History Main / ArchnemesisDad

* ''[[VideoGame/WolfensteinIITheNewColossus]]'' introduces Rip Blazkowicz, B.J.'s AbusiveDad and [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain colossal bigot]], who regularly mistreated his wife and son. While he isn't a major treat in the world of Wolfenstein, he is B.J.'s worst enemy at a personal and emotional level, representing everything he doesn't want to become, thus motivating him to become a NaziHunter and freedom fighter.

** Shoto Todoroki ''hates'' his father Endeavor for subjecting him and his family to harsh abuse, refusing to abide by his wishes to use the flame side of his Quirk he inherited from him as a way of surpassing All Might. After a fight/therapy session with series' protagonist Izuku Midoriya, Shoto begins to slowly let go of his hate, and finally starts mending his relationship with his father once Endeavor has a JerkassRealization some time later. [[spoiler:This tragically stays the case for Dabi, AKA Shoto's brother Toya Todoroki, who becomes so consumed by hate for Endeavor that he's willing to get other members of his family killed just to spite his father.]]
** All For One also qualifies as this for Tomura Shigaraki, [[spoiler:having abducted him as a child under the guise of "saving" him, all so he could groom him into a MisanthropeSupreme he'd merge his personality with so they can rule the world. Suffice to say, Tomura isn't happy with this, and comes to hate his adoptive father as much as he hates hero society as a whole.]]

* Cedric in ''WesternAnimation/TheRaccoons'' is the son of the main villain Cyril Sneer, which puts him in conflict often with his own father as he's the best friend of his father's enemies and side with them more often than not. Of course how evil Sneer is depends on the episode as in some especials he's an AxCrazy CorruptCorporateExecutive and in other versions (especially late seasons) he's just a FriendlyEnemy and a JerkassWithAHeartOfGold.

* Gender flipped in ''WesternAnimation/{{WITCH}}'' where Nerissa is revealed to be Caleb's mother. Even more: she deliberately conceived Caleb to have a child who'd eventually join her, [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything in what can easily be seen]] as rape by deception -- she used a false identity to seduce Caleb's father Julian and get him to impregnate her.

* ''ComicBook/DoomPatrol'': Invoked in ''ComicBook/DoomPatrol2016'', Since Casey's an in-universe comics character brought to life, her dad Terminox is her "archnemesis"... that we've obviously never seen before and gets sorted out quite easily with a HeroicSacrifice.

* In ''ComicBook/{{Batman}}/Huntress: Cry for Blood'', it is revealed that Santo Cassamento is Helena Bertinelli's real father, and that he conspired with Stephen Mandragora to murder the Bertinellis when Helena was only a child, which is what drove her to become the Huntress.
* The big reveal of "ComicBook/TheOzEffect" in ''ComicBook/SupermanRebirth'' is that the mysterious ubervillain Mr Oz, determined to prove to Superman that humanity isn't worth saving, is none other than a crazed Jor-El. (At least, unless the ongoing fallout eventually reveals that he was someone else posing as a crazed Jor-El.)
* ''ComicBook/YTheLastMan''. Dr. Matsumori to Dr. Allison Mann. After Allison dies, Yorick notes that it was her hatred of her father that drove her to be brilliant, and her post-gendercide clones didn't have that.

* In ''ComicBook/AllFallDown'', we have IQ to his son, IQ Squared.

* In ''ComicBook/{{Fables}}'', the Adversary is revealed to be [[spoiler:Geppetto]], thereby making him [[spoiler:Pinocchio's]] Archnemesis Dad. Though this is less explicit, because his son is conflicted about opposing his father explicitly.
* ComicBook/LadyDeath's father is not exactly Father of the Year material, serving as a recurring antagonist and being more or less responsible for her current condition. A corrupt FeudalOverlord who oppressed his peasants, forcing them to fight in the Crusades all while secretly practicing black magic and worshiping demons, as well as having sacrificed his wife (Lady Death's mother) many years ago. When his people rose in rebellion against him, he summoned demons to take him to Hell leaving his daughter behind to be burned at the stake. He would wage war against {{Satan}} for control of Hell and clash with Lady Death many times. He is less of this trope in the Avatar continuity, that has follows the same backstory, but places him in a positive light, being a loving father and husband. [[spoiler:And it's revealed that he was under a demon's possession, therefore not responsible for his actions.]]
* ''ComicBook/{{Lucifer}}'' casts the conflict between the titular character and {{God}} (often referred to as Yahweh) as a much more intimate father-son conflict than the usual epic good-versus-evil depiction.

