15 Best Final Lines In Movie History, Ranked

If a picture is worth a thousand words, a motion picture carries an exorbitant price tag indeed. And just as an entire movie hinges on its endings, the final lines of a film also play a major role in defining its legacy. Whether it's a closing platitude that synthesizes a story's overarching themes or capturing a character's ethos in a handful of words, the movie closing lines carry quite the weight. We're rounding up our favorite last lines to ever grace the big screen, leaving one last impact before the end credit roll.

Whether it's a closing gag or plot twist that redefines the genre, these lines memorably wrap each of their respective films. In some cases, these lines have become the most iconic scenes from the movies that delivered each of them. These are the 15 best final lines in movie history ranked, each earning their place in silver screen legacy.

The pinnacle of filmmaker Richard Linklater's fan-favorite "Before" trilogy is its middle installment "Before Sunset." The 2004 movie reunites Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Céline (Julie Delpy) in Paris a decade after their whirlwind romantic night together a decade prior in "Before Sunrise." Though Jesse has since seemingly moved on and gotten married, it's clear that the love between him and Céline is still strong. The movie ends as Jesse follows Céline to her apartment, quietly admitting that he's deliberately missing his flight home to stay with her.

"Before Sunset" almost had a completely different ending, but it's hard to think of it wrapping any other way. The entire movie is about true love getting a second chance, even if life gets in the way. The film not only provides that happy, if complicated ending, but reflects the flirtatious dynamic that Jesse and Céline share. The perfect way to culminate the couple's second shot at love, "Before Sunset" closes things just as its core romance is officially rekindled.

Both the 1933 "King Kong" and filmmaker Peter Jackson's 2005 remake end with the same line in the same context. After the supersized simian has wrecked Manhattan and climbed to the top of the Empire State Building, he is shot down by biplanes. Carl Denham, the filmmaker who forcibly removed Kong from Skull Island to publicly showcase is among those who visit the colossal ape's body at the base of the skyscraper. When a police officer remarks it was the biplanes that saved the day, Denham notes that it was actually beauty that killed Kong.

While the assertion of beauty killing the beast is ironically rich coming from the guy who took Kong from his home in the first place, Denham's point still stands. On Skull Island, Kong mercilessly killed all that challenged his savage dominance, but his guard melted upon meeting Ann Darrow. That sentimental vulnerability ultimately killed Kong, even as it makes the monster more human in a kaiju-sized sort of way. Jackson acutely understands the core themes to "King Kong," wisely retaining its final line for his version of the classic rather than try to improve upon perfection.

One of the most pastoral movies of all time, 1995's "Babe" follows the adventures of its titular pig, voiced by Christine Cavanaugh, on a farm. Raised by a family of dogs, Babe becomes an expert at herding the sheep around the rural property, impressing farmer Arthur Hoggett (James Cromwell). This leads Hoggett to enter Babe into a local sheep-herding contest which, of course, the intrepid swine wins as he charms the crowd. As Hoggett and his trusty pig reunite after the champion is crowned, Hoggett gives Babe his tacit, simple approval.

So much of "Babe" is about its eponymous protagonist trying to find his place on the farm, including earning the approval of his peers. With the closing line, Babe secures the acceptance of the gruffest figure on his homestead. With Arthur Hoggett, this was only ever going to be an understated moment between the farmer and his pig, but it still speaks volumes. Providing a quiet ending to a delightfully gentle film for audiences of all ages, "Babe" sticks the landing.

The 1995 crime thriller "The Usual Suspects" revolves around the legend of Keyser Söze, a notorious crime lord whose mere existence has become an urban legend. Much of the movie has a seemingly small-time crook, Verbal Kint (Kevin Spacey), recount his apparent run-in with Söze to U.S. Customs agent Dave Kujan (Chazz Palminteri). After Kint's testimony is finished, his bail is posted, and he's released from custody. However, Kujan realizes that Kint fabricated his story and that Kint's actually Söze himself, with his words left haunting Kujan and the audience.

As far as endings go, "The Usual Suspects" really is about the greatest trick the devil ever pulled with its plot twist. As Kint, Spacey plays unassuming and pathetic well, before the movie reveals that his true role. This is juxtaposed by Kujan piecing clues together and questioning everything he heard as the audience questions everything they just saw. With its last lines, "The Usual Suspects" dares audiences to rethink the whole narrative, with the dialogue left ringing in our shocked ears.

Looking back at Billy Wilder's celebrated movies, he really was one of the best filmmakers to ever take the director's chair. Wilder has multiple movies on this list, starting with his 1959 comedy flick "Some Like It Hot." The film has musicians Joe (Tony Curtis) and Jerry (Jack Lemmon) witness a gangland murder and disguise themselves as women to escape from Chicago while being hunted by the mob. The entire movie, Jerry fends off the smitten tycoon Osgood Fielding III (Joe E. Brown) only for Osgood to happily shrug off Jerry finally revealing that he's actually a man.

