The prospect of picking just ten of the most satisfying villain deaths in movie history is a daunting one, but that doesn't mean the concept isn't undoubtedly worth the effort. It stands to reason - after all, good villains deserve a good death, otherwise the audience leaves feeling cheated - as with Bane's death, or in fact any of these iconic, but mishandled movie villain deaths - and the result is an imbalanced climax to their story. I still remember the countless films I saw with my father in the late '80s and early '90s, where right when the bad guy gets obliterated, my father would yell out some colorful metaphor to underline his own excitement at what he just witnessed. It really goes without saying that there are some true "feel good" death scenes for the heavy in a film. The real challenge here will be to not pull just from one franchise of films to fill out the bulk the top ten, but to keep a nice variety in play. So without further ado, let's immerse ourselves in this list of most satisfying bad guy kills in movie history...
10. Mr. Big's Head Explodes (Live and Let Die)
There's nothing more satisfying than a villain exploding due to swallowing an air pellet bullet, courtesy of James Bond no less. Mr Big was arguably one of the more charming of Bond villains, matching wits with 007 only to have his head explode when all was said and done. Such a pity! This list could very easily have been made up entirely from the excellent villain terminations from the James Bond films but that would be too easy. However, there's no more fitting a place to start than with this memorable and slightly disturbing scene from Live And Let Die. The memories of this one from childhood are particularly uncomfortable, and it was a particularly affecting way for anyone to die, particularly at the time. It's really too bad it had to end this way for Mr. Big - he was a formidable villain for Mr. Bond.