History SparedByTheAdaptation / Film

** In ''ComicBook/OldManLogan'', Professor Xavier and ComicBook/{{X 23}} were already dead. ''Film/{{Logan}}'', which is inspired by it sees Xavier [[CompositeCharacter take over]] ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}}'s role and X-23 is the crux of the plot.

** While it was published after ''ComicBook/TheKillingJoke'', ''ComicBook/TheLongHalloween'' featured the death of Sal Maroni. ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheKillingJoke'' features Batman barging into a nightclub to talk to some people after the Joker cripples Barbara Gordon and kidnapped Commissioner Gordon. The guy he talks to is unmistakably voiced by Creator/RickDWasserman, who's credited in the role of "Maroni", suggesting Maroni's alive in the animated version.

* Grendel's Mother in the 2007 ''Film/{{Beowulf|2007}}'' movie.

** Barty Crouch Jr. in ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire''. In the book, he got Dementor's Kiss. The movies state that he will be send back to Azkaban. He also suffers from ChuckCunninghamSyndrome as in later movies, all the Death Eaters are freed but he never appears alongside them. Some people simply assume that he did get a Dementor's Kiss and that filmmakers simply counted on that anyone who watched the movies simply read the books. Alternatively, he good be in the crowd of Death Eaters and simply not shown.

* Grendel's Mother in the 2007 ''Film/{{Beowulf}}'' movie.

* Cantor Rabinowitz in ''Film/TheJazzSinger''. In the 1927 original he passed away at his deathbed after [[WellDoneSonGuy listening to his son Jack sing the Kol Nidre so beautifully]] and telling his wife Sara, "we have our son again" ([[OurGhostsAreDifferent his ghost is then shown at Jack's side in the synagogue]]). In the 1980 Neil Diamond remake, however, when Cantor Rabinowitz sees his son Jess sing the Kol Nidre in his father's place (since said father can't sing due to high blood pressure), he becomes surprised, and after some conversation, the father forgives his son and gives a [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments heartwarming embrace]]. He even hears the performance of Diamond's "SugarWiki/{{A|wesomeMusic}}merica" at the end.

** The Talking Cricket (renamed Jiminy Cricket) in ''Disney/{{Pinocchio}}''. Though he lives to see the end of both the book and the film, he never gets killed at any point in the film.

** While it was published after ''ComicBook/TheKillingJoke'', ''ComicBook/TheLongHalloween'' featured the death of Sal Maroni. ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheKillingJoke'' features Batman barging into a nightclub to talk to some people after the Joker cripples Barbara Gordon and kidnapped Commissioner Gordon. The guy he talks to is unmistakably voiced by Creator/RickDWasserman, who's credit in the role of "Maroni", suggesting Maroni's alive in the animated version.

** ''Disney/{{Bambi}}'': Every major character dies in the novel except for Bambi, his fawns, and Faline (
who features prominently in the sequel). Many of the non-deer central characters in the film don't actually appear in the book, and so are not affected by this trope either.

** ''Disney/{{Bambi}}'': Every major character dies in the novel except for Bambi and his fawns.
*** Faline also survives the novel, and features prominently in the sequel. Many of the non-deer central characters in the film don't actually appear in the book, and so are not affected by this trope either.

** And [[spoiler: every single character]] in ''Disney/TheFoxAndTheHound''. In Chief's case [[DeathByAdaptation Not]] in the [[RecursiveAdaptation Disney books adapted from the film]], though.
*** Chief [[WhatCouldHaveBeen originally]] ''was'' going to die in the animated adaptation after being hit by the train, but someone in the Disney higher-ups wasn't willing to pull the trigger on a character who ''wasn't'' explicitly evil (this is before [[Disney/TheLionKing Mufasa's death]] convinced them it can be done effectively) - so he opens his eyes in what was meant to be his death scene, and ends up with ''only'' a broken leg for the rest of the film. This is definitely a case of it ''not'' being the best choice: killing him off would have explained Copper's ferocious grudge against Todd in the second half of the movie, while the final product makes him look a lot more spiteful (and it would have made their final reconciliation [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming more]] [[{{Forgiveness}} potent]]).

** Captain Hook from ''Disney/PeterPan''. In the book, he is simply swallowed up by the crocodile, but in the movie, he immediately jumps out of the crocodile's mouth unharmed shortly after being swallowed up and later swimming away [[MemeticMutation screaming for Smee]] with the crocodile still behind him.
*** There's an interesting story behind this. Originally, Disney was going to make Hook an evil, intimidating character who would die like his literary counterpart. However, they discovered that the slapstick scenes with the crocodile effectively ruined any sense that he was a serious threat. Therefore, they went all out and played him as an IneffectualSympatheticVillain. They kept him alive because they figured the audience wouldn't want to see such a humorous, non-threatening villain die.

