History Main / UncertainDoom

* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoChinatownWars'': Hsin Jiaoming ends the final mission laying in a pool of his own blood after Wu Lee [[ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks throws]] the [[MacGuffin Yun Jian Sword]] at him. [[DirtyCop Wade Heston]] arrests him on trumped-up charges ("...well, I guess I'll think of something really heavy on the way to the station"), but whether Hsin survives past this is unknown.

%% This page has been alphabetized. Please add new examples in the correct order. Thanks!

Since this is a DeathTrope, '''spoilers may be unmarked!'''

* Gith, the legendary hero and liberator of the Githyanki species in ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' was adviced by her trusted advisor Vlaakith to seek out aid in their war against the [[{{Cthulhumanoid}} Mind Flayers]] from the dragon goddess Tiamat. Vlaakith and Gith went together to Tiamat's lair in the nine hells, but only Vlaakith returned. She told the githyanki that Tiamat had pledged some of her dragons to their cause, and that Gith had declared Vlaakith her regent until she returned from some mystical quest. The obvious implication is that Vlaakith fed Gith to Tiamat, but nothing has ever been stated for certain.
* In ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'', at one point, Roboute Guilliman (Primarch of the Ultramarines) duelled and killed his brother Alpharius (Primarch of the Alpha Legion). However, since every single SpaceMarine of the Alpha Legion claims to be Alpharius, it's not known if the "Alpharius" killed by Guilliman was the real Alpharius, his twin Omegon or just a high-ranking Marine of the Alpha Legion.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers'', Red Death leaves minor villain (but major {{jerkass}}) Blind Rage in a situation like this after giving his history lesson on the "gentleman villain" -- he's left [[ChainedToARailway tied to a train track]] on a railroad bridge that a train is coming down. Whether the train's coming down the track he's tied to is never made clear; Red Death suggests it might be coming down his track or some other, and he leaves before the audience can tell.

** Because of the [[Creator/{{Nickelodeon}} network]] the show aired on, they couldn't be as blatant as they'd have liked about Jet's death, since he's last seen badly wounded in the Dai Li's hideout under Lake Laogai. It's heavily implied that he's dying, though, as when Jet insists he will be fine, [[LivingLieDetector Toph]] says "He's lying" as the Gaang are escaping. This is [[SelfDeprecation referenced]] in the [[LampshadeHanging lampshade-filled]] episode "The Ember Island Players", when the characters see a play of their lives:

* ''WesternAnimation/TheWackyAdventuresOfRonaldMcdonald'': The fourth video "Birthday World" ends with Professor Pinchworm being chased by his own robot dog Cogster after the destruction of his Babe-O-Matic Ray turns himself into a helpless toddler while Ronald and friends are restored to their normal ages. Since he isn't seen again afterwards, it's unclear whether Pinchworm made it out of Cogster's pursuit unscathed or met his demise.

* A man going by Dan Cooper (more commonly known as D. B. Cooper) perpetrated the only unsolved case of air piracy in 1971, parachuting into the night after receiving the ransom money he wanted and vanishing into the mists of time. Whether he survived remains a mystery to this day; some of the ransom money was found along the banks of the Columbia River, but no other trace of him ever surfaced.

** Because of the [[Creator/{{Nickelodeon}} network]] the show aired on, they couldn't be as blatant as they'd have liked about Jet's death, since he's last seen badly wounded in the Dai Li's hideout under Lake Laogai. It's heavily implied that he's dying, though, as when Longshot insists Jet will be fine, [[LivingLieDetector Toph]] says "He's lying" as the Gaang are escaping. This is [[SelfDeprecation referenced]] in the [[LampshadeHanging lampshade-filled]] episode "The Ember Island Players", when the characters see a play of their lives:

!!Examples:

