One of cinema's most famous and instantly recognizable faces, Samuel L. Jackson's best movie quotes are in a league of their own.
The highest-grossing actor at the box office of all time, the prolific Jackson has appeared in more than 100 films throughout his storied career. As such, it's hardly surprising that more than a fair few of his characters have met a sticky end in one way or another onscreen. With that being said, the actor's characters do seem to possess a remarkable knack for shuffling off their mortal coil in a particularly spectacular fashion. Whether his demise comes about by great white shark teeth, dinosaur claws, or even just plain old gunfire, Samuel L. Jackson's greatest movie deaths never fail to serve up a memorable spectacle.
10 Whacked By Tommy
Goodfellas (1990)
Goodfellas
- Release Date
- September 19, 1990
- Runtime
- 145 minutes
- Director
- Martin Scorsese
Cast
Henry Hill
James Conway
WHERE TO WATCH
GoodFellas chronicles the life of Henry Hill, a young Brooklynite with half-Irish, half-Sicilian heritage, as he rises through the ranks of a Mafia family. As he navigates the criminal underworld, he is mentored by seasoned gangster Jimmy Conway amidst the backdrop of organized crime in New York.
One of the greatest films in the history of cinema, Martin Scorcese's gangster epic Goodfellas is perhaps the quintessential example of a small Samuel L. Jackson role that nine out of ten cinema-goers will likely have forgotten about as of 2024. One of seven roles in what was the most prolific year of his career at the time, the American played getaway driver Parnell "Stacks" Edwards, based on the real-life Lufthansa airport heist participant of the same name.
Goodfellas: Why Samuel L. Jackson's Stacks Was Killed & Real-Life Comparison
Among the characters in Goodfellas based on real people is Samuel L. Jackson's Stacks Edwards, & here's why he was killed in the story & real-life.
Regrettably for Jackson's character in his only Scorcese collaboration to date, Stacks' lax attitude rendered him a liability for Robert DeNiro's Jimmy Conway long before he failed to dispose of the van used in the heist. Joe Pesci's Tommy DeVito lures Jackson's charge into a false sense of security, before putting a bullet through the back of Stacks' head in the purported safety of his own bedroom for one of Jackson's earliest memorable death scenes. Tommy chastises his blissfully unaware victim with an ice-cold kill line for the ages before executing him: "You'll be late for your own f****** funeral!"
9 Outmaneuvered And Gunned Down In The Darkness
Jackie Brown (1997)
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Jackie Brown
- Release Date
- December 25, 1997
- Runtime
- 154 minutes
- Director
- Quentin Tarantino
Cast
Bridget Fonda
WHERE TO WATCH
Jackie Brown is a 1997 crime thriller directed by Quentin Tarantino. Pam Grier stars as a flight attendant who outsmarts the authorities, her boss, and a ruthless killer after smuggling cash for a gunrunner. The movie counts with an all-star cast that includes Samuel L. Jackson, Robert De Niro, Robert Forster, Michael Keaton, and Bridget Fonda.
Jackson's second film collaboration with Quentin Tarantino saw the actor tasked with the role of Ordell Robbie. One of Tarantino's best villains, Robbie is a ruthless gunrunner and the primary antagonist of the director's 1997 picture, Jackie Brown. After perpetrating a brutal campaign of manipulation and violence throughout Tarantino's third feature film outing, Robbie meets his end after being lured into a trap by Pam Grier's titular character, where he is gunned down by Michael Keaton's Ray Nicolette after Jackie screams that he has a gun.
Jackie Brown is based on Leonard Elmore's 1992 novel, Rum Punch.
Shot multiple times before he even has a chance to throw his hands up in shock, there's nothing particularly noteworthy about the physical manner of Jackson's demise in Jackie Brown. It's the haunting nature of the frozen expression on Robbie's dead face after finally being fatally outmaneuvered, blankly staring up at the ceiling and set against the barely audible hum of the backdrop of the score, that renders this one of Jackson's more memorable onscreen demises.
