Spoilers for Training Day: Denzel Washington says his character Alonzo was originally not supposed to die at the end of the film. However, he refused to play the character unless he suffered a brutal downfall. He explains why:
โIt was the first time playing a quote-unquote bad guy. The bad guy has all the fun, because you could get away with doing anything.
One thing I made sure we changed right from the startโI said, โThis guy has to die in the worst way.โ
No, it was written that he lived. I said, โNo, I canโt do the part like that. The only way I can justify being the worst guy is if he dies in the worst way.โ
It wasnโt an accident that I wanted, when Ethan grabs me and punches me in the face, and I crawl on the floor like a snake, and the whole neighborhood turns against him, and then he gets his brains blown out. I wanted all of that.
Then I could be the nastiest guy in the world.
And women love that.โ
Denzel Washington, TIFF Conversation with Antoine Fuqua (2014)