The Grand Theft Auto series has pushed limits and boundaries for years now and is one of the most iconic video game franchises because of that. Despite all the nonsense controversies surrounding the games, Rockstar has proved that they can be innovators in the gaming industry and it’s hard to picture what the gaming landscape would be like today if there was no GTA. The games have introduced us to a multitude of characters, and in that time we’ve grown close to some, and hated others. But regardless of what you think of them, you know whenever you’re playing any GTA game that the body count is going to be high.
GTA has gone through some pretty noticeable changes over the years, none more so than the game's graphics. As they’ve improved, so have the game's cutscenes and sequences. That means that over the years, we’ve gotten more polished character death scenes. Some of them hurt, some of them made us happy and some we just didn’t see coming. Depending on who bites the big one, you’re going to have varying emotions. Supporting characters are most likely to die throughout the course of a game, but some main characters have gone out in some pretty shocking ways too. Here are the 15 most WTF death scenes in Grand Theft Auto.
15 Floyd And Debra – GTA V
If there’s one thing GTA V did not have, it was functional couples. Michael and Amanda aside, one of the most messed up couples we’ve seen in the series has to be Floyd and Debra. We’re first introduced to Floyd through Trevor and Wade. The two of them crash in Floyd’s fiancée's apartment, though he doesn’t seem too pleased with it. Though once his fiancée, Debra finds out about it is when things really start to go south. Tensions boil over, and what was at first a perfectly normal domestic dispute turns into a living room Mexican standoff with Floyd, Debra, and Trevor all taking part. Well, this doesn’t please Trevor one bit – and that’s about the last thing we see on screen. After a fade to black, we see Trevor coming out of the apartment, Floyd and Debra’s blood on him while we’re left wondering what the heck just happened.
14 Johnny Klebitz – GTA V
One thing we like to see in games is cameos of characters from prior entries to a series. They don’t have to be major roles or anything, but a little nod here and there goes a long way. Back in the GTA IV era, Johnny was one of the more level-headed and street smart characters we were introduced to. A badass biker, Johnny was both an admirable enemy and an entertaining protagonist. But by the time GTA V came around, it seemed as though Johnny had gone through a complete change in character, becoming a different person. It comes as a big surprise to see Johnny right as we’re introduced to Trevor, but from the get go something doesn’t seem right. It’s clear that Johnny has developed a pretty serious meth addiction at this point. His on-screen appearance lasts about two minutes, and we last see him getting his brains beat out by Trevor, leaving us perplexed and stunned at the sudden turn of events.
13 Dom Beasley – GTA V
GTA V offers the player a multitude of things to do on the side to keep them busy and immerse themselves within the massive open world. You can do it all; racing, tennis, drinking – whatever. But one of the more interesting among these activities are the random encounters you’ll have with NPC’s. Dubbed “Strangers and Freaks,” these missions introduce you to a number of colorful characters and have you interact with them, sometimes telling a little story along the way. One of these characters is Dom Beasley, an adrenaline junkie who gets acquainted with Franklin at some point in the game. Dom does everything from dirt biking to skydiving. Just when you think he’s got it all down pat, Dom goes and dies right in front of you –jumping off the Land Act Dam without a parachute. Idiot.
12 Dwayne Forge – GTA IV
In a cast of murderers, scumbags and everything in between, Dwayne was one of the more likable characters in GTA IV. We first see Dwayne after he’s released from prison, having served a lengthy sentence. Niko then helps him settle some old scores and rebuild his life, and while he’s still a criminal Dwayne is one of the more down to earth characters in the game. But problems arise when both he and his former protégé Playboy X as Niko to kill the other. If the player chooses to kill Dwayne, then you’re met with a little resistance from some thugs before you walking into Dwayne’s apartment. Having accepted his fate, Dwayne gives you some cold words and turns his back on Niko – giving the player a clean shot.
