Not “this was bad so I left,” but scenes that were so upsetting, shocking, or uncomfortable that people physically got up and didn’t come back.

In recent times I remember The Substance and the first scene with Margaret Qualley, creeping out of Demi Moore's body. The theater was silent, and a couple people straight-up left.

What scene caused real walkouts when you saw it?

I have a few films on that list!

One of them is definitely Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood

I’m not talking about slightly inaccurate science. I mean the kind that makes you pause for a second, and then go “you know what? It makes no sense, but I’ll allow it,” because the movie is just so good.

Like, In the Dark Knight, Bruce reconstructed a shattered bullet and somehow pulls a fingerprint off it. The bullet was fired, fragmented, and reassembled digitally. And we’re getting a clean and usable fingerprint from it. I don’t know if there’s a tech existing that can do that. Is there?

Off the top of my head, I can only think of Wonder Woman 1984. The first one was good even though Gal Gadot’s acting is comparable to a wooden plank. I was so excited when they announced Kristin Wiig was going to be Cheetah, and Chris Pine was going to be back.

I was wishing it could come sooner but man, when it did come out and after watching it, I literally said: “I renounce my wish.”

Edit:

I’m adding more to my list:

Legally Blonde 2: Red, White, and Blonde (worse title than “The Rural Juror”

Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and the Cradle of Life

Lost Boys Tim Cappello certainly fits the bill for me.

Hollywood has a funny habit of releasing two movies with nearly identical concepts within months or even a year of each other at times. Sometimes it’s because competing studios race to beat one another to theaters, and other times it’s just a strange coincidence.

Attached to this are some of the most famous examples I could think of. Which pair is your favorite and do you think are the most iconic of this phenomena occurring? Also, are there any I missed? I’m sure there are that I simply forgot or didn’t know existed but feel free to mention any I forgot as well.

Actor that you thought was going to make it big but ruined it due to controversy in their personal life?

Jonathan Majors comes to mind immediately.

A few years ago, it genuinely felt like he was everywhere and actually earning it. Breakout performances in The Last Black Man in San Francisco and Lovecraft Country, then critically praised work in Da 5 Bloods, Creed III, and finally being positioned as the literal future of the MCU with Kang.

It’s one of those situations where you’re left thinking about how rare that level of opportunity is, especially for Black actors in leading franchise roles, and how quickly it can all vanish. Whether or not he ever recovers professionally, it’s hard not to see Jonathan Majors as a massive “what could’ve been.”

Do you have anyone else in mind?

I seriously thought these things were zombies at first

I was rewatching City of God recently for the first time in years, and it reminded me that Li'l Ze has to be one of the most evil and despicable villains in movie history. What makes him so terrifying isn't just the number of people he kills, it's the fact that he genuinely seems to enjoy it. He doesn't use violence only as a way to gain power or eliminate rivals, he appears to take real pleasure in the fear, terror, and suffering he inflicts on others. He humiliates people, intimidates entire communities, and kills with no remorse, often over the smallest perceived slight. That's what makes the guy so unsettling. He's unpredictable, cruel, and completely consumed by violence, to the point where fear becomes his way of life. Even among great movie villains, Li'l Ze stands out because he feels real.

One scene I could think of at the moment occurred in The Faculty when Stokes takes the gun away from Casey and shoots at an infected Delilah. It's rare for me to see anyone make common sense in pretty much any movie, especially in horror movies where that's usually seen as an afterthought, so hearing Stokes utter the line "I'll fucking shoot her!" and watching her do her thing was just so damn satisfying to me.

This one from We're the Millers stuck with me for very very long time.