Bad Plot Twists vs Good Plot Twists (Writing Advice)

Learn what separates a bad plot twist from a good one. Examples from Star Wars, Fight Club, Game of Thrones, and more!

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0:00 Intro
0:33 What is a Plot Twist?
1:43 What makes a GOOD Plot Twist
3:10 Bad Twist 1 - Forced Twist
3:30 Bad Example 1 Star Wars The Rise of Skywalker
5:37 Good Example 1 Avengers Endgame
6:45 Bad Twist 2 - Bailout Twist
7:14 Bad Example 2 Training Day
9:11 Good Example 2 Terminator 2 Judgment Day
10:36 Bad Twist 3 - Repeat Twist
10:52 Bad Example 3 Star Wars Return of the Jedi
12:14 Good Example 3 Game of Thrones Season 3
13:56 Bad Twist 4 - Obvious Twist Villain
14:13 Bad Example 4 Incredibles 2
15:58 Good Twist 4 Fight Club
18:39 Outro

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[heebsgames]

The twist from Fight Club is the best twist I've ever seen in a movie because when you watch it again you see like 500 clues and can't believe that you didn't notice them the first time around.

[SpasticSpelunker]

It doesn’t sound very impressive on paper, but The Sixth Sense’s plot twist got me. It’s one of those plot twists where you need to rewatch the movie and you can see the build up to it and things that now make sense. Any plot twist that has the viewer rewatching or re-reading the story is the sign of a good plot twist.

[frozenepsilon]

im not even a writer but these videos have helped me articulate to my friends and family my opinions on tv shows and movies.

[iech]

“Somehow Palpatine has returned” will never cease to make me smirk at the stupidity of how Disney and how they destroyed Star Wars

[thegrimsleeper]

„Everybody's a Skywalker” is the best summary of every Star Wars movie ever.

[madnessbydesignVria]

The Sixth Sense, The Prestige, and The Usual suspects all had great twists. The best thing is not only the twist, but when the audience realizes the clues were right in front of them all along... :)

[jasonevans]

Because so many people remember Norman Bates, they often forget that "Psycho" starts with a whole story starring Marion Crane. It's such a massive break in linear storytelling, especially for its time. It is THE definitive "main character switch" of filmmaking and I'd say it's a better example of exactly the style of the first season of "GoT."

[fallenhero]

I have to defend TRAINING DAY, and I'm glad to see that others are too. Yes, it is very coincidental that Smiley, the gang member, would happen to be that girl's cousin, but the movie is making a statement about karma and the nature of justice. Jake did a good deed near the start of the film and showed heroism that Alonzo would have ignored, and sure enough, that good deed is what came back to save him later. Jake can show empathy while Alonzo can't, and that's what makes him a hero.

[Xune]

12:40 The only unthinkable thing is expecting a character played by Sean Bean to *_not_* be killed off

[mboss]

My favorite plot twist is probably The Prestige. It changes the movie while also adding so much to it.

[archmagusofevil]

The Training Day example where you mentioned the twist came about from an overwhelming improbable event reminds me of the quote "the difference between fiction and real life is that fiction must make sense". Lest we forget about that time an assassin botched his job and hid out in a restaurant only for his target to decide to unwind from a failed assassination attempt in the same exact restaurant. The assassin then successfully kills his target and a chain of alliance makes this spiral into WWI.

[starwarsfan]

I always loved the killer reveal(s) in the original Scream film. The whole story was about guessing who the villain was and basically everyone was suspected and dismissed at least once.

[ellennewth]

I love the plot twist in Dickens' "Great Expectations" when the protagonist (Pip) discovers his secret benefactor is not Miss Havisham (the wealthy spinster he works for) but a coarse convict named Magwich. When this twist is revealed, Pip refuses to accept any more of Magwich's blood money. As if that weren't bad enough, Magwich also turns out to be the father of Pip's first crush, Estella. While Pip thinks she has a noble background, she is actually from the lowest level of society. A big deal in the 1850s.

[thedadamer]

Honestly most Twilight Zone episodes have great twists. The one where apparently aliens are invading an old lady’s house and it turns out she is the alien also the one where this girl is wrapped in bandages the whole episode and when then unwrap her and she looks normal and everyone else around her looks scary are some of the greatest episodes.

[MeanBob]

Good Twist 4 should've kept the Pixar theme and been Monsters Inc. I will never forget being completely blindsided that this obviously evil looking spider monster was actually the big bad, that's how good the movie was at convincing me he was harmless.

[WilliamReginaldLucas]

My favourite plot twist might be the revelation at the end of Memento.

*SPOILERS AHEAD*


Leanord, the film's lead, has anterograde amnesia and is searching for his dead wife's killer. The film has a non-linear narrative and opens on a photo of a dead body, making the viewer think that the person he killed was his wife's killer and the film will show the events leading up to it. However, in the final scene, we discover that he's ALREADY killed his wife's killer, but due to his amnesia, he wasn't content in just experiencing the moment once, so he intentionally adjusts his own evidence to make his search for someone else.

This is a very surface level explanation but the execution of this plot twist is brilliantly done.

[heybobbackwardsisbob]

I always like twists like the end of Usual Suspects which make you rethink or recontextualize the entire movie you just watched.

[wfchannel]

one thing i've always liked about the fight club twist is that when he's visiting the support groups he mentions he never uses his real name, which should immediately draw attention to the fact that we as the audience do not know his real name but instead of making us ask the question of what is it, it instead seemingly suggests to us that his name is unimportant even though it isn't.

[harperrush]

I disagree with your opinion on Training Day’s plot twist. Through doing the good deed of saving the girl in the Alley, Jake saved himself. I think that the plot twist is done well because of the way it represents the difference between him and Alonzo. Jake is saved because of his good morals and beliefs, Alonzo isn’t saved because of the hate people had towards him due to his cold-heartedness and manipulation. I can forgive the situation seeming unlikely because that’s exactly the point. Even though it seems like there’s no real direct reward for Jake if he intervenes (which is probably why Alonzo doesn’t want to) Jake still does the right thing and saves the girl. And through some kind of karma or higher power or sheer luck, it does pay off, Alonzo’s money and manipulation is trumped by Jake’s sympathy and will to do the right thing. The plot twist and it’s improbable nature are both an integral piece to the theme of the movie: Doing the right thing will always pay off in the end, no matter how unlikely it may seem

[StephanieClapp-judc]

A Beautiful Mind had one of the most amazing plot twists I’ve ever seen✨