11 Louise Cassidy-Williams – GTA: Vice City Stories
Love interests have not always met the kindest ends in the GTA franchise. We’ll expand on that a little more later, but for now, let’s talk about Louise and her unfortunate death in Vice City Stories. Louise was Vic’s love interest for most of the game. While the two got off to a great start, their relationship eventually soured over time. While GTA is chalk full of scumbags, Louise was one of those characters you kind of pulled for, being a single mother trying to make things work for her and her infant child. Once she’s kidnapped by Jerry Martinez, it’s pretty much all over for Louise. The next we see of her, she’s lying on the floor, savagely beaten with bullet wounds begging Vic to make sure her child is looked after.
10 Anthony Corrado – GTA IV
Things start to get pretty hectic for Niko in GTA IV when he begins working with the Italian mob. One particular mission, sees him infiltrating a hospital full of police and requires a disguise to get in. A member of the Pegorino crime family, Anthony Corrado becomes a target once it is discovered that he was a police snitch, wearing a wire throughout portions of the game. After suffering a heart attack, he’s taken into police custody and is heavily guarded by police officers. Niko is sent in to silence him by any means necessary. While you could just shoot him in his bed and be done with it, there’s a somewhat more disturbing option. Should you feel like it, you can shut off his life support which leads to a brief sequence of Anthony writhing in pain before delivering his last words and passing on right in front of you.
9 Charles “Chubby Charlie” Matteo – GTA IV
If you gotta go, you might as well go in style. Though he played a bit part in the plot, Charles “Chubby Charlie” Matteo had one of the most epic death scenes in the entire game. After finding out about Phil Bell’s involvement in a sour drug deal with the Russian mob, Chubby Charlie goes into hiding, but is tracked down by Niko at Phil’s request. He, along with a myriad of his men are holed up in an abandoned factory, where Niko must shoot his way through various thugs in order to confront Charlie. As Niko chases him to the roof, it looks as though Chubby Charlie has managed to escape via helicopter – though he’s barely hanging on. Niko manages to shoot the chopper down, with Charlie holding tightly to the landing gear. The chopper spirals out of control and crashes back into the factory, ending with a huge explosion.
8 Manny Escuela And Jay Hamilton – GTA IV
It was one of the most shocking, yet satisfying deaths in the entire game. Throughout the entirety of GTA IV, you’ll never meet a self-righteous douche bag quite like many Escuela. A self-proclaimed reformed gangster, Manny makes it his business to expose the shady dealing going on in the streets in order to make them safer for kids. It’s admirable until you realize that the guy is only interested in one thing: fame. Once you figure that out, he kind of starts to get to you. But Manny’s hunger for fame would be his downfall. When both he and his cameraman Jay burst into Elizabeta Torres’ apartment threatening to expose her dealings, Elizabeta – high and paranoid of the threat of police intervention – shoots them both in the head in a matter of seconds. Their executions are so abrupt they barely give you time to process their deaths.
7 Jay Norris – GTA V
Based off Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg and deceased Apple CEO Steve Jobs, Jay Norris has a very brief but explosive role in GTA V. On Lester’s request, Michael is sent to infiltrate Lifeinvader headquarters disguised as an employee. At first, the mission seems pretty straight forward, get inside, locate a prototype phone and then tamper with it and leave. Pretty standard and very tame by Grand Theft Auto standards. But the worst of it comes after all that. The mission doesn’t end there, and Michael is tasked with watching Norris’ press conference on TV with the vague instructions of calling a number once he demonstrates the phone. After some tedious dialogue, it happens. The phone blows up in Norris’ face, killing him instantly.
