73 Movie Moments That Were So Major, They Made People Sob, Scream, And Audibly React At The Theater
We asked the BuzzFeed Community to tell us which movie moments were so big the entire theater freaked out together. We've gotten so many epic responses time and time again, so here's a list of some of the most popular moments of all time. Warning: They may make you react out loud just THINKING about them.
🚨Major spoilers ahead!🚨
1.In Spider-Man: No Way Home, when Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield's Peter Parkers first show up on screen:
"My whole theater erupted in applause!"
—Lisa V., FB
2.In Scream 5, when Dewey is killed by Ghostface after all these years:
"I yelled 'NOOOOOO!' when Ghostface finally killed Dewey. It was loud! I was devastated and people behind me laughed. I can get too emotionally involved with movies. RIP Dewey!"
—Heather C, FB
"Real talk, Dewey's death in Scream 5 got me BAD. It was part third trimester pregnancy hormones, part having watched him onscreen for the last 15 years."
—Lauren G, FB
3.In The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 2, when Carlisle is beheaded, and it leads to a massive fight that wasn't in the books:
"When Aro killed Carlisle in Breaking Dawn — Part 2 and they have a huge fight only to find out it was all a vision in Aro’s mind from Alice. If you read the book, you knew it was a vision, but they set it up as if it was real, and my friends and I FREAKED OUT when it seemed like it was actually happening!"
"Carlisle losing his head in Breaking Dawn — Part 2 made 14-year-old me break down crying in the theater. I was so shocked that they would deviate from the books and kill off all my favorite characters. I will never forget the relief I felt when it was Alice’s vision."
4.In Inside Out, when Bing Bong sacrifices himself:
"I cried actual tears."
5.In Frozen, when Hans says he doesn't love Anna:
"When Hans said he didn't love Anna in Frozen, the whole cinema gasped. ❄️"
"When Hans pulled away from Anna and revealed his true villainous nature. There was an audible, shocked gasp from virtually everyone in the cinema (myself included). Did NOT see that coming at ALL."
6.In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 2, when Molly Weasley says "Not my daughter, you bitch!":
"When Molly Weasley stood between Bellatrix Lestrange and Ginny and said 'Not my daughter, you bitch,' my whole theater went absolutely wild."
"'NOT MY DAUGHTER, YOU BITCH' — Molly Weasley, Deathly Hallows — Part 2. I've never seen a theater erupt in such applause, even with Endgame."
7.In Avengers: Endgame, when Tony Stark died:
"My sister-in-law blew her nose, and the whole theater laughed. You could tell there were sobs everywhere."
8.In Get Out, when Rose actually had Chris' keys at the end of the movie:
"When we watched Get Out in theaters, I was so scared. All I could say was 'Get out of there!' You know it’s a good movie when you find yourself unintentionally repeating the title."
9.In Coco, when Miguel sings "Remember Me" to Mama Coco and she sings along:
"I was in tears, and you could hear people bawling loudly all over the theater."
"It destroyed everyone in the theater, and we all dissolved into ugly sobs. Still my favorite Pixar movie 💙."
10.In Hannah Montana: The Movie, when Hannah takes off her wig and reveals her true identity as Miley:
"When I saw the Hannah Montana movie in theaters and she took off her wig and a little girl screamed 'NO!' and started sobbing lol."
—Emma R., FB
11.In The Fault in Our Stars, when Augustus, Hazel, and Isaac have a wake before Gus' funeral:
"There was not a dry eye in the theater. I remember the elderly couple in front of me saying, 'I didn't know it was going to be so sad.'"
12.In Barbarian, when you finally see what was hiding in the basement:
"I will never forget the moment we finally saw what was hiding in the basement in Barbarian. I went to the movie having seen the trailer, but not at all anticipating what the movie was reaaaallly about, and apparently, it was the same case for everyone around me. As we’re watching, there’s the classic horror movie buildup with the music getting more and more tense as we watch our two main characters try to get out unscathed, and then BOOM. We meet The Mother. Not only was it a total jump-scare, but it was also genuinely so confusing/funny watching The Mother sprint down the scary hallway totally naked. Everyone in that movie theater was united in that one scarily weird moment. One girl in front of me jumped and shrieked 'What IS that?!' While the people behind me were trying to figure out what the heck was going on. Meanwhile, I was sitting there trying to catch my breath after the most hilarious jump scare I’ve ever seen. As the movie went on, the theater had the same vibe with everyone giggling and gasping, but I truly will never forget that moment."
