# Who is our "Opposite Sean Bean", someone who has a lot of film appearances and never dies? (spoilers) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** middle-earth, movies\ **Created:** [March 29, 2026, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855 "2026-03-29T00:55:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2026, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/61 "2026-03-29T22:35:03Z")
Until _The Day the Clown Cried_ gets an official release, I’m going with Jerry Lewis. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2026, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/62 "2026-03-29T22:46:03Z")
I think he dies at the end of F.I.S.T. but maybe it’s uncertain? That’s the only one I could think of off the top of my head but he’s made a ton of movies I’ll never watch. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2026, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/63 "2026-03-29T23:20:26Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > Until _The Day the Clown Cried_ gets an official release, I’m going with Jerry Lewis. I still think we’ll see it, though was it even fully filmed? ---
**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:** [March 30, 2026, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/64 "2026-03-30T00:47:20Z")
> [@bump](#): > > > [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > > > Google tells me he drowns in _Wake of the Red Witch_ and _The Fighting Seabees_ > > I would swear he gets shot or blows up in _The Fighting Seabees_. Entirely possible. I’ve not seen it, and I was just quoting what Google AI told me. Your memory is equally plausible. … Okay, looking at the video posted by Elmer, you are right and Google is wrong. ---
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/65 "2026-03-30T05:30:28Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > From Russia With Love (man in James Bond mask) > The Man Who Would Be King > Highlander > Highlander II And also replying to many others… If there’s one thing I’ve learnt on this thread, it’s that I need to watch more Sean Connery films haha! I had no idea how often he died (I knew about the Bond one but it slipped my mind because it is so unusual). ---
**Author:** ![ASL\_v2.0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asl_v2.0/32/3525_2.png) [@ASL\_v2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASL_v2.0)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/66 "2026-03-30T06:13:40Z")
Kevin Bacon, obviously (because he’s famously/infamously been in a lot of films). He’s died… maybe a couple times that I can remember ( **The River Wild** and **X-Men First Class** ). I think he’s also roughly equivalent to Sean Bean in terms of celebrity (solid B-lister, occasional lead, and with plenty of roles alongside or opposite A-listers). By contrast, the Toms are mega-stars. ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/67 "2026-03-30T11:16:38Z")
> [@ASL\_v2.0](#): > > Kevin Bacon He was in Friday the 13th and got an arrow head through the throat. He’s also in Flatliners, where they all die and come back to life. ---
**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:** [March 30, 2026, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/68 "2026-03-30T11:52:20Z")
I’m not sure he survived Animal House either, he appears to have died in the panic, flattened like a cartoon character. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/69 "2026-03-30T12:16:37Z")
Putting my increasingly unreliable memory to the test here, doesn’t Keanu join the suicide party in _47 Ronin?_ ---
**Author:** ![troub](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troub/32/14802_2.png) [@troub](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/troub)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/70 "2026-03-30T13:22:38Z")
Ok, so for anti-Sean-Bean situation … I don’t remember ever thinking much about this whole thing until _Game of Thrones_, where (if you hadn’t read the book, at least) it really seemed like “Here’s a big-name(ish) recognizable actor who’s leading this show” and then _whomp_ they kill him right off at the beginning. Then folks started noticing that yeah, he kinda _always_ dies! So would a real anti-Sean-Bean then need to have a film or show where they’re “supposed” to be killed right away but then end up unexpectedly being the lead? And then you think, ‘oh yeah, they _never_ die…” As has been said earlier that scenario’s probably fairly common considering that looking like a character’s _going_ to die is just part of the language of drama/conflict, but it squarely (IMO) eliminates characters like John Wick or James Bond, etc. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/71 "2026-03-30T13:26:28Z")
How about **Cary Grant**? His character dies (before the film begins, I think) in **Topper** , because he’s one of the ghosts. But I can’t think of another in which he dies. Not even in **Gunga Din** , apparently. ---
**Author:** ![Toxgoddess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Toxgoddess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toxgoddess)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/72 "2026-03-30T13:33:16Z")
Kevin Bacon is killed in _Sleepers_, by two of his childhood victims who are now grown up and looking for revenge. That was a great movie. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/73 "2026-03-30T14:20:54Z")
James Mason dies in a few movies, but lives in most of his significant ones He dies off-screen in **20,000 Leagues Under the Sea** and **The Desert Fox.** According to the internet he dies in **Salem’s Lot; Frankenstein** – **The True Story,** **Odd Man Out,** **The Fall of the Roman Empire,** and **Cold Sweat**. He also dies in **A Star is Born** But he lives in **A Journey to the CEnter of the Earth, North by Northwest, The Last of Sheila, Lolita, Murder by Decree,** and **The Verdict** , aming a great many others. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/74 "2026-03-30T14:54:37Z")
As far as I can recall, and backed by a quick internet search, **Dick van Dyke** does not appear to die in any of his movies. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/75 "2026-03-30T15:00:27Z")
Surprisingly, I think **Peter Lorre** qualifies. He dies pretty famously in **Casablanca** and in the less famous **Mad Love** , but I think he lives in every other movie he’s in, even the Roger Corman ones. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/76 "2026-03-30T15:20:20Z")
Pierce Brosnan? I can’t think of him dying in a single film. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/77 "2026-03-30T15:32:39Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > Eric Roberts has over 900 credits somehow and almost never dies. Given his promising start and quick fall from grace, I’m sure he died inside a little in most of those roles. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/78 "2026-03-30T16:14:06Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > Pierce Brosnan? I can’t think of him dying in a single film. I think he dies in Black Adam. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/79 "2026-03-30T17:05:15Z")
You’re right! ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855/80 "2026-03-30T18:10:14Z")
He also dies in the Ghost Writer. And isn’t he a ghost in the second Mama Mia film? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-our-opposite-sean-bean-someone-who-has-a-lot-of-film-appearances-and-never-dies-spoilers/1028855.md?page=5)