10 Movie Characters Who Were Killed Off Way Too Soon

Whether it's in an action or horror film where it's expected to happen multiple times, or a comedy where it's a little more surprising, characters die in movies all the time, and if done right, it can lead to an incredibly powerful moment.

Saying goodbye to these characters can, of course, be difficult at the best of times, particularly when a strong connection is made, even when it's the right time to do it. Was there a dry eye in the house when Tony Stark died? No, but it's hard to argue that it wasn't his time to go.

On the other side of that coin are those movie characters that are killed off way too soon. There may be a shocking or poignant moment to come from it, but that doesn't necessarily mean it was the right decision.

This list is full of such characters that, whether killed off within moments, halfway through a film, or even in the second chapter of a franchise now nearing double digits, could have and should have played a much bigger part in things. 

As a legacy sequel, coming 29 years after the original, Happy Gilmore 2 offered little more than what anyone could have expected. The story of Happy (Adam Sandler) learning to play golf was largely similar to the original, the same jokes were made, and, of course, Happy won in the end.

One of the only genuinely surprising moments came when Happy's wife, Virginia (Julie Bowen), was killed off literally three minutes into the film. Happy sliced a shot, it sailed towards Virginia, and in the next scene, he was talking about her funeral.

Both Virginia herself and her relationship with Happy were crucial aspects to the original movie, and the fact that Julie Bowen was returning at all was huge for the sequel. To kill her off so soon not only seems like an odd decision, but it feels completely unnecessary, as the film robbed itself of a great character and a great actor.

Bowen and director Kyle Newacheck may have defended the decision, with the former saying that Happy shouldn't be happy, and the latter going so far as to say that without the death there wouldn't be a story, but this isn't true. Happy fighting to get his daughter into an expensive dance school would have absolutely worked with Virginia still alive.