Everyone Who Has Died In Netflix Hit Outer Banks So Far

"Outer Banks" has always made it clear that none of its central gang of teens — nicknamed the Pogues — are safe, but the show has an amazingly high body count for what's ostensibly a teen soap opera. Then again, it's a teen soap opera about searching for long-buried pirate treasure, which may or may not stir up the attention of some very nasty dudes. Danger and fortune go hand in hand on the show, and even the luckiest among them have experienced true misfortune and loss.

Over the seasons, a lot of smaller characters and a high number of recurring characters have died on "Outer Banks." From a beloved father to a wicked villain to one of their own, fan favorite John B. Routledge (Chase Stokes) has buried a whole lot of people in his time. Here's a list of every major character who's died over the past four seasons of "Outer Banks."

The death of Sheriff Susan Peterkin (Adina Porter) at the tail end of Season 1 is the very first sign that "Outer Banks" meant business and wasn't afraid to kill off well-meaning characters. Susan tries to keep an eye on the Pogues and serve Kildare County. Unfortunately, her hard work only earns her an early grave. Her death also signals the series' slow shift away from filming in its faux-North Carolina setting, allowing the Pogues to globetrot — something "Outer Banks" fans think is a mistake.

Peterkin truly cares about the town's teenagers and what they're up to, even as she's manipulated into investigating their treasure-hunting antics. She personally intervenes, for instance, to keep John B. from going into foster care after his father is presumed dead. Unfortunately, her concern makes her a victim of their parents' interests. Ward Cameron (Charles Esten) manipulates her into investigating the teens for petty crimes, while hiding his part in the (apparent) murder of his former treasure-hunting partner and best friend Big John Routledge (Charles Halford). She's getting ready to arrest him for that crime when Rafe Cameron (Drew Starkey) shoots and kills her. Quite the sad way to go.

Ward Cameron was one heck of a slimy guy, but he's close to so many of the Pogues that they wind up having mixed feelings about him, especially when his final act is a gesture of love toward his daughter, Sarah (Madelyn Cline). After the apparent (first) death of Big John, Ward takes care of John B. as his, well, ward. That ends up being awkward, because Sarah and John B. are attracted to one another. 

It soon becomes clear he knows more about the senior John's death than he's letting on. The passing of Susan Peterkin sends a ripple through the Pogues, who immediately know her murder isn't a simple open-and-shut case. Ward spirals out in paranoia, fearing that someone will find out who the guilty party is. He fakes his own death to protect Rafe, but Sarah doesn't trust him. When John B. confronts him mano y mano, Ward ends up in a coma with a head injury. After he awakens, Ward tries to turn over a new leaf, but Rafe isn't on board, and a battle for control of the family's financial future ensues. He ends up going with the Pogues to meet with the very-much-alive John Senior, but cannot get over his bitterness toward him. The Pogues choose to protect John Senior. 

Yet Ward's final act is one of fatherly love — he's shot to death while trying to protect Sarah from Carlos Singh's (Andy McQueen) men. He grabs the man holding the team hostage and drags him over the side of a cliff, with both falling to their deaths. It's a redemptive gesture that has a permanent impact on Sarah.

Big John Routledge has the odd honor of being the only character on "Outer Banks" to die twice. Presumed dead at the start of Season 1, it turns out he's alive and well, but fans don't learn that until Season 2. During Season 3, he finally makes contact with John B., and the Pogues go to search for their leader's dad. Once father and son are reunited, they begin searching for El Dorado gold with John. They're running from Carlos Singh, who wants both Big John's translation help and the Pogues' by-now expert treasure-hunting skills to get the gold.

John is shot in the abdomen while escaping Carlos' men after being kidnapped, but he survives for a surprisingly long time. He helps cause a cave-in with dynamite that traps Carlos and saves the kids, and also defends them from Ward's machinations. Unfortunately, his blood loss is too extreme and he succumbs to his wounds, depriving John B. of a second chance with his dad.

Carlos Singh is Season 3's big bad, and he'll do absolutely anything to get the Pogues to help him find an invaluable golden treasure long hidden in El Dorado. His plan to capture and hold the Pogues fails, causing them to scatter from him. But Carlos still wants them to hunt up the treasure for him, as he lacks their expertise. He does succeed in holding Big John captive, and takes him to South America with him, holding him hostage to draw out the Pogues.

The Pogues give chase, leading to an ultimate confrontation that results in both Singh's death and John B's. Carlos dies in a cave-in after refusing to back away from John B., thanks to a stick of dynamite tossed by John Senior — a fitting demise for a man so consumed by his own greed that he couldn't appreciate the finer things in life.

Renfield (Jesse C. Boyd) is aptly named, as his servile nature is what makes him so noteworthy — and when he breaks from that pattern, his half-sister, Carla Limbrey (Elizabeth Mitchell), kills him. But before then, he helps her attempt to score an ancient treasure that will apparently restore her ability to walk. Unfortunately for him, however, his inability to hold his tongue gets him in the end.

