It is not too uncommon for belovedtelevision characters to shockingly diebefore their shows reach their conclusions. After all, even the most well-liked people on TV can be killed off for any number of reasons, ranging all the way from matters related to their individual story arc to the actor no longer wishing to be part of the show.In rare cases, though, popular characters actually die before their shows even begin.Even though they are dead these charactersstill manage to have a massive impact on their series.
Whetherthey appear as memories, as ghosts, or as something in between, these fascinating characters continue to influence the other people and events that occur within the series from beyond the grave. This is typically a carefully-planned decision by the writers, with the deaths of the characters often playing a vital role in setting the entire plot of the series in motion. Regardless of how they died, these characters have a persistent, lasting influence on their TV shows, and have managed to become popular even in the wake of their tragic ends.
10Michael “Mikey” Berzatto
The Bear / Played By Jon Bernthal
The massively acclaimedFX series,The Bear, would not even exist without the off-screen death of Michael"Mikey" Berzatto before the series even began. The popular comedy-drama show follows the story of a prestigious chef, Carmy, who must return to his humble Chicago home to take over his family’s struggling restaurant following the sudden death of his brother, Mikey.
Why Carmy Skipped Mikey’s Funeral In The Bear
The Bear season 3 has revealed that Carmy didn’t go to Mikey’s funeral – and it also revealed why he skipped his brother’s memorial service.
Throughout the series, it is clear thatMikey’s death had a massive impact on Carmy, although his ambition often prevents him from fully processing it. Mikey makes appearances in several episodes ofThe Bearvia flashbacks to moments shared between him and various members of the Berzatto family.
Cast
In the show’s second season,Jon Bernthal even won a Primetime Emmy Awardfor his portrayal of Mikey. His undeniable charisma, love for his family, and emotional complexity make Mikey a compelling character, even with his limited screen time. Even when he is not shown, his impact on the series is always felt by other characters and the audience alike.
9Bill and Frank
The Last of Us / Played By Nick Offerman & Murray Bartlett
Although HBO’s acclaimed drama series,The Last of Us, is based on a video game, part of the story that resonated the most with viewers was a part that drastically differed from the game.The third episode of the series, “Long, Long Time,“features Bill, an isolated survivalist living in the post-apocalyptic version of America.
The episode received immense critical acclaim, with Nick Offerman winning an Emmy for his portrayal of Bill, and Murray Bartlett also being nominated for playing Frank.
After years alone,Bill meets a fellow survivor named Frank, sparking a tender, emotional love story between the two new characters. After many years together, Frank falls ill, and Bill, not wanting to live without him, willingly chooses to die by Frank’s side.The episode received immense critical acclaim, with Nick Offerman winning an Emmy for his portrayal of Bill, and Murray Bartlett also being nominated for playing Frank.
The Last Of Us
The Last of Us is a post-apocalyptic drama series set two decades after a global catastrophe. It follows Joel, a seasoned survivor, who is tasked with escorting Ellie, a teenage girl, across a desolated United States, transforming into a harrowing journey of survival and companionship.
Unfortunately, the tragic (albeit beautiful) end to their story meant that the pair would appear only in this episode. Their impact continues to be felt for the remainder of the series, however, asBill left all of his remaining supplies (including his truck) for Joelto take while he journeys across the country with Ellie. Bill and Frank’s story provides a touching reminder that love can thrive even in the most dire of circumstances.
8Vision
WandaVision / Played By Paul Bettany
The Disney+ original series,WandaVisionkept fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe on the edge of their seats for the show’s entire run in early 2021. As the name suggests,the mystery-driven miniseries features Wanda Maximoff and Vision, two popular characters from various MCU films. Of course, fans were bound to remember one key detail: Vision died inAvengers: Infinity War, which occurred years before the start ofWandaVision.
WandaVision
WandaVision, the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s first TV show on Disney+, first aired in 2021. The series kicked off the MCU’s Phase 4 and brought back Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff, aka the Scarlet Witch, and Paul Bettany as Vision. WandaVision strayed away from Marvel’s typical formula, this time formatting itself more like a classic sitcom as Wanda struggles to cope with the death of Vision.
Knowing that the creators of the show wouldn’t have just forgotten about this, viewers tuned in each week to solve the mystery of how Vision could be alive and well. Played by Paul Bettany, Vision greatly contributed to the overall quality ofWandaVision. For one, the mere presence of the character effectively added to the gripping mystery element of the show, withfans dying to discover the explanation of how he could be alive again.
Additionally, the effortless charm, humor, and wisdom of the character made him a popular addition to the MCU in multiple films, and his role inWandaVisionwas no different. The notion that he died before the series began simply madeWandaVisionall the more exciting.
