9 Incredibly Important Movie Characters Who Were Killed Off Screen

6. Doughboy - Boyz N The Hood

For those who don't remember or who have chosen to block it out of their memories, John Singleton's directorial debut was a bit of a bummer, to say the least. Depicting the less-than-ideal life of those unfortunate enough to live in South Central Los Angeles, Boyz N The Hood leaves no stone unturned in relating just how depressing life for young, disadvantaged black men can be.

And holy crap does Singleton do a good job of it. By the end of the film, death feels like an inevitability for these kids. Try as hard as you might to avoid gang life and walk the straight-and-narrow in this rough neighborhood, eventually you'll be forced into a situation that puts you on the Grim Reaper's doorstep.

That's what makes Ice Cube's character, Doughboy, such an integral part of the story. He fully embraces the violent lifestyle, brandishing his handgun to end arguments and refusing to back down from confrontation. So it's a solid gut-punch when Doughboy's brother Ricky, the fun-loving football player with a college scholarship, is the one gunned down in the film's final act.

Doughboy gets retribution for his brother's demise, however, killing the three guys responsible for the drive-by in brutal fashion. But just to prove that the cycle of gang violence is unending, Singleton makes sure to let us know, in the epilogue, that Doughboy was murdered two weeks later. In a rare instance of offscreen death proving effective, his death manages to hit hard even in a caption.