[[folder:Film — Live-Action]]
* ''Film/{{Abominable}}'': Karen is found alive in a cave by Zeigler but with part of her stomach gone, looking like it was bitten off and eaten. She is dragged deeper into the cave with a scream, where she presumably (although not explicitly) is finished off or dies of her wounds.
* ''Film/{{Aftersun}}'': Given Calum's obvious struggles with depression and self-loathing, dissatisfaction with his life, his comment about how he's not going to live to forty, and his lack of presence in Sophie's adult life, it's heavily implied that he eventually committed suicide, though nothing is ever stated.
* ''Film/AlexanderNevsky'' does not ultimately show the fate of the German Bishop. He is last seen lying down on the ice before it starts breaking and drowning the Teutonic Knights. As he is not seen with the arrested leaders afterwards, it can be assumed he drowned along with the majority of the knights.
* Often played with Barnaby in the ''Film/BabesInToyland'' films. In the live action Disney film, he is [[NoOneCouldSurviveThat stabbed by Tom]] and [[DisneyVillainDeath falls from a great height]] into an open toybox, from which he never emerges. The only reason this is debated is because publicity stills show him being forced into a birdcage and imprisoned in it; however, this happens in place of the stabbing in this version, so it is a RevisedEnding. In the animated film, Barnaby Crookedman is last seen being chased by goblins as revenge for insulting their king shortly after his death.
* ''Film/{{Balibo}}'': Joao chooses to remain in Dili while his family flees to the mountains, knowing it will soon be the sight of the Indonesian invasion. His fate is left ambiguous, though given how the TNI repeatedly executes civilians it's likely he was killed.
* ''Film/BigGame'': Some of the Air Force One crew members. Several bodies are with the plane in the lake, but it's possible that some of them survive and just swam ashore before Moore and Oskari arrived, given the amount of time between the crash and them reaching the wreck.
* ''Film/BladeRunner2049'' ends with K bringing Deckard to Dr. Ana Stelline's lab after rescuing him from Wallace's men as led by Luv, having sustained numerous stab wounds during his fight with the gynoid. As Deckard enters the lab, K lies down on [[SnowMeansDeath the snow-covered steps]], noting that he in fact is bleeding out. The movie ends before anything further is seen of his fate, but it should be noted that [[MusicalSpoiler "Tears in Rain"]] plays during the last shots we see of K.
* ''Film/Carrie1976'': Most of the MauveShirt classmates of Carrie such as George and the Wilson sisters aren’t seen dying on screen in the chaos at the gym but would have a hard time escaping from the burning gym after she blocked the door.
* ''Film/Carrie2002'': ''Some'' of various electrocuted prom goers (who include Helen, Roy and Principal Morton) could have survived, given how it's later mentioned that about elven people survived and only five or so were seen escaping through the vents before the floor was electrocuted.
* ''Film/CasinoRoyale2006'': Kratt, Valencia and a couple of Le Chiffre’s other henchmen wait outside while he tortures Bond and Vesper. A few minutes later there’s some shots and a scream from outside before Mr. White barges in to kill Le Chiffre but no bodies are shown.
* ''Film/{{Charade}}'': Creator/WalterMatthau's character [[spoiler: falls one story through a theater trap door]]. It's been debated pretty heavily exactly what the effect of that was to his body in terms of death or being knocked out.
* ''Film/{{Circle}}'': Practically the whole cast, as the movie has the dwindling cast be subjected to seemingly fatal electric shocks one by one every few minutes but then dragged from the room before their bodies can be examined.
* ''Film/TheDarkKnight'':
** As far as ComicBook/TheJoker [[ChuckCunninghamSyndrome is concerned]] due to Creator/HeathLedger's premature death: Is ComicBook/TheJoker doing time in a federal prison for his infamous crimes, or did that guy on the SWAT team that cornered him decide they'd had enough of his antics and put a bullet between his eyes? [[ShrugOfGod It'll remain unanswered.]]
** Averted with the novels; the novelization of ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'' includes a passing mention the Joker and implies he's either serving life sentence in a padded cell at Arkham or has broken out and slipped off the radar, though not even Selina Kyle knows where he really is.
** This is Maroni's fate after Harvey Dent shot his driver, causing the car to crash in the yards outside Chicago Union Station. Even the {{novelization}} doesn't mention anyone's death except for the driver's, meaning Maroni probably could've survived but was knocked into a coma.
* ''Film/DaylightsEnd'': During the final battle at the police station, [[spoiler:Bishop is last seen cornered in a closet and blazing away at an enormous charging horde, while Frank is tackled by a zombie after running out of bullets.]] Neither of them is seen being killed, but their odds aren't good and they aren't seen with the other survivors at the end.
* ''Film/DiamondsAreForever'': Wint and Kidd are set on fire but land in the ocean.
* ''Film/Drive2011'': The lead character is stabbed in the chest and nearly disemboweled by the BigBad near the end of the film. The last time we see the Driver, he stirs (after initially appearing to be dead) and drives off, but it is left unclear whether he'll survive his injuries or not.