8 Impaled With A Prosthetic Blade
Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)
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Kingsman: The Secret Service
- Release Date
- February 13, 2015
- Runtime
- 2h 10m
- Director
- Matthew Vaughn
Cast
Taron Egerton
WHERE TO WATCH
Based on the comic book series of the same name, Kingsman: The Secret Service tells the story of rebellious teen Eggsy (Taron Egerton) as he's inducted into a top-secret spy agency by a man codenamed Galahad (Colin Firth). After learning that billionaire Richmond Valentine (Samuel L. Jackson) plans to destroy the world, Eggsy and Galahad set out to avert international disaster and uncover widespread corruption that threatens to consume the Kingsman agency itself.
Matthew Vaughn's first entry in the Kingsman movie series, 2014's action-comedy Kingsman: The Secret Service featured Samuel L. Jackson as the movie's lead antagonist, Richmond Valentine. A charismatic ecoterrorist and confessed spy movie fanatic, Valentine uses his status as an affluent billionaire to hide his nefarious plan to deal with climate change by purging a large percentage of the world's population. Jackson's lisping charge is one of his most memorable villainous roles to date, courtesy of a killer wardrobe and an array of first-rate one-liners.
Regrettably for Valentine, Jackson's villain is ultimately dispatched by Taron Egerton's Eggsy in a bizarre but entirely satisfying poetic fashion. Sofia Boutella's Gazelle had spent the movie chopping Valentine's enemies to pieces with her bladed prosthetic legs, but Eggsy uses one of them after besting her in an epic duel to dispose of her boss. Hurling the prosthetic like a javelin, Egerton's charge impales Valentine like a shish kebab in relentless crowd-pleasing fashion.
7 Bleeding To Death After Hanging Domergue
The Hateful Eight (2015)
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The Hateful Eight
- Release Date
- December 25, 2015
- Runtime
- 188 Minutes
- Director
- Quentin Tarantino
Cast
Zoe Bell
Jennifer Jason Leigh
WHERE TO WATCH
Quentin Tarantino's 2015 Western incorporates elements of the mystery and thriller genres. Set in 1877, The Hateful Eight follows eight strangers who seek refuge from a blizzard in an isolated stagecoach stopover. Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Goggins, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Bruce Dern, and Channing Tatum, The Hateful Eight was inspired by the Western TV shows of 1960s.
One of the director's most frequent collaborators, Samuel L. Jackson has appeared in multiple Quentin Tarantino films, with his most recent role coming in 2015's The Hateful Eight as Major Marquis Warren. A formidable bounty hunter and veteran of the American Civil War, Warren finds himself sucked into the web of murderous deception that forms the movie's central premise at the ultimate cost of his life. Jackson's charge slowly bleeds to death after being shot in the nether regions by Channing Tatum's Jody Domergue through the basement floorboards.
Quentin Tarantino movies that Samuel L. Jackson doesn't appear in |
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|---|---|
Reservoir Dogs (1992) |
|
Kill Bill Vol 1. (2003) |
|
Death Proof (2007) |
|
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019) |
An excruciating demise drawn out across the movie's thrilling conclusion, Warren's brutal death is sharply juxtaposed with the surprising peace of his final minutes to produce one of Jackson's best death scenes. After he and Walton Goggins' Chris Mannix gleefully hang Jennifer Jason Leigh's Daisy Domergue in one final act of defiance, the Major poignantly reads his "Lincoln letter" aloud to ease their dying moments, despite both men knowing that the fake correspondence isn't worth the paper it is written on.
6 Crushed By Kong
Kong: Skull Island (2017)
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Kong: Skull Island
- Release Date
- March 10, 2017
- Runtime
- 2hours
- Director
- Jordan Vogt-Roberts
Cast
Lieutenant Colonel Preston Packard
Captain James Conrad
WHERE TO WATCH
Kong: Skull Island follows a diverse team of explorers led by Tom Hiddleston and Brie Larson as they journey to a remote, uncharted island. There, they encounter the mighty Kong, discovering a world of monstrous creatures in this reimagined origin story of the iconic King Kong.
Jackson's sole appearance in the Monsterverse movie series came against the backdrop of the franchise's second installment, 2017's Kong: Skull Island. Chronicling a group of scientists and soldiers' encounters with the gigantic ape, Kong, on a mysterious island during the 1970s, Jackson plays Lieutenant Colonel Preston Packard, a United States Army helicopter squadron leader assigned as the expedition's military escort.
Jackson has compared Preston Packard and Kong's relationship to the dynamic between Herman Melville's legendary Moby Dick character, Captain Ahab, and the titular whale.
