27 Shocking Movies Endings People Didn't See Coming From A Mile Away
We recently asked the BuzzFeed Community to share the movie endings that legitimately left them feeling shocked! They had soo many great picks, and here are the top 27 responses:
🚨WARNING: There are MAJORRRRR spoilers ahead!!!🚨
1.Scream (1996)
"I thought for sure Billy was the killer and then was so shocked when he was ‘killed.' Then the reveal that it was fake and there are multiple killers. I love that movie."
Watch the ending here:
2.The Cabin in the Woods (2011)
"Shit went super sideways, then just spiraled into an entirely new movie in the best way. And then when you think you’ve caught up to this entire new plot development, the very last minute takes another colossal (literally) turn."
Watch the ending here:
3.Frozen (2013)
"I mean, this is kind of childish, but Frozen. I can't be the only one who was 8 years old and shocked that Hans would just leave Anna to die like that."
Watch the ending here:
4.Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
"The Empire Strikes Back is the original shock ending. I was 9, and I remember the audible gasp in the crowd when he said he was his father. Stunning. People left the theater stunned. My father didn’t speak on the ride home. No internet. No spoilers. Pure shock. It’s hard to do that nowadays."
Watch the ending here:
5.Fight Club (1999)
"The guy at the video store told me that it was the only movie he’d ever watched and then immediately watched again. Damned if I didn’t do the same thing, some of it frame by frame."
"I thought this movie was just going to be a bunch of men fighting in a basement, but the twist shook me so much! I’ve literally never experienced a twist like that, and I haven’t since. I had no idea it was coming; I love rewatching it and noticing all the subtle clues they drop."
Watch the ending scene here:
6.The Break-Up (2006)
"The only reason I was surprised is that most romance/drama/rom-coms try to bring estranged characters back together. It was refreshing to see movies embrace the fact that sometimes relationships end, and that's OK."
"Yes, the title of the movie should have given it away, but I thought they would get back together in the end, and they didn’t."
Watch the ending here:
7.The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part One (2014)
"One of my college friends didn’t read the Hunger Games books, so when Peeta tried to choke Katniss to death at the end of Mockingjay — Part 1, she sat there with her mouth literally hanging open."
Watch the ending here:
8.Primal Fear (1996)
"Spoiler alert, you really don't expect Norton's character to be faking it the whole time! Definitely worth a watch. Excellent performances from the whole cast!"
Watch the ending here:
9.It Chapter Two (2019)
"Look, I'm not saying it was good, but they bully Pennywise to death. I gotta say, that was a surprise."
Watch the ending here:
10.Avengers: Endgame (2019)
"When I heard that they were calling the movie 'Endgame,' I joked that Cap and Peggy must end up together because they are the 'endgame' of the MCU. I never imagined they’d actually do it!"
Whenever I hear people talk about movie endings that TRULY shocked them, the scene where Iron Man dies in Endgame is always mentioned!
Watch the ending here:
11.Gone Girl (2014)
"Both my husband’s and my jaw dropped with what happened with Desi. We were not expecting any of that to happen."
Watch the ending here:
12.Malignant (2021)
"I don't care what your opinion on the film is; you did not see that ending coming, don't even pretend you did."
Watch the ending here:
13.Black Widow (2021)
"I'd made my peace with never getting the funeral and never getting that closure. So when that post-credit scene gave us not only Yelena at the grave but the toys and letters from the kids, It meant a lot to me. But it also made me sob uncontrollably because I finally got real closure on my favorite hero's story. It was special, but I didn't expect it."
Watch the ending here:
14.Sorry to Bother You (2018)
"I don't think enough people have seen it, so I don't want to say what happens, but Sorry to Bother You. I don't believe you if you say you saw it coming!"
Watch the ending here:
15.The Mist (2007)
"Hands down, The Mist. It's been years, and I'm still not over it. I never wanted the 'it was all a dream cliche' so bad."
Watch the ending here:
16.Midsommar (2019)
"That last shot of her smiling — finally giving in to her entrapment within the cult, but not realizing it because they made her think she’s purged her life of toxicity and grief when she’s only stuck further down the rabbit hole — so goddamn poetic, and unfairly snubbed performance from queen Florence Pugh. That whole movie kept me on my toes, and there was no way I could’ve predicted that ending. I am always floored by it no matter how many times I rewatch it."
Watch the ending here:
17.Now You See Me (2013)
"The movie as a whole was just so-so, but having Mark Ruffalo (the FBI agent chasing them) be the mastermind behind the whole thing threw me for a loop."
Watch the ending here:
18.My Sister's Keeper (2009)
"Solely because they completely changed the ending and *spoiler alert* the wrong sister dies."
Watch the ending here:
19.One Day (2011)
"I didn't read the novel, so before watching the movie, I thought it was a story about friends who realized they were in love and would live happily ever after. I was in shock. Like my mouth was literally open for like two minutes after I saw that she died. What an absolute shocker."
"That movie LEGIT pissed me right the fuck off, lmao. I remember sitting through it for over an hour just for her to get hit by a BUS?!?! I actually exclaimed out loud in the theater, 'WHAT THE FUCK!'"
Watch the ending here:
20.Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
"It’s kind of a quick moment, but the ending always gets me. Jack getting eaten was wild, but the real shock was when Barbossa walked down the stairs and ended the movie. I was in middle school when I saw it in theaters for the first time. It’s truly the greatest twist/cliffhanger I’ve ever seen. I was genuinely shocked and so excited for the next installment!"
Watch the ending here:
21.The Others (2001)
"I love a good twist in a horror movie because they sometimes tend to be formulaic and predictable. So the ending of this movie has always stood out to me; it was truly unexpected."
Watch the ending here:
22.A Simple Favor (2018)
"You spend the whole movie thinking one thing, and then something completely different happens. It's wild!"
Watch the ending here:
23.The Departed (2006)
"When the elevator doors opened and 'BAM!' I did not see that death coming nor the resultant revenge. I have purposefully kept this vague, so those who haven't seen this amazing movie still have the opportunity to be as shocked as I was."
—jmcv
"The first time I finished, my mouth was just literally hanging open. Holy hell, that’s one way to end a movie!"
Watch the ending here:
24.Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
"No way did I expect so many characters to die, especially not knowing if they were coming back or not. The whole theater when I saw it was just in shock."
"I still remember that soul-crushing feeling of seeing our favorite heroes turn to dust after they fought so hard to keep Thanos from snapping away half the universe. You expect most superhero movies to end with the good guys winning. Walking out of that movie theater was so depressing."
Watch the ending here:
25.Knives Out (2019)
"The ending really surprised me. I'm usually pretty good at guessing movie endings, but I did not see that one coming. It was a great movie, though, and I'm so excited for the sequel!!!"
Watch the ending here:
26.Promising Young Woman (2020)
"Without spoiling anything, the last 30 minutes of that movie was an emotional roller coaster that absolutely wrecked me. When the credits started to roll, I just sat in the theater for a moment, trying to process what just happened. I was STILL thinking about it days later."
Watch the ending here:
27.And finally,The Sixth Sense (1999)
"It's obvious, but it really is The Sixth Sense. I remember leaving the cinema overwhelmed and thinking about all the missed clues."
This clip is only viewable on YouTube, but you can watch the wild ending here.
Well, there you have it, folks! What movie endings left you utterly shocked that weren't on this list? Let me know in the comments below.
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.
