Oscar Winning Actors/Roles Whose Characters Die in Their Films

Yes, it's ghoulish and morbid to create such a list (and a list of spoilers for some): I just found it interesting that of the 365 technically Oscar-winning acting roles thru the ceremonies honoring the 2021 winners, 83 were roles in which the character dies. That's a ~23% clip, meaning close to 1 of every 4 Academy Award-winning roles relate to a character who loses their life within the timeframe of the film (and not after the film's events; e.g., Rami Malek as Freddie Mercury/'Bohemian Rhapsody', Renée Zellweger as Judy Garland/'Judy', etc.). Around 10 of the characters who died met their actual ends off-screen; i.e., the deaths weren't actually shown in their movies, but they were made known within the narrative of the films.

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1

Emil Jannings as Grand Duke Sergius Alexander in "The Last Command" (1928)

Emil Jannings as Grand Duke Sergius Alexander in "The Last Command" (1928)

2

Lionel Barrymore as Stephen Ashe in "A Free Soul" (1931)

Lionel Barrymore as Stephen Ashe in "A Free Soul" (1931)

3

Wallace Beery as Andy "Champ" Purcell in "The Champ" (1931)

Wallace Beery as Andy "Champ" Purcell in "The Champ" (1931)

4

Fredric March as Dr. Henry Jekyll/Mr. Hyde in "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" (1931)

Fredric March as Dr. Henry Jekyll/Mr. Hyde in "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" (1931)

5

Victor McLaglen as Gypo Nolan in "The Informer" (1935)

Victor McLaglen as Gypo Nolan in "The Informer" (1935)

6

Spencer Tracy as Manuel Fidello in "Captains Courageous" (1937)

Spencer Tracy as Manuel Fidello in "Captains Courageous" (1937)

7

Luise Rainer as O-Lan in "The Good Earth" (1937)

Luise Rainer as O-Lan in "The Good Earth" (1937)

8

Walter Brennan as Peter Goodwin in "Kentucky" (1938)

Walter Brennan as Peter Goodwin in "Kentucky" (1938)

9

Robert Donat as Charles Edward Chipping in "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" (1939)

Robert Donat as Charles Edward Chipping in "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" (1939)

10

Walter Brennan as Judge Roy Bean in "The Westerner" (1940)

Walter Brennan as Judge Roy Bean in "The Westerner" (1940)

11

Donald Crisp as Mr. Morgan in "How Green Was My Valley" (1941)

Donald Crisp as Mr. Morgan in "How Green Was My Valley" (1941)

12

Teresa Wright as Carol Beldon in "Mrs. Miniver" (1942)

Teresa Wright as Carol Beldon in "Mrs. Miniver" (1942)

13

Jennifer Jones as Bernadette Soubirous in "The Song of Bernadette" (1943)

Jennifer Jones as Bernadette Soubirous in "The Song of Bernadette" (1943)

14

Ethel Barrymore as Ma Mott in "None but the Lonely Heart" (1944)

Ethel Barrymore as Ma Mott in "None but the Lonely Heart" (1944)

15

James Dunn as Johnny Nolan in "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" (1945)

James Dunn as Johnny Nolan in "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" (1945)

16

Anne Baxter as Sophie MacDonald in "The Razor's Edge" (1946)

Anne Baxter as Sophie MacDonald in "The Razor's Edge" (1946)

17

Ronald Colman as Anthony John in "A Double Life" (1947)

Ronald Colman as Anthony John in "A Double Life" (1947)

18

Laurence Olivier as Prince Hamlet in "Hamlet" (1948)

Laurence Olivier as Prince Hamlet in "Hamlet" (1948)

19

Broderick Crawford as Willie Stark in "All the King's Men" (1949)

Broderick Crawford as Willie Stark in "All the King's Men" (1949)

20

José Ferrer as Cyrano De Bergerac in "Cyrano De Bergerac" (1950)

José Ferrer as Cyrano De Bergerac in "Cyrano De Bergerac" (1950)

21

Anthony Quinn as Eufemio Zapata in "Viva Zapata!" (1952)

Anthony Quinn as Eufemio Zapata in "Viva Zapata!" (1952)

22

Gloria Grahame as Rosemary Bartlow in "The Bad and the Beautiful" (1952)

Gloria Grahame as Rosemary Bartlow in "The Bad and the Beautiful" (1952)

23

Frank Sinatra as Angelo Maggio in "From Here to Eternity" (1953)

Frank Sinatra as Angelo Maggio in "From Here to Eternity" (1953)

24

Yul Brynner as the King of Siam in "The King and I" (1956)

Yul Brynner as the King of Siam in "The King and I" (1956)

25

Alec Guinness as Lt. Colonel Nicholson in "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957)

Alec Guinness as Lt. Colonel Nicholson in "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957)

26

Red Buttons as Joe Kelly in "Sayonara" (1957)

Red Buttons as Joe Kelly in "Sayonara" (1957)

27

Miyoshi Umeki as Katsumi in "Sayonara" (1957)

Miyoshi Umeki as Katsumi in "Sayonara" (1957)

28

Burl Ives as Rufus Hannassey in "The Big Country" (1958)

Burl Ives as Rufus Hannassey in "The Big Country" (1958)

29

Susan Hayward as Barbara Graham in "I Want to Live!" (1958)

Susan Hayward as Barbara Graham in "I Want to Live!" (1958)

30

Simone Signoret as Alice Aisgill in "Room at the Top" (1959)

Simone Signoret as Alice Aisgill in "Room at the Top" (1959)

31

Shelley Winters as Petronella Van Daan in "The Diary of Anne Frank" (1959)

Shelley Winters as Petronella Van Daan in "The Diary of Anne Frank" (1959)

32

Elizabeth Taylor as Gloria Wandrous in "Butterfield 8" (1960)

Elizabeth Taylor as Gloria Wandrous in "Butterfield 8" (1960)

33

George Chakiris as Bernardo in "West Side Story" (1961)

George Chakiris as Bernardo in "West Side Story" (1961)

34

Melvyn Douglas as Homer Bannon in "Hud" (1963)

Melvyn Douglas as Homer Bannon in "Hud" (1963)

35

Lila Kedrova as Madame Hortense in "Zorba the Greek" (1964)

Lila Kedrova as Madame Hortense in "Zorba the Greek" (1964)

36

Lee Marvin as Tim Strawn in "Cat Ballou" (1965)

Lee Marvin as Tim Strawn in "Cat Ballou" (1965)

37

Paul Scofield as Sir Thomas More in "A Man for All Seasons" (1966)

Paul Scofield as Sir Thomas More in "A Man for All Seasons" (1966)

38

Ben Johnson as Sam the Lion in "The Last Picture Show" (1971)

Ben Johnson as Sam the Lion in "The Last Picture Show" (1971)

39

Marlon Brando as Don Vito Corleone in "The Godfather" (1972)

Marlon Brando as Don Vito Corleone in "The Godfather" (1972)

40

Jack Nicholson as Randle Patrick McMurphy in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (1975)

Jack Nicholson as Randle Patrick McMurphy in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (1975)

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