* In ''ComicBook/PrinceOfPersiaTheGraphicNovel'', Shirin leaves her home to join LaResistance, and rebels against her father in every sense.
* The android superhero ComicBook/RedTornado and his creator T.O. Morrow have this dynamic. Several storylines revolve around Morrow's attempts to destroy/manipulate/reprogram his prodigal son.
* The Pride in ''ComicBook/{{Runaways}}'' is made up of six pairs of Archnemesis Dads and {{Evil Matriarch}}s. In a mild subversion, The Pride honestly believe that they are doing the best they can for their children: by destroying the world and allowing the [[GreaterScopeVillain Gibborim]] to remake it, they will be handing their children paradise. With [[TheMole one exception]], the kids don't agree, and their interference ultimately leads to the deaths of all The Pride's members.
* In ''ComicBook/SecretSix'', Scandal Savage has a hatred for her father of such intensity that even mentioning his name is often enough to drive her to violence. When your dad is the immortal psychopath ComicBook/VandalSavage, who can blame you?
* In the 1970s, Marvel comics created a character named ComicBook/ShangChi, whose father just so happened to be the evil Dr. Literature/FuManchu (although they can't actually call him that anymore for [[ExiledFromContinuity copyright reasons]]).
* {{Inverted|Trope}} with ''ComicBook/SpiderMan''. His ArchEnemy, the Green Goblin, is not this, but a major development of the last decade or so is that he more or less imagines he is, seeing Peter -- a smart, brave, capable self-made man -- as a better son than his own child, Harry. On an older level, Peter's search for a father figure is one of the underlying themes of the comic, and the idea that Osborn -- as well as other enemies like Doctor Octopus -- are twisted inversions of this has been around for a while.

* ''ComicBook/TeenTitans'' has Trigon the Terrible, [[DemonLordsAndArchdevils interdimensional demon lord]] and father of Titans' member Raven. Having raped her mother to impregnate her, Trigon later mounts a series of psychic assaults on Raven, ultimately brainwashing her into serving him and using her psyche as the portal through which he enters the real world.
* ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1987'' reveals that as in mythology Ares is Hippolyta's father, and given his actions against the Amazons he's also the closest thing she has to an archnemesis besides ComicBook/{{Hercules|Unbound}}. This is also the reason he refuses to kill or allow any other gods to kill Hippolyta or his granddaughter Diana regardless of their arguments.

* {{Downplayed|Trope}} and PlayedForLaughs in ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'': In a very real sense, Genma Saotome is responsible for everything wrong in Ranma Saotome's life, and Ranma never fails to remind him of this. Genma dragged Ranma away from his mother as a child to begin WalkingTheEarth in a decade-plus long TrainingFromHell regimen so he would become a strong martial artist worthy to take up the duties of his ArrangedMarriage to a daughter from the Tendo family -- an ArrangedMarriage he literally never tells Ranma about until they are an hour or so from the Tendo household. Over the course of those years, he sells Ranma's hand in marriage for food, subjects him to a DangerousForbiddenTechnique that leaves Ranma permanently [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes utterly terrified of cats]], repeatedly stole Ranma's food, and ultimately got him {{curse}}d to [[InvoluntaryTransformation involuntarily]] [[GenderBender turn into a girl when splashed with cold water]]. Oh, and as part of dragging Ranma away from his mother, Genma promised her that they'd both commit {{seppuku}} if they met and she judged he had failed to make Ranma a "man amongst men", which they are initially ''terrified'' his curse makes for a de-facto failure. During the events of the series, the two erupt into spontaneous brawls whenever Genma says or does something stupid or causes problems, which is constantly.

** A common theme with the Guardians, as ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol3'' see the Guardians taking on the High Evolutanary, a NotSoWellIntententionedExtremist and MadScientist who is responsible for turning Rocket into a sapient racoon.

** A common theme with the Guardians, as ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol3'' see the Guardians taking on the High Evolutanary, a NotSoWellIntendedExtremist and MadScientist who is responsible for turning Rocket into a sapient racoon.

* In ''VideoGame/BaldursGateIII'''s Act 2 you meet [[spoiler:BarrierMaiden Isobel Thorm, daughter of ArcVillain Ketheric Thorm. He made a DealWithTheDevil to bring her BackFromTheDead, but she wants nothing to do with him due to his becoming a monster as a result and aids the party in their efforts to end his eternal life]].