* The main character of ''Film/EventHorizon'' gets sucked into a Hell dimension along with the titular haunted spaceship as part of it is exploding.
* The ending of ''Film/ExMachina'' sees Caleb trapped inside of Nathan's facility as Ava escapes without him, the ultimate test of her abilities. While the film doesn't show anything one way or the other, Caleb's hundreds of miles from help with no one coming to look for him, in a facility without any power. The most the audience gets to see is Caleb trying and failing to break down a window with a chair.
* ''Film/FaceOff'': Deitrich's crony Aldo and escort Livia are both shot in the penthouse shootout, but Livia is still conscious and clutching her stomach after being shot and Aldo remains standing as the camera cuts away, leaving their fates slightly ambiguous.
* ''Film/Fearless1993'': Since not all of the survivors are among the people who Max gets out of the plane and through the cornfield, and not every survivor attends the group meeting, it is unclear whether some of the people from the plane flashbacks (the pilots, the cabin stewardess, a woman and her daughter, a couple praying right before the crash, etc.) survive.
* In ''Film/{{Flash Gordon|1980}}'', Ming the Merciless is {{impaled|WithExtremePrejudice}}, and disintegrates himself with his ring. However, the final scene shows a hand picking up the ring, with an evil laugh. It is unclear whether this is Ming or someone else entirely; however, it does not look like Ming's hand.
* ''Film/FridayThe13th2009'': Despite being impaled, Jenna is still alive, with her eyes open and making sounds before dropping to the ground as Jason steps over the body and Clay and Whitney have to flee.
* ''Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters2019'': The canonical fate of Admiral Stenz. He disappears from the finished film after Colonel Foster plans the Washington DC attack on King Ghidorah, but an extra scene in the {{novelization}} hints at his death, when the ''Argo'' crew receiving a transmission from his submarine which shows it's flooding and is on fire before the transmission cuts out. This is based on a more explicit Deleted Scene from the film, where Stenz confirms his sub is going down and is apparently KilledMidSentence by an explosion.
* ''Film/HarryPotter'':
** In the ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire'', after Barty Crouch Jr. is captured, his final fate is never revealed. Dumbledore implies that he will be sent back to Azkaban, but Crouch Jr. never appears alongside other Death Eaters in subsequent films. It is assumed by most fans that he suffered a [[FateWorseThanDeath Dementor's Kiss]], like in the books. Alternatively, he could've been {{killed offscreen}} in some other way. It should be noted that Cornelius Fudge wanted anybody who claimed Voldemort was back eliminated, thus making Barty's death even more possible. That said, his final fate is never revealed in the films.
** It's never been stated what happened to the real Percival Graves in ''Film/FantasticBeastsAndWhereToFindThem''. Given that it was Grindelwald who was impersonating him and he did it by using transfiguration and not polyjuice potion, it’s hard to imagine he’s alive somewhere.
** It's ambiguous whether or not Credence/Aurelius survives ''Film/FantasticBeastsTheSecretsOfDumbledore''. It's acknowledged by everyone that there is nothing that can be done to save him after being poisoned by the obscurus parasite for about thirty years. His aunt Ariana Dumbledore is the only other known Obscurial who even made it past the age of ten. His uncle admits that all that can be done is ease the pain of his inevitable death and make the most of the time he's got left. He's taken home by his father to die but there's no confirmation by the end of the film if it's happened or not.
* ''Film/HelloMaryLouPromNightII'': Kelly, who is stabbed in the stomach by a falling decoration during the prom, but still seems to be stirring a little as the film cuts away from her, and might not have been stabbed too deeply. During the final scene, after the police and ambulances arrive, there's only one body bag in the background, which isn't hers due to the body inside lacking breast curves.
* ''Film/{{Holidays}}'': It's unclear what Carol's fate in ''Father's Day'' is. She most probably was killed, but nothing is seen exactly.
* ''Film/JackFrost1997'':
** Jill is last seen having been raped with a mutant snowman's carrot and lying on the ground, bleeding from the mouth.
** Joe and Marla in the sequel, who hide from Jack inside a freezer, with the ending scene showing that no one has found them to let them out yet, but with a little ambiguity about whether they're dead.
* ''Film/JusticeLeague2017'': Steppenwolf's Parademons turn on and start feasting on him, but a Boom Tube teleports him and them away so he may have survived, albeit likely badly injured. That said, [[GreaterScopeVillain Darkseid]] tends not to take failure well.
* ''Film/KeyLargo'': [[spoiler:Ralph]] is knocked off the boat in the climax and is last heard screaming for help as it speeds away. He probably drowns afterward, but there's a slight chance he might have swam to safety.
