# Same Actor TWICE (or more) dies the SAME UNUSUAL Death? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 10, 2008, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261 "2008-10-10T00:37:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bienville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@bienville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bienville)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/1 "2008-10-10T00:37:24Z")
I caught Kenneth Branagh’s [Frankenstein](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109836/) the other day for the first time since it was released in theaters. As I saw Helena Bonham Carter set aflame for a fiery death, it struck me that last year’s [Sweeney Todd](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0408236/) marked Carter’s _second_ death by being set on fire. Now, no doubt there are many actors who have been twice shot and several who have been twice stabbed or twice died of disease- but for the same actor to be twice set aflame, that is something curiously remarkable. So, what are some other examples of actors who have twice (or more) died the same unusual death? Again, common deaths like gunshots don’t count- unless there were such a case as an actor who died twice of a gunshot delivered via a “Moe Greene Special” or some method similarly unusual. Also, twice facing _an_ unusual death doesn’t count- same actor who once dies in a woodchipper and once by rabid muskrat attack- it must twice (or more) be the _same_ unusual death: twice in a woodchipper or twice by rabid muskrats. ---
**Author:** ![ToeJam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dfb087/32.png) [@ToeJam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ToeJam)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/2 "2008-10-10T00:49:07Z")
The guy who plays Freddie Krueger always seems to find himself being set on fire for some reason… 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/3 "2008-10-10T01:06:26Z")
Gary Oldman. Blown up by grenade in **The Professional** , and by bomb in **The Fifth Element**. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/4 "2008-10-10T01:29:51Z")
John Hurt. Alien bursting out of chest; first in _Alien_, then for laughs in _Spaceballs_. (Don’t know if this one counts, though, since the second occurrence was a direct spoof of the first.) ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/5 "2008-10-10T02:12:25Z")
Christopher Lee has gotten staked through the heart a few times…the last time, in 2003, he _wasn’t_ playing a Vampire. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/6 "2008-10-10T02:15:55Z")
> [@Baldwin](#): > > John Hurt. Alien bursting out of chest; first in _Alien_, then for laughs in _Spaceballs_. (Don’t know if this one counts, though, since the second occurrence was a direct spoof of the first.) In a similar vein, Mark Hamill gets a hand chopped off in _The Empire Strikes Back_, finds himself saying “Not again!” in _Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back_. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/7 "2008-10-10T05:56:40Z")
Peter “Doctor Who” Davison has on [two](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087924/)separate [occasions](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0652211/)played the murderer in a 1930s British murder mystery. Presumably his character was hanged both times, although it happened offscreen. ---
**Author:** ![Critical1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Critical1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Critical1)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/8 "2008-10-10T07:57:53Z")
Daryl Hanna, Blade Runner and Kill Bill she had the same exact death scene…now that I think about it, not quite, she was shot in one and bitten by a snake in the other but the deaths were the same anyhow yeah yeah yeah I had a drink or 3, I hope that makes sense ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/9 "2008-10-10T08:35:29Z")
I thought Judy Davis got decapitated a lot, although the only examples I can think of are **Barton Fink** (off-camera) and **Naked Lunch** (Head exploded in gunshot incident). I always thought the perfect indy film would feature her being decapitated while Stanley Tucci, tied to a chair, is forced to watch. I’ve only seen one Linnea Quigley movie, but I’m guessing multiple zombie attacks. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/10 "2008-10-10T13:02:25Z")
\*Days of our Lives \* resident evil villan Stefano DiMera has [“died”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stefano_DiMera#Stefano.27s_.22deaths.22) many times, including in three separate fires. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/11 "2008-10-10T14:31:55Z")
In both “House of Sand and Fog” and “Lucky Number Slevin”, Ben Kingsley dies from suffocation after having a plastic bag duct-taped over his head. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/12 "2008-10-10T17:13:47Z")
> [@Critical1](#): > > Daryl Hanna, Blade Runner and Kill Bill she had the same exact death scene…now that I think about it, not quite, she was shot in one and bitten by a snake in the other but the deaths were the same anyhow One itsy bitsy problem.Hannah doesn’t die in _Kill Bill_. 😛 She just loses an eye; Michael Madsen dies by snakebite. > [@](#): > > yeah yeah yeah I had a drink or 3, I hope that makes sense And there’s your problem! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Draper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Don\_Draper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_Draper)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/13 "2008-10-10T17:26:36Z")
This doesn’t really count, but Janet Leigh’s film characters have had extraordinarily bad luck in motel rooms. Of course, there’s her signature role as the murder victim in **Psycho** , and then she gets gang-raped (though not killed) in **Touch of Evil** in _another_ motel room. There was at least one other movie where she’s brutally attaked in a motel room. Can’t remember the name of it, but I do remember watching it on a late show once and thinking “Damn! Janet Leigh is getting attacked in a motel room again???” ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/14 "2008-10-10T18:45:49Z")
Per IMDB, [Steve Buscemi](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116282/trivia) dies, with more and more of him dismembered. Ending with Fargo (this link), where he winds up in a wood chipper with nothing but a leg intact. Admittedly, this is one of those “director’s trademark” things. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/15 "2008-10-10T18:51:06Z")
Debra Winger as Joy Gresham in Shadowlands dies of cancer. Debra Winger as Emma Horton in Terms of Endearment dies of cancer. ---
**Author:** ![Sean\_Factotum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/50afbb/32.png) [@Sean\_Factotum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sean_Factotum)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/16 "2008-10-10T19:20:52Z")
Jeffrey Dean Morgan - As Denny Duquette in “Grey’s Anatomy”, dies of heart failure (after a long illness) - As Judah Botwin in “Weeds”, dies of a heart attack (sudden), although his character is only seen in flashbacks. Okay, maybe not so weird. But he seems to die a lot in his appearances. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/17 "2008-10-10T20:45:47Z")
Jenette Goldstein died in an explosion in Near Dark and Aliens. Huh. Carrie Henn has done pretty much nothing but Aliens, or the makings thereof. I did not know that. “They come out at night… mostly…” ---
**Author:** ![bienville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@bienville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bienville)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/18 "2008-10-10T21:00:26Z")
Eh, I’m going to disqualify cancer, heart failure, and explosion. There’s nothing unusual about the first two, and in film there’s nothing unusual about the third. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/19 "2008-10-10T22:05:26Z")
The only one I can think of is Lee Marvin. He was twice killed by John Wayne and he was supposedly drunk both times (the character, not Marvin, although from what I’ve heard about Marvin, he could have been too). _The Comancheros_ and _The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence_ ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2008, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261/20 "2008-10-10T22:06:09Z")
Not exactly the questions asked but in **30 Days of Night** , Josh Hartnett dies by turning into dust and blowing away. but in **The Faculty** , Josh Hartnett kills an alien teacher by poisoning them and they turn into dust and blow away. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/same-actor-twice-or-more-dies-the-same-unusual-death/467261.md?page=2)