This trope is ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: a father or father figure who also happens to be a prime candidate for the title of a character's {{Archenemy}}. He could be anywhere on the SortingAlgorithmOfEvil, but whether he's the BigBad, TheDragon, or something else entirely, any story featuring him is likely to be emotionally charged at the least. Normally this will be a case of ItsPersonal, and may well include offers of WeCanRuleTogether, but not always: particularly cold-hearted fathers may declare IHaveNoSon and treat the child in question as just one more problem to be solved.

This trope's DistaffCounterpart is the EvilMatriarch, with whom this character type is rarely ever paired up with. The inversion is AntagonisticOffspring. Contrast DaddysLittleVillain and OverlordJr, where the evil father dotes on his kids who are just as evil as he is. See EvilUncle for when it's not dad but his brother who goes out of his way to ruin your day. See CainAndAbel when the conflict is between siblings.

* Thanos is this to both Gamora and Nebula in the MCU, best seen in ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar''. After all, he kidnapped them from their people and planets (before murdering half their people) and [[AbusiveParents abused the hell out of both of them]] for their entire lives under the guise of "raising them" as his adoptive daughters.

* ''Film/ShangChiAndTheLegendOfTheTenRings'': Shang-Chi's father Wenwu trained him from birth to be a skilled martial artist so that he would inherit the Ten Rings criminal organization. However, Shang-Chi wants none of this and runs away, putting estranged father and son into conflict.

* ''VideoGame/{{Undertow}}'': Unable to reason with Nemo, his son, Jules, is forced to confront and defeat him to stop his relentless attacks against the Iron Marines.

* ''ComicBook/NewGods'': At the end of the war between New Genesis and Apokolips, rulers Highfather and {{ComicBook/Darkseid}} exchanged their baby sons as part of the peace treaty. Darkseid's son, Orion, was raised a hero (albeit one with anger issues), who plays this about as straight as possible, sometimes going after Darkseid even against the wishes of his adopted father.

** This is also PlayedWith in ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan'', where Osborn's military research (including pieces of Peter's parents' research) leads directly to Peter gaining his powers. And Miles Morales, the new Ultimate Spider-Man, got his powers from a stolen spider from Osborn's lab. Osborn keeps unintentionally birthing Spider-Men.

* ''Fanfic/HellsisterTrilogy'' has ComicBook/{{Darkseid}} and Trigon to Orion and Raven, respectively. Orion does not intend to let his father enslave the universe, and Raven attempts to protect her friends from her superpowerful devil of a father.

** [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Lionel Luthor]]. His emotional abuse and [[TheSocialDarwinist Social Darwinist]] views left his son [[MadDictatorsHandsomeSon Lex]] [[FreudianExcuse badly screwed]] up from early childhood. When Lex moves to the titular town Lionel isn't far behind, and begins making life miserable for Lex, his friend [[TheHero Clark]], and most of the other residents. He helps to ruin Lex and Clark's friendship, may have tried to have [[OffingTheOffspring Lex killed]] in the Season 3 finale, and later attempts to [[GrandTheftMe steal his body]]. Had enough? It gets better. When Lex eventually pulls a FaceHeelTurn and becomes the BigBad, Lionel pulls a HeelFaceTurn (courtesy of [[DemonicPossession possession]] by [[BigGood Jor-El]]), and becomes something of a {{Mentor|s}} to Clark, ensuring that he and Lex remain at loggerheads until his own death ([[SelfMadeOrphan at Lex's hands]]). Over the course of seven seasons, their relationship managed to encompass AbusiveDad, WellDoneSonGuy, OffingTheOffspring, and eventually, SelfMadeOrphan, to form a beautiful example of this trope at its best.
** In Season 10, this is revisited when Clark travels to the AlternateUniverse of Earth-2 and encounters that world's [[DiabolicalMastermind Lionel]], who not only abused Lex and his [[BastardBastard illegitimate daughter]] [[spoiler:Tess]], but also managed to find and raise his reality's Clark and transform him into a PsychoForHire known as Ultraman, whom he allowed to murder [[TheUnfavourite Earth-2 Lex]]. By the end of the episode he has attempted to beat our Clark (whom he believes to be his Clark) [[OffingTheOffspring to death]] for [[TheSocialDarwinist not having killed]] [[SelfMadeOrphan him already]]. He later escapes to Earth-1, where he steals [=LuthorCorp=] from our [[spoiler:Tess]] and spends several episodes trying to manipulate Lex's unstable clone [[TeensAreMonsters Alexander]][=/=][[ComicBook/{{Superboy}} Conner]], whom he doses with [[FantasticDrug Red K]]. When that fails, he [[spoiler:kidnaps Tess and tries to cut out her heart for use in resurrecting Lex (though only after discovering that Conner's is unavailable)]]; he is shot by her for his trouble. Interestingly, his last act before he dies is to make a deal with that season's BigBad, {{ComicBook/Darkseid}}, in order to [[spoiler:bring the real Lex back, ensuring that he has [[HeirClubForMen a proper heir]]]]. Phew.