13.In Black Panther, when Okoye says she would kill W'Kabi:
"When W'Kabi asks Okoye, 'Would you kill me, my love?' and she responds, 'For Wakanda? Without question.' Someone in my theater yelled, 'Do it, girl! Do it!'"
14.In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, when Dumbledore dies:
"I saw it on opening night in the theater, and the whole room gasped, and there was audible crying going on. Also me. I was crying."
—kckt
15.In Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, when Rey and Kylo Ren kiss:
"When Rey kissed Kylo Ren, all the 'NOOOOOOOOS' in the theater. I still keep hoping they will redo that ending."
16.In Meet Joe Black, when Brad Pitt's character gets hit by a car:
"In high school, a couple of friends and I saw Meet Joe Black in a theater, and early in the movie, when Brad Pitt's character is hit by a car, a girl yelled 'Nooooo, not Brad Pitt!'"
17.In Finding Nemo, when Nemo's family is attacked at the beginning of the movie:
"Seeing Finding Nemo on opening weekend. After the barracuda attack in the beginning, the theater was dead quiet, and then someone yelled out, 'Goddamnit, Disney, why is it always the fucking mom?!' Everyone laughed, and it broke the tension of the moment."
18.In Sex and the City, when Steve said he cheated on Miranda:
"The entire theater gasped."
19.In Love & Basketball, when Monica and Quincy finally hook up:
"I was in college when Love & Basketball came out, and almost every woman in the theater gasped during the scene when Monica and Quincy FINALLY linked up and had sex. Like, we were all like same girl, SAME lol."
20.In The Lord of The Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, when Aragorn cuts off the huge Uruk-hai's head:
"The whole theater went completely quiet for a second, and then an explosion of happy cries and clapping erupted from all the kids in the audience. It was so great; I have never experienced that before, and I haven’t since."
21.In A Walk to Remember, when Landon breaks down to his dad:
"I remember going to see A Walk to Remember in theaters with my family. I was a 'too cool' teen who was terrified of just generally showing emotion. I held it in for so long, but when Landon broke down in tears to his dad, I let out what can only be described as a guttural sob. I was instantly embarrassed, but my sob literally broke the floodgates, and I immediately heard cries all around the theater."
22.In E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, when E.T. appears to die near the end of the movie:
"Here's an older one (ok, I'm old). I went to see E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial in the movie theaters. It was already devastating to see Elliott and E.T. sick and being attended by the scary people from NASA. When E.T. died, I let out a shuddering sob that got others started as well, followed by sheepish chuckles as we realized we'd been found out for crying in a mostly adult-attended theater."
23.In Us, when we learn Adelaide was actually replaced by her double the whole time:
"The twist in the 2019 movie Us. Everyone lost their absolute shit, including me. Amazing."
24.In Jaws, when the shark blows up:
"I had an uncle tell me about seeing Jaws on opening night. When the shark blew up, everyone was on their feet. They were cheering and clapping, and high-fiving and hugging each other."
—Joe G., FB
25.In Joker, when Joker kills Murray Franklin:
"When Joaquin Phoenix shot Robert De Niro on national television on a late night show in Joker. The entire theater audibly gasped when that happened."
26.In Mamma Mia!: Here We Go Again, when Bill and Harry show up:
"The best Mamma Mia! theater moment was in Here We Go Again, when Bill and Harry show up during 'Dancing Queen.' My crowd went WILD. Also, when Cher showed up."
27.In The Departed, when Billy is shot COMPLETELY out of the blue:
"The theater was silent when I saw The Departed. But when Leo’s character got shot, it happened so quickly and out of the blue that I remember hearing the whole theater gasp."
28.In Avengers: Infinity War, when everyone gets dusted:
"Infinity War. I was so braced through the film, thinking we would lose one Avenger (I was betting on it being Iron Man or Captain America). I was not prepared for what happened in the dusting. I spent the film thinking that this was the scene we would lose somebody. I didn't see the possibility of losing so many!"
"Seeing Avengers: Infinity War in the theater, when Spider-Man DIED, a bunch of TEENAGE boys in the front row, literally jumped up and screamed 'NOOOOOOO!'"
"When a volcano erupted here in Hawaii as Thanos snapped his fingers in Infinity War, and I was more in shock about half of a fictional world’s population disintegrating instead."
