The Lord of the Rings franchise is notable for killing off many great characters, but there’s one actor in the franchise who has had more on-screen deaths than even Sean Bean. The upcoming movies and TV shows in The Lord of the Rings franchise are going to continue the fantasy series’ legacy, but it also means plenty of new characters are going to perish on the battlefield. Sean Bean’s on-screen deaths total more than twenty, which makes him one of the most notable actors who have died on-screen multiple times.

While he has seemingly made a competitive sport out of dying a lot on-screen, one of Bean’s co-stars in The Lord of the Rings trumps his death toll numbers by a wide margin. Although The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit have many fake-out deaths, they’re typically used for increased dramatic effect. Notable for its rich lore, compelling characters, and brutal depictions of war, many characters in The Lord of the Rings franchise were either maimed or outright killed by the end of the trilogy. Nevertheless, one actor in the movie holds the record for most on-screen deaths.

Christopher Lee Has Died 70 Times In Movies, Including LOTR

From Film And TV Deaths To Video Game Deaths, Christopher Lee Has Died On-Screen Over 70 Times.

Christopher Lee as Saruman in The Lord of the Rings.

Christopher Lee holds the record for most on-screen deaths, as the actor has died on-screen a total of 70 times. With a film career that started in 1948 with his appearance in Corridor of Mirrors as Charles, Lee was notable for playing characters whose morality leaned more toward the dark side of things. Although Lee didn’t die in Corridor of Mirrors, his first on-screen death occurred in 1948’s, Penny and the Pownall Case. In the film, Lee plays a cartoonist named Jonathan Blai who is shot by the police while attempting to evade them via traversing through a roadblock.

Since Lee’s first death in Penny and the Pownall Case, Lee has died nearly once a year since the 1955 short fil, Cross-Roads. Among some of Lee’s more notable movies in which his characters die are, The Curse of Frankenstein, Horror of Dracula, Dracula: Prince of Darkness, Dracula Has Risen from the Grave, Count Dracula, Return of the Three Musketeers, Gremlins 2: The New Batch, and The lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. Although Lee’s character deaths slowed after The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, he still died a few more times afterward.

Christopher Lee Died 6 More Times After Saruman Died In Return Of The King

Christopher Lee’s Death As Count Dooku In Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge Of The Sith Is His Most Memorable.

Christopher Lee as Count Dooku in Star Wars.

Lee’s deaths after The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King ranged from particularly brutal to surprisingly subtle, as demonstrated by his six on-screen deaths post The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. However, his most notable of each was as Count Dooku in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. After a tense battle between himself and Anakin Skywalker, both of his hands are severed by the young Jedi before he’s unceremoniously decapitated. While Saruman’s death in The Lord of the Rings is brutal, Dooku’s decapitation is much more memorable.