* ''Film/KillBill'': In Volume 2, after having her [[EyeScream remaining eye ripped out]] by the Bride, Elle Driver is left screaming and thrashing in a trailer in a middle of a desert....with a loose, aggressive, and deadly venomous black mamba snake presumably slithering around somewhere inside. The film's end credits depict the names of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad as being crossed off a hit list, with the exception of Elle's, which displays a question mark, leaving her ultimate fate unknown.
* ''Film/KingdomOfHeaven'': The Grand Master of the Templar Order, who often accompanied Raynald de Chatillon during his massacres of Muslim caravans, is last seen marching with other crusaders against Saladin and his army. Because all the crusaders start dying of thirst and exhaustion, their army is annihilated and Raynald and Guy de Lusignan are taken captive. It is unclear if the Grand Master died with crusaders, as he was not seen being taken captive as well. The historical Grand Master was Gerard de Rideford and he did survive the battle and was simply taken prisoner... but the movie [[ArtisticLicenseHistory takes enough liberties with what actually happened]] that there's room for doubt as to whether that's the case here.
* ''Film/LastNightInSoho'': The last we see of The Silver-Haired Gentleman, who has served as a CreepyRedHerring throughout the story, is when he is run over by a car. While he doesn't look to be in good shape, an ambulance arrives soon after. The movie never confirms whether he survives.
* ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'':
** ''Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheFellowshipOfTheRing'': The Watcher in the Water after it goes after the fellowship. We see that it tears down the gates, trapping the fellowship in Moria. It isn't clear if the stones crushed it or if it merely stayed in the lake after trapping the fellowship.
** The theatrical cut of ''[[Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheReturnOfTheKing The Return of the King]]'' does not show Gothmog's ultimate fate. He is last seen at the front of his army as the Riders of Rohan charge them, which heavily implies he did not survive their charge but leaves open the possibility that he survived. The Extended Edition shows his ultimate fate (though it was much later than theatrical version made us believe).
** ''Film/TheHobbit'': Thráin disappears without explanation sometime after Smaug's attack on Dale. Averted in a deleted scene from ''[[Film/TheHobbitTheDesolationOfSmaug The Desolation of Smaug]]'', where we learn Thráin was captured by Sauron; Gandalf finds him shortly before he dies.
* ''Film/MadMaxFuryRoad'': During the first chase, Ace is knocked off the war rig and onto the desert floor at an angle that makes it hard to tell whether the war rig's tires kill him, only injure him, or miss him entirely. Whether he survives the fall is unclear, but he never shows up later.
* Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse:
** ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'' may have the most expansive example of this trope ever for the franchise. Thanks to Thanos' BadassFingersnap, half of the universe is dead. While a few characters in both this movie and ''Film/AntManAndTheWasp'' have been seen disintegrating and WordOfGod has confirmed several characters who either survived or got killed by the snap, the fates of the rest of the MCU cast are uncertain. One year later, with the release of ''Film/AvengersEndgame'', the half of the universe that Thanos snapped away were brought back, making the most expansive aversion.
** ''Infinity War'' also has Thanos attack Xandar and Knowhere offscreen, and only the final scenes of the attack on the ''Statesman'' are shown. This left the fates of Irani Rael (Nova Prime), Rhomann Dey, the Collector, Cosmo the Spacedog, Howard the Duck, Valkyrie, Korg, and Miek uncertain. The latter four were shown alive in ''Endgame''; Cosmo was seen in ''Film/TheGuardiansOfTheGalaxyHolidaySpecial'', which also confirmed that the Collector survived; Rael and Dey's fates remain unconfirmed.
** ''Film/AntManAndTheWasp'' has a single example that's even more uncertain. Ghost, the movie's AntiVillain. It was never confirmed or denied if she was snapped away by Thanos, but there's another factor to her uncertainty. Her very existence is unstable on the quantum level, and while the heroes can supply her with the quantum healing energy to stabilize her, everyone qualified to get that was either killed by Thanos or left stranded in the quantum realm for five years. If she was spared by Thanos's fingersnap, it's unknown if she could last five years without the quantum healing energy needed to stabilize her.[[note]]She's set to appear in ''Thunderbolts''.[[/note]]
** ''Film/DoctorStrangeInTheMultiverseOfMadness'', after [[Characters/MCUScarletWitch Wanda]] [[HeelRealization realizes the error of her ways]], she uses her powers to bring down Mount Wundagore. Not only does Wanda destroy all copies of the Darkhold, but she seemingly [[DriventoSuicide sacrifices herself]]. It is currently unknown if Wanda truly is dead.
** ''Film/AntManAndTheWaspQuantumania'' ends with Kang being dragged into his ship's power source, and several characters state their uncertainty about whether or not he survived.
* In ''Film/NavajoJoe'', the title character is shot twice by the villain, Duncan, during the final confrontation. While he does kill Duncan (with a well-timed tomahawk to the head), the last we see of Joe is him sitting on a hill, grimacing in pain and looking at all the death that's been caused in the burial ground. The final scene of the film has Estella send Joe's horse (who has returned with the missing money) back into the frontier to find him, with his final fate left ambiguous.
