Killing off

"kill off" redirects here. For the film, seeThe Kill-Off.For the novel, seeThe Kill-Off (novel).

Thekilling offof a character is a device infiction,whereby a character dies, but the story continues. The term, frequently applied totelevision,film,video game,anime,mangaand chronological series, often denotes an untimely or unexpected death motivated by factors beyond the storyline.

In productions featuring actors, the unwillingness or inability of an actor to continue with the production for financial or other reasons (including illness, death, or producers' unwillingness to retain an actor) may lead to that character being "killed off" or phased out from the storyline in another way.

Examples

Literature

"The Final Problem",an 1893 story byArthur Conan Doyle,ends withSherlock Holmesplunging to his death at theReichenbach Falls,in struggle with his arch enemyProfessor Moriarty.There is ample evidence that Doyle fully intended this to be Holmes' definite and final end. Doyle wanted to write no more Sherlock Holmes stories, feeling that they were distracting him from more serious literary efforts and that "killing off" Holmes was the only way of getting his career back on track. "I must save my mind for better things," he wrote to his mother, "even if it means I must bury my pocketbook with him." Conan Doyle sought to sweeten the pill by letting Holmes go in a blaze of glory, having him rid the world of a criminal so powerful and dangerous that any further task would be trivial in comparison; indeed, Holmes says as much in the story. However, the Holmes fans refused to be mollified, continually protesting and pressuring Doyle until he brought their hero back to life.

Doyle did permanently kill offMary Morstan,who happily marriedDoctor Watsonat the end ofThe Sign of Four,but who apparently became inconvenient for later Sherlock Holmes stories. Her death – never described directly, but only mentioned in passing inThe Adventure of the Norwood Builder– allowed Watson to resume living with Holmes on Baker Street and set off with him for a new adventure at a moment's notice. Fans did not protest her end, and Doyle never brought her back.

Alexander DumaswroteThe Three Musketeerswhich proved highly successful, and added several sequels. However, the final one,The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later,ends with the death of all the Musketeers, one by one – making clear to readers that he would write no more of them.

In 1956,Ian Flemingwas becoming disenchanted with hisJames Bondbooksand wrote to his friend, the American authorRaymond Chandler:"My muse is in a very bad way... I am getting fed up with Bond and it has been very difficult to make him go through his tawdry tricks."In April 1956, Fleming re-wrote the final chapter ofFrom Russia, with Love,to make the book end withRosa Klebbpoisoning Bond and him falling unconscious to the floor - which allowed Fleming, had he wanted to, to announce that that was Bond's end and that there would be no further Bond books. However, Fleming later changed his mind; in the beginning ofDr. Noit is recounted that Bond recovered from the poisoning, and he went on to many more adventures.

Science fictionwriterHarry Turtledovehas produced many series ofAlternative Historydepicting alternate versions of various wars (the American Civil War, The First and Second World Wars, the Korean War etc.). Such Turtledove books typically include a large cast of alternating point of view characters, drawn from both sides of the conflict, whose lives continually interweave with each other in the book's plot. In such books, Turtledove is in the frequent habit of suddenly killing off one or more of his characters, often a sympathetic one to whom readers were attracted. In some of these cases, a soldier character is depicted as getting unscathed through very heavy fighting and then getting killed in a trivial skirmish or incident – which does happen in real war but rarely in fictional depictions.

Television

Because of the episodic format of television shows, audience feedback and approval is often a factor in whether or not a character is killed off.Damon Lindelof,executive producer ofLost,has been quoted as saying that despite the widespread hate forNikki and Paulo,"We had a plan when we introduced them, and we didn't get to fully execute that plan. But when the plan is executed, [they] will be iconic characters on the show."In an example of a character being killed off as a result of an actor leaving the show,Raymond Cruz's characterTuco SalamancaonBreaking Badwas killed off because he found the part too difficult to play.Characters may be killed off when the actors die, while in some cases the death of an actor results in a new actor being selected to take over the role.John Ritter's character in8 Simple Ruleswas written to have died off screen after Ritter himself died during taping of the show.

Mr. Hooperof the PBS Kids show,Sesame Street,is another example of a character "killed off." When actorWill Leedied on December 7, 1982, the staff of Children's Television Workshop were thinking of recasting Mr. Hooper, or quietly having the character retire from the show. Instead, they made a special tribute episode where humans explained toBig Birdthat Mr. Hooper had died and told Big Bird about the irreversibility of death. The episode aired on November 24, 1983.

ThePalestinianchildren's characterFarfur(aMickey Mouselookalike) is an example of a character "killed off" for political reasons in 2007. After the program received criticism from some government ministers in both Palestine andIsrael,as well as from theDisney family,for espousing anti-Israeli and antisemitic sentiments, the Farfur character was killed off. Even his death, at the hands of an "Israeli agent", making Farfur a "martyr", was similarly politicised.

The Simpsons,a show which often does not abide by continuity, has killed off several characters for different reasons: most notably,Maude Flanderswas killed on-screen, due to a contract dispute with her voice actor,Maggie Roswell.Edna Krabappeldied off-screen after the death of her late voice artistMarcia Wallaceon October 25, 2013.