Developing a deep hatred for Kong after the loss of his men throughout the movie, Packard's implacable quest for revenge ultimately sees him bite the dust in deliciously poetic fashion. Attempting to blow a temporarily incapacitated Kong to Kingdom Come, the actor even manages to almost cram in a trademark Jackson "motherf*****!" into his parting one-liner before the ape crushes him into the dirt like a mallet hammering in a tent peg.
5 Killed By A Velociraptor
Jurassic Park (1993)
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Jurassic Park
- Release Date
- June 11, 1993
- Runtime
- 127 minutes
- Director
- Steven Spielberg
WHERE TO WATCH
Jurassic Park is a science fiction adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, based on Michael Crichton's novel. Released in 1993, it follows a wealthy entrepreneur who creates a theme park with living dinosaurs. When security systems fail, experts and visitors experience the perilous reality of the park.
Turning in yet another ing role in a major blockbuster franchise, Jackson stepped into the boots of Chief Engineer Ray Arnold for 1993's Jurassic Park. Best known for his iconic "Hold on to your butts!" line, Jackson's character is one of the many human casualties throughout the film, dispatched by an escaped Velociraptor as he attempts to reboot the park's flagging systems.
...the visual of the engineer's bloody severed arm comes into full view to confirm a thoroughly traumatic and unforgettable end for Jackson's unfortunate charge.
Jackson's demise in Jurassic Park is notable for being one of the actor's most shocking movie deaths, despite the actual moment of death occurring off-screen. Rather, the brutality of Arnold's fate is compounded by the shocking manner in which his death is established. As his hand lands on the shoulder of Laura Dern's Ellie Sattler in what appears to be a comforting manner, the visual of the engineer's bloody severed arm comes into full view to confirm a thoroughly traumatic and unforgettable end for Jackson's unfortunate charge.
4 Blasted Off A Balcony With Force Lightning
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge Of The Sith (2005)
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Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
- Release Date
- May 19, 2005
- Runtime
- 140 Minutes
- Director
- George Lucas
Cast
Obi-Wan Kenobi
Anakin Skywalker / Darth Vader
WHERE TO WATCH
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith details the fall of the Jedi Order and Anakin Skywalker's transformation under the influence of Darth Sidious. Released in 2005, the film explores Anakin's internal conflict and the shifting political landscape, leading to the rise of the Galactic Empire.
As unlikely as his casting may have initially seemed, Samuel L. Jackson proved to be one of the Star Wars prequel trilogy's more beloved faces. The Pulp Fiction star was tasked with the role of purple lightsaber-wielding Jedi Master Mace Windu, a former Padawan of Yoda and a senior member of the Jedi Council. Swiftly carving out a nice for himself as one of the prequel movie's most badass individuals, Jackson's steely gaze and inimitable delivery combined for an iconic Star Wars character.
Jackson's lightsaber handle in his Star Wars prequel appearances is engraved with the letters "BMF"; a tribute to his character's iconic wallet in 1994's Pulp Fiction.
Sadly for a Jedi of his standing, Mace goes out tragically against the backdrop of 2005's Revenge of the Sith. Windu has his hand chopped off by Anakin Skywalker in his desperate efforts to keep Palpatine alive, before the latter blasts the howling Jedi Master from the dizzying heights of a Coruscant balcony with a burst of Force lightning. The moment that signals the true beginning of Anakin's transformation into Darth Vader, Jackson's demise as Windu is one for the history books.
3 Aim For The Bushes!
The Other Guys (2010)
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The Other Guys
- Release Date
- August 5, 2010
- Runtime
- 107 Minutes
- Director
- Adam McKay
WHERE TO WATCH
From director Adam McKay comes The Other Guys. This action comedy movie stars Will Ferrell as forensic ant Allen Gamble and Mark Wahlberg as detective Terry Hoitz, two NYPD employees sent to investigate a simple permit violation before they stumble upon a deep conspiracy and a flourishing crime ring. Without the former two best detectives on the force, these two unlikely partners will become central to bringing a criminal plot to its knees.