7Daniel Jackson
Reservation Dogs / Played By Dalton Cramer
Even with only a handful of brief appearances throughout the show’s three-season run, Daniel Jackson is the driving force behind the entire story ofReservation Dogs.This FX comedy-drama series exploresthe complex lives of four Indigenous friendsliving as part of the Muscogee Nation in Oklahoma. Prior to the beginning of the series, their other friend, Daniel, tragically passed away.
Reservation Dogshas a Rotten Tomatoes critics' score of 99%.
Much of the show follows the friends' efforts to gather enough money to leave the reservation and travel to California, as a tribute to Daniel’s dream. WhileReservation Dogscertainly has comedic elements,the backstory surrounding Daniel adds a consistent emotional undertone, giving the series an impressive level of depth.
Reservation Dogs
Reservation Dogs is a Hulu original series about teenage Native American friends who grow up together on a reservation in Oklahoma. The series stars D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Paulina Alexis, Lane Factor, and Devery Jacobs as the four friends and was created by Sterlin Harjo and Thor: Love and Thunder director Taika Waititi.
Practically everythingthe main characters do throughout the showis driven by their love of Daniel, and their determination to pay their respects to his dream in the most fitting way they can. The series serves as a powerful reminder that people can continue to have a lasting impact on the world well after their deaths, and that no life is insignificant.
6Jack Pearson
This Is Us / Played By Milo Ventimiglia
The NBC drama series,This Is Us, highlights the stories of the various members of the Pearson family across multiple generations and time periods. Tragically, not every member of the family is alive in each time period.Jack Pearson, the father of main characters Kevin, Kate, and Randall, was killed in a firemany years before the present-day storylines.
Nevertheless, Jack remains a prominent character throughout the series, starring in many episodes set primarily in the past. Although he is a prominent character for most of the show’s six-season run,This Is Usmakes it clear almost immediately that Jack is no longer alive.
This Is Us
This Is Us chronicles the Pearson family across the decades: from Jack (Milo Ventimiglia) and Rebecca (Mandy Moore) as young parents in the 1980s to their 37-year-old kids, Kevin (Justin Hartley), Kate (Chrissy Metz) and Randall (Sterling K. Brown) searching for love and fulfillment in the present day. This grounded, life-affirming dramedy reveals how the tiniest events in our lives impact who people become and how the connections people share with each other can transcend time, distance, and even death.
However, even though Kevin, Kate, and Randall have all grown up and begun their own lives,their memories of Jack still have a massive impacton their personalities and actions. Various flashbacks reveal the many ways in which Jack helped them all grow into the people the audience sees them as today, and how the loss of him has shaken up their lives.
5Boo
Fleabag / Played By Jenny Rainsford
Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s acclaimed series,Fleabag, features many complex, interesting characters, but one of the most lovable ones actually died before the show even began.Boo, the best friend ofthe protagonist known only as “Fleabag,” was killed an undisclosed amount of time before the events of the show. She continues to have a lasting impact on Fleabag’s life, though, frequently appearing on the show via her memories.
Boo’s wholesome personality and unwavering friendship make her a pure, lovable character, amidst a sea of more morally dubious ones. The wholesome nature of Boo’s character makes her death inFleabagall the more tragic, and further adds to the complexity of the show’s protagonist.
Fleabag
Created by and starring Pheobe Waller-Bridge, Fleabag follows its titular main character through her life in modern-day London. After the death of her best friend and the imminent demise of their joint business venture, the show deals with Fleabag’s grief over the loss, her struggle to maintain the business, and her complicated relationships with her immediate family. The show is known for its use of the fourth-wall break and is based on Waller-Bridge’s award-winning one-woman show which debuted at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2013.
Boo was accidentally killed by a truck while trying to minorly injure herself as a means of gaining the attention/sympathy of her boyfriend, who had just cheated on her. This tragic event, compounded with the shocking realization that Fleabag was the person with whom the boyfriend cheated, givesFleabagthe heavy emotional core that propels the show forward.
4Eleanor Shellstrop (and Friends)
The Good Place / Played By Kristen Bell
The popular NBC comedy series,The Good Place, is unlike most TV comedies in many ways. Perhaps the most prominent distinction, though, is the fact that practically all the characters are dead.The Good Placefollows a group of deceased humans as they occupy an unusual heaven-like realm. Played by Kristen Bell, the protagonist of the series isEleanor Shellstrop, a woman who strives to start acting more ethically in order to avoid being sent to a worse area of the afterlife.