29.In Avengers: Endgame, when all of the Avengers assemble toward the end:
"So, I watch audience reactions to the 'Avengers, assemble' part from Endgame when I want to feel joy, and in EVERY SINGLE ONE, there's the audible gasp when Sam says, 'On your left,' and then cheers as the portals open. EVERY. SINGLE. VIDEO. We all knew that the people would come back, but the way they decided to reintroduce everyone was incredible."
"I will never forget the scene in Avengers: Endgame when the portals opened. I watched it on opening day, and lemme tell you, you can tell everyone is a fan because the whole theater just lit up! Everyone was cheering, screaming, gasping. Tears were literally streaming down my face because of that epic moment and the fact that I may never experience that kind of hype ever again."
30.And also in Endgame, when Captain America wields Mjölnir:
"I went to the midnight screening of Endgame, and people lost their minds when Captain America picked up Thor's hammer. Everybody lost it."
"The single greatest moment I've ever experienced in a movie theater was when Captain America wielded Mjölnir against Thanos. The entire theater burst into applause. I normally don't clap or cheer at movies, but even I had to show some love! I nearly fell out of my seat with excitement."
31.In Romeo + Juliet, when...you know, the whole ending part where Romeo and Juliet both die after a tragic miscommunication happens:
"Not quite in theaters, but we watched the Leonardo DiCaprio Romeo + Juliet in my freshman year English class, and about a dozen of us needed late passes for the next period because it was a room full of 15-year-old girls sobbing uncontrollably 😂."
32.In Love, Simon, when Simon and Bram kiss on the ferris wheel:
"When I saw Love, Simon in the theater, I went with a few friends of mine. When Simon is about to give up on meeting Blue, and Bram comes up and says, 'Can I sit there?' we all started holding hands. When they finally kissed at the top, every single person in the theater started screaming and clapping. It was such a fantastic expression of joy and queer love and representation. One of the best moments in a movie theater I’ve ever experienced!"
"Definitely when Blue and Simon kiss on the ferris wheel in Love, Simon! The entire audience audibly shared their emotions to Simon's struggle through tears and laughter. But the part when Simon finally kissed Blue on the ferris wheel is what truly made the theater celebrate! It was so refreshing and groundbreaking to see LGBTQ representation on the big screen."
33.In Uncut Gems, when Howard Ratner wins his bet, only to be killed right after:
"The ending of Uncut Gems, right after Adam Sandler’s character finally, finally wins. The whole theater was completely silent with shock."
34.In Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, when the Rohirrim arrive at Minas Tirith:
"There would be no 'Avengers, assemble' without the Rohan cavalry arriving at Minas Tirith in Lord of the Rings: Return of the King. The horn blowing, everyone seeing them come up over the horizon, the music, Theoden’s speech, the 'Death!' battle cry, the charge...goosebumps."
35.Just everything about Rihanna's Met Gala entrance in Ocean's 8:
"When Rihanna came down the Met steps in the red ball gown dress in Ocean’s 8, the whole theater gasped. A true god."
36.In Gone Girl, when it's revealed that Amy has been alive the WHOLE TIME:
"About halfway through, when shit is absolutely hitting the fan for Nick, and the movie cuts to Amy driving away and explaining her plan to frame him."
37.In Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, when Wanda first appears and then when we learned her "normal life" was an illusion:
"Okay, I remember seeing Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness in theaters opening weekend this year, and everyone lost their MINDS when Wanda first appeared and then when we found out her entire orchard/normal life was an illusion. Like, people — myself included — screamed. This was Elizabeth Olsen’s first Marvel movie appearance since WandaVision, and I loved hearing how much love she got and how many more people love her character now.”
38.In Toy Story 3, when the toys hold hands in the incinerator:
"When I saw Toy Story 3 in theaters, this little boy behind me started crying when the gang was in the incinerator, and said, 'I wanna leave, I wanna leave!' I felt so bad."
39.In Jojo Rabbit, when Jojo finds his mother was hanged:
"In Jojo Rabbit when Jojo is following the butterfly and then sees his mom’s feet swaying in the air because she’d been caught and killed. Outside of Marvel movies on opening night, I haven’t been in a theater with that big of a reaction — people were sobbing. The shot of Jojo trying to tie his mom’s shoelaces made me ugly cry."