Starring Mark Wahlberg and Will Ferrell as the titular characters, 2010's The Other Guys is a riotous action-comedy that follows an unlikely friendship between a pair of cops as the duo attempt to unravel a major conspiracy. In addition to featuring Michael Keaton's best comedy performance, Adam Mackay's picture also sees Jackson play high-flying detective P.K. Highsmith, one half of a cop partnership that also includes Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's Chris Danson.
The two men go out in abjectly sidesplitting fashion, with Danson deadpanning "Aim for the bushes!" before they hurl themselves from a building block in pursuit of bank robbers to the strains of Foo Fighters' My Hero. Ludicrously believing they would survive due to their many previous brushes with death, the pair fly through the air in slow motion to splatter on the pavement like a pair of meat pancakes instead, concluding what is arguably Jackson's most hilarious onscreen death.
2 Blown Up By Django
Django Unchained (2012)
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Django Unchained
- Release Date
- December 25, 2012
- Runtime
- 165 Minutes
- Director
- Quentin Tarantino
Cast
Jonah Hill
WHERE TO WATCH
Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained follows Jamie Foxx's Django, a Black slave who is freed before becoming a bounty hunter. After meeting German dentist-turned-bounty-hunter Dr. King Schultz, Django sets off to free his wife from the cruel and charismatic plantation owner Calvin Candie. Christophe Waltz stars alongside Foxx, with Leonardo DiCaprio, Samuel L. Jackson, and Kerry Washington rounding out the cast of Tarantino's revisionist Spaghetti Western.
Leonardo DiCaprio's Calvin Candie may be a front-runner for the best Western movie villain of all time, but 2012's Django Unchained houses another dastardly antagonist hot on the slave magnate's heels. Said antagonist takes the form of Samuel L. Jackson's Stephen, Candie's fiercely loyal house slave and close confidante who views himself as superior to other Black men and women due to his position.
Samuel L. Jackson's characters in Quentin Tarantino movies |
|
|---|---|
Pulp Fiction (1994) |
Jules Winnfield |
Jackie Brown (1997) |
Ordell Robbie |
Kill Bill Vol. 2 (2004) |
Piano Player |
Inglourious Basterds (2009) |
Unnamed Narrator |
Django Unchained (2012) |
Stephen |
The Hateful Eight (2015) |
Major Marquis Warren |
Condemning Django to death in the mines after the chaotic fracas at Candyland leaves Candie dead, Stephen gets his just deserts in endlessly rewatchable fashion when Jamie Foxx's charge returns after making his escape. Jackson's insidious charge reveals that his hunched physique is no more than a ruse intended to disarm those he encounters, highlighting his duplicitous nature one last time before Django kneecaps him. Finally reunited with his wife Broomhilda, the movie's titular character uses dynamite to blow the stricken Stephen and Candyland sky-high.
1 Eaten By A Shark
Deep Blue Sea (1999)
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Deep Blue Sea
- Release Date
- July 28, 1999
- Runtime
- 105 minutes
- Director
- Renny Harlin
Cast
Saffron Burrows
WHERE TO WATCH
A sci-fi action horror film released in 1999, Deep Blue Sea follows a group of scientists trapped in the ocean deep within a research facility as several massive genetically altered sharks begin to wreak havoc. Despite the researcher's best intentions, the scientific experiments conducted in this facility have grown hyper-intelligent and incredibly strong, making them apex predators the likes that have never been seen.
It was also going to take something special to stake a claim for Samuel L. Jackson's greatest movie death and 1999's so-bad-it's-good shark movie classic Deep Blue Sea decidedly did not disappoint. Depicting a group of genetically engineered sharks on the rampage in an underwater facility, the movie appeared to be setting Jackson up for a vital role in proceedings as Russell Franklin, a corporate executive sent to assess the facility after an attack.
All 5 Samuel L. Jackson Movies & TV Shows Explained
Acclaimed actor Samuel L. Jackson is soon to star in a number of films of a vast array of genres, from action to drama and the MCU in between.
Unfortunately for Samuel L. Jackson's charge, this role wouldn't extend beyond an iconic death sequence. In the middle of delivering an uplifting monologue to rally his terrified fellow survivors, a great white shark suddenly emerges from a pool behind Franklin and devours him before the audience even has time to blink. It's a shocking narrative development that comes completely out of left field, a jaw-dropping and unexpected surprise that combines with the spectacular manner of Franklin's end to produce Jackson's greatest onscreen movie death.
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