* ''WesternAnimation/ElTigre'': [[PlayingWithATrope Played With]] with White Panthera and his father Pumo Loco. White Panthera is the only hero to have ever been able to defeat Pumo Loco, is often more mature than his father, and worried about the influence PL has on his son. Despite this, Rodolfo allows his father to live with him and Manny, and they seem to respect each other and not try to change their minds about where they stand on good and evil (thought the same can’t be said for how they raise Manny).

** Tarquin ''wants'' this for himself and [[MadDictatorsHandsomeSon Elan]] in a bizarre way. He clearly cares about his son and would like him to rule with him, but since Elan won't ignore his atrocities, GenreSavvy Tarquin figures that them eventually fighting to the death will at least make an excellent story that could have them live forever in legends. Elan is... [[HeroicBSOD somewhat less keen on this plan]].

* The current page image is of Black Manta and his son, Aqualad. Black Manta has vowed to one day gut his own son like a fish just to torment ComicBook/{{Aquaman}}.
* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'':
** A similar situation exists between Franchise/{{Batman}} and ComicBook/RasAlGhul. He, too, sees Bruce almost like the son he never had, and he actually plans on making him both his heir and his son-in-law by marrying him to his daughter Talia, something both Bruce and Talia are seriously tempted to do.
** ComicBook/TaliaAlGhul herself has played this role in the [[ComicBook/BatmanGrantMorrison "Leviathan" story arc]] to her biological son with Bruce, Damian.

* {{Inverted|Trope}} with ''ComicBook/SpiderMan''. His ArchEnemy, the [[ComicBook/NormanOsborn Green Goblin]], is not this, but a major development of the last decade or so is that he more or less imagines he is, seeing Peter -- a smart, brave, capable self-made man -- as a better son than his own child, Harry. On an older level, Peter's search for a father figure is one of the underlying themes of the comic, and the idea that Osborn -- as well as other enemies like Doctor Octopus -- are twisted inversions of this has been around for a while.

* ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'':
** ComicBook/LexLuthor is one of Superboy's two clone fathers (alongside Superman) and has regularly tried to control or kill his progeny, at one point successfully turning him against the Teen Titans.
** Luthor actually tried to ''invoke'' this in ''Superman #170'' where, in one of his most brazen [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] plans, he travels back in time and attempts to kill Jor-El and marry Lara in his place, for the sole purpose of ''becoming Superman's dad''. He simply assumed that Supes would just be morally unable to go up against his own father and would let him TakeOverTheWorld unopposed. Alas, we'll never know if that would have worked, as Lex was outed as a liar when the anti-gravity device that let him pass off as a {{Heavyworlder}} malfunctioned, forcing him to flee back to present day Earth.
** In ''ComicBook/NewKrypton'' Superman's father-in-law, General Sam Lane, was revealed as an AbsoluteXenophobe and GeneralRipper out to engineer [[FinalSolution the extinction]] of the Kryptonian race. He more or less succeeds, wiping New Krypton, and most of Superman's Kryptonian friends and family out of existence. Lois tended to have issues with her own father post-Crisis (the elder Lane was a bitter man who would have preferred a son to a daughter, and rarely had a nice word for Superman, believing such beings to be "rabid dogs") but it was during Lex Luthor's presidency (where Lex was ''not'' fond of the media, which Lois was part of) his displeasure turned outright evil, making threats against his daughter and having her arrested to maintain Luthor's intentions. After ''War of the Supermen'' (where General Lane's atrocities include being a willing accomplice in the destruction of New Krypton and the murder of its 100,000 residents) Lois disowns him completely, pointing out he's the monster he always claimed Superman is. After Supergirl refuses to kill him (proving to the public that his own perception of Kryptonians is wrong) he kills himself rather than face trial. [[AssholeVictim (And nobody cares.)]]
** The original ''ComicBook/{{Brainiac}}'' has, at various points, tried to manipulate, control, or kill his clone son, Brainiac 2, his grandson, Brainiac 3, and his great-great grandson, Brainiac 5. Brainiacs 2 & 3 have also made numerous attempts to kill one another, proving this trope is more or less [[VillainousLineage in the blood]].