* ''Film/NurseBetty'': Joyce and Merl are last seen being roughed up by Wesley and Charlie for information, and it is unknown if the hitmen spared them or not.
* Near the end of ''Film/NightOfTheLivingDead1968'', Barbara is dragged out of the house by a group of [[OurZombiesAreDifferent zombies]] which includes her brother, Johnny, presumably to be DevouredByTheHorde, but she is never actually seen dying or even being bitten (which in the Romero-verse is always fatal). Various non-canon spin-offs have thus had her survive the event through various means; in one Johnny himself was [[PretendWereDead not actually a zombie]] and rescued her, while in another the zombified Johnny showed a hint of remembering his old life and pulled her to safety away from the rest of the horde.
* ''Film/PicnicAtHangingRock'' deliberately leaves the ultimate fate of the missing schoolgirls and their teacher a mystery, with only few and contradictory clues. Although one of them is found bruised but alive after a week in the wild, she has no memory of what happened to her or the others.
* ''Film/Piggy2022'': Sara's parents are last seen bleeding on the floor [[spoiler:after the stranger attacks them]]. Their wounds don't appear to be fatal but their ultimate fate is left ambiguous.
* ''Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanAtWorldsEnd'' has this with some crewmembers of the ''Flying Dutchman''. While the majority of the crew regains their humanity and perform a HeelFaceTurn once Davy Jones is dead, there were some who fell into the Maelstrom (examples are Clanker, Hadras, and at least two others) and one (Morey) who got decapitated by Barbossa. But knowing the nature of the Flying Dutchman crew, there is a chance they survived. It should be noted though, that none of them were seen when Will Turner was being made into the ship's new Captain.
* The Creator/{{HBO}} movie ''Film/RasputinDarkServantOfDestiny'' (the one starring Creator/AlanRickman) ends with the Romanov family massacred by the Bolshevik uprising. However, the movie ends just before Alexei and Anastasia are shot, leaving their fates ambiguous. This is a reference not just to the DidAnastasiaSurvive conspiracy theory, but also to the fact that Alexei and at least one of his sisters were indeed missing from the mass grave shared by the rest of the family, and it was thought that they might have escaped somehow. Years after the movie came out, their bodies would be found not far from where the rest of the Romanovs were buried.
* ''Film/RedDawn1984:'' Jed and Matt Eckert are both suffering from gunshot wounds to the chest, and just sit down on a park bench, unable to go any further at the end. It is implied (although not completely explicit) that they die from their wounds, and even if they didn't, they're in the middle of Soviet-occupied territory and facing possible execution if captured.
* ''Film/TheRock'': MookLieutenant Captain Hendrix is dropped into a pool of water from a height that probably wasn't enough to avert SoftWater to fatal degrees, and while he does seem to be floating in it dead or unconscious, it was just a few seconds after the drop and he might have recovered from that.
* ''Film/{{Rollercoaster}}'': It is never revealed whether the people who get the most focus while riding the rollercoaster that derails survive or not, save for two people whose car lands upside down, crushing everyone inside.
* ''Film/RunawayJury'': Jacob's secretary is last seen hiding near him, trying to call the police. While the gunman almost certainly shoots her right after Jacob, it's unclear if she's one of the eleven fatalities or is only wounded.
* ''Film/Scream3'': Jennifer. Ghostface striking a killing blow isn't shown (she was alive and fighting back just a couple seconds earlier), and she seems to scream right as he throws her through the mirror. Afterwards she's seen lying on the ground, apparently dead, with some blood on her face, but she might have just been cut and knocked unconscious from being tossed through the glass door and the others don't explicitly refer to her as being dead in the aftermath.
* ''Film/Scream4'': Kirby who is stabbed in the stomach and left to bleed out, but is still alive and conscious when last seen, causing many fans to theorize that she might have managed to crawl away and survive. ''Film/Scream2022'' confirms that she did, in fact, survive.
* ''Film/TheSlumberPartyMassacre:'' Linda is attacked in the school by Thorne and takes refuge in a closet. Thorne starts drilling through the door, causing Linda to scream in terror before the camera cuts away to Thorne running outside. It seems doubtful that Thorne would have been unable to get in and kill Linda, but his clothes don't have any blood splatter and he looks flustered and urgent to get away rather than pleased and in control.
* ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020'': The last Sonic and the audience see of Longclaw is her bracing for an attack by the warriors of the Echidna tribe. Since the portal ring closes before what happened next can be seen, it's not clear if she survived or not.
