The DC Universe

has often included some genuinely tense and terrifying death scenes that stay with you long after the credits roll. DC is often looked at as being the more mature and dark comics publisher of the big two. While Marvel can get dark, most of the stories can appeal to a wide audience. But even with that in mind, the DCEU took some incredibly dark turns.

Early DC movies and shows emphasized hope and comedy in a way that made them feel far removed from the dark and gritty source material. However, by the time the 1980s and 1990s rolled around, it began to move into a darker direction. And then, when the DCEU was born, it saw that darker vision fully realized with some of the most blood-curdling and twisted death scenes to ever appear in superhero movies.

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Starro Dies Via Javelin & Rats In The Suicide Squad

For instance, James Gunn, now the co-head of DC Studios, got his start in film, working on horror and quirky superhero movies. So, when he got around to directing The Suicide Squad, those roots were very clearly present in the grotesque and intense nature of his film. However, Gunn is gifted at finding a way to do both the dark and gruesome, and the outrageous and hilarious.

That being said, the way that Starro, the giant alien starfish, is killed off is particularly gruesome. Harley Quinn drives a javelin into its eye, before an army of rats climbs the entire body of the beast and eats him. It’s horrifying, but it makes sense in the movie, and it paid off as one of the most gripping and memorable deaths from the DCEU.

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The Cow’s Death In Peacemaker Season 1’s Ending Gets Gross Very Quickly

The Cow was the food source for the alien race that tried to control peoples’ minds in Peacemaker. It was a strange-looking creature that was stored beneath the Earth, and despite the aliens actually wanting to live in peace and harmony with humans, Peacemaker put the safety and freedom of his friends above this bizarre species.

With that, the Cow was penetrated, before having its insides ripped out, and enduring what was presumably a terribly painful death. The vivid nature of the insides coming out was nothing short of disgusting, but again, it’s to be expected in another project from Gunn. As wild as the scene was, it did its job in driving home the win.

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Sabbac’s Death In Black Adam

Black Adam came at a terribly unfortunate time in the DCEU timeline, just ahead of an announcement that the universe would be rebooted, but that doesn’t mean the team didn’t get fully behind the movie when it came out. This was supposed to be a moment to reignite the spark in DC fans, and get the next chapter started. And with that, the movie did not hold back.

Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam was a force to be reckoned with, and he proved his incredible power in the fight against Sabbac. While he was supported by the Justice Society of America, Black Adam is the one to deal the final blow to Sabbac, when he tears the demon apart from his head straight down to his crotch. It’s intense, and the lava makes it feel a little less intense, but it is still gripping.

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The Alpha Team In Suicide Squad Got Slaughtered

At the beginning of The Suicide Squad, the movie fakes out the audience when it introduces an entire team of heroes who appeared prominently in the marketing of the movie. However, within seconds of storming the beach, they are obliterated, thanks to a double cross. This scene sees heroes’ heads blown off, riddled with bullets, and utterly annihilated.

While it’s played out as a funny moment, catching the audience off guard, it’s still incredibly dark. The brutality and viciousness of the scene makes it clear that the tone of the movie is mature, and no one can be trusted. It was yet another big swing and a hit for Gunn’s work.

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Lois Lane Becomes Ash And Bones In Zack Snyder’s Justice League

Zack Snyder also sought to make the DCEU a particularly dark and gritty place. Instead of light-hearted heroics and fun, Snyder wanted to show the intensity and the consequences of these beings with powers far beyond the norm. And so, death hangs over Snyder’s films prominently.

One of the most haunting deaths is not actually seen as it happens, but the aftermath is more than enough to drive the point home. As Superman discovers the body of his beloved Lois Lane, which is now reduced to ash and bone, it breaks the hero who stands for hope. And in that moment, it breaks the hearts of eager fans, as that anchor in Clark’s life disappears.

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Zod Gets His Neck Snapped By Superman In Man Of Steel

However, Snyder established this intense and dark tone much earlier. In Man of Steel, Superman must fight Zod to protect his home, and the people of Earth. While Superman does all he can to fight the Kryptonian and ensure he does not cross a line, Zod drives Superman to a point of desperation when he realizes that he has no choice but to eliminate his rival, permanently.

Superman does not typically take lives, which is what makes it all the more astonishing when he grips Zod’s head in his hands, and twists sharply, snapping his neck. The brutality and finality of his actions are a defining moment right at the outset of the DCEU, and one that shapes the rest of the story for both his character and the DCEU at large.

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Batman Mercilessly Takes Down Mercenaries In Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice

Meanwhile, it isn’t just Supes that is driven to break his own rules. Bruce Wayne, aka Batman, also experienced serious loss as seen in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice. This drives him to become paranoid, anxious, and disillusioned with a moral code. Where Batman used to pull his punches, he no longer does so, and he acts with brutality and force.

This is perhaps best seen when he fights a group of normal men in a warehouse, brutally beating them, and shooting his grappling hook to pull a crate over and crush a man’s head. All semblance of the rules has been discarded, and Batman is now acting on instinct. And the result is terrifying.

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Nina Dies For Nothing In Creature Commandos