* In ''[[ComicBook/{{Huntress}} Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood]]'', it is revealed that Santo Cassamento is Helena Bertinelli's real father, and that he conspired with Stephen Mandragora to murder the Bertinellis when Helena was only a child, which is what drove her to become the Huntress.

* In ''VideoGame/GoldenSunDarkDawn'', HeroicBastard Amiti is [[SpinOffspring the son]] of [[spoiler:HiddenAgendaVillain Alex (making him TheSmartGuy Rief's cousin)]]. It's never outright stated within the game as [[DramaticIrony his late mother took the secret of his paternity to her grave]], but the HairColorSpoiler makes it fairly obvious.

* ''Literature/VillainsByNecessity'': It turns out that Mizzamir is Sam's birth father, the [[TheArchmage greatest wizard in the world]] who tries to stop his quest throughout the book. Sam was contracted to kill him, and does so by the end. Neither one knows the other's related to him before TheReveal in the finale, though. Even prior to his quest, Mizzamir had been the greatest threat to Sam as one of the last criminals, trying to [[BrainwashingForTheGreaterGood brainwash him into being a good citizen]] with magic.

* YAY-OK on ''WesternAnimation/RocketMonkeys'' has an OmnicidalManiac for a father who is obsessed with destroying everything in sight and oblivious to his son's desire to be close to him, though he is shown to genuinely enjoy spending time with him.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheTransformers''; supposedly this is the case with Quicksix, the Autobot's six-changer and son of Six-Shot, the Decepticon equivalent. However, [[TakeOurWordForIt this enmity was only mentioned in the commercial for his action figure.]]

* Fanny in ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'' is the daughter of Mr. Boss, one of the main villains and one of the more staunchy child-haters, although as EvenEvilHasLovedOnes he makes an exception with her.
* Cedric in ''WesternAnimation/TheRaccoons'' is the son of the main villain Cyril Sneer, which puts him in conflict often with his own father as he's the best friend of his father's enemies and side with them more often than not. Of course how evil Sneer is depends on the episode as in some especials he's an AxCrazy CorruptCorporateExecutive and in other versions (especially late seasons) he's just a FriendlyEnemy and a JerkassWithAHeartOfGold.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': [[Characters/TheSimpsonsHomerSimpson Homer Simpson]] kind of sums it up when he, Marge, and [[Characters/TheSimpsonsBartSimpson Bart Simpson]] are about to be [[ItMakesSenseInContext digested by a museum display.]]
--> '''Homer:''' "Marge, I've always loved you! Bart, you've been a worthy foe!"
* Sassette in ''WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs1981'' still loves Gargamel (her creator) as her dad and calls him "daddy Gargamel". She considers herself to have two dads; her creator Gargamel and her adoptive father Papa Smurf. When confronted on the fact that Gargamel is evil, she responds that she still loves him. Gargamel was brought to tears once she told him that, as no one has ever say "I love you" to him before.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'', [[spoiler: [[Characters/TheOwlHouseEmperorBelos Emperor Belos]] eventually becomes one to [[Characters/TheOwlHouseTheGoldenGuard Hunter]]. While Belos is technically Hunter's uncle, Hunter was still raised by him and sees him as a father figure. However, "[[Recap/TheOwlHouseS2E16HollowMind Hollow Mind]]" reveals that the feeling is very much ''not'' mutual, as Hunter turns out to be a Grimwalker, the latest in a long line of {{Expendable Clone}}s that Belos created as ReplacementGoldfish for his dead brother, only to murder them and start over with a new Grimwalker when they step out of line. When Hunter confronts him about this, Belos sees this as the start of his betrayal and tries to kill Hunter then and there. This forces Hunter to go on the run and eventually culminates in a HeelFaceTurn, meaning he joins the final fight against Belos in "[[Recap/TheOwlHouseS2E21KingsTide King's Tide]]".]]

* [[GenderInvertedTrope Gender-inverted]] in ''Anime/KillLaKill,'' in two ways -- first [[DarkActionGirl Satsuki]], who seemed to be TheDragon to her mother [[BigBad Ragyo]], reveals that she was GoodAllAlong and has been planning her downfall since she was a little girl. [[AbusiveParents Ragyo has been known to molest her before and after this relevation]]. Then, in the more traditional twist, it turns out that Ragyo is [[TheHero Ryuko]]'s mother as well, who had her DeathFakedForYou by her father.

* ''ComicBook/YTheLastMan''. Dr. Matsumori to Dr. Allison Mann. After Allison dies, Yorick notes that it was her hatred of her father that drove her to be brilliant, and her post-gendercide clones didn't have that.