Planterskilled off its century-old mascotMr. Peanutin an advertising campaign leading up toSuper Bowl LIV,only to resurrect him as a baby during a commercial during that game.

When racing driverPerry McCarthyleft the television showTop Gear,his character,The Stig,was 'killed off' in a stunt involving driving aJaguaroff an aircraft carrier; he was replaced with a similar but white-suited version of the same character.

After the death ofDan Blockerin 1972,Bonanzaended after its 14th season in 1973 without his character Hoss Cartwright. The result of having his character killed off did not occur until the TV film adaptationBonanza: The Next Generationin 1988.

In theDinosaurs'infamous finale "Changing Nature",all the dinosaur characters are killed off by the coming ofIce age,surprising the audience.Michael Jacobsstated that "We certainly wanted to make the episode to be educational to the audience", and as people knew dinosaurs were no longer alive, "The show would end by completing the metaphor and showing that extinction."

Film

Doc Hudson,from the 2006 Pixar filmCars,is killed off from the subsequentCarsseriesdue to his actor,Paul Newman,dying oflung cancerin 2008.John Lasseterincluded the tribute to the character inCars 3.

In the 1998 sequelBlues Brothers 2000,John Belushi's character, Jake Blues, is killed off before the event of this film, as Belushi had died ofcombined drug intoxicationin 1982.Jim Belushiwas originally set to replace his brother's character as Brother Zee Blues, but was cut due to being under the contract with ABC while casting for the TV seriesTotal Security.Prior to the sequel, an animated series based onthe 1980 filmwas in the works and was scheduled to air in 1997.Peter Aykroydand Jim Belushi were going to replace the original actors.Unfortunately, it was canceled due to the original actors forThe Blues Brothersare deemed irreplaceable.John Landis,the director of the 1980 film and its sequel, stated that further reappearance of Jake Blues was denied.

Filmationkilled offThe Wicked Queenin theSnow WhitesequelHappily Ever Afterdue to avoiding resemblance fromthe 1937 movieafter facing legal issues withThe Walt Disney Companyfrom the previous filmPinocchio and the Emperor of the Night.The gusty image of the deceased Queen's face is briefly seen when the Magic Mirror (with a more comical design) show her evil brother, Lord Maliss (who would take the role as the main antagonist), her whereabouts then got freaked out by it.

Some characters after the deaths of their actors are not killed off, but are forced to be phased out, like Anne-Marie fromAll Dogs Go to Heavenwho could not be recast in subsequent films after the murder ofJudith Barsiin 1988.Her character is replaced by Davidafterwards,as well as pushing the timeline further in the present day.

Comics

Main article:Comic book death

Death is a frequently used dramatic device in comic book fiction, and in particularsuperhero fiction.Unlike stories in television or film, character deaths are rarely by unforeseen behind-the-scenes events, as there is no analogous situation to having actors portraying characters. Instead, characters are typically killed off as part of the story or occasionally by editorial mandate to generate publicity for a title. Teasers may hint at characters' deaths for an extended period.A number of factors often mean that the changes are not permanent.

Extremely long print runs make the popularity of characters (with writers and fans) and occasionally rights issues for using the character in licensed adaptations often make characters often be brought back to life by later writers. That can happen either as a depiction of their literal resurrection or byretcon,a revision that changes earlier continuity and establishes the character not to have died in the first place. This phenomenon is known as thecomic book death.Killing off a main character such asSuperman,BatmanorCaptain Americacan often lead to an uptick in publicity for a comic book and high sales for the story in which they are inevitably brought back to life.

Some writers have also criticized the trend for killing off supporting characters, particularly when female characters are killed off brutally to elicit a strong reaction in the male protagonist. This is known as theWomen in Refrigeratorstrope. Specifically, theDeath of Gwen Stacy,long-time girlfriend ofSpider-Man,caused great shock and long-lasting controversy among fans, deeply shocking the American comic book community.Previously, it had been unthinkable to kill off such an important character—the girlfriend of a protagonist with a large fanbase. Generally, a superhero did not fail so disastrously unless it was part of their origin story. This story arc has been proposed as a marker of beginning of the end of theSilver Age of Comic Books,and the beginning of the darker, grittierBronze Age.The subsequent tendency for the wives and girlfriends of male superheroes to meet grim fates was referred to as "The Gwen Stacy Syndrome" by theComics Buyer's Guide.

Charlotte Braun, a character in the comic stripPeanuts,was killed off less than a year after being introduced afterCharles Schulzreceived negative feedback about her. A letter to one of the child critics who had called for Braun's removal included a warning that the critics would bear the responsibility for the "death of an innocent child" and depicted Braun with an axe in her head.Braun's death was never explicitly addressed in officially publishedPeanutsmedia.

LGBTQ characters

Main article:Bury your gays

LGBT activists and fans have long criticized the tendency in U.S. media for LGBT characters, especially queer women, to be killed off or otherwise meet an unhappy fate more often than straight characters. This trope is known colloquially as "bury your gays" or "dead lesbian syndrome".In recent years, some LGBT showrunners and writers have made steps to avert this, such asND StevensonwithShe-Ra and the Princesses of Power.

See also

• Spin off