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From Law & Order: SVU to Yellowstone‘s Marshals, some TV shows have received backlash for killing off their female characters for the sake of the plot.
The concept of “fridging” refers to a plot device where a woman is killed — or harmed — in media for the sake of propelling a male character’s story line. While the idea was coined by comic book author Gail Simone, the critique has extended into other mediums — including TV.
Marshals is the newest show to be questioned for killing off Kelsey Asbille‘s Monica in the March 2026 series premiere. Monica was originally introduced on Yellowstone, which aired from 2018 to 2024, but was ultimately removed from the narrative when CBS ordered a spinoff focused on her husband, Kayce (Luke Grimes).
“The way that Yellowstone ended for Kayce was literally he rode off into the sunset,” Grimes told Entertainment Weekly at the time. “Obviously, we can’t just watch this guy have his dream life. There’s no drama.”
Grimes defended the need for a narrative shakeup.
“Something’s gonna have to happen that gets in the way of him having that,” he continued. “Otherwise, why is he gonna take a badge? The last time we saw him, he was throwing a badge in a field. Is he gonna go pick it up?”
Keep scrolling for other female characters that TV fans felt didn’t get their due:
‘Marshals’
Monica’s offscreen death wasn’t received well by all Yellowstone fans who questioned how her absence was written as a way to drive Kayce’s story on his new show.
‘Secret Invasion’
Not everyone is over a scene in Secret Invasion that led to Maria Hill’s (Cobie Smulders) tragic death.
‘The Boys’
Queen Maeve’s (Dominique McElligott) choice to sacrifice herself in a fight with Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles) didn’t land well because despite her surviving, she was ultimately written out of the show.
‘Law & Order: Special Victims Unit’
Stabler’s story took a turn when his wife, Kathy (Isabel Gillies), was killed in a car bombing. Law & Order: SVU viewers slammed the NBC series for using that as a way to spice up the character’s story.
‘Andor’
Diego Luna in Andor season 2 Disney+/Lucasfilm /Courtesy Everett Collection
After Cinta (Verada Sethu) was killed off in season 2, there was online discourse about the decision.
‘Breaking Bad’
Most of Jesse’s (Aaron Paul) love interests including girlfriend Jane (Krysten Ritter) and ex Andrea (Emily Rios) became victims as a way to push Jesse’s arc further.
‘Dexter’
Dexter faced similar controversy when Dexter’s (Michael C. Hall) wife, Rita (Julie Benz), met a cruel fate because of where his story needed to go on the show.
‘Supernatural’
Jensen Ackles. Jared Padalecki Warner Bros. / Courtesy: Everett Collection
Over on Supernatural, Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) drove the story as they hunted for demons, ghosts and monsters, which didn’t leave a lot of time for romance. As a result, their partners had brutal conclusions on the show … similar to mother Mary’s (Samantha Smith) death.
‘NCIS’
Leon’s (Rocky Carroll) wife, Jackie (Paula Newsome), and Gibbs’ (Mark Harmon) former wives Shannon (Darby Stanchfield) and Diane (Melinda McGraw) and ex-fiancée Ellen (Erin Cummings) have all died on the show.
