10 More Movie Villains Killed By Characters Nobody Expected
7. Karl - Die Hard
Though Die Hard's ultimate antagonist, the unforgettable Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman), is of course dropped from the top of Nakatomi Plaza by John McClane (Bruce Willis), John still had one other foe to deal with - one of Gruber's inexplicably still-alive henchmen, Karl (Alexander Godunov).
As John and his estranged wife Holly (Bonnie Bedelia) embrace on the ground, Karl emerges out of the Plaza and prepares to fire his gun at the pair, only to be suddenly blown away by an initially unseen gunman.
Given that John is shown to be taking cover on the floor with Holly, we know it isn't him, but as the camera focuses on the smoking gun, we see that it's John's new pal, Sgt. Al Powell (Reginald VelJohnson).
It's framed as something of a redemptive moment for Al, who earlier in the film reveals that he's traumatised following an incident where he accidentally shot and killed a kid holding a toy gun.
Granted, modern audiences likely view Al's "redemption" a little differently, but all the same, it was still a surprise to see John's moral support character be the one to guarantee his happy ending - until the sequel, anyway.