10 Crazy Movie Endings You Didn't Believe

8. Man Of Steel

Man Of Steel Neck Break Gif Gif
Warner Bros.

If the end of The Dark Knight Rises had us all scratching our heads, the final act of Man of Steel went one further by having one of pop culture's greatest shining lights of hope commit cold, clinical murder.

Of course, Man of Steel came off the back of Warner Bros. having huge success with Christopher Nolan's gritty and dark Dark Knight offerings, which in turn gave some people the idea that gritty and dark was the template needed for all superheroes - even the eternal positivity and optimism of Superman.

As a Superman origin story, Man of Steel was changed up a tad from what we've come to know and expect from the Big Blue Boy Scout's tale, yet large chunks of the movie worked really well. And in Henry Cavill, the film had a lead who was pitch-perfect for what's needed from Superman.

Unfortunately though, Man of Steel completely soured audiences by its shocking finale in which Supes murder's Zod by snapping his neck.

Granted, narratively-speaking, Superman was left with very little choice in the matter. The thing is, that scene and controversial neck snap simply didn't need to be written. By doing that with their greatest hero, the burgeoning DC Extended Universe was off to a hugely problematic start - and that shared realm of films never managed to recover.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer and Presenter, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund and Eli Roth to Kevin Smith and the Russo Brothers, to Kevin Conroy and Frank Miller, to Bret Hart and Sting, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, and Brian Flynn, to many, many more. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is a long-standing season ticket holder and an FSA Award-winner for his time co-hosting the Fearless in Devotion podcast.