40 TV Characters Who Died in 2018
40 TV Characters Who Died in 2018 (continued):
30. David Rosen, Scandal
David Rosen’s life was put in danger not once, but twice during the Scandal Series Finale, “Over a Cliff.” First, it was Jake Ballard who cornered David in the parking lot. But his real ending came later.
Cyrus Beene ultimately did David Rosen in when he invited him over for a drink, saying he’d be willing to sign a confession about hijacking Air Force Two. After delivering a speech that could only be found in Shondaland, Cyrus declared, “You, David Rosen, are in my way,” then watched as David dropped to the ground and writhed on the floor before eventually smothering him with a pillow.
After covering his tracks, Cyrus passed David’s death off as a heart attack. It’s one of the needless deaths TV deaths that will haunt Scandal fans for years to come.
31. DeDe Pritchett, Modern Family
With word that Modern Family would be killing off a “significant” character, speculation was across the board. It did seem extreme that a sitcom would have a main character die just for the sake of drama. In the end, it was Dede, a much-discussed but only infrequently seen character, whose death was revealed.
Being Jay’s ex and having very different relationships with her son and daughter has always made DeDe someone whose visits were, well, interesting. That lingered in her wake, both with Claire and Mitchell’s respective feelings about their last conversation with their mom and in a somewhat darkly comedic moment about how she actually died (in her sleep, thankfully, after several more awkward misadventures).
All that aside, DeDe’s absence will be felt. Whatever she said and did, she loved her kids and had a significant place in her ex-husband’s life. As everyone rallies around Claire and Mitchell in their own ways, we see her impact and know that she’ll be missed as a character and a mother.
32. Alana Hayes, SEAL Team
Alana’s death came out of nowhere on SEAL Team early in Season 2 — just as it might have in real life.
She died in a car wreck after going out to the store, which was all the more heartbreaking considering how random it was compared to the danger Jason faced regularly because of his job. Her death has meant new challenges for Jason and for her children as they figure out how to navigate life without her.
33. Mariah Dillard, Luke Cage
Luke Cage Season 2’s big bad, Mariah Dillard (or Stokes, as she would always argue), was perhaps one of 2018’s best villains. Ruthless, cunning, and yet still beloved by Harlem, she operated under the radar and nobody ever knew when she was coming.
Despite being the one to kill Cottonmouth in Season 1, nobody ever really knew how dangerous she was until her Season 2 rise to power alongside Shades, her equally dangerous yet arguably less innately evil lover.
Mariah was the one to have reconnected with her daughter, Tilda, and yet, Mariah later revealed that she never truly cared about her. It’s a knife to the heart until Tilda is the one to really take back the reins and finally kill her mother with nightshade-poisoned lipstick as Luke himself is helpless.
Maybe this signaled something brewing in Tilda herself — is she just as bad as her mother? We might never know, now that Luke Cage has been canceled. But I guess poison really can defeat even the most powerful of weapons.
34. Frank Underwood, House of Cards
Kevin Spacey’s ejection from House of Cards left the show in a tough position for its final season. From the beginning, viewers were led to believe that Claire (Robin Wright) was responsible for murdering him. But in the last ten minutes, Doug Stamper, who had been one of the Underwoods’ most trusted advisers over the years, confesses that he killed Frank.
According to Doug, Frank was planning to kill Claire (and he was probably next). Doug killed Frank in his bed, using his medication. “I couldn’t let him destroy everything we built,” was his only explanation. “I had to protect the legacy from the man.”
35. Doug Stamper, House of Cards
After Doug confessed to Frank’s murder, he superficially stabbed Claire for not admitting that Frank “made” her career, literally obsessed with the “house of cards” the three of them built. To save herself, her baby, and her career, she turned the weapon on him and fatally stabbed him. In an anticlimactic season, this last scene of the series at least had viewers a bit on edge about which one of them was going to die.
In the end, Claire was the last (wo)man standing.
36. Nell Crain, The Haunting of Hill House
The youngest Crain sibling was also by far the most tragic — which is definitely saying something in this family stained by unspeakable amounts of tragedy.
We knew from the very first episode of the season that Nell would die, given that the reveal of her death (and first appearance of her tortured ghost) functions as the premiere’s cliffhanger. But no one was prepared for how absolutely devastating her actual death scene was.
Between that heartbreaking dance with the house’s version of her late husband and begging her mom Olivia to save her when she slips off the staircase, the entire sequence depicting Nell’s death is one crushing emotional blow after another.
Just when you think you can’t take anymore, the show also reveals that poor Nell is the episode’s titular ghost (the Bent-Neck Lady) and has effectively been haunting herself since childhood thanks to the house’s wonky passage of time. Oof.
37. Roman, Blindspot
About three-quarters of the way through Blindspot Season 3, Roman started showing symptoms of a condition called ZIP poisoning, for which he was looking for a cure. While that could have been his end, that wasn’t the death he got. Instead, his girlfriend, Blake Crawford, shot him in the Season 3 finale.
After confronting Roman regarding the lies he’d sold her over the season, Blake left him alone to die under a tree near their childhood home.
After calling someone on a mysterious number and insisting that they “keep moving forward,” he’s found by Jane. The two siblings have a tearful and apologetic final moment together as the sun sets in the horizon.
38. Guinevere Beck, YOU
Beck’s death wasn’t exactly shocking to anyone who had watched the previous nine episodes of YOU. The show’s psychotic, obsessive main character, Joe Goldberg, had already offed plenty of other people on-screen, including Beck’s former boyfriend, Benji, and Beck’s infatuated best friend, Peach.
Still, you couldn’t help but root for Beck to escape Joe’s glass cage in the basement of the bookstore. And she came so close to making it out alive — if only Paco hadn’t denied her request for help when she knocked Joe out and made it up the stairs.
Thankfully, Beck’s death took place off-screen. It honestly would have been too traumatic to see it play out after a full season of praying for her to escape Joe’s homicidal clutches.
39. Alisha Granderson, The Last Ship
The final season of The Last Ship saw the death of *several* characters — enough to make an entirely separate list, if we’re being honest — but among the most painful deaths was that of Alisha Granderson.
After realizing her girlfriend Kelsey was involved in the cyber attack, she confronted her only to be murdered by her in her own home. Granderson had been a part of the show since the first season, moving up through the ranks and offering valuable skills to the team. Her death was particularly upsetting.
40. Carlton Burk, The Last Ship
Another painful death on The Last Ship was that of another character that’s been a part of the show since the first season, Carlton Burk.
He made it to the end of the final season, dying in the penultimate episode of the show. Aside from being a beloved character, this one hurt even more because it came shortly after a moment of peace for Burk — and along with his continued questioning of the violence of war to begin with.
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What do you think were the most memorable TV deaths in 2018? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
*Additional contributions by Lauren Busser, Maii Trueba de Buen, Mary Misasi, Caitlin Wyneken, Esme Mazzeo, Olivia Popp, Charles E, Henning, Alicia Gilstorf, and Ashley Bissette Sumerel.
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Caralynn Lippo
Caralynn is a freelance writer and editor, but most importantly, she is a diehard TV addict. A few of her current favorites are Mr. Robot, You're the Worst, iZombie, and The Vampire Diaries. She also writes about TV for Romper, The TV Junkies, and TV Fanatic.