Research commissioned by Ecclesiastical Planning Services has revealed that the death of Bambi’s mother in the 1942 American animated drama film, Bambi, has been voted as the most memorable death in a film with 20% of the votes (302). Of the 20% of respondents who voted for Bambi, more than half were female.
Research from the British Medical Journal** found that “two thirds of children’s animated films contained an on-screen death of an important character compared with half of comparison films”, suggesting that the frequency is higher in films aimed at children. Given that younger viewers often rewatch films, it is unsurprising that of the 44% of respondents who named a film (664 respondents in total), 56% (374) shared a memorable death from a children’s film.
The study polled 1,500 British adults, all aged 50 or over. The survey was conducted as part of wider research into the attitudes of the British public towards death and funerals.
The list of films with memorable death scenes also included Jack Dawson’s death in Titanic (9%, 130 votes), John Coffey’s death in The Green Mile (8%, 118 votes), Mufasa’s death in The Lion King (4%, 66 votes), the death scenes in Romeo + Juliet and Noah and Allie’s in The Notebook (1%, 16 votes).
Alongside the most popular answers above, other films that were mentioned included Blade Runner, Alien, Gladiator, Spock in Star Trek, The Champ, Watership Down, The Deer Hunter, Dumbo, Lord of the Rings, Skyfall and West Side Story. (A full list can be seen below.)
This survey highlights Leonardo DiCaprio (who played Jack Dawson in Titanic and Romeo in Romeo + Juliet) as being regarded by the over 50s as one of the best death scene actors. His name appeared in 11% of responses (over 430 respondents). The quality of the acting, along with the storyline/plot and production quality are likely to influence how memorable the scene is.
To understand respondents’ answers further, the survey then asked the same group of people what they had found particularly memorable. More than two thirds (68%) based their film choice on the fact that the chosen scene was very moving (68%, 501 votes). 33% said it was because it was shocking/traumatic, with females more likely to recall a scene because it was shocking/traumatic (38%) than males (25%). 16% said it was because the death was unexpected and 9% said it was because it evoked memories.
In many cases, these films had a significant impact with one person commenting that the death of the two dogs in Where the Red Fern Grows made them “cry for a week”, showing the sheer emotive power of movie death scenes.
In The Conversation, an independent source of news analysis written by academic experts, Sarah Wayland asksiii whether an on-screen death can be “a legitimate experience of mourning”, going on to say that the death of a character “can feel like the death of someone you actually know”, with such scenes acting as “a trigger or a reminder of the losses we have endured”. The survey reflected this, with 44% saying it evoked memories of a family member, 29% saying a pet, 21% talked about it bringing up memories of a friend, and 12% mentioned a colleague.
Emma Simpson from pre-paid funeral plan provider, Ecclesiastical Planning Services, said: “It’s common for viewers to invest emotionally in films, so it’s no surprise that some of these memories stay with people throughout their lives and are easy to recall. As the results have shown, many of these death scenes evoke memories of those closest to us, whether it’s family, friends or pets. Film makers have a wonderful way of tapping into our deepest emotions and this can leave a real mark. For some people, their earliest memory of death and dying can come from films which is another area we’ve explored through our research as a funeral plan provider.”
Sources:
*One Poll research of UK residents over 50, on behalf of Ecclesiastical Planning Services, November 2024.
**British Medical Journal, “CARTOONS KILL: casualties in animated recreational theater in an objective observational new study of kids’ introduction to loss of life, December 2014”. Available at https://www.bmj.com/content/349/bmj.g7184 [Accessed 12 September 2025]
***The Conversation, “Can death on the screen feel the same as a ‘real’ one?” April 2023. Available at https://theconversation.com/can-death-on-the-screen-feel-the-same-as-a-real-one-203549 [Accessed 12 September 2025]