History Main / DecapitationPresentation

* ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroes2DesperateStruggle'': Early in the game, a brown paper bag containing [[spoiler:Bishop]]'s head gets thrown through Travis's window. Later on, before the FinalBoss fight, Batt Jr. presents the heads of [[spoiler:Sylvia, Shinobu, and Henry on silver platters to rile Travis up. Thankfully, they're fake, as (the very much alive) Henry demonstrates]].
* The trailer for ''VideoGame/TheWitcher2AssassinsOfKings'' ends with Lethos holding up the severed head of King Demavend of Aedirn for a few long moments before jumping overboard to escape.
* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'' uses a less violent variant. The masks that the bosses wear are substituted for the actual heads.
* ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'': Kratos to Medusa, her sister and Helios in each respective game.
* The ''title'' screen of ''VideoGame/{{Hellbound}}'' (which made it to several promotional posters and cover art) depicts you holding a severed demon head, cluing you in on [[{{Gorn}} what kind of awesome game you're getting into]].
* In ''VideoGame/SouthParkTheStickOfTruth'', though only with castration instead. One quest has the prince of Canada ordering New Kid to go kill the Bishop of Banff and bring back his balls as proof. Alternatively, New Kid can spare the Bishop, who gives him a pair of Dire Pig testicles to fool the prince.
* Maw mentions [[BigBad Jerec]] doing this to Kyle Katarn's father Morgan in ''VideoGame/JediKnightDarkForcesII'', but the actual decapitation and subsequent public display of the head on a spike occur offscreen in the ''Soldier for the Empire'' novel.
* In ''VideoGame/FEAR2ProjectOrigin'', [[spoiler:Snake Fist]] is decapitated right before your eyes [[spoiler:the game even has him hand you a {{BFG}} to make sure that you're good and close when it happens]] by a [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot Cyborg Clone Ninja Mutant]], which [[PlayerPunch rips it off and carries it away]]. You find his head a short time later, deliberately left where you will see it, and just before they're waiting to ambush you.

* ''VideoGame/GrimFandango'': Near the end, [[spoiler:Olivia tosses Salvador's head]] towards Manuel. Still alive enough to talk and give a few instructions.
* Occurs on numerous occasions throughout ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft''. While there are several quests that involve putting a severed head on a spear as a means of intimidation (most notably the old quest, "Ogre Head On A Stick = Party"), the quests that merely require killing someone and bringing back the head as proof are too numerous to count. There's even one achievement lampshading the frequent use of this trope: [[HeadlessHorseman Bring Me The Head of... Oh Wait]]
** There's also a subversion in twilight highlands where you bring someone the heads of two ogre-magi, the horde version plays it straight, but in the alliance version the quest giver is squicked out at the heads and tells you he would have just taken your word for it.
** Orgrim Doomhammer is seen doing this to Blackhand in the instruction manual for ''VideoGame/WarcraftIITidesOfDarkness''.
** In a KickTheDog moment, the BigBad of the novel ''[[Literature/LordOfTheClans Warcraft: Lord of the Clans]]'' kills his mistress (Thrall's childhood friend) for helping Thrall escape and throws her head at Thralls feet when the latter comes to the keep with an orc army. Needless to say, the BigBad doesn't survive the encounter.
* Another weird example is ''VideoGame/SeriousSam'' with its line of 'Beheaded' enemies. As it sounds, they are undead enemies who have been beheaded...but, upon being raised from their graves, then proceed to carry around ''their own'' heads in the manner of this trope, ostensibly so they can aim their bombs and rocket launchers. [[ActionBomb Don't ask about the guys]] [[SuicideAttack whose heads they couldn't find.]]

* It's (deliberately?) a little ambiguous, but have a look at the ''VideoGame/Tekken3'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnt2qiQFG6Q intro]]. Is that Jun's head?!

* Khotun Khan, the BigBad of ''VideoGame/GhostOfTsushima'', does this to [[spoiler:Taka the blacksmith]], whom he had just killed for refusing to kill Jin for him. He hoped to break the Ghost's spirit by murdering his friend. Instead, he [[ItsPersonal makes things personal with Jin]].
-->'''Khotun Khan:''' [[TheyDiedBecauseOfYou Your friend died. For you]]. Now, I must find another... ''and you must choose again''.
* After Chasing Neclord out of North Window in ''VideoGame/SuikodenII'' Flik reports that after the South Window was invaded by Solon Jhee's Battalion he surrendered immediately.....His Head hanged from the Castle Gate the following Morning. Whether it was Solon Jhee's idea or Luca Blight's orders is unknown.
* In ''[[VideoGame/{{Civilization}} Civilization IV]]'', when you meet another civilization for the first time, you have the options to either say "[[UsefulNotes/NevilleChamberlain Let there be peace in our time!]]" or "[[ThisMeansWar Your head would look good on the end of a pole!]]"

* In ''VideoGame/PoliceQuest4OpenSeason'', the severed head of one of the killer's victims can be found in his refrigerator.