** Film/SonicTheHedgehog22022 reveals that Longclaw did die. At the end of the film Doctor Robotnik falls from the Death Egg Robot. Creator/JimCarrey confirmed that this would be his last film.
* ''Film/Stalingrad1993'': Most of the German protagonists die, except for two soldiers who are seen surrendering to the Soviets. Their odds aren't great though. These survivors were sent to the Gulag in Siberia, and very few returned home after the war.
* ''Film/TellMeHowIDie'': In the climax, the male lead is stabbed through the chest by the killer, but the female lead helps him up and tries to get him to a doctor. The film ends before we can see if she succeeds or not.
* ''Film/Terminator3RiseOfTheMachines'': Elizabeth Anderson. T-X arrives at their house and shoots her brother, right before heading upstairs looking for Elizabeth. While she likely would have been killed by T-X, the large number of people at the party and the likely police response time might have made identification difficult. It's never explicitly stated that TX was able to find the right girl and kill her before moving on to the next name on the list (Kate).
* A major aspect of the end of Creator/JohnCarpenter's ''Film/{{The Thing|1982}}''; [=MacReady=] has just exploded the Antarctic base in a final confrontation with the titular monster. Exhausted, he rests by the burning building content with freezing to death, only to encounter Childs, who is also still alive. Both [=MacReady=] and Childs are suspicious that other one may be the [[HumanDisguise shapeshifting alien]] but as both are too tired they just share a drink and "wait to see what happens". Debate rages to this day [[AmbiguousEnding about whether one, neither or both are the Thing]]. The TV edit ending (not done or approved by Creator/JohnCarpenter) on the other hand threw out all ambiguity and clearly showed [[InferredHolocaust the Thing escaping disguised as a Husky]]. Needless to say, this ending is not popular.
** This also applies to Nauls, who -- toward the end of the movie -- is seen wandering off down a hallway to investigate a strange noise, and never comes back. Reportedly, there was a now-lost deleted scene where the Thing killed him, but the filmmakers weren't happy with the special effects and decided it would be more interesting to leave Nauls' fate ambiguous. The storyboards also show Nauls was partially assimilated and killed by Thing-tentacles. In the finished movie, it's still ''possible'' that the Thing got him, but it's also possible he was killed in the explosion or even that he's still alive somewhere at the end of the movie.
* ''Film/{{Threads}}'' zig-zags this trope when it comes to Jimmy and Alison Kemp. Both are (separately) away from home when the nuclear attack begins, Alison having gone to the shops to pick up supplies, while Jimmy is at work, and unlike their younger brother, Michael, neither is confirmed to have been killed as a direct result of the bomb which hits Sheffield. Indeed, Alison is not seen at all during the attack sequences, and Jimmy is last seen trying to get to his pregnant fiancee, Ruth Beckett, just as the war escalates to include civilian targets. A girl who closely resembles Alison is later glimpsed among the inmates of a makeshift prison set up to contain looters, but it's not known if this is Alison or some other girl. There has been some speculation that the man seen briefly in the final scene is Jimmy, but [[WordOfSaintPaul Reece Dinsdale]] (the actor who played Jimmy) has stated that he did not appear in that scene. There's also no confirmation of Jimmy and Alison (assuming they survived the attack) having died from the long-term effects of the bomb, though the film's grimly realistic portrayal of nuclear war means it's not looking good for either of them.
* ''Film/Titanic1997'': Some minor and supporting characters disappear in the second half of the film, notably Archibald Gracie, the old First Class passenger who offers Jack a reward and befriends him at dinner. He is last seen on deck as the final boats are leaving. As he’s an old man, it’s easy to assume he died, but deleted scenes show him amongst the survivors having been rescued by a lifeboat from the sea. Other minor characters who’s fates are left ambiguous are the wireless operators, Jack’s Swedish roommates, most of the officers and other notable crew members.
* ''Film/TunnelRats'': The shockwave from a bombing run traps Harris and Vo Mai in the tunnel at the end of the movie. They abandon their MexicanStandoff to try to dig their way out, but don’t seem optimistic about their chances when they see how much of the tunnel has collapsed.
* ''Film/Utoya22Juli'', a reenactment of the Breivik Massacre (which happened [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin on the island Utøya on 22. July 2011]]) from the perspective of the victims. Near the end we see Kaja, the main heroine, going down after the shot, apparently dead, but we don't stay to see if she died or was merely wounded. In reality, most of those with a single wound (not to the head) survived. The man in the boat is also wounded and we do not know if he makes it.
* ''Film/AWedding1978'': At the end of the movie, Briggs steals Dino's car and dies when it crashes into an oil tanker. It is speculated that Tracy left and died with him due to her own absence, but it's also possible that she is fine and left separately or is merely somewhere else in the large mansion.
[[/folder]]

* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark''

** Don Krieg, Gin, and the other Krieg Pirates don't appear again after the Baratie arc. The arc involved Gin breathing in a lethal dose of poisonous gas and telling Sanji he might have not have long to live but he hoped to see him again on the Grand Line... which didn't happen.

** Shiki and the Golden Lion Pirates from ''[[Anime/OnePieceFilmStrongWorld Strong World]]'' have a status of "unknown", but since they fell unconscious from their collapsing island and Shiki at least had a Devil Fruit... they're likely dead.

** Similarly, the Ultimate X-Men are taken out by Ms. Sinister, and never spoken of or seen afterwards, presumably in case any other writer wishes to use them later.

* ''Literature/JohnnyCatbiscuit'': The first book does this with Philip, the RetiredSuperhero formerly known as Animal Protection Man. The villains note that he "told us where [a potion] was just before he 'went'", yet at the end, a man who looks suspiciously like him congratulates Wayne and says, "I knew you could do it!" even though Philip is apparently the only good guy who knows that Wayne is Johnny.
* Shel Silverstein's ''Lafcadio, The Lion Who Shot Back'' ends with a battle between a group of lions, led by the elderly lion who warned Lafcadio about humanity, and a group of hunters, led by the circus owner Finchfinger, who made Lafcadio a CivilizedAnimal. Lafcadio has an identity crisis and leaves, and the outcome of the battle is unknown. FridgeLogic dictates that at least one of the hunters had to have survived the battle in order to tell Shelby (The Narrator) what happened, since he explicitly says he never saw Lafcadio again.

* In the grand finale of ''Anime/KirbyRightBackAtYa'', the crew destroys NME's fortress with the NME Salesman still inside and, upon being informed of this, he makes a run for it. In the original Japanese version, he can be heard screaming just before the fortress is entirely destroyed but what makes it qualify for this trope is the English version, which doesn't dub his scream at all and leaves him silent. In both versions, King Dedede attempts to contact him and only gets a static screen in return.

* ''Franchise/AceAttorney'': In general, while it's usually somewhat implied the true culprit of a case is facing the death penalty, there's only been two explicitly confirmed cases of this actually happening: [[spoiler: Dahlia Hawthorne]] and [[spoiler: Manfred Von Karma]]. Every other time, it's more ambiguous, and considering that Frank Sahwit shows up alive and well in ''VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigations2'', it possibly it only applies to premeditated murder.

* ''WebOriginal/JeffTheKiller'': While Randy and Keith are explicitly killed during their fight with Jeff at the house party, Troy is last mentioned falling down after being hit in the face with a towel rack, with the story never clarifying if he survived his injuries or not.

** ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'': [[GiantSpider Shelob]] is last seen retreating to her lair after being badly wounded in a fight with Sam. The text never makes it clear whether she managed to recuperate or succumbed to her injuries. Mount Doom's eruption not long afterwards only raises further questions as to her survival.

* ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' at one point had an example from the original ''Chain of Memories'' before it got conclusively confirmed in its remake years later. Organization member Zexion gets attacked by Riku in a cutscene, but unlike his cohorts, he’s too much of a coward to engage in an actual battle and flees. When he returns to his base, Axel is there to greet him with the [[CloningBlues Riku Replica]]. Wanting to finish off the rest of the Castle Oblivion crew at this point, Axel orders the Riku Replica to kill Zexion and steal his power. The screen fades to black as Zexion pleads for his life and then slashing sounds are heard. No mention is made of him after this, but oddly enough the Riku Replica displays none of Zexion's abilities when he’s fought later. In the follow-up, ''Kingdom Hearts II'', Sora visits the graves of the Organization. The red graves signify the dead members and the blue graves signify the living ones, but Zexion's is purple and broken -- likely because the developers hadn’t thought of a weapon for him at the time (since the graves prominently show each member’s weapon). This looked highly suspicious and made some fans question whether he had actually died or not. The remake dispelled any ambiguity [[PowerParasite including the nature of why the Replica ends up with some of Zexion's powers]], when he's very explicitly shown going limp and fading away in the Riku Replica’s hands.

** In "Green Light", Walt hears over the car radio that Donald Margolis has been rushed to the hospital after attempting to commit suicide (which isn't too surprising, considering his only daughter died of an overdose and he accidentally caused the deaths of 167 people). Walt gets uncomfortable ([[MurderByInaction since Donald's daughter dying was partly his fault]]) and quickly switches it off, so we never find out his ultimate fate.

* In ''Theatre/TheKingAndI'', this is the fate of Tuptim. After learning that her lover Lun Tha is dead, she exits declaring "Then I shall join him soon," presumably meaning either that she intends to [[DrivenToSuicide kill herself]] or expects to [[DeathByDespair die of grief.]] In the following scenes take place several months later, she's neither seen nor mentioned, so we never know if she died or not.

* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' Part 3 does this with some of the Stand users. While some are confirmed dead (including Gray Fly, Fake Capatin Tennille, [[KillerGorilla Forever]], Devo, [[TheSociopath J. Geil]], N'Doul, Pet Shop, and [[TheDragon Vanilla Ice]]), some are confirmed alive ([[EnfanteTerrible Mannish Boy]], Boingo and Oingo, Mariah, and Hol Horse), and there are some whose fates are uncomfirmed. Among those whose fates are uncomfirmed, there are two of them who are highly implied to be dead as they don't get up. They are Steely Dan (whose been punched even more times than Forever and did not get up) and Rubber Soul.

** In ''The Legend Reborn'', Skrall leder Tuma collapses and passes out after his duel with Mata Nui and is never seen afterward. The [[WhatCouldHaveBeen unproduced sequel]] would have showed him alive but weak and humiliated, leading only a small group of Skrall devotees. In written canon, he is said to have survived but didn't make further appearances.

* ''Film/FaceOff'': Deitrich's crony Aldo and escort Livia are both shot in the penthouse shootout, but Livia is still concious and clutching her stomach after being shot and Aldo remains standing as the camera cuts away, leaving their fates slightly ambiguous.

* ''Film/HelloMaryLouPromNightII'': Kelly, who is stabbed in the stomach by a falling decoration during the prom, but still seems to be stirring a little as the film cuts away from her, and might not have been stabbed too deeply. During the final scene, after the police and ambulances arrive, there's only one bodybag in the background, which isn't hers due to the body inside lacking breast curves.

** Grenbow in ''Death and Glory''- A unit he's commanding is swarmed and butchered (presumably but not explicitly to the last man) by the orks but Grenbow himself isn't specifically shown being killed, unlike other named characters who were with him.

* ''Series/SquidGame'': Most of the VIPs are a KarmaHoudini who leave the island. The only one who seems to have gotten commepuence is VIP Number 4 who has tried to molest one of the workers who unforunately for him turned to be a cop in disguise and far stronger than him, and crushed his genitals and put him at gunpoint and knocked him out. Later, when another worker found the VIP uncoscious and unmasked, he said he was fine. However, the VIP 4 never returns afterwards, even long after he should theoretically regain consciousness. It seems likely that DeathlyUnmasking rule applies to VIPs as much as it does to the guards, so he was likely executed. And also, it's slightly possible that the cop disguised as guard actually killed the VIP and the guard said he was "fine" to avoid creating panic for other VIPs.

* ''TabletopGame/BattleTech'': The Trial of Annhilation against Clan Wolverine. In-universe, all that is known is that A) after the Trial was complete, comparing casualty lists to the rolls of Wolverines showed a large discrepancy, B) much of Clan Wolverine's warriors were descended from the Star League's 331st Royal [=BattleMech=] division, whose unit patch bore an icon of the state of Minnesota, C) about a year after the Annhilation, a mysterious group called "The Minnesota Tribe" raided through Draconis Combine territory before just as mysteriously vanishing into parts unknown. How much of Clan Wolverine survived, what happened to them after the events of the Annhilation, if they really are connected to the Minnesota Tribe, and where they ultimately went is the source of much speculation in-universe. Out-of-universe, it's been pretty well confirmed that the Minnesota Tribe are Wolverine surivivors, but there is still no canon information about what happened to them afterwards.

* ''VideoGame/EccoTheDolphin'', reboot, ''Defender of Future'' has Ecco escape from a giant morey eel. Once Ecco manages to escape, the rocks are shown falling. It isn't clear if they directly killed an eel but even if they didn't, the eel could be presumed to be trapped there and starve.

* ''Franchise/AceAttorney'': In general, while it's usually somewhat implied the true culprit of a case is facing the death penalty, there's only been two explicitly confirmed cases of this actually happening: [[spoiler: Dahlia Hawthorne]] and [[spoiler: Manfred Von Karma]]. Every other time, it's more ambigious, and considering that Frank Sahwit shows up alive and well in ''VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigations2'', it possibly it only applies to premeditated murder.

* ''ComicBook/AstroCity'': Plenty of characters simply vanish from the timeline with no obvious cause. Given the difficult line of work they live in and the lack of Comic-Book Time, it's not quite clear if they've died in battle, moved away, or simply retired.

* ''ComicBook/AstroCity'': Plenty of characters simply vanish from the timeline with no obvious cause. Given the difficult line of work they live in and the lack of Comic-Book Time, it's not quite clear if they've died in battle or simply retired.

** Princess Yue's {{jerkass}} fiancé Hahn is last seen being thrown into the freezing ocean by Admiral Zhao after a failed AssassinationAttempt against Zhao. It's unclear if he survived.