6 Diamond Dealer – GTA IV
Not that many people on this list were so unimportant that they didn’t even get a name, but some characters just aren’t that big a deal. In the mission “Late Checkout” Niko is sent to kill some Jewish diamond dealers in their apartment. Though the big name target here is Jewish gangster Isaac Roth, his execution isn’t even the most memorable of the mission. After killing Isaac, Niko makes his way to the roof where he’s met by a number of goons. But there’s also another diamond dealer up on there that they seem to be protecting. Though you could gun everyone down individually, something pretty cool happens is you shoot a gasoline canister lying around. The diamond dealer is engulfed in flames and in his disorientation and pain, falls off the roof – screaming all the way down on his long fall. It’s a pretty brutal way of killing someone that did absolutely nothing plot wise.
5 Darko Brevic – GTA IV
Though GTA IV is primarily about Niko’s fresh start and his continuous dealings with the criminal underworld, it’s also a story about redemption and revenge. Niko spends the better part of the game trying to find the man who sold out his squad in the war. When Darko is finally brought to Niko, bound and lame from years of drug abuse, the player is given a choice whether or not to kill him. If Niko kills Drako, he shoots him twelve times, once for each friend lost due to his betrayal. The shots are spread out and Darko is slowly but surely brought closer to death with each bullet. It’s one of the darker scenes in the franchise’s history.
4 Zombie Actors – GTA: Vice City Stories
It’s not that uncommon for players to get bored in GTA and go on random rampages. Don’t lie, we’ve all done it now and then. But that’s just the player being bored. It’s a different story when the game actually makes you do it. During the Vice City Stories mission “Brawn of the Dead” Vic is tasked with being a stunt man for a new zombie movie being shot. It then splits into two parts, Vic shooting zombies with a shotgun behind a counter and Vic slaying them with a Katana. The mission proceeds normally from there. But if you listen to the radio afterward, it’ll talk about the zombie film but also mention how the flow of life in the city has been getting lower and lower since it began shooting – suggesting that Vic was actually murdering all those actors.
3 Molly Schultz – GTA V
Another bit character that didn’t get too much of a role in the games, Molly is only remembered for her high-strung attitude and the memorable death she received towards the end of GTA V. When she takes the only copy of Michael’s first Hollywood-produced film, Michael begins chasing Molly all the way to the airport. Frantic, because she’s convinced Michael is out to kill her, she speedily makes her way to Devin Weston’s hangar with Michael right behind her. She’s so preoccupied with Michael that she doesn’t notice the active Jet engine she passes. The engine begins sucking her in, and in a matter of seconds, she’s turned into mulch. A sudden, random, and all around funny death scene from an otherwise forgettable character.
2 Roman / Kate – GTA IV
This one kind of came out of nowhere. It presents players with an incredibly difficult decision and offers two of the saddest death scenes in the GTA universe. During the mission “One Last Thing,” Niko is given the choice to either accept a deal with Dimitri Rascalov or to decline it. Either option leads to one of two possibilities. Either Roman dies, or Kate dies after Roman’s wedding. Both deaths come pretty suddenly, and if you had no knowledge of what would happen going into the mission, either would definitely be a huge shock. Ultimately, Niko gets his revenge either way, but it’s a raw deal regardless of the outcome. Though many games have adopted multiple endings, this sticks as one of the most poignant choices that kind of storytelling device can offer in a video game.
1 Trevor Philips – GTA V
You can’t say all that many nice things about Trevor now can you? The psychotic Canadian shares the role of protagonist with both Michael and Franklin in GTA V. You get to see just how messed up a guy Trevor is throughout the game, but it does humanize him at points in the story – if only for a little. After the game’s final heist, Franklin is given the option to either kill Trevor, Michael, or those that double crossed the three of them. While the latter is generally seen as the best ending, going for Trevor’s ending gives you the most disturbing death in the series. After a lengthy car chase with Franklin, Michael slams his own car into Trevor’s, causing him to crash into a gas tanker. Badly injured and doused in gasoline, Trevor lays on the ground crawling and yelling at his friends, cursing their betrayal. Either Franklin or Michael shoots the gas, causing Trevor to combust, burning alive while writhing on the floor in pain.