* From ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfDragoon'', the Undead common enemy found in Mayfil carries around with it a cackling severed head that it will hold up to one of the players, causing a Fear StatusEffect.
* ''Franchise/FireEmblem'':
** One of the manga adaptations of ''VideoGame/FireEmblemGenealogyOfTheHolyWar'' has [[spoiler:King Chagall]] send [[spoiler:Eldigan]]'s severed head to [[spoiler:his friends Sigurd and Quan]] to mock them. This not only horrifies them and their entourage but also throws [[spoiler:Eldigan's younger sister ([[BrotherSisterIncest and star-crossed lover of sorts]]) Lachesis]] towards the DespairEventHorizon.
** The Blue Lions route in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'' has Dimitri declaring that he will have Edelgard's head hung from the gates of Enbarr [[spoiler:during his FreakOut in reaction to her {{Dramatic Unmask}}ing as the Flame Emperor]].
* ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' gives you this option a few times, most notably as the Bounty Hunter. In one such encounter, your options include killing him and taking his head back (dark side) or leaving him be and using a random already-dead same-species replacement (light side).
* In ''VideoGame/JediKnightDarkForcesII'', it's mentioned that Kyle Katarn's father was beheaded and his head placed on a spike.
* You can do this in any of the 3D ''{{VideoGame/Fallout}}'' games by decapitating an enemy, reaching down, and 'grabbing' their severed head, holding it out in front of you as you walk. Doesn't have that much practical purpose aside from exploiting the 'head storage' glitch, but it's still doable, and rather badass besides. Unfortunately, few if any of the other characters acknowledge it when you walk into town with a shotgun in one hand and the head of a bandit in the other.
** The Legion's EstablishingCharacterMoment in ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' includes heads stuck on pikes.
** One quest in ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' requires you to kill three raider leaders and bring their severed heads back to an NCR as proof of their kill. In a fine example of GameplayAndStoryIntegration, crippling their heads will cause them to be unidentifiable and reduce the bounty you receive.
* A particularly cruel version of this can occur in ''VideoGame/GameOfThronesTelltale'', should you anger Ludd Whitehill excessively. [[spoiler:Near the beginning of Episode 6, he will force the eight-year-old Ryon to carry a pike with ''his dead brother's head'' stuck on top.]]
* Seems to happen a lot in the infamously bloody ''Franchise/MortalKombat'' series.
** A bizarre example in ''VideoGame/MortalKombatDeception'': [[ChaoticNeutral Havik's]] Hara-Kiri involves him ripping off his own head then holding it out before dying. The usual version happens A LOT after Fatalities throughout the series. Most famously Sub-Zero's head/spine rip.
** At the end of ''VideoGame/MortalKombatX'', Raiden [[spoiler:after exposure to dark magic brought all of his repressed feelings of anger about Earthrealm constantly being put in danger to the surface]] approaches the new rulers of the Underworld [[spoiler:revenant Liu Kang and Kitana]] and warns them that he is going to take a more proactive approach to keep Earthrealm safe by seeking out and destroying any threat to it. He demonstrates that his threat is not an idle one by tossing [[spoiler:the head of Shinnok, who is ''still alive'' thanks to his immortality]] at their feet.
** In a matchup against Quan Chi, he would carry a head of [[VideoGame/MortalKombatDeadlyAlliance Moloch]] upon exiting a portal before tossing it aside.
** One of Erron Black's intros in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat11'' involves him dropping a bag carrying the head of [[VideoGame/MortalKombatDeadlyAlliance Hsu Hao]], who is -- both [[CosmicPlaything in-universe]] and [[HateSink real life]] -- '''''the''''' biggest [[TheScrappy Scrappy]] in the franchise.
** In the same game, GuestFighter ComicBook/{{Spawn}} has an intro where he presents the head of his arch-enemy, [[MonsterClown the Violator]], impaled on a piece of rebar.
* [[BigBad El Sueño]] from ''VideoGame/GhostReconWildlands'' show the Ghost the severed head of rebel lead Pac Katari dangling on a meat hook before tossing it at him.

* During the final boss battle with [[{{Satan}} The Devil]] in ''VideoGame/{{Cuphead}}'', if you lose during his second phase and onwards, the taunting message that you get shows him holding the lifeless and decrepit heads of Cuphead and Mugman. Seems that the game's title theme song wasn't kidding around.
-->''And if they proceed, but don't succeed...\\
Well...\\
The Devil will take their heads!''
* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'':
** Prior to the events of the game, an ambassador from the [[AntiHumanAlliance Aldmeri Dominion]] presented Emperor Titus Mede II with a covered cart containing the heads of all agents of [[TheOrder the Blades]] that were posted in the regions of Summerset and Valenwood, as part of an ultimatum for the Empire's surrender to them. Thus began the [[GreatOffscreenWar Great War]], and, afterwards, the signing of the [[WonTheWarLostThePeace White-Gold Concordat]] (which kicked off the events leading up to Skyrim's CivilWar).
** A combat perk available for both one-handed and two-handed weapons allows the Dragonborn to cut (or smash, if done with a mace/warhammer) their opponent's head off, pick it up, and walk off with it. It only works on characters that belong to playable races though, most likely because higher-level enemies can do it to ''you'' too.
* ''VideoGame/TheBlackHeart'' has a rather bizarre but still disturbing example: one of the characters, Peketo, is the ghost of a child obsessed with the color red and the occult, who was decapitated by a man as revenge after his brother was killed in Peketo's