Thanks to shows like Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead, shocking character deaths have become par for the course on TV shows, particularly dramas and thrillers. But sometimes, a death comes completely out of left field and surprises viewers. Most recently, fans can count Ruth from Ozark and Eddie from Stranger Things among that list.
The deaths are sometimes so heartbreaking and jarring that fans have started campaigns to bring the characters back. Or else, they at the very least continue to talk about the death for months. It’s the mark of a great show, and a wonderful character portrayal, when this happens.
10 Rita Bennett – ‘Dexter’
The Trinity Killer was one of the most compelling villains on Dexter, and he became the most vicious when, out of revenge, he chose Dexter’s wife Rita to become his next victim. Along with the death itself being completely unexpected, the manner in which it was revealed was jarring.
Once Dexter realized Trinity had likely done something to Rita, he returned home to find her slumped over dead in a blood-filled bathtub, his son Harrison sitting in a pool of her blood on the floor. It was one of the most gut-wrenching scenes of the show, and arguably any show. The death is one that fans still talk about to this day.
9 Tara Knowles – ‘Sons Of Anarchy’
Fans didn’t see Tara’s death coming on Sons of Anarchy, but more so, they didn’t expect the manner in which she died to be so brutal and graphic, especially at the hands of her own mother-in-law. Hit in the head with an iron by Gemma, Jax’s mother than slams her head repeatedly into the sink and tries to drown her.
As if this wasn’t gruesome enough, Gemma then proceeds to stab Tara multiple times in the back of the head and neck with a barbecue fork. The death saw fans’ jaws agape. They couldn’t believe what they were watching nor couldn’t fathom how Jax might react or what he might do after finding her dead body.
8 Dexter Morgan – ‘Dexter: New Blood’
Eight years following the lackluster finale of Dexter, one of the worst TV series finales ever, the title character returned for the sequel series, set a decade later. While Dexter’s death was cathartic in a way, and finally gave the story a fitting end, fans didn’t want to believe it would happen.
Many suspected this might be how Dexter: New Blood would wrap things up, but with hopes for a second season, it wasn’t until the death finally happened that fans accepted the fact it was over. Nonetheless, the death was so heartbreaking that some wanted to believe he could somehow come back.
7 Eddie Munson – ‘Stranger Things’
For months following the fourth season finale of Stranger Things, fans hoped, prayed, lobbied, and spread the word across the Internet to save Eddie and somehow bring him back. With a show that deals with an alternate universe, it seems plausible that it could happen, after all.
Eddie grew to become a fan favorite character, and with one of the most epic musical scenes in the season, and arguably of the show, it didn’t seem possible that the character would meet his end. When he did, fans couldn’t believe it, or rather didn’t want to.
6 Ruth Langmore – ‘Ozark’
In early seasons of Ozark, fans might have seen the only path for Ruth to be that she would die in the end. However, the knife was twisted when Ruth finally redeemed herself. With one of the best character arcs, Ruth was finally on a positive path and about to do good things in her life, ready to leave her criminal past behind her.
But the rug was pulled under fans’ legs when Ruth was brutally shot and killed, right when she had finally found hope and happiness. It was a cruel ending. The death marked a sad turning point on the show right before its end, especially since Ruth’s life was one fans were just beginning to think might be spared.
5 Zeke Landon – ‘Manifest’
Manifest was so popular that after its cancellation on NBC, Netflix picked the show up for a fourth and final season. Fans expected carnage and death, but in the midseason finale, they were thrown for a loop. It wasn’t the sick and dying Cal who perished, but rather the empath Zeke.
Somehow acquiring the abilities to take on everyone’s pain and suffering, Zeke thought his purpose for being brought back from the brink of death was to help save others. But he realized in the end that it was to save only one special person, and he sacrificed himself to do it. It was an unexpected, heart-wrenching death that will have ripple effects through the final episodes.
4 Villanelle – ‘Killing Eve’
Fans were hoping for a happy ending for Villanelle and Eve on Killing Eve, but instead, they got precisely what the title of the series suggests. The hired killer and vicious murderer finally met karma face-to-face and was riddled with bullets by a sniper, her body sent into the Thames River.
The anguish and terror in Eve’s face spoke volumes, and perfectly identified how fans were feeling in that same moment. It was an unconventional love story that built up for several seasons, only for one character to be killed in the end. Fans were expecting a happy ending and didn’t see it coming.
3 Howard Hamlin – ‘Better Call Saul’
A show like Better Call Saul, prequel to Breaking Bad, is expected to be full of death. With Lalo Salamanca on the loose, it was inevitable. Some predicted it might have been Kim who died at his hands. When it comes to Howard, fans predicted a downfall for the man, who might have lost his career, moved away, or simply cut ties with Saul altogether.
Once Howard entered Jimmy and Kim’s home and Lalo appeared, fans knew what was coming. But up until that moment, it was never expected that Howard would be eliminated so swiftly and without reason.
2 Ned Stark – ‘Game Of Thrones’
As noted, Game of Thrones is one of the first series to introduce fans to shocking main character deaths that seemingly come out of nowhere. The first of such deaths was that of Ned Stark, who was shockingly executed. His head was later positioned on a pike for his family members, including his children, and all others to see. It sent a brutal message and set the stage for a major war to come.
Game of Thrones continued to deliver one shocking death after another, from Catelyn Tully to Joffrey Baratheon. They each became less shocking as time went on. But Ned’s, especially since he was played by big name actor Sean Bean, set shockwaves through TV screens.
1 Oberyn Martell – ‘Game Of Thrones’
Among the many unexpected deaths on Game of Thrones, another worth mentioning is Oberyn Martell. He became a fan favorite character: viewers loved his calm demeanor, confidence, and laissez-faire attitude. He was a noble man, deciding to take on Clegane in a fight to the death for Tyrion, believing he could win.
It’s not so much his death that came as a surprise, even though fans were hoping to see an underdog win. It was that Oberyn appeared to have the upper hand in the fight for much of it, even stabbing Clegane through his breastplate. But when Clegane emerged, knocked Oberyn’s teeth out and gouged out his eyeballs, fans winced in horror.