Christopher Lee

Christopher Lee in 'The Whip and the Body'

File:The Many Deaths of Sir Christopher Lee

The many deaths of the great Sir Christopher Lee over the course of his long career.

Christopher Lee (1922 - )

Film Deaths

• Penny and the Pownall Case (1948) [Jonathan Blair]: Shot to death by Ralph Michael. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• Crossroads (1955) [The Ghost]: Already deceased at the time of the short film's events, he appears in spirit form.
• The Dark Avenger (The Warriors) (1955) [French Patrol Captain at Tavern]: Run through with a sword at the end of a fight with Errol Flynn. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• Beyond Mombasa (1956) [Gil Rossi]: Shot with a poison dart by a pygmy with a blowgun.
• The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) [The Creature]: Burned to death when Peter Cushing throws a lantern at him. (Note: Although the creature was resurrected or re-created in numerous Hammer sequels, I am counting this as a death scene for Christopher since the creature was played by different actors in all the subsequent movies.)
• Ill Met by Moonlight (Intelligence Service; Night Ambush) (1957) [German Officer at Dentist]: Shot to death by Dirk Bogarde. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• Battle of the V-1 (Missiles from Hell; Unseen Heroes) (1958) [Brunner, Labor Camp Captain]: Strangled by Michael Rennie. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• Corridors of Blood (1958) [Resurrection Joe]: Burned to death with acid by Boris Karloff.(Thanks to Jonathan)
• Horror of Dracula (Dracula) (1958) [Count Dracula]: Burned to death and reduced to ash after Peter Cushing tears down the curtains to let sunlight in. (Note: Even though Dracula is always brought back in each sequel, I will still be listing these as "death" scenes.)
• The Mummy (1959) [Kharis, the Mummy]: Collapses into the swamp after being shot repeatedly by police.(Thanks to Jonathan)  
• A Tale of Two Cities '''''(1958)''''' [Marquis St. Evremonde]: Stabbed to death in his sleep by Sacha Pitoeff.
• The Treasure of San Teresa (Hot Money Girl; Long Distance) (1959) [Jaeger]: Strangled by Eddie Constantine. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• Beat Girl (Wild for Kicks) (1960) [Kenny]: Stabbed to death by Delphi Lawrence when she finds him with Gillian Hills.
• Horror Hotel (The City of the Dead) (1960) [Professor Alan Driscoll]: Incinerated when the shadow of the cross falls across him. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll (Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; House of Fright; Jekyll's Inferno) '(1960) [Paul Allen]'' Cushed to death by a python after Paul Massie shuts him in a room with it.
• Hercules in the Haunted World (Ercole al centro della terra; Hercules vs. the Vampires) '(1961) [King Lyco]: Bursts into flame when he fails to complete his human sacrifice ceremony before the end of the lunar eclipse (having been pinned beneath a stone obelisk by Reg Park).
• The Terror of the Tongs (1961) [Chung King]: Commits suicide by throwing himself onto a sword held by one of his henchmen (Roger Delgado). (Thanks to Jonathan)
• The Pirates of Blood River (1962) [Captain LaRoche]: Impaled at the end of a fight with Kerwin Mathews. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• Horror Castle (La Vergine di Noremberga; Back to the Killer; Terror Castle; The Virgin of Nuremberg) (1963) [Erich] Burned to death after being trapped in a burning castle while trying to save his master. (Thanks to Andrea)
• The Whip and the Body (La Frusta e il corpo; What; Night Is the Phantom) ''(1963)'' [Kurt Menliff] Stabbed in the neck by Daliah Lavi behind a curtain; his body is shown again afterwards when everybody else discovers him, then again during his funeral. After his death, he appears to Daliah several times throughout the movie, but it's ambiguous whether he's a ghost or just a hallucination.
• Castle of the Living Dead (Il Castello dei morti vivi) (1964) [Count Drago]: Turned into a statue/mummy by his own embalming fluid. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• The Devil-Ship Pirates (1964) [Captain Robeles]: Shot to death by Barry Warren. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• She (1965) [Billali] Stabbed in the back with a spear by Ursula Andress when he tries to enter the Flame of Life.
• The Skull (1965) [Sir Matthew Phillips] Hit on the head with a small statue by Peter Cushing after Christopher catches Peter trying to steal the statue.
• Circus of Fear (Psycho-Circus) (1966) [Gregor]: Falls to his death from a cliff. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• Dracula: Prince of Darkness (The Bloody Scream of Dracula; Disciple of Dracula; Revenge of Dracula) (1966) [Count Dracula] Killed by running water when he falls into the moat, after Andrew Keir fires several shots to break the ice on the water's frozen surface.
• Rasputin: The Mad Monk (1966) [Rasputin]: Thrown from a balcony into the river by Richard Pasco, on top of being poisoned and shot to no effect. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• The Torture Chamber of Dr. Sadism (1967) [Count Frederic Regula]: Drawn and quartered as punishment for killing twelve virgins in his torture chamber. He returns in spirit form throughout the rest of the movie and is finally killed at the end.
• Blood Fiend (Theatre of Fear) (1967) [Philippe Darvas]: Drowned (off-screen) in a pond by Jenny Till. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• Island of the Burning Damned (Night of the Big Heat) (1967) [Godfrey Hansen]: Incinerated by the aliens. (Thanks to Jonathan)
• Dracula Has Risen from the Grave (1968) [Count Dracula]: Impaled on a cross at the end of the fight with Barry Andrews; He dissolves into dust in nothingness.
