Grey’s Anatomy wasn’t the only show that killed off a major character in 2026 — and many of those fictional deaths still have fans upset.
During the March 2026 episode of the hit ABC series, Lucas (Niko Terho) and Simone (Alexis Floyd) were providing Katie (Samantha Marie Ware) with at-home hospice care as her health declined.
Lucas and Katie grew closer while reminiscing on what could have happened between them if she hadn’t gotten sick. She ultimately died when he was at the hospital getting more supplies, which prevented him from saying goodbye.
Earlier in the month, Yellowstone‘s spinoff Marshals surprised fans by revealing that Monica (Kelsey Asbille) died off screen after battling cancer.
“Kayce had such a perfect ending in Yellowstone,” showrunner Spencer Hudnut told TVLine at the time. “His dreams had finally come true. As we were trying to figure out how to tell the next chapter in Kayce’s story, it felt like he really needed to be shaken out of that. Unfortunately, tragedy tends to find Kayce, so something bad was going to happen for him one way or the other. It just sort of played out that it was going to be Monica.”
Keep scrolling for more heartbreaking TV deaths in 2026:
Leon Vance (‘NCIS’)
After being on NCIS since 2008, Rocky Carroll’s fan-favorite character was killed off in the 500th episode. Vance was shot by a CID agent before dying from the fatal wound.
NCIS sent Vance out on a high with a montage of him through the years with Gibbs (Mark Harmon), Tony (Michael Weatherly), Ziva (Cote de Pablo), Ducky (David McCallum), McGee, Abby (Pauley Perrette), Bishop (Emily Wickersham) and the current NCIS team.
Katie (‘Grey’s Anatomy’)
Season 22 built up to Katie (Samantha Marie Ware) dying after being diagnosed with stage II gastric cancer.
Erin (‘FBI’)
During a March 2026 episode of the hit CBS show, Maggie’s (Missy Peregrym) first arrest — serial slasher Ray DiStefano (Matthew Rauch) — kidnapped her sister, Erin (Adrienne Rose Bengtsson). Maggie spent the episode trying to save her sister — only to find her dead in the back of DiStefano’s truck.
Monica (‘Marshals’)
A March 2026 episode of Luke Grimes‘ Yellowstone spinoff revealed that Kayce Dutton’s wife Monica (Kelsey Asbille) previously died after she got cancer as a result of toxins dumped onto the Broken Rock reservation.
Preston and Paul (‘The Madison’)
Taylor Sheridan‘s new Paramount+ show kicked off with Preston (Kurt Russell) and Paul (Matthew Fox) getting killed off as a way to set up the story.
John (‘Bridgerton’)
Fans of Julia Quinn’s book series knew that John (Victor Alli) would die in his sleep on the Netflix show. This would then pave the way for Francesca (Hannah Dodd) to find love with his cousin, Michaela (Masali Baduza), in season 5.
Eleven (‘Stranger Things’)
During the show’s series finale (which aired in December 2025 but it is all we could think about going into 2026), Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) survived multiple near-death experiences while fighting to destroy Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower). Eleven was ultimately able to face — and kill — Vecna once and for all, but she didn’t return to Hawkins. Instead, Eleven remained in the Upside Down to make sure her friends survived and weren’t constantly in danger because of her existence.
The time jump at the end of the episode showed that Eleven was thought to be dead. Mike (Finn Wolfhard), however, suggested another theory where she survived and disappeared to live her life outside of Hawkins.
