50 unluckiest movie characters

21. Harry Temple

As Seen In: Speed (1994)

The Bad Luck: Whilst Jack Traven manages to thwart criminals left and right, his poor old partner Harry gets the short end of the wedge. First of all, he takes a bullet in the leg from crazed bomber Howard Payne, leaving him stuck behind a desk. And then, on Traven's behalf, he heads to Payne's house to investigate…

Does It All Come Good In The End? No. Payne's house is rigged to blow, and Harry ends up barbecued. Two-nil Payne...

20. Cal Weaver

As Seen In: Crazy Stupid Love (2011)

The Bad Luck: Having had his wife leave him, things are already looking bleak for Cal. However, Ryan Gosling's smooth-talking womaniser licks him into shape, bagging him a night in bed with Marisa Tomei. However, just as Cal and his wife look to be getting back together, it transpires that Tomei teaches their son at high school. And without giving too much away, it all starts to unravel from there…

Does It All Come Good In The End? As sassy and acerbic as the script is, this is a rom-com at heart. Of course it turns out okay in the end!

19. Valerie Lewton

As Seen In: Final Destination (2000)

The Bad Luck: All of the victims in Final Destination are initially lucky in that they have cheated death, but Valerie Lewton has it particularly tough in the convoluted, painful nature of fate's return visit. Taking a piece of computer screen in the neck she stumbles into the kitchen, where she is knocked off her feet by a small explosion. Reaching for a towel to stem the flow of blood, she impales herself with a kitchen knife, before a falling chair drives the blade in further and her house explodes. Wow…

Does It All Come Good In The End? May we suggest reading that through again?

18. Corporal Telford

As Seen In: Die Hard 2 (1990)

The Bad Luck: Only a part of the special forces mission because another member of the team got appendicitis, Corporal Telford isn't au fait with the plan to betray the US and ally with Esperanza. As a result he gets his throat slit before he's got any clue what's going on.

Does It All Come Good In The End? John McClane avenges his death, but he's still six feet under whichever way you cut it.

17. Steve Rogers

As Seen In: Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

The Bad Luck: Initially too scrawny to participate in the war, Rogers undergoes the super-serum, only to become a laughing stock amongst the rank and file of the military. Finally he earns their respect, but only after losing his best friend. Then, when he finally gets himself a date, he's forced to sacrifice himself moments later. Give the guy a break, eh?

Does It All Come Good In The End? Cap doesn't die, but finds himself displaced in an unfamiliar world, with another huge task ahead of him. And still no date!

16. Jeff

As Seen In: Cabin Fever (2002)

The Bad Luck: Taking a trip to a cabin in the woods is asking for trouble, but Jeff is particularly unlucky, given that his plan to run off and hide out with the remainder of the beer is essentially a very sensible (if cowardly) one. Sadly, fate has other ideas for him…

Does It All Come Good In The End? Alas, no. Jeff returns to find his friends all dead, promptly celebrating by screaming "I made it" at the top of his lungs. At which point the police show up, mistake him for one of the infected, and shot him dead. Bummer.

15. Evan Treborn

As Seen In: The Butterfly Effect (2004)

The Bad Luck: Evan has had a pretty rough childhood, but things get progressively worse when he realises he can travel back in time and starts meddling with the past. Nearly every tweak he makes leads to something bad happening, so much so that you could be forgiven for thinking he's cursed.

Does It All Come Good In The End? The theatrical cut sees him finally sort stuff out, at the cost of longtime beau Amy Smart not recognising him. in the alternative ending he goes back to the womb and throttles himself with his umbilical cord. Not so cheery…

14. Ben

As Seen In: Night Of The Living Dead (1968)

The Bad Luck: Poor old Ben finds himself caught in the midst of a zombie apocalypse, battling seemingly impossible odds in his fight to survive. After a long night fending off the undead, Ben finally manages to escape the cellar he's been holed up in, only to run straight into a bunch of rednecks…

Does It All Come Good In The End? Said rednecks promptly shoot Ben before commenting, "that's another one for the fire." Wrong place, wrong time, old boy…

13. Rachel Dawes

As Seen In: The Dark Knight (2008)

The Bad Luck: You'd think that being best mates with a billionaire would be a cushy number, and dating the DA a massive career boost. However, in Gotham City it doesn't quite work like that…

Does It All Come Good In The End? Rachel ends up blown to smithereens, purely because the men in her life were keen on fighting the good fight. Do-gooders should be given a wide berth in Gotham.

12. Peter Parker

As Seen In: Spider-Man (2002 - 2007)

The Bad Luck: His parents are both dead, his beloved uncle gets killed by a robber (who Peter failed to stop) and he's been bitten by a radioactive spider that dumps a huge weight of responsibility upon his shoulders. Life isn't exactly a bed of roses for our Pete.

Does It All Come Good In The End? It does, with Peter forgiving his Uncle's killer, patching it up with Harry (before he snuffs it) and reconciling with Mary Jane. That will all go out of the window however, when the turmoil starts over in The Amazing Spider-Man .