The Good Place
Eleanor Shellstrop finds in The Good Place, both the name of the fantasy comedy series from creator Michael Schur and a fictionalized heaven where those who have done good in life will end up. However, Eleanor discovers that the life she was believed to have led was a lie, as it seems The Good Place got the wrong “Eleanor Shellstrop.” When it’s revealed that three others are there under the same false pretenses, they concoct a plan to truly become “Good” to earn their place there - while hiding the truth.
The Good Place’s unique premise is boosted by its lovable cast of characters. Over the course of the series, Eleanor and her newfound allies in the afterlife form deep bonds, fostering endearing friendships while offering an entertaining depiction of life after death. While many series may feature a character who has already passed away,The Good Placeputs a clever spin on the idea by presenting a show that is entirely about the people who have died.
3The Flying Dutchman
SpongeBob SquarePants / Played By Brian Doyle-Murray
Sometimes, even animated TV shows are willing to include characters who died before the events of the show began. This is the case forthe Flying Dutchman fromSpongeBob SquarePants, one of the most iconic children’s TV programs of all time. Appearing in numerous episodes,the Flying Dutchman is a large, green, pirate-like ghost that haunts the residents of Bikini Bottom.
SpongeBob SquarePants
Spongebob Squarepants is an animated comedy created by Stephen Hillenburg and starring voices from Tom Kenny, Bill Fagerbakke, and Rodger Bumpass. The series revolves around a sea sponge that goes on many misadventures with his friends Patrick, Squidward, and Sandy Cheeks in the lands of Bikini Bottom and the surrounding sea.
Though not quite a series regular, the Flying Dutchman is still a fan-favorite character, providing the audience with nonstop laughs whenever he appears. Of course, being a kids' show,SpongeBobnever dives too deep into explaining howThe Flying Dutchmancame to be a ghost, but one can infer that his pirate shenanigans eventually got him into some major trouble one day.
Fortunately, with a large cast of colorful characters, the Flying Dutchman never feels out of place, despite beingthe only ghost on the show. His ghostly presence never fails to delight viewers, thanks to the hilarious vocal talents of Brian Doyle-Murray.
2Thorfinn
Ghosts / Played By Devan Chandler Long
Though it can be hard to choose a favorite character from the spooky CBS sitcom,Ghosts, Thorfinn the Viking is certainly a prime candidate for any viewer. The series followsa New York couple who inherits a house, only for them to discover that it is infested with the ghostsof the people who have died on the property across numerous centuries.
10 TV Shows That Were Ruined By 1 Character Death
Characters die all the time in television shows for different reasons, but these 10 deaths were unnecessary and ruined their respective series.
The oldest of these ghosts is Thorfinn, a Viking explorer who lost his life after being struck by lightning, leaving him to haunt the property for centuries with the ability to control electricity with his ghostly body. Being a Viking who now exists in modern day America, it would have been easy for the writers ofGhoststo just turn Thorfinn into a one-dimensional caricature.
Ghosts
Ghosts (2019) follows a financially struggling young couple who inherit a dilapidated country house, only to discover it is inhabited by the spirits of its former residents.
Instead, they made the wise decision to add an engaging sense of complexity to the character, giving him a unique personality and a surprisingly emotional backstory. Thanks to the infectious energy and humor of Devan Chandler Long, Thorfinn is an all-around entertaining character who manages to stand out among a centuries-spanning cast of unique individuals.
1Ben Hargreeves
The Umbrella Academy / Played By Justin H. Min
The popular Netflix series,The Umbrella Academyexplores the endlessly crazy lives of a group of individuals with superpowers who were all adopted into the same family, but have since grown up and lead their own lives.One member of the family, however, did not get the chance to grow up(at least not in the conventional sense).
Over the course of the series, Ben takes on multiple versions of himself, across different ages and even different dimensions.
Ben was tragically killed during a mission organized by his adoptive father when he was just a child. Ben does remain an active part of the show, though, as his adoptive brother, Klaus, has the ability to interact with the dead. Ben’s role inThe Umbrella Academygrows increasingly prevalent as the series progresses, with Klaus learning more and more about the true extent of his powers.
The Umbrella Academy
The Umbrella Academy is based on the comic book of the same name created by Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá. The Hargreeves — collectively known as The Umbrella Academy — were born with superpowers, and their adoptive father utilized their abilities. However, as they grew older, the siblings grew apart as they dealt with their trauma. They are brought back together after their father dies and Five returns from the future with grave news: The world will end, and The Umbrella Academy has to stop it before it happens.
Through Ben, the audience is given a look at the grim side of the superhero lifestyle, being shown the perspective of someone who was killed because of his powers when he was very young.Over the course of the series, Ben takes on multiple versions of himself, across different ages and even different dimensions.With a dark backstoryand a fascinating relationship with the other characters, Ben is always a compelling character to watch.