* In ''Fanfic/ConversationsWithACryptid'', [[spoiler: All for One is Izuku's DisappearedDad Hisashi Midoriya.]]
* In the ''WesternAnimation/RiseOfTheGuardians'' fanfiction ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8751000/1/Guardian-of-Light Guardian of Light]]'', it's revealed that [[spoiler:Pitch is the biological father of the main character, Helen.]]

* ''Fanfic/PokemonResetBloodlines'' has [[spoiler: Ash's father. Over the course of several chapters, he had been built as a member of the Seven Brothers of Orre, a career criminal, a sociopath who has no qualms about sleeping with thousands of women to sire hundreds of bastard children, and the more it's revealed about him, [[HateSink the more despicable he becomes]]. The biggest twist comes in [[WhamEpisode Chapter 34]], where it's revealed to the audience (though not to Ash), that he's none other than the ''Bloodline King''.]]

* While [[ItWasHisSled not really a spoiler any more]] to anyone even remotely familiar with ''Franchise/StarWars'', Anakin "Darth Vader" Skywalker is an archetypical example toward Luke Skywalker, but he does eventually [[RedemptionEqualsDeath get better]].

* Anthony Hopkins' dad to Benicio del Toro's leading character in the 2010 version of Film/TheWolfman2010.
* In ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2'', Ego seems to be a pretty decent father to Peter at first. Eventually it's revealed that Ego intends to use Peter to help him wipe out all life in the universe and [[AssimilationPlot replace it with extensions of himself]], having killed his previous children who had failed to inherit his Celestial genes. Ego also casually tells Peter that [[YouKilledMyFather he gave his mother a brain tumor]] when he realized that he was [[LoveIsAWeakness actually falling in love with her]].
* ''Film/SinCityADameToKillFor'': Johnny arrives in town to beat the corrupt, all-powerful Senator Roark himself in a poker game. We soon discover that [[HeroicBastard Johnny is actually Roark's illegitimate second son]], right before he has Johnny's hand broken and his girlfriend decapitated as a warning. Eventually, after Johnny still manages beats his father fair and square at the table, [[spoiler:he shoots Johnny in the head.]]
* ''Film/TheDevilsAdvocate'': Milton is actually Kevin's father and actively seeks to corrupt Kevin to recruit him for his plans, even if he has to murder Kevin's loved ones to do it.
* ''Film/{{Bloodthirsty}}'': Vaughn turns out to be Grey's birth father. He's a ruthless werewolf who tries to mold her into his image. Grey refuses to go along, and kills him in the end so he can't harm anybody else.

* ''Literature/{{Dune}}'': Baron Vladimir Harkonnen turns out to be an archnemesis ''grandpa'' to Paul and Alia Atreides. Possibly a more straightforward example with the Baron and their mother, Lady Jessica, given that he tried to kill her and her son, not that he knew she was his natural daughter.

* In ''Literature/AmericanGods'' Shadow discovers that Mr. Wednesday is his father shortly before figuring out his scheme and resolving to stop it.
* ''Literature/VillainsByNecessity'': It turns out that Mizzamir's Sam's birth father, the [[TheArchmage greatest wizard in the world]] who tries to stop his quest throughout the book. Sam has contracted to kill him, and does so by the end. Neither one knows the other's related to him before TheReveal in the finale though. Even prior to his quest Mizzamir had been the greatest threat to Sam as one of the last criminals, trying to [[BrainwashingForTheGreaterGood brainwash him into being a good citizen]] with magic.

* A gender flipped version appears at the end of the first season of ''Series/TheMysticKnightsOfTirNaNog'' with BigBad Queen Maeve being revealed as the mother of ChosenOne Rohan, Mystic Knight of Fire. This causes much angst and a TenMinuteRetirement when Rohan finds out. When she's defeated at the end of the season, she even tells him she's actually proud of what a powerful warrior he's become. Had the series progressed to a season two, it's possible this relationship would have come into play again late.