40.In The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, when Katniss shoots the arrow at the arena force field:
"When The Hunger Games: Catching Fire was released, I was in a packed theater with largely book fans on opening night. The theater was dead silent until Katniss Everdeen shoots the arrow at the arena force field and President Snow’s screen went dark. Then the audience erupted in applause, and I have never felt an experience like that ever before or ever again. Not even for Avengers: Infinity War or Endgame. The pure energy of the room was unparalleled and I wish I could relive that moment a hundred more times. Great book, great movie."
41.In The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part I, when Bella's life is in limbo as she's turning into a vampire:
"I went to see The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part I in the theater with my parents, and toward the end where you aren't supposed to know whether she'll live or not, somebody in the theater yelled out, 'She ain't dead!' The whole audience was laughing for the rest of the movie, and even as we were all leaving the theater. It was just perfect timing. I actually ended up watching a marathon on TV the other day with my mom, and she stayed up late, just so I could re-create the moment."
42.In Knives Out, when Ransom stabs Marta with a prop knife:
"At the end of Knives Out, I SWEAR literally EVERYONE whispered ~it’s a prop knife!~ under their breath! So great."
43.In Crazy Rich Asians, when Astrid tells her cheating ex-husband, "It's not my job to make you feel like a man":
"My entire cinema went, 'OHHHHHHHHHH!'"
44.In Hereditary, when Peter beheads his little sister:
"In Hereditary, when Peter inadvertently beheads his little sister, Charlie. I audibly gasped and held my hand over my mouth for five minutes."
45.In Star Wars: The Force Awakens, when Kylo Ren kills Han Solo:
"During The Force Awakens, some dude yelled, 'What the FUCK!' at full volume when Kylo Ren killed Han Solo."
46.In Black Panther, when Erik Killmonger says "Hey, Auntie":
"I’m not sure exactly why we were all so tickled by this, but when I went to see Black Panther, the entire theater busted out laughing when Michael B. Jordan said 'Hey, Auntie' to Angela Bassett."
47.In The Twilight Saga: New Moon, when Jacob Black takes off his shirt for the first time:
"Ha, not gonna lie, when Jacob Black took his shirt off in the second Twilight movie."
48.In One Day, when Emma tragically dies in an accident at the end:
"I watched One Day in cinema, and when the death scene happened, one woman started very loudly sobbing. My mom's friend has the loudest laugh, and she just couldn't keep it in, and suddenly, the whole theater was cackling during what was supposed to be a very sad moment. It was hilarious."
—Ashley P., FB
49.Just...everything about Snape's death scene in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2:
"When Snape was dying in Deathly Hallows and Harry comes up with the vial to catch his tears, and he says 'You have your mother’s eyes,' the entire theater broke. Everyone was already quietly crying and sniffling, but when the line was said, you could hear the turmoil in the room. People were gasping, crying out, and openly sobbing."
50.And then when Neville kills Nagini:
"When Neville slayed Nagini in Deathly Hollows: Part 2. I saw it the day it came out. I haven’t heard so many people cheer and laugh at the same time as loudly as that."
51.In The Princess and the Frog, when Ray dies:
"Everyone was so sad when Ray the firefly died, but the little girl one row ahead of me said, 'But Mommy, why did the bug die? Is he really dead?' It was so, so cute and also so sad. I was glad to see how engaged everyone was."
52.In The Matrix, when Trinity goes into the phone booth right before an agent slams a truck into it:
"Going a bit further back, but we went to go see The Matrix in the theater, and when Trinity stepped into the phone booth just before an agent was going to crash into it (but before you learn she got teleported out), the lady next to me gasped and said, 'Why did she do that? WHY DID SHE DO THAT?!?'"
53.In Parasite, when we discover the stairway leading to the basement:
"I saw the movie twice, and the second time I paid attention to the reaction of people around me and pretty much everyone gasped in shock."
54.In The Empire Strikes Back, when Darth Vader reveals himself as Luke's father:
"An oldie but a goodie: 'I am your father.' Saw it in a packed theater the weekend it came out. Oh, yeah. Minds. Blown."
55.In Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2, when Kostas returns:
"So, this might be really random, but did anyone else see Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 in theaters? Because there’s a part, like, midway through when Lena is FINALLY starting to get back on her feet after having her heart broken into a million tiny pieces by Kostas. She’s leaving this art class where this cute boy has been flirting with her, and it seems like she’s really going to be able to move on and be happy, and then all of a sudden, you hear, 'Hello, Lena.' Lo and behold, it’s the heartbreaker himself, KOSTAS DOUNAS in Bethesda, Maryland, back to ruin her life! I saw that movie the day it opened, in a theater packed full of women, young and old, and I swear we all let out one MASSIVE gasp in unison and then immediately burst out laughing at our communal reaction. It was awesome."
