10 Comic Book Movie Deaths That Should Never Have Happened
It's okay to kill characters in comics but it doesn't always work on the big screen.
Comic book movies have proven to be super popular with film fans over the years and, as 2018 goes on, we can expect more records to be broken. Black Panther has already set the standard, smashing box office landmarks and winning an army of fans, and with Avengers: Infinity War, Antman And The Wasp and Aquaman all to come, we should be in for quite a year.
But it hasn't all been plain-sailing. Sometimes, certain decisions in comic book movies leave fans scratching their heads, and nowhere is that more telling than with character deaths.
Sure, it can be satisfying when an individual meets a demise worthy of their character but, whether they're a central figure or mere side character, many decisions to give someone the chop can leave you hating the people with power for giving them such an abysmal end. In those cases, what should be emotionally loaded moments end up being no more than wasted opportunities.
Some deaths are handled majestically, such as Gwen Stacey’s in the Amazing Spider-Man 2 and Logan’s in the film of the same name. Others, though, can make you think a massive mistake has been made…
10. Uncle Ben - The Amazing Spider-Man
Hopes were high when The Amazing Spider-Man came out and hit screens back in the summer of 2012. There was a new protagonist, new Spidey suit and countless new villains to get those who had grown up with the Spider-Man films starring Tobey Maguire to get excited about. In Andrew Garfield they had a Peter Parker younger and cooler than before, offering a completely different take on the webslinger.
And then director Marc Webb made the disappointing decision to rehash something that had been done before. Peter was the same, still living with his aunt and uncle, struggling with the girls and getting pushed around by the local bully, Flash Thompson. At least with the MCU’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, Uncle Ben was already gone and, consequently, they were able to offer something fresher than what had come before.
Martin Sheen does his best but his death falls flat, with its uncanny resemblance to the same story released in the original Spider-Man film in 2002 failing to get an emotive response from a fan base who, ultimately, would turn against it. Webb’s decision was all so unnecessary because Ben Parker’s death is barely mentioned for the rest of the movie, with Peter instead focusing his efforts on his relationship with Gwen Stacey and stopping Doctor Connors from destroying New York City as the Lizard.
It serves no purpose and should never have been included. The Amazing Spider-Man’s decision to repeat the same first chapter of Sam Raimi’s trilogy meant it was a film that ultimately failed to meet expectations, with its sequel faring little better when released two years later.