Movies need heroes, and whether they're the wholesome or roguish variety, a captivating character an audience can get behind is essential to a motion picture's success. Most films focus on one hero and their journey, but not all are quite so simple. On occasion, more than one viewpoint is needed to really capture the adventure at hand.
Some films use an ensemble cast to perfectly tell their story, while others jump back and forth between different perspectives to add variety. And sometimes a movie switches the hero around without warning, giving the audience a pleasant surprise. These films are some of the best examples of this somewhat rare and unusual technique.
10 "Psycho" Stunned Audiences By Killing Off Its Main Character Halfway Through
Alfred Hitchcock's macabre masterpiece features what's arguably the most famous and well-executed example of a sudden protagonist change. Psycho's dispatching of Janet Leigh's Marion Crane absolutely stunned audiences back in 1960, and for any first-time viewers in the years since, the plot twist remains just as shocking.
This was essentially the birth of the "false protagonist" in cinema, and there have been very few uses of the technique that are capable of rivaling this terrific and terrifying rug pull.
9 "1917" Teased A Journey A Little Different To The One Audiences Were Really On
Although viewers with a keen eye can spot the true protagonist right away in Sam Mendes' war epic, 1917 shapes its story on the mission of two young soldiers, Will and Tom, as they race against the clock to deliver a message and save the lives of hundreds of their fellow warriors.
Given that Tom's older brother's life is at stake as one of the hundreds, the audience is nudged toward believing this to be his journey. However, as is often the case in war flicks, things don't exactly go to plan.
8 "Chungking Express" Masterfully Tells Two Tales Of Love, Lust, And Heartbreak
Wong Kar-wai's Hong Kong masterpiece manages to twist the elements of crime, comedy, romance, and heartbreak through two separate stories, each focused on a policeman who falls for the woman of his dreams. Takeshi Kanehiro headlines the first story as a man struggling to come to terms with a breakup.
Chungking Express then switches its focal point to look at Hong Kong legend, Tony Leung, known to MCU fans as Xu Wenwu of Shang-Chi fame. Few dramas are as hard-hitting or as hypnotizing as Chungking Express, and it's certainly one of the finest examples of a movie with a change in its protagonist.
7 "Alien" Wasn't Always Ellen Ripley's Intergalactic Nightmare
Given Ellen Ripley's significant standing in cinema history as one of the all-time great protagonists, it's easy to forget that Sigourney Weaver's survivor starts out in Alien as little more than a face in the crowd.
On the other hand, Tom Skerritt's Dallas starts out as captain of the Nostromo. As a result, many viewers figured he was the likeliest to make it out of the horrific ordeal with his life. Ripley was set up to surprise audiences from the start, and what a pleasant one it was! It cemented Weaver's warrior as the undisputed queen of Hollywood heroines.
6 Godzilla Tricked Audiences Into Thinking Bryan Cranston Was Set To Play A Monstrously Sized Part
Breaking Bad sent veteran actor Bryan Cranston from sitcom favorite to genuine megastar. So, when Godzilla trailers dropped and featured the one-time Heisenberg in a prominent role in a big-budget blockbuster, fans were understandably excited.
However, there was no king of the meth versus the king of the monsters. Instead, Cranston's character failed to survive the first act – a fact that annoyed audiences and made Godzilla a largely underwhelming addition to a legendary franchise.
5 The Place Beyond The Pines Features A Trio Of Fascinating Tales
Derek Cianfrance's 2012 crime thriller tells three stories and gives The Place Beyond the Pines two instances of the protagonist switch. Audiences are treated to tales focused on Ryan Gosling's Luke, Bradley Cooper's Avery, and finally, two troubled teens played by Emory Cohen and Dane DeHaan.
The already stacked cast is backed up by the exceptional talents of Ray Liotta, Mahershala Ali, Ben Mendelsohn, and Eva Mendes. An intimate and at times disturbing watch, The Place Beyond the Pines is an excellent example of Cianfrance's talent for juggling multiple storylines.
4 Fans Probably Should Have Known That "X-Men" Would Be Wolverine's Film
In the early minutes of 2000's X-Men, viewers can be forgiven for assuming the film would be centered around Anna Paquin's, Rogue. The mutant teenager hogs a fair amount of screen time in the movie's opening scenes. However, after the audience is introduced to (a then largely unknown) Hugh Jackman as Logan, X-Men becomes Wolverine's film.
The Australian actor exceeded expectations as the clawed character, and thanks to X-Men and the many sequels that followed, Jackman's Wolverine is one of the most iconic and beloved movie superheroes of all time.
3 "Face Off" Features A Switch Of A Very Different Kind
Face Off's protagonist switch is far from the usual, and it technically doesn't constitute a switch of hero. Sean Archer begins John Woo's action classic, played by the ever charismatic John Travolta. And as the hero and villain of this high concept flick change faces, they also swap actors.
Nicolas Cage takes on the role of Archer for the remaining majority of the film, and Cage's outrageously fun performance opposite Travolta's slick baddie leaves Face Off as one of the most enjoyable, exciting, and outright insane movies of the 1990s.
2 "Executive Decision" Killed Off A Major Star In A Shocking Twist
Steven Seagal's Hollywood career may have fallen off a proverbial cliff in the early 2000s, but in 1996, the Aikido master was at the peak of his powers. Every movie he'd starred in up until that point saw him playing the unbeatable hero.
Fans were used to watching Seagal slam his way through hordes of baddies without breaking a sweat, and given that Executive Decision's marketing featured the action star so prominently, it led audiences to believe they were in for more of the same. However, they couldn't have been more wrong. The film centers around a hijacked aircraft, yet Seagal's character doesn't even make it onto the plane.
1 "The Suicide Squad" Swerved Audiences Everywhere
James Gunn's contribution to the DC Extended Universe is a masterclass in subversion. The action-comedy features multiple swerves throughout, but none are quite as unpredictable as the opening sequence, which sees a staggering number of heroes killed off.
Michael Rooker's Savant is set up from the get-go to be The Suicide Squad's main antihero. However, this comic character sees the majority of his team wiped out in seconds. His only and ultimately fatal option is to flee.