56.In Frozen 2, when Olaf is "dying":
"When I saw Frozen 2, I started sobbing the moment I realized that Olaf was dying when Elsa froze. That moment is something I will never forget for as long as I live."
57.And in Tangled, when Flynn is "dying":
"I saw Tangled in theaters, and when Flynn 'dies,' you could tell everyone in the audience was trying not to cry. Then, one little girl shouts at the top of her lungs 'I'M. SO. SAD.' It was so cute and pitiful, I think it helped a lot of people suck those tears back in."
58.In A Quiet Place, when all the characters had to be silent, so the theater was silent, too:
"The best movie I ever watched in the cinemas was A Quiet Place. Everyone really was so into the movie that nobody was moving, eating popcorn, or whatever. It was a huge experience!"
59.In Dreamgirls, when Jennifer Hudson sings "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going":
"She got a standing ovation in the movie theater."
60.In It, when Pennywise comes out of the projector screen:
"I don’t know if jump scares should count, but in It, when Pennywise came out of the projector screen, the entire theater screamed. It was the only jump scare in the whole movie that accomplished that."
61.In Marley & Me, when Marley dies at the end:
"Everyone in the theater was crying."
62.In Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, when Rey seemingly blows up the ship that Chewbacca was on:
"I remember audibly crying out when it appeared that Rey accidentally blew up the ship that Chewbacca was on, only to sigh in relief when it turned out he was on another ship and was alive."
63.Literally, just experiencing a singalong version of The Greatest Showman:
"I would have to say going to The Greatest Showman singalongs. That movie is way too much fun to sing under your breath."
64.Watching What We Do in the Shadows in a full movie theater:
"Best movie experience in years was a special festival screening of What We Do in the Shadows at the small Capitol Theatre. The entire cinema roared with laughter the entire movie. Virtually all movies we get are international blockbusters. It was so special watching a locally made film with actors we know and love, in a style of comedy that’s uniquely New Zealand. Love Taika’s work so much!"
65.In The Hunger Games, when Katniss makes a memorial for Rue and gives the Three Finger Salute:
"Not a verbal reaction but...on opening night of the first Hunger Games movie when Katniss finishes her memorial for Rue and gives the Three Finger Salute, most people in the theater were in tears and gave the salute as well."
66.Watching the twist ending of The Sixth Sense for the first time:
"You could tell the exact second everyone in the theater finally figured out what was really happening in The Sixth Sense. There was one huge collective gasp. It was awesome."
67.In I Am Legend, when Robert has to kill his dog:
"There was an audible gasp. I haven’t experienced that before or since."
68.In The Lion King, when Mufasa dies:
"So, no one wants to talk about Mufasa’s death? Or any scene in The Lion King, for that matter? I didn’t see it in theaters (because I wasn’t alive yet), but relatives have, and they said the theater was dumbstruck when they got to the stampede scene."
69.In Eighth Grade, when Kayla plays a tense and uncomfortable game of Truth or Dare with Olivia's friend Riley:
"We saw Eighth Grade in theaters, and the scene with her in the car with the creep had the entire theater not just uncomfortable but actively yelling encouragement/advice for her at the screen. 'GIRL, HE AIN'T WORTH IT. RUN!' and similar sentiments were just collectively yelled for literally the entire scene."
—Ashley M.
70.Okay, the entire dusting sequence in Avengers: Infinity War was so sad, but specifically when T'Challa is dusted...
"When I saw Avengers: Infinity War, there was a woman in the theater who screamed out, 'T’Challa, NO!' when he got dusted. When I’ve watched it at home, I always say that now!"
71....and when Peter Parker gets dusted, too:
"Seeing Avengers: Infinity War in the theater, when Spider-Man DIED, a bunch of TEENAGE boys in the front row literally jumped up and screamed, 'NOOOOOOO!'"
"When Peter Parker got dusted, I was in the theater with a bunch of my friends, and one of them was like, 'No, Tom Holland can't dieeeeeee.'"
72.In Titanic, when Jack dies in the end:
"Oldie, but in Titanic when Jack died! I saw this in theaters twice, and everyone was crying. You could feel the sadness when Rose let him sink."
73.And sadly, in A Star Is Born when Jackson Maine dies by suicide and his dog is outside the garage door:
"I had to hold my hands over my mouth because I was absolutely SOBBING."