* In ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys3'', [[spoiler: Springtrap]] is revealed to be [[HauntedTechnology possessed by the spirit]] of the [[spoiler: BigBad, [[SerialKiller Purple Guy/William Afton]].]] In ''[[VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddysSisterLocation Sister Location]]'', [[spoiler: William Afton is revealed to have at LEAST two children: Elizabeth, who was killed by Circus Baby [[DaddysLittleVillain and possessed her]], and a son, Michael, who might actually the ''main protagonist of most of the games in this series''.]] Being the one responsible for all the bad things in the entire series, including [[spoiler: the deaths of his own children]], he is most certainly an arch-nemesis of his kids, and also just kids in general. [[spoiler: He might also be the father of the Crying Child from ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys4''. It's revealed that Michael has been hunting him for a long time, and in ''VideoGame/FreddyFazbearsPizzeriaSimulator'' he [[HeroicSacrifice willingly stays behind in the burning pizzeria]] [[TakingYouWithMe to make sure his father dies too]]. [[HijackedByGanon It doesn't fully stick]] but he at least managed to free his victims so it wasn't AllForNothing.]]
* While not a biological father, the FinalBoss in ''[[VideoGame/TheSpellcastingSeries Spellcasting 101]]'' turns out to be the hero's abusive stepfather, who's really an evil sorcerer.
* [[spoiler:Kratos Aurion]] from ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'' is this to the main character. Unlike Darth Vader, it results in [[spoiler:a much more successful HeelFaceTurn]].
* Kratos gets this problem at the end of the ''VideoGame/GodOfWarII'' when he finds out [[spoiler:Zeus]] is his father. It takes him the whole of the [[VideoGame/GodOfWarIII next game]] to actually kill him.
* ''VideoGame/{{Xenogears}}'' has a few of these.
** [[spoiler:Miang, revealed to be the mother of ''all humanity,'' is also the story's BigBad. And as a {{Body Surf}}er who can awaken in any human woman, one of Miang's incarnations was Fei's own mother Karen. Fei and Karen were not technically adversaries, but Miang's consciousness was in control most of the time. Karen resurfaced in the end to be a HeroicSacrifice to save young Fei's life. Miang simply surfed to another new body somewhere else in the world.]]
** [[spoiler:Fei's father got some of this too. Grahf, a mysterious and dark adversary of Fei for most of the game, is not only actually ''himself'' from a previous life incarnation who survives as a {{Body Surf}}er, but it's Fei's own father Kahn who turns out to have been Grahf's host for years already. Though Kahn and Fei are also not technically adversaries, Kahn does all he can just to stay in control of his own body, though Kahn appeared to have even more periods of useful self-control than Karen did.]]
** [[spoiler:Rico's archnemesis Kaiser Sigmund is actually his father, and ''neither of them knew they were related''.]]
* In ''VideoGame/JadeEmpire'', [[spoiler:not only is Master Li your character's father figure, it's also possible to find out that he's Dawn Star's father. In a subversion, absolutely nothing changes with his reactions to Dawn Star]].
* This happens surprisingly common in ''Franchise/FireEmblem'':
** In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemGaiden'' and its remake, [[spoiler:Emperor Rudolf turns out to be this to Alm, whom he had spirited away to Zofia under his old friend Mycen's care. Alm doesn't know anything until after [[{{Patricide}} mortally wounding Rudolf]], who tells him the truth as he lay dying. Naturally, [[SelfMadeOrphan Alm]] [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone doesn't take that reveal well]].]]

** [[spoiler:Validar]] to [[spoiler:Robin]] in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening''. Unlike the others, [[spoiler:Robin]] ''does'' find out midway through the story... from [[spoiler: Validar himself.]]

*** Played for laughs with Nohrian knight Arthur and his son Percy in the same game. Percy's so mad at Arthur for not visiting him in the Deeprealms more often that he ''sics a pack of bandits on him'' after claiming Arthur's an aggressor. Percy himself is the boss of that battle. Thankfully everything is cleared up after he's defeated; he apologizes to his dad for attacking him, while Arthur makes amends for his absence by taking Percy along with the party when they leave.
*** Then played seriously again in the ''Heirs of Fate'' DLC; if the protagonist Shigure is fathered by the male Corrin, [[spoiler:Anankos will be his Archnemesis ''Grand''dad.]] In the game proper, however, Shigure may or may not be in this situation.

* ''VideoGame/Persona5'': [[CorruptPolitician Masayoshi Shido]] serves as this to his bastard son Goro Akechi, who resents him for abandoning him and his late mother, and plans on taking revenge on Shido by destroying his political career by exposing their connection to the world.
* ''Franchise/{{Tekken}}'': In the first two games, Kazuya's #1 archnemesis is his father Heihachi. In Part 3, Kazuya "died" and Heihachi was an Archnemesis ''Granddad'' to Jin. From ''VideoGame/Tekken4'' onward, Heihachi is still the archnemesis to both Jin and Kazuya (who is BackFromTheDead) and Kazuya is an Archnemesis Dad to Jin, who hates them both.
* In ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedIII'', Connor Kenway's father Haytham is the Grand Master of the Colonial Templars and a major antagonist, though Connor considers [[TheDragon Charles Lee]] to be his [[ArchEnemy personal nemesis]].

* ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'' has two examples. First is that [[spoiler: Natalia's biological father is Largo the Black Lion, something she only finds out in the end game. Since Largo considers that part of him long dead, it's a major tearjerker when Natalia fights and kills him personally despite making it clear before she wants to get to know him as a person.]] Second is much more complicated [[spoiler: as it's made clear throughout the game Luke looks up to [[BigBad Van]] as his ParentalSubstitute and he's even responsible for his creation. In the end, Luke kills him...and makes it ''very'' clear he never got over the fact Van is his father in all but blood.]]
* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel II'' reveals that [[spoiler:Giliath Osborne, the chancellor of Erebonia]] is the father of the protagonist Rean Schwarzer, who forces his son to become a national hero of Erebonia such that the pressure gets to him to force him to participate in wars he never wanted to. They don't become archenemies till the final chapters of ''Cold Steel III'' where Rean has to stop his father from [[spoiler:potentially dooming the world because of Osborne releasing the curse of Erebonia.]]
* It's been known by those that pay attention that Old Bird and Grey Voice have been surrogate fathers to Samus Aran of ''Franchise/{{Metroid}}'' fame. Neither of them count, not even Grey Voice at his worst, and yet, ''VideoGame/MetroidDread'' showed that Samus had another biological donor for her Chozo enhancement: [[spoiler:Raven Beak, the game's antagonist and the GreaterScopeVillain of the entire series]]. His final line before they throw down at game's end is seen by Samus as [[spoiler:defiling the memory of the more benevolent Chozo who raised her]].
-->'''[[spoiler:Raven Beak]]:''' You disappoint me... ...my daughter.
* [[spoiler:Baion takes over as the main villain of Part II]] in ''VideoGame/SolatoroboRedTheHunter'', [[spoiler:having given his share of genetic material to grow Red into the HalfHumanHybrid he eventually discovers to be. It should be noted that Baion also wants to commit global genocide against everyone on the planet, [[OffingTheOffspring including Red]].]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'', [[spoiler:Numbuh One / Nigel Uno]] is quite understandably freaked out when he realizes that BigBad Grandfather is ''his'' grandfather. This also makes [[ArchEnemy Father]] his [[EvilUncle uncle]]. Inverted with his father, who was once the legendary KND operative Agent Zero.

* As soon as ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime's'' protagonist Finn the Human defeats [[GreaterScopeVillain his most powerful opponent,]] the Lich, he tries to establish an emotional connection to his DisappearedDad, Martin. Finn assumes that [[DaddyHadAGoodReasonForAbandoningYou his Daddy Had a Good Reason For Abandoning Him.]] [[AnArmAndALeg Martin... corrects that notion.]]
* As it turns out, The Daughters of Aku from ''WesternAnimation/SamuraiJack'' are ''literally'' the daughters of Aku, spawned from the black essence that the High Priestess drank, including Ashi herself. This, unfortunately, allowed Aku to [[PeoplePuppets puppeteer her body]] against Jack and force the latter to surrender, unwilling to harm the woman he loves.
* In ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'', the BigBad [[Characters/MiraculousLadybugHawkMoth Hawk Moth]] is eventually revealed to be [[spoiler:Gabriel Agreste, the father of [[Characters/MiraculousLadybugAdrienAgreste Adrien Agreste a.k.a. his nemesis Cat Noir]].]] Neither of them knows who the other is yet, but both of them have come close to figuring it out, only to be thrown off the trail. [[spoiler:For what it's worth, [[EvenEvilHasLovedOnes Gabriel is entirely unwilling to knowingly let Adrien get hurt, apart from in the episode Cat Blanc, where he mentally tortures and akumatizes him.]].]]
* ''WesternAnimation/OKKOLetsBeHeroes'': In the aptly-named episode "Big Reveal" we learn [[spoiler: Professor Venomous is [[FallenHero former hero Laserblast]] ''and'' KO's father.]]
* In the ''WesternAnimation/MarvelsSpiderMan'' storyline "Generations", Swarm is [[spoiler: Jefferson Davis, Miles's dad]]. Notably, he doesn't know this connection either as [[spoiler: he took on the Swarm identity to ''protect'' Miles from the new Spider-Man bringing supervillain fights to Brooklyn]]. When he realises the truth, he disappears.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2003'', [[spoiler:Mikey was sent to an AlternateUniverse where the Super Turtles are heroes with superpowers and not ninjas. The Super Turtles' father, Sliver, is their archnemesis which they already knew, but Mikey and the viewers didn't until TheReveal.]]