and a surprising number of dramatic deaths.