"Some Like It Hot" has a perfect ending to its screwball caper and one that's deceptively progressive for its time. To see Osgood so flippantly handle Jerry's big reveal is both hilarious as a closing gag and endearing as he doesn't so much as break his wide smile. Nobody may be perfect, but Osgood's reaction and Brown's deadpan line delivery certainly are as perfect as they come.

Penned by "Twilight Zone" creator Rod Serling, "Planet of the Apes" ended with one of the greatest plot twists in cinematic history. For much of the 1968 movie, it's assumed that time-traveling astronaut George Taylor (Charlton Heston) is on another planet. The movie's closing scene reveals that it was Earth all along as Taylor encounters the wreckage of the Statue of Liberty. Screaming in shock at humanity's self-destruction, Taylor curses those responsible for bringing about armageddon to his home.

Even for audiences that are aware of the twist, "Planet of the Apes" closes on one of the best movie endings ever. Released at a time when nuclear warfare anxieties were running high, Taylor's line captures those salient fears. This is a character who survived a regime run by ruthless simians but seeing what has become of Earth robs any sense of accomplishment. Parodied by everything from "Space Balls" to "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back," that the ending of "Planet of the Apes" still hits is a testament to its quality.

One of Jack Nicholson's most iconic roles across his celebrated career is that of private investigator Jake Gittes. Introduced in 1974's "Chinatown," Jake finds himself embroiled in a conspiracy involving Los Angeles' water supply in 1937. At the center of this plot are local socialite Evelyn Cross-Mulwray (Faye Dunaway) and her daughter Katherine (Belinda Palmer). In the "Chinatown" ending, Jake witnesses Evelyn get gunned down by the police before being released from custody himself to a dismissive comment about the situation's hopeless reality.

Like any great neo-noir story, the characters are trapped in a thoroughly bleak status quo and that's certainly true of "Chinatown." Jake Gittes stumbles into an incident that's far above his means to resolve, instead just getting a front row seat to how business is really done in Los Angeles. Cursed with knowledge about the real movers and shakers in town, Jake is essentially told just to accept the situation for what it is. "Chinatown" is a story without any winners. and in getting to walk away, Jake's conclusion is as good as it gets.

One more Billy Wilder movie to include, "Sunset Boulevard" blends noir and dark comedy. The 1950 movie opens revealing that protagonist Joe Gillis (William Holden) will be murdered as it gradually recounts how he was killed by aging movie star Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson). Murderously delusional over her planned comeback, Norma's house is swarmed by the press as she's arrested for murder. Convinced her fame is restored and that the reporters on the scene are film crews, Norma announces that she's ready for her closeup.

While maintaining a contemporary setting in Los Angeles, "Sunset Boulevard" is gloriously gothic in its social satire. In a way, the movie was ahead of its time for its depiction of clout-chasers who will literally kill for their 15 minutes of fame. The closing scene not only ties the narrative together neatly but encapsulates just how unhinged Norma has become in her silver screen dreams. "Sunset Boulevard" completes its skewering of Hollywood with its climactic media circus with that line.

Through its framing device, "The Princess Bride" is a modern fairy tale, with a self-aware sense of humor. The movie's tale of Westley (Cary Elwes) rescuing Princess Buttercup (Robin Wright) is presented as a bedtime story told by a grandfather (Peter Falk) to his grandson (Fred Savage). After wrapping up his latest telling of the story, the grandfather is asked by his grandson if he can hear the same tale again the next day. To this request, the grandfather agrees with Westley's usual refrain to his beloved Buttercup before leaving his grandson to rest.

One of the best movies directed and produced by Rob Reiner, "The Princess Bride" is the perfect antithesis to more cynical takes on the fantasy genre. The movie's framing device underscores the earnestness behind this approach while calling back to the story's most romantic line. Of course, the context is completely different from Westley's use of the line, but the idea of unfailing love, albeit in a familial way, is not. Ending the movie with a pleasantly knowing wink to the audience, "The Princess Bride" celebrates the underlying appeal to its genre.

While Tony Stark maintained a superhero secret identity for a significant portion of his comic book existence, this alter ego notion was discarded quickly in "Iron Man." The 2008 movie kicked off the Marvel Cinematic Universe, following Tony (Robert Downey, Jr.) as he sought redemption by forging his own superhero identity. Though coached by S.H.I.E.L.D. to provide an alibi for his recent heroic actions, Tony ditches the cue cards and defiantly announces to the press that he is Iron Man. The unscripted moment was an improvised line that Marvel Studio President Kevin Feige instantly loved, setting up the MCU for a boldly unpredictable future.

Yes, there is additional dialogue in the Marvel movie's post-credits scene, but for all intents and purposes, "Iron Man" ends with Tony's public admission. The line highlights the character's ironclad hubris but also signaled that this wouldn't be a comic book universe completely beholden to its source material. The moment is such a defining part of the MCU that it became Tony's final line in "Avengers: Endgame" before his big sacrificial play. Cementing the MCU's foundation, "Iron Man" demonstrates how well Downey intuitively understood the Armored Avenger.