• The Oblong Box (1969) [Dr. J. Neuhart] Throat slit with a surgical saw by Alister Williamson in Christopher's office; he dies soon afterwards, after Vincent Price discovers him.
• The House That Dripped Blood (1970) [John Reid] Burned to death (off-camera) when his daughter (Chloe Franks) throws a wax voodoo doll in the fireplace; we only hear him screaming over a shot of the doll melting.
• Taste the Blood of Dracula (1970) [Count Dracula]: Dissolves into dust when he fell into the altar.
• Scars of Dracula (1970) [Count Dracula]: Burned to death when Christopher's spike is struck by lightning, setting him on fire; He then falls over the castle's battlement to the ground below.
• I, Monster (1971) [Dr. Charles Marlowe/Edward Blake]: Injured when he falls down stairs after Peter Cushing sets his back on fire. His body later changes from 'Blake' to 'Marlowe.'
• Dracula AD 1972 (Dracula Today) (1972) [Count Dracula] Stabbed in the heart with a silver blade by Peter Cushing. (In the prologue sequence, he was also stabbed in the heart with a wooden wheel-spoke by Peter (playing the ancestor of his present-day character), but was brought back to life shortly after the 20th-century storyline begins.) (Thanks to Garrett)
• Dark Places (1973) [Dr. Mandeville] Hit in the chest with a pick-axe by Robert Hardy.
• The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) [Francisco Scaramanga] Shot in the chest by Roger Moore at the end of a cat-and-mouse chase through Christopher's 'funhouse' hideout.
• The Satanic Rites of Dracula (Count Dracula and His Vampire Bride; Dracula Is Dead and Well and Living in London) (1974) [Count Dracula] Stabbed in the chest with a wooden stake by Peter Cushing, after falling into a pit of stakes. (Since there was no sequel to resurrect him, we can consider this to be his final "Dracula" death scene.)
• The Four Musketeers (1974) [Rochefort]: Impaled through the chest by Michael York in the climactic fight. (Thanks to Brian)
• Airport '77 (1977) [Martin Wallace]: Crushed underneath the cargo door when it unexpectedly triggers open during a rescue attempt with Jack Lemmon. Christopher drowns as his body slips under the water and drifts by the plane's widow, where his wife (Lee Grant) looks on in horror. (Thanks to TC)
• 1941 (1979) [Captain Wolfgang von Kleinschmidt]: Knocked off of the deck of a submarine and into the ocean by Toshiro Mifune, after Christopher insults him. (Although the film itself implies that he was drowned, there are publicity stills from a deleted scene showing the drenched Christopher as Slim Pickens' prisoner.) (Thanks to Stephen and Uwe)
• Bear Island (1979) [Lechinski]: Accidentally crushed by a falling radio mast caused by Lloyd Bridges, he later dies of his injuries while talking to Donald Sutherland.
• The Last Unicorn (1982, animated) [King Haggard]: Drowned/dashed against the rocks or falls to his death when his castle collapses into the ocean after his red bull is slain and the other unicorns are freed.
• The Return of Captain Invincible (1983) [Mr. Midnight]: Crushed when Alan Arkin throws a giant globe at him. Christopher falls into the water as a series of explosions destroy his hideout.
• Howling II: Striba - Werewolf Bitch (1985) [Stefan Crosscoe]: Burned when Sybil Danning casts a spell setting them both on fire after Christopher stabs her with a dagger.
• Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) [Dr. Catheter]: Electrocuted by a gremlin while Zach Galligan looks on helplessly. (Thanks to Neil)
• The Rainbow Thief (1990) [Uncle Rudolf] Dies (off-screen) some time after suffering a stroke; we only hear of his death when Omar Sharif learns the news.
• Treasure Island (1990) [Blind Pew]: Trampled to death by horses when he stumbles onto the road.
• Curse III: Blood Sacrifice (1991) [Doctor Pearson]: Killed by the demon/one of the possessed locals or by Jenilee Harrison.
• Tale of the Mummy (1998) [Sir Richard Turkel]: Crushed to death/buried alive when the excavation site collapes due to the mummy (Roger W. Morrissey).
• Jinnah (1998) [Mohammad Ali Jinnah]: Dies of pneumonia, despite attempts to revive him.
• The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) [Saruman]: Stabbed in the back by Brad Dourif; he then falls from the tower and is impaled on a spike. (This scene was not included in the theatrical release, but is present in the Special Edition DVD.) (Thanks to SpecialKid, Lianne, and Neil)
• Crimson Rivers: Angels of the Apocalypse (Les Rivieres pourpres II: Les Anges de l'apocalypse; Crimson Rivers II) (2004) [Heinrich von Garten] Commits suicide by shooting himself in the head. (Thanks to Gary)
• Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005) [Count Dooku] Decapitated with two light sabers by Hayden Christensen (at the urging of Ian McDiarmid), after Hayden had cut off Christopher's hands and rendered him helpless (Thanks to JF)
• Alice in Wonderland (2010) [The Jabberwocky]: Providing the voice of a giant dragon-like creature, he is decapitated with a sword by Mia Wasikowska following an intense battle.
• Burke and Hare (2010) [Joseph]: Smothered or suffocated when Simon Pegg and Andy Serkis sit on top of him whilst he's lying on his bed (played for comic effect). His body is later seen when Tom Wilkinson has him photographed. 
• The Resident (2011) [August]: Stabbed in the neck and throat with a syringe then injected with an overdose by his grandson (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) as they're struggling on a bed. His body is later seen when his grandson returns to check if he's dead.
• Season Of The Witch (2011) [Cardinal D'Ambroise]: Dies of the Black Death as Robert Sheehan looks on.

