Tragedy In Music Biopics Trivia Quiz

Answer: Charlie Parker

Being a major fan of jazz music, Clint Eastwood loved being able to direct "Bird". The 1988 film was based on the life of Charlie "Bird" Parker, a legendary jazz saxophonist played by Forest Whitaker. In the film, we witness Parker's battle with alcohol and heroin that cost him his life at the age of 34.

Answer: Ritchie Valens

Don McLean wrote about the day the music died in his song "American Pie". The plane crash that took the life of Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper, Buddy Holly, and the pilot that fateful night was captured in the film "La Bamba". Valens grew up in California and was born with the given name of Richard Valenzuela. He was played in the film by Lou Diamond Phillips.

Answer: Baz Luhrmann

Baz Luhrmann directed "Elvis". The film starred Austin Butler as Elvis and Tom Hanks as Colonel Tom Parker. While Baz's film did take a little creative license with Elvis' life, it didn't glamorize Elvis's death. At the moment when Elvis died in the film, they jumped to a scene of The King performing "Unchained Melody". Details of his passing were given by using historical audio in the film.

Answer: Joy Division

The 2007 movie "Control" is not an easy film to watch. We watch Ian Curtis's struggle with epilepsy, depression, a crumbling marriage, all while his band's music was gaining major popularity. Curtis was the lead singer of Joy Division. The group is best known for their song, "Love Will Tear Us Apart". In the film, we see Curtis dying by suicide at the age of 23.

Answer: Val Kilmer

Val Kilmer took on the role of Jim Morrison for the 1991 movie. He studied the classic rock legend, recorded an eight minute audio tape for Oliver Stone, and even lived in Morrison's neighborhood prior to getting the role to immerse himself in the character.

In the film, after Morrison's health declined, we witnessed Kilmer capture this moment and his death in a bathtub in a Paris hotel.

Answer: Stu Sutcliffe

Stu Sutcliffe has often been called the "fifth Beatle", although others also received that moniker. In the 1994 film, "Backbeat", we see the early days of The Beatles as a five person group with Pete Best on drums and Stu Sutcliffe on bass. Sutcliffe never recorded on any commercial albums as a Beatle but was a founding member.

In the movie, we see how Sutcliffe passed away from a brain hemorrhage at the age of 21 in 1962. Stu Sutcliffe was played by Stephen Dorff.

Answer: Jennifer Lopez

The 1997 film, "Selena" captured the rising career of the Texas pop star. The coveted lead role went to an up and coming actress, Jennifer Lopez, in her first major breakout role. Lopez had previously been on television dancing on "In Living Color" and small acting roles but playing the Tejano superstar was a major boost to her career. We witnessed Selena's death in the film with a fatal gunshot by her fan club manager.

Answer: The closing credits

Not surprisingly, many films that end in a tragedy save the sad moment until the end of the film. This was also the case for Freddie Mercury's death in "Bohemian Rhapsody". We witness Freddie's declining health in the film but the movie ends with Queen's triumphant performance at Live Aid.

After the live performance, the film cuts to the words that Freddie died on November 24, 1991, at the age of 45 from AIDS-related pneumonia as the credits begin to roll.

Answer: Eazy-E

The story of the legendary gangsta rap group, N.W.A., was dramatically captured in the film, "Straight Outta Compton". The 2015 biopic showed how the five group members got together, sold their mix tapes, built a huge following, but also showcased the dangers of the music business and that lifestyle. Eazy-E was played by actor Jason Mitchell and we witnessed him starting to cough and get ill at the end of the film.

He saw a doctor and was told he had HIV/AIDS. The movie captured his coming to terms with his upcoming death and how he mended wounds with his bandmates prior to his passing at the age of 31.

Answer: Gary Oldman

In the 1986 biopic, "Sid & Nancy", we discovered the dysfunctional relationship between Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols and his girlfriend, Nancy Spungen. The lead roles were played by Gary Oldman and Chloe Webb. In a dramatic ending scene, Nancy passes away in a bathroom after a stab wound from Sid and the final credits read that Sid died by a heroin overdose.

The movie was a major career stepping stone for Oldman who later won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his work in the 2017 film, "Darkest Hour", playing the role of Winston Churchill.