15 Greatest Heroic Sacrifices In Comic Book Movies

7. Doctor Octopus - Spider-Man 2

There would have been few things that could have ruined Alfred Molina's exceptional performance as Doctor Otto Octavius in Spider-Man 2, but it's still a shame that he died at the end of the sequel and wasn't able to return for future chapters.

That said, his tragic personal arc - which saw him consumed (almost literally) by his work and responsible for the accidental death of his wife - ended perfectly with a final act of redemption when he saved the day right at the last.

Molina plays his Octavius with emotional depth that never fully strides into megalomania, and while he's clearly unhinged, you get flashes of his humanity that set up his face-turn in the end feel earned, rather than a manipulative switcheroo. And given the almost Frankenstein-like connotations of his character, it's fitting that he kills both his creation and himself as the culmination of his moral fable.