After being introduced as a dorky everyman in "The Evil Dead," the horror franchise's third movie "Army of Darkness" completes Ash Williams' character arc into a smooth, if flawed, hero. The theatrical version of the movie frames the events of the 1992 film as a story told by Ash (Bruce Campbell) to his coworkers at a nondescript big box store. Ash's prowess as a Deadite-busting warrior is verified when he has to defend his colleagues from a Deadite that's followed him back to present day. Saving the day again, Ash sweeps an attractive coworker (Angela Featherstone) off her feet and announces, "Hail to the king, baby," before planting a big kiss on her.

All due respect to the director's cut fans, but the theatrical ending of "Army of Darkness" is the superior conclusion. Ash endures his own crucible through his time-bending journey, emerging from it as the wise-cracking unlikely action star he was born to be. It's this iteration that carries over to the "Ash vs Evil Dead" television series and into the enduring image for the character. Like Ash himself says, he is a king in his own way, and that line seals that regal distinction.

1979's "Apocalypse Now" ranks among the best Francis Ford Coppola movies while the Herculean task to complete it has become the stuff of Hollywood legend. Just as the movie opens with a booze-filled bender in a Saigon hotel room, it closes with a trippy sequence also set to The Doors' "The End." In the finale, Captain Benjamin Willard (Martin Sheen) decides to follow through with his mission by terminating rogue Colonel Walter Kurtz (Marlon Brando) with extreme prejudice. As Willard departs from the compound and private army Kurtz commanded, the officer's final haunted words echo in his mind.

So many of the characters in "Apocalypse Now" are haunted in their own way, self-medicating with drugs or visibly detached from reality. Kurtz's dying gasps commenting on the horror around him and that he's witnessed in the Vietnam War wrap this nightmarish tour of the conflict. Kurtz isn't so much speaking about his own demise, hacked to death by Willard, but that Vietnam is unlike any other war he'd been involved in. The cinematic equivalent of a bad trip in the best way, "Apocalypse Now" leaves its audience as shaken as its characters.

"Back to the Future" boasts one of the most crowd-pleasing endings to a sci-fi movie, as Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) delivers on the movie's titular promise. After returning to 1985 from 1955, Marty finds that his actions in the past have drastically improved his future. This happy discovery is sidelined when Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) arrives from 2015 to help Marty save the future of his children. Piling into Doc's upgraded DeLorean, the mad scientist announces that the car no longer needs roads, before it drives into the horizon and flies back at the audience.

The ending of "Back to the Future," including its final lines, cements its everlasting cinematic legacy. The line itself hints that we're only just seeing hints at the full implications of the DeLorean while ending the original movie on a cliffhanger. Whether that cliffhanger demands to be followed up on is a matter of personal preference, but the sight of a flying DeLorean gets us excited. With Doc Brown in the driver's seat, the future is wide open, and we don't need roads, both literally and figuratively.

There are few more memorable cinematic antiheroes than Hannibal Lecter, the cultured cannibal serial killer made famous by Anthony Hopkins. Hopkins took over the part in "The Silence of the Lambs" and made it his own. Improvisations by Anthony Hopkins in "The Silence of the Lambs" helped balance the sophistication and inherent creepiness of his murderous character. In the closing scene, an escaped Lecter calls Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) before eying his jailer Frederick Chilton (Anthony Heald) as his next meal.

For so much of "The Silence of the Lambs," Hannibal Lecter is a caged animal, growing closer to Starling while looking for an opportunity to escape. The last conversation between the two characters in the movie, wrapping up the film, highlights the complex nature of their opposing dynamic. But more than that, the final line puts Hannibal Lecter back on the hunt, which is admittedly right where fans want him. Lecter solidifies his place as one of the most chilling characters to grace the silver screen, elevating "The Silence of the Lambs" into cinematic legend.

Speaking of silver screen immortality, it doesn't get much more celebrated than "Casablanca," one of Humphrey Bogart's best movies. The movie revolves around a World War II doomed romance between Rick Blaine (Bogart) and Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman), with Rick finally letting her go at a fog-enshrouded airfield. Rick himself is saved by local police chief Louis Renault (Claude Rains) who suggests that they join French resistance efforts elsewhere in Africa. The pair walk together into the foggy horizon, with Rick calling out the fledgling friendship between them.

The "Casablanca" ending concludes a romance and forges a friendship in its closing moments, all in a moody setting. For a movie filled with wartime intrigue and characters unsure of who to trust, the movie wraps on an oddly positive note. Yes, Rick has lost the love of his life, but he finds solace in a new ally and a new way to make a difference. Recognizable, even for those who haven't watched the movie itself, "Casablanca" ends on a pitch-perfect note.