Carla is in competition with the Pogues for the Cross of Santo Domingo during Season 3, which she believes will cure her of the unnamed degenerative disease that ails her. Ultimately Rafe ends up helping her secure the cross. Renfield — bitter that his bowing and scraping has gotten him nowhere, as he hoped to inherit the family money after her death — mocks Carla's faith. She responds by shooting him.

Renfield is also notable for suffering one of the more brutal deaths ever dealt to an "Outer Banks" character: he bleeds out in the back of Carla's truck and Rafe throws him into a swamp, where he's chomped by an alligator.

Wes Genrette (David Jensen) is a wealthy guy who seems to be an ally for the Pogues. When they have no idea how to manage the wealth they've earned thank to their El Dorado gold search, he steps in and introduces them to the story of Blackbeard and his lost treasure. He also wants to hire them to locate a possibly-cursed amulet that once belonged to the legendary pirate. 

Wes is anything about subtle — he makes it clear that he believes both in the ghost of Blackbeard and the curse attached to the amulet. The Pogues take the $50,000 bait Genrette puts down, but after they successfully locate the necklace, they find him dead in his home. The mystery of who killed Wes for the amulet takes up the majority of Season 4, and the curse on it seems all too real, as tragedy promptly besets the Pogues soon after they take posession of the object.

Poor Captain Terrance (Terence Rosemore) is another perfectly nice, perfectly kind adult who runs afoul of the Pogues' enemies after acting for a while as an ally to them. Terrance is dear to Cleo Smith (Carlacia Grant) in particular, having acted as something of a foster father to her during her youth. Terrance assists the Pogues multiple times throughout the whole series, and during Season 3 is presumed dead in a shootout. 

But Cleo is stunned to realize that Terrance is still alive when they see each other as she's held hostage by Lightner (Rigo Sanchez) during Season 4. She refuses to help either of them find the amulet, assuming that Terrance is working for Lightner now. They search for the necklace, only for Pope (Jonathan Daviss) to walk in with it. Lightner tries to shoot Cleo in rage, only for Terrance to take the bullet for her instead. The Pogues eventually give him a solemn burial at sea after spending a few weeks hiding his body from the cops.

What goes around also comes around for Lightner during Season 4. Constantly searching for the amulet and the Blue Crown, which is said to have extreme healing properties, he chases the Pogues, kidnaps them, and ultimately kills off poor Captain Terrance. But his fate comes at the business end of Pope's gun — he gets shot while trying to approach him and Cleo after having held Cleo hostage for a time earlier in the season. He is understandably left to rot after being shot.

Most of Lightner's work is in service of Chandler Groff (J. Anthony Crane), who has done everything he can do to hold onto the Goat Island property and take possession of Blackbeard's amulet as his own. Groff's quest for riches and power ultimately lead the Pogues to a very personal tragedy that will apparently shape Season 5 and everything that may or may not come afterward.

Hollis Robinson (Brianna Brown) pays for doing business with Chandler Groff and Ward Cameron during Season 4. The ambitious developer wants Goat Island; instead, she finds herself looking down the barrel of Groff's gun. It all starts out much more pleasantly for Hollis. She tries to partner with Rafe to develop Goat Island after Wes Genrette is dead, pressuring Rafe to put his money down and buy some of the land. Wes thought that Goat Island was haunted, but Hollis brushes that idea off as simple superstition. 

Unfortunately, Rafe has ulterior motives and so does Groff, who has been manipulating her the entire time to get his hands on the land now that Genrette is dead. Genrette's will says the land will revert to the state of North Carolina and become a nature preserve; Hollis knows she's been led on. Groff kills her and — to cover all of this up and get the Pogues off his back — plants a gun in JJ's car to get the heat off of him. And speaking of JJ...

The latest and most shocking death on "Outer Banks" at press time definitely belongs to JJ Maybank (Rudy Pankow). A beloved Pogue for four seasons, no one expected JJ to end up a casualty of the group's treasure-hunting adventures. Instead, he becomes the first of them to die at a tragically young age.

JJ's death comes at the hands of his biological father, Chandler Groff. Groff stabs him right in the gut at the end of Season 4, whispering, "You shouldn't have left me" — a reference to JJ's decision to abandon him and stick with the Pogues in his quest for The Blue Crown. JJ is left to die in Kiara's (Madison Bailey) arms, begging her to look out for the gang and telling her all of his wishes have already come true. It's a devastating death for "Outer Banks" fans who thought their romance was the main event of Season 3, especially after months of fans being annoyed that JJ lacked a storyline during the majority of that season. Fans are also shocked because they all agreed that his friendship with John B. was the best.

Thanks to JJ, the Pogues are out for revenge. Season 5 will presumably see them take down Groff in JJ's name. Time will tell if they're successful or not — or even if JJ and the others will officially stay dead. Fans will have to watch "Outer Banks" on Netflix to find out how it all goes down.