TV Deaths

• William Tell: Manhunt (1959) [Prince Erik]: is killed by a crossbow bolt fired by Conrad Phillips. (Thanks to Brian)
• The Alfred Hitchcock Hour: The Sign of Satan (1964) [Karl Jorla]: Killed (off-screen) by cultists. He appears as a ghost afterwards when he arrives at the movie set to film his last scene; the police later inform Gilbert Green that Christopher's body had been discovered, confirming that he had died before shooting that scene.
• Captain America II: Death Too Soon (TV Movie) (1979) [General Miguell]: Rapidly ages to death after getting covered in his aging chemical while trying to throw it at Reb Brown; he dies while attempting to choke Brown.
• Once Upon A Spy (1980) [Marcus Valorium]: Vapourised along with all his cohorts when Ted Danson causes the laser to fire back on itself into the building their in
• Detonator (1993) [General Konstantin Benin]: Shot in the chest by Alexandra Paul. He dies shortly after activating a fake 'nuclear' device.
• The Tomorrow People: The Rameses Connection: part 5 (1995) [Sam Rees]: Vaporised along with his cohorts when an energy beam is redirected back onto them.
• Gormenghast (2000; mini-series) [Flay] Stabbed in the chest when Jonathan Rhys-Meyers throws a knife at him.

Noteworthy Connections

Uncle of Harriet Walter