* The 1930s adaptation of ''Theatre/TheChildrensHour'' ''These Three'' doesn't have [[spoiler:Martha kill herself.]] This combined with censoring the lesbian plot completely changes the plays meaning.

* In ''Film/{{Maleficent}}'', [[spoiler: the titular character and her [[TheDragon Dragon]] Diaval both survive thanks to LoveRedeems, whereas in ''Disney/SleepingBeauty'' Maleficent was killed by Prince Phillip and Diaval was TakenForGranite by the fairy godmothers.]]

** Moira [=MacTaggart=] is still alive in well in the films, as opposed to who her comic counterpart who was killed by Mystique and Sabertooth.

* Moira [=MacTaggart=] is still alive in well in the films, as opposed to who her comic counterpart who was killed by Mystique and Sabertooth.

* Anastasia in ''WesternAnimation/{{Anastasia}}'' (if you consider reality to be the source material, since it's so historically inaccurate it may as well be an AlternateUniverse).

* The Talking Cricket in ''Literature/TheAdventuresOfPinocchio''.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheBatmanVsDracula'' took some influence from the ''ComicBook/BatmanVampire'' trilogy--but much [[WesternAnimation/TheBatman likes the series it's tied into]], it's a movie aimed for kids, so no one dies, Batman never becomes a vampire, and he even manages to cure the Joker. Additionally, Commissioner Gordon, Catwoman, Tanya, the Riddler, Two-Face, and many others were AdaptedOut.

** ComicBook/BlackPanther's father T'Chaka is still alive in ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar''. This is in contrast to the comics and most other adaptations, where T'Chaka was murdered long before T'Challa ever became the Black Panther.

* [[GenderFlip Ms. Li]] in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanUnderTheRedHood''. Mr. Li, her [[DistaffCounterpart Spear Counterpart]] from the original comic, is [[DroppedABridgeOnHim killed]] by the titular Red Hood, while Ms. Li simply ends up BoundAndGagged by SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker. Whether her survival is due to the plot changes or [[MenAreTheExpendableGender her being a girl]] is uncertain.
* The Boyscouts in ''WesternAnimation/TheDarkKnightReturns'', in the original comic they were poisoned to death by the cotton candy The Joker gave them, in the film Batman is able to stop them from eating it, this was because the crew thought it would've been in bad taste because of the recent Sandy Hook school shooting.
* In ''WesternAnimation/SupermanVsTheElite'', the Elite are depowered and presumably jailed at the end, and that's the last we see of them. In the original comics, Black ended up lobotomizing Menagerie and, after a failed attempt to get revenge on Superman, committed suicide.

* ZigZaggedTrope with both [[Film/TheDayTheEarthStoodStill1951 1951]] and [[Film/TheDayTheEarthStoodStill2008 2008]] film adaptations of ''The Day the Earth Stood Still'': while on the original story ("Farewell To The Master") Klaatu only gets as far as introducing himself and Gort/Gnut before he's blown away by a crazy trigger-happy human, both films have him survive getting shot by the trigger-happy humans (nervous soldiers instead of the fanatical civilian of the story) at the beginning, only to die at the end.
* In the ''[[Franchise/StarWarsLegends Legends]]'' continuity of ''Franchise/StarWars'', Chewbacca got KilledOffForReal in ''[[Literature/NewJediOrder Vector Prime]]'', which was set approximately 21 years after ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi''. In ''Film/TheForceAwakens'', set 32 years after ROTJ, Chewbacca is alive and well [[spoiler:and in a truly tragic sense of irony, it's Han Solo who dies instead.]]
* In the novel ''Literature/{{Sounder}}'', both the father and Sounder the family dog die in the end. In the film, both are crippled but alive, Sounder by a shotgun blast, the father ([[NamedByTheAdaptation named "Nathan" in the film]]) by a dynamite blast in prison.
%%* [[InfantImmortality Tad]] from ''Film/{{Cujo}}''.
* John Hammond in ''Film/JurassicPark''. Ian Malcolm as well, which may have led Micael Crichton to make him NotQuiteDead in the [[Literature/TheLostWorld1995 book sequel]], though it's clearly implied that he dies in [[Literature/JurassicPark the first one]].
** It's actually an ''inversion'' (not counting the Malcom issue): In the book, Gennaro and Muldoon survive with Grant, Sattler, and the kids while Hammond and Malcolm are killed; in the film, Muldoon and Gennaro are eaten by rampaging dinosaurs and the survivors are Hammond and Malcolm.
** Dodgson is eaten in [[Literature/TheLostWorld1995 the second book]], but in [[Film/TheLostWorldJurassicPark the second movie]], a different character plays his role (although it could be argued that after Nedry doesn't return, Dodgson tries to get the embryos himself...)
** The 1993 movie does [[FridgeLogic spare a lot of background employees]] by having them board a ship to the continent before the hurricane hits the island. Among the saved is chief geneticist Henry Wu, who is killed by raptors in the novel, but is still alive in the 2015 sequel ''Film/JurassicWorld''.
* In the musical film version of ''Film/LittleShopOfHorrors'', Seymour and Audrey both escape their fate of being eaten by the plant, which is killed. Partly subverted in that, in the stage musical, Audrey was a victim of DeathByAdaptation, having survived in the original film, while the plant, who died in the original film, ends up surviving.
** In the Director's Cut, Audrey and Seymour die, and the plant lives.
* From ''Film/TheShining'', the Overlook Hotel itself is left intact, as opposed to the book which had it being blown off. Kubrick allegedly felt the destruction of the hotel brought too much of a happy ending to the story, so it became one of the many things he left out of his adaptation. This may also be due to Kubrick turning what originally was a story about ghosts into a film about madness, meaning that the hotel itself became less of an enemy to be eliminated, most of the horror now coming from the characters themselves and what they experience.

* Saruman and Wormtongue in the theatrical versions of ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' movies. Not so much in the Extended Editions (which explains why the palantír is in the water when Pippin picks it up).
** Additionally, in the books the Isengarders set one of the Ents ablaze and it's implied he burned to death. In the film, the Ent survives long enough to douse himself in the monstrous flood, turning an off-screen moment of villainy into a FunnyBackgroundEvent.
* Gwen Stacy and Captain Stacy in ''Film/SpiderMan3'' probably due in no small part to being {{demoted to extra}}s.
** Not to mention the bridge scene in ''Film/SpiderMan'' not only has Gwen replaced with Mary Jane, but Mary Jane also survives the ordeal, unlike poor Gwen.
* Mari and Justin in the 2009 remake of ''Film/TheLastHouseOnTheLeft''.
* The title character in the 2003 version of ''Film/{{Willard}}''.
** The title character dies in the 1971 version and is heavily implied to have died in the original novel.
* Roger in ''Film/WhoFramedRogerRabbit''; whereas in the source material he was the murder ''victim'' (specifically, his cause of death was censorship), here he's the murder ''suspect'' (the murder victim being Marvin Acme).
* Clarice doesn't truly die - at least not physically - in the original version of ''Literature/{{Hannibal}}'', but many would say that being corrupted and turned to the dark side by the title character is much worse. She avoids this grim fate in the film version.
* Norman Bates in the ''Film/{{Psycho}}'' follow-up movies.

* The Village Elder in ''Film/TheMagnificentSeven''. Chico is a partial example, as he's a {{composite|Character}} of two of the main characters of ''Film/SevenSamurai'': Kikuchiyo, who dies, and Katsushiro, who does not.
* Many English film adaptations of ''Literature/LesMiserables'' don't include Jean Valjean's death. Thanks to ''Film/LesMiserables1998'', ChronicallyKilledActor Creator/LiamNeeson happens to be one of the surviving Valjeans in that respect. Other adaptations spare other characters: La Thénardier in the musical, Gavroche and Javert in the 2007 anime version, et cetera.
* Both the kids and the would-be killer in the remake of ''Film/WhenAStrangerCalls''.
* The Renfield-type character in ''Film/{{Nosferatu}}'', both the original and in Werner Herzog's remake.
* Nobody ever has the heart to kill off Fagin in ''Literature/OliverTwist'' remakes anymore. Or sentence the Artful Dodger [[SentencedToDownUnder to transportation to Australia]].
* Mister Arrow in ''Film/MuppetTreasureIsland''. Instead of giving him alcohol that causes Arrow to get drunk and fall overboard, Long John Silver tricks him into inspecting one of the lifeboats and drops it off the ship. We're left to assume Arrow was lost as sea anyway, but then he washes up on Treasure Island later. This was averted with Billy Bones, which is significant because he was the only character ''ever'' to die in a Muppet movie. Creator/BillyConnolly (who portrayed Bones) is quite proud of that fact.
* Matt Hooper from ''Film/{{Jaws}}''; granted in the film he is a much more likeable character.
** This was actually an accidental case; Hooper was going to die, but before that scene could be filmed a real shark got tangled in the ropes and destroyed the prop cage while it was empty. The crew thought that the footage was too good to waste that they rewrote Hooper's fate to get it into the movie.
* Mr. Coogar in ''Literature/SomethingWickedThisWayComes''.
* Charles Cheswick in ''Literature/OneFlewOverTheCuckoosNest''. WordOfGod states that Cheswick was spared in order to [[spoiler: make Billy's death all the more shocking.]]

* The originally filmed ending to ''[[Franchise/{{Rambo}} First Blood]]'' was much closer to the novel by David Morrell, which had John Rambo forcing Trautman to kill him. However, due to Rambo's more sympathetic portrayal in the film, a new ending was filmed which had Rambo being arrested instead, making the sequels possible. [[AdaptationDisplacement Due to the relative obscurity of the novel]], not many are aware that Rambo was supposed to die in the first film. Ironically, Morrell adapted the film's sequels into novels; as such, he took note of the CanonDiscontinuity in the first sequel, throwing said discontinuity out the window just as quickly.
* The fourth kidnapped cardinal in ''Literature/AngelsAndDemons''.
* Higgins in ''[[Film/MasterAndCommander Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World]]'', since the subplot that killed him didn't make the movie, though early versions of the screenplay killed him in the final battle.
* At the time ''Film/{{Superman}}'' was made, both Ma and Pa Kent were dead in the comics by the time Clark becomes Superman. In the film, however, only Pa Kent dies. In the Post-Crisis comics both Kents are still alive making Jonathan Kent dying on ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' DeathByAdaptation. He's dead again in the Comicbook/{{New 52}}.
* ''Film/TheGunsOfNavarone''. Stevens shatters his leg, contracts gangrene, and [[YouShallNotPass pins down a German assault single-handedly to buy time for his teammates to escape and continue their mission]] in the book. Major Franklin is captured, and though there's no hint of when or whether he'll be repatriated, he's at least shown alive and knows that the team's mission was a success.
** Ditto the sadistic Nazi officer Skoda. He's shot in the book for torturing Stevens. In the movie, he's renamed Sessler and is simply tied up. In the film, Sessler is not a sadistic Nazi but a professional Wermacht officer. He assures Mallory that Franklin will receive proper medical care. At the end, Franklin is seen in a hospital bed and smiles as he hears the explosion marking the mission's success. His fate isn't stated, but would likely be held as POW for the rest of the war.
* The reboot of ''Film/StarTrek'' has this ZigZagged. The first film allows Christopher Pike to avoid being rendered an invalid, as he was shown in [[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries The Original Series]]. He's in a wheelchair at the end of the first film after being tortured by Nero, but has his mental faculties. He walks with a cane at the beginning of ''Film/StarTrekIntoDarkness'', set a year after the first film. But later in the film, [[DeathByAdaptation he's killed off]].
* Most movie adaptations of ''Theatre/RomeoAndJuliet'' leave out the deaths of Paris and Lady Montague, probably because both contribute little to the story and slow down the ending. Though this very often creates a plot hole when the prince says that he has lost "a brace of kinsmen" at the end. The movie makers obviously don't realize what "a brace" means; it means ''two'': two kinsmen, namely Mercutio and ''Paris''. Without Paris' death, the prince has only lost ''one'' kinsman! The Prince's comment is made even more confusing in the Creator/LeonardoDiCaprio [[Film/WilliamShakespearesRomeoAndJuliet version]] where Captain Prince and Mercutio are black and Paris is white. And there is no evidence of any of them being of mixed race.
* In the 2002 remake of ''Literature/{{Carrie}}'', the title character survives and goes into hiding in Florida. This, incidentally, was because they were planning on the film (which was [[MadeForTVMovie made-for-TV]]) being a PilotMovie, leading into a TV series about Carrie going on the run and helping other troubled teens with powers like hers. [[StillbornFranchise It never happened.]]
* Atreyu's horse, Artax, in the movie adaption of ''Film/TheNeverendingStory''. While it does die by sinking in a swamp through despair just like in the book, it comes back to life at the end of the movie [[spoiler:thanks to Bastian presumably wishing it back to life]]. And it appears in the second movie, still alive.
** It's implied that in the film, the effects of the Nothing were completely reversed by Bastian saving Fantasia, so everyone who died as a consequence is alive (including the characters who survived the novel without ''ever'' dying); in the novel, they stay dead but Fantasia was recreated when Bastian saved it (with new areas and such being formed). Given that the realm is [[spoiler:the manifestation of human wishes and dreams, taking on a physical form]], this makes sense in context.
* ''Film/TheGodfather''. Both of Michael’s Sicilian bodyguards, Fabrizio and Calo, die in the novel but survive in the movie adaptation, [[SubvertedTrope only to die in the sequels]]. [[TheMole Fabrizio]] sets a car bomb for Michael but kills Michael’s wife Apollonia instead. In the novel, Fabrizio is killed in the [[TheClimax climactic]] [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge massacre montage]], but in the movie he is not seen again. A deleted scene in ''Godfather II'' reveals that Michael has him killed years later ... [[KarmicDeath in a car bombing]]. In the novel Calo is killed in the car blast with Apollonia, but like Fabrizio his fate is unrevealed in the movie until ''Godfather III'', where he is killed while taking part in ''that'' film’s [[RecycledPremise climactic massacre montage]].
* Charlie's brother in ''Film/LemonadeMouth''. In the movie he's older, away at college until he returns near the climax. In the book, he's Charlie's twin and was stillborn.

* The 2011 film version of ''Film/{{The Three Musketeers|2011}}'' spares Milady de Winter, the Duke of Buckingham, and Constance Bonacieux. Cardinal Richelieu's survival is not an example; his deaths in previous adaptations are actually examples of DeathByAdaptation (he survives the original book).

* Played straight with lover Frank at first in the 1975 film adaptation of Music/TheWho's ''Music/{{Tommy}}'', but then subverted at the end of the film when the angry mob kills him and Nora Walker.
* The 1948 film adaptation of ''Theatre/TheTimeOfYourLife'' spares Blick the offstage death which he meets in the play.
* In the film version of ''Literature/MySistersKeeper'', Kate dies and Anna lives. In the book, Anna sues her parents for medical emancipation so she won't have to give her kidney to Kate, who has leukemia. Then, she is hit by a car and her kidney is given anyway. In the movie, Kate agrees with the lawsuit, knowing that she will die.

* Thufir Hawat is shown in the crowd watching Paul's duel with Feyd-Rautha at the end of ''Film/{{Dune}}''. His death scene just before that duel was filmed, but was cut.
* Esmeralda in the Creator/LonChaney, Creator/CharlesLaughton, and most other versions of ''Film/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame''.
* In the Creator/EdgarAllanPoe short story "The Fall of the House of Usher", Roderick and Madeline fall over dead right before their house collapses around them. In the French film ''[[Film/TheFallOfTheHouseOfUsher1928France The Fall of the House of Usher]]'', they both escape the house alive.
* Echo the Ventriloquist drowns in ''Literature/TheUnholyThree'', but survives in [[Film/TheUnholyThree both movie adaptations]]; rather ironic given that this was Creator/LonChaney's final role before his untimely death.
* In ''Film/StandByMe'', the narrator reveals at the end that Chris was killed in a knife fight as an adult. As shocking as this was, it beat the original story by Creator/StephenKing, where three out of the four kids (excepting Gordie) met early ends in the epilogue.
** As pointed out in [[http://www.cracked.com/article_19156_6-deleted-scenes-that-prove-book-isnt-always-better_p2.html this article]], ''even Gordie'' may not be lasting much longer in the original story...

* The film adaptation of ''Theatre/OurTown'' has the female protagonist surviving. The third act of the play has her dying while giving birth to her child and takes place in the afterlife; in the film the afterlife portion is a dream she has.
* An odd case is used for the ''Franchise/DieHard'' films, which were initially based off a novel entitled ''Nothing Lasts Forever.'' In it, the character Joseph Leland, whom John [=McClane=] was based on, has to save his daughter on Christmas Eve... and ultimately he fails, as after sending on the antagonist out a window he manages to grab his daughter and take her with him. In the films, [=McClane's=] character was made younger and the hostage was changed to his wife instead of his daughter (the wife was a PosthumousCharacter in the book). Antagonist Hans Gruber attempts to do the same thing, but this time John successfully saves her. In the fourth film in the series, [=McClane's=] now grown-up daughter actually ''does'' get taken hostage by the film's BigBad, but she is also saved by the end of the film.
** Police Chief Dwayne T. Robinson is a much more standard use of the trope. In the novel, when [[TheDragon Karl]] returns at the very end he attempts to shoot Joe but Al Powell proceeds to push Robinson into the way of the bullets before killing Karl himself. In the film, Powell just up and shoots Karl on the spot before he can fire his gun, and Robinson, who is still a {{Jerkass}} but greatly toned down from his novel counterpart, lives.
* In the original ''Film/NightOfTheLivingDead1968'', Barbra is dragged off and implied to be devoured by a horde of zombies (among which, her brother is included) during the film's final siege. In the [[Film/NightOfTheLivingDead1990 1990 remake]], she becomes an ActionSurvivor.
* In ''VideoGame/SilentHill3'' Harry's death is the sole reason Heather travels to Silent Hill to seek out revenge. In the film ''Film/SilentHillRevelation3D'' he survives; the one film Creator/SeanBean is supposed to die in and he lives. Vincent also survives, but his character has also change completely.

* ''Film/DrWhoAndTheDaleks'' replaces the death of Antodus, who falls down a chasm in the TV ''Series/DoctorWho'' story "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS1E2TheDaleks The Daleks]]", with a DisneyDeath where he lands safely on an unexpected ledge.
* ''Literature/ALittlePrincess'' has had two movie adaptations, one in 1939 with Creator/ShirleyTemple, and one in 1995. In both of these, Sara's father does not die as he does in the novel of BrainFever, he is merely injured in war and either too traumatized (1939) or amnesiac (1995). Either way, she gets a happy ending, as the novel ends with her being adopted by a family friend.
* The entire population of planet Earth in the film version of ''Film/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy''.
* Possibly the case with Weena in ''Film/{{The Time Machine|1960}}''. In [[Literature/TheTimeMachine the original novel]] she is separated from the protagonist in the midst of a forest fire and he it unable to find her. Ultimately her fate is left ambiguous, but the protagonist (who narrates the story) isn't optimistic about her odds of survival. In the movie she very clearly survives and almost joins the protagonist in his own time (which is only prevented when the Morlocks trap him in the statue and he is forced to use time travel to escape, as in the book).
* Cee Cee Bloom's mother survives much longer in ''Film/{{Beaches}}''. In the original novel, Leona dies of a heart attack while her daughter is in her late teens. The film changes this to Leona moving away to Florida, and brings her back for a later scene where she calls her daughter out on her selfish personality.
* Instead of following the ending to the novel, the English language film versions of ''Literature/AndThenThereWereNone'' followed either the ending to Agatha Christie's theatrical adaptation (sparing Lombard and Vera), or a slightly altered version in which Lombard is really Charles Morley, the real Lombard having died already (thus sparing only Vera.)

* ''Film/XMen'':
** Mariko Yashida, who was killed in the comics, but survives till the very end of ''Film/TheWolverine''. This is also the case for her fiancé Noburo.
** ''Film/XMenDaysOfFuturePast'':\\\
[[ComicBook/DaysOfFuturePast In the original story]], future Wolverine died during an ill-fated attack on the Sentinels headquarters. Here, he's the one who travels back in time to SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong.\\\
In the original comic Future Magento was the first to die, sacrificing himself early on by providing an off-panel diversion so the remaining resistance could escape their imprisonment. During the LastStand in the film, though he's badly wounded he never succumbs to his wounds before the timeline is reset.
* Happy Hogan in ''Film/IronMan3'', who was mercy killed in the comics after going into a braindead coma but survives in this movie until the very end after experiencing the impact of an Extremis soldier exploding and awakening from his coma.
* Tigercub in the film version of ''[[Literature/NightWatch Day Watch]]''. However, this is only because the Mirror storyline was utterly absent in the adaptation. Instead, Kostya is killed prior to ''Twilight Watch''... at least until the end of the film that rewinds the two films to the beginning.
* In ''Film/DickTracy'', 88 Keyes the piano player is arrested during the raid on the Club Ritz. His comic strip counterpart was eventually gunned down by Tracy.
* Both Nancy and Harry survive in the 1993 remake of ''Film/AttackOfTheFiftyFootWoman''. (Although Harry's not exactly better off. Nancy and two other giant women are keeping him and two other abusive husbands in a jar and forcing them to take endless "sensitivity classes" as they fly off in a spaceship.)
* In the [[Film/TheHobbit film adaptation]] of ''Literature/TheHobbit'', Azog The Defiler survives the Battle of Azanulbizar by getting his arm cut off and being presumed dead, instead of [[OffWithHisHead getting his head cut off]] like in the book. [[spoiler: He finally dies during the Battle of the Five Armies when Thorin stabs him through the chest.]]
* In ''Film/BlueIsTheWarmestColor'' [[spoiler:Adèle lives unlike [[AdaptationNameChange Clémentine]] in the [[ComicBook/BlueIsTheWarmestColor comicbook]]]].
* The 2006 remake of ''Film/LastHoliday'' has the main character (portrayed by Creator/AlecGuinness in the original and Creator/QueenLatifah [[GenderFlip in the remake]]) survive, whereas the original film ended with the main character's vehicular demise.
* Although not quite the same character, Serizawa’s previous incarnation in the Godzilla series died ''preventing'' Godzilla from wreaking more havoc. While in ''Film/{{Godzilla 2014}}'' Serizawa is trying to convince the military the importance of Godzilla and comes out of the film with very little scrapes and bruises.
* In ''Film/{{Maleficent}}'', [[spoiler: the titular character and her [[TheDragon Dragon]] Diaval both survive thanks to LoveRedeems, whereas in ''Disney/SleepingBeauty'' Maleficent was killed by Prince Phillip and Diaval was TakenForGranite by the fairy godmothers.]]
* Carl in ''Film/StarshipTroopers'' suffers a rather anti-climactic off-screen death around three-quarters of the way through the novel; he makes it to the end of the film.
* Uncle Bene in ''Film/EscapeToWitchMountain'' comes back to welcome Tia and Tony. In the book, he died trying to get them to America.

* Rapunzel in the film version of ''Film/IntoTheWoods''.
* In ''Literature/VampireAcademy'', the character Mr. Nagy/[[AdaptationNameChange "Mr. Meisner"]] is killed by Natalie Dashkov. Nothing happens to him in [[Film/VampireAcademy the film]].
* ComicBook/BlackPanther's father T'Chaka is still alive in ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar''. This is in contrast to the comics and most other adaptations, where T'Chaka was murdered long before T'Challa ever became the Black Panther.
* ''Film/DeathHunt'': The real Albert Johnson was killed by the Mounties after a months-long manhunt. In the film, the corpse of a local killer who was actually stealing gold teeth is made up to look like him, while Johnson escapes into Alaska.
* King Pellinore is a supporting character throughout the musical ''{{Theatre/Camelot}}'', and is with Arthur in the final scene. In T. H. White's ''Literature/TheOnceAndFutureKing'', upon which the musical is based, he [[DroppedABridgeOnHim gets a bridge dropped on him]] half-way through the third book.
* The 1930s adaptation of ''Theatre/TheChildrensHour'' ''These Three'' doesn't have [[spoiler:Martha kill herself.]] This combined with censoring the lesbian plot completely changes the plays meaning.
* Oscar de Jarjayes lives through the Storming of the Bastille in ''Lady Oscar'', whereas in ''Manga/RoseOfVersailles'' she's killed in the siege.

* ''Film/TheHungerGames'': Peeta's leg remains intact at the end of the film.
* In UltimateMarvel universe, Comicbook/{{Hawkeye}} had a wife named Laura and three kids, all of whom were killed by Comicbook/BlackWidow during ''TheUltimates 2''. Laura and the kids appear alive and well in ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron'', with Black Widow (who isn't a traitor in this continuity) serving as the children's [[HonoraryUncle Honorary Aunt]].

* The 1962 version of ''Film/CapeFear'' ends with Sam Bowden arresting Max Cady. Both the original novel, ''The Executioners,'' and 1991 remake, end with Bowden killing Cady instead.

** The Talking Cricket (renamed Jiminy Cricket) in ''Disney/{{Pinocchio}}''. Though he lives to see the end of both the book and the film, he never gets killed at any point in the film.

** Arguably Robin Hood in ''Disney/RobinHood'', though the Robin Hood mythos is so vast that it's not ironclad that he dies at the end normally.
** And [[spoiler: every single character]] in ''Disney/TheFoxAndTheHound''. In Chief's case [[DeathByAdaptation Not]] in the [[RecursiveAdaptation Disney books adapted from the film]], though.
*** Chief [[WhatCouldHaveBeen originally]] ''was'' going to die in the animated adaptation after being hit by the train, but someone in the Disney higher-ups wasn't willing to pull the trigger on a character who ''wasn't'' explicitly evil (this is before [[Disney/TheLionKing Mufasa's death]] convinced them it can be done effectively) - so he opens his eyes in what was meant to be his death scene, and ends up with ''only'' a broken leg for the rest of the film. This is definitely a case of it ''not'' being the best choice: killing him off would have explained Copper's ferocious grudge against Todd in the second half of the movie, while the final product makes him look a lot more spiteful (and it would have made their final reconciliation [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming more]] [[{{Forgiveness}} potent]]).

** Shere Khan from ''Disney/TheJungleBook''. He retreats with a burning branch tied to his tail. Seconds after he's out of sight, it rains. In fact, he's still alive by the end of the sequel! Also the monkeys, who were eaten by Kaa originally.

** Both Literature/TheSteadfastTinSoldier and the Ballerina from ''[[Disney/{{Fantasia}} Fantasia 2000]]''. The main reason why they both lived in the Disney adaptation is because the writers of the film actually did not want to cause any SoundtrackDissonance considering the fact that the musical piece accompanying this scene is an optimistic-sounding one.
** John Luther "Casey" Jones from ''The Brave Engineer''. In real life, he actually died in the train crash.
** Disney/{{Pocahontas}} in ''Disney/PocahontasIIJourneyToANewWorld''. In real life, she died during her stay in England.
** Maleficent in the Ride/DisneyThemeParks version of ''Disney/SleepingBeauty'', whose cackling can be heard at the very last part of the ride, implying that she had survived being stabbed by the Sword of Truth and falling off a cliff. However, this was eventually removed and replaced with a scene where the fairies are still bickering over what color Aurora's dress should be. There was also a sequel storybook which also had Maleficent survive the above and still cause trouble.
*** A similar thing happened in ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep'', though Justified since that was a prequel to a game where she's a major antagonist. [[FridgeHorror Though since the Sleeping Beauty world is said to have been "lost to the darkness" in the original game, this possibly turns the story into a case of]] TheBadGuyWins...
** ''Disney/{{Bambi}}'': Every major character dies in the novel except for Bambi and his fawns.
*** Faline also survives the novel, and features prominently in the sequel. Many of the non-deer central characters in the film don't actually appear in the book, and so are not affected by this trope either.

** If ''Disney/TheLionKing'', as it commonly is, is taken as an adaptation of ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}'', then the equivalents of Hamlet himself (Simba), Ophelia (Nala), Gertrude (Sarabi), Polonius (Zazu), and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern (Timon and Pumbaa) all live. On the other hand, we get to watch King Hamlet (Mufasa) die, while in the play he was DeadToBeginWith.
* Grendel's Mother in the 2007 ''Film/{{Beowulf}}'' movie.
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Nine}}'', everyone except 9 died in the original short; in the full-length movie he, 7, 3 and 4 all make it out alive.
* [[GenderFlip Ms. Li]] in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanUnderTheRedHood''. Mr. Li, her [[DistaffCounterpart Spear Counterpart]] from the original comic, is [[DroppedABridgeOnHim killed]] by the titular Red Hood, while Ms. Li simply ends up BoundAndGagged by SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker. Whether her survival is due to the plot changes or [[MenAreTheExpendableGender her being a girl]] is uncertain.
* Herr Kleiser is killed and eaten by [[Comicbook/IncredibleHulk the Hulk]] in ''TheUltimates'', but survives the events of both ''UltimateAvengers'' films. However, ComicBook/BlackPanther [[AFateWorseThanDeath seals him inside Wakanda's Vibranium reserves for all eternity]], making death look like a much kinder alternative.
** Also Comicbook/BlackWidow and Edwin Jarvis both survive the events of the films despite being killed in ''The Ultimates 2''.
* Anastasia in ''WesternAnimation/{{Anastasia}}'' (if you consider reality to be the source material, since it's so historically inaccurate it may as well be an AlternateUniverse).
* [[LoveableRogue Ostap Bender]] from Creator/MelBrooks adaptation of TheTwelveChairs survives the book instead of having his throat cut for all his trouble. An interesting case, as while the book itself explicitly stated him as dead, the character was later brought back for a sequel.

* In ''WesternAnimation/SupermanVsTheElite'', the Elite are depowered and presumably jailed at the end, and that's the last we see of them. In the original comics, Black ended up lobotomizing Menagerie and, after a failed attempt to get revenge on Superman, committed suicide.
* The Boyscouts in ''WesternAnimation/TheDarkKnightReturns'', in the original comic they were poisoned to death by the cotton candy The Joker gave them, in the film Batman is able to stop them from eating it, this was because the crew thought it would've been in bad taste because of the recent Sandy Hook school shooting.
* In ''Literature/TheTrueMeaningOfSmekday'' has a century-long TimeSkip at the end where Tip suddenly dies of old age during the unveiling of the time capsule. The film adaptation ''WesternAnimation/{{Home}}'' lacks the TimeSkip ending whilst Tip is still a child.

* The Giant from the Creator/GoldenFilms production of ''Literature/JackAndTheBeanstalk'' most versions including the original story have the Giant fall to his death after Jack cuts down the beanstalk, in this version however just before he hits the ground he gets sealed inside the magic harp he had sealed Jack's father in years earlier along with his wife somehow, who did not accompany him in chasing Jack.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheBatmanVsDracula'' took some influence from the ''ComicBook/BatmanVampire'' trilogy--but much [[WesternAnimation/TheBatman likes the series it's tied into]], it's a movie aimed for kids, so no one dies, Batman never becomes a vampire, and he even manages to cure the Joker. Additionally, Commissioner Gordon, Catwoman, Tanya, the Riddler, Two-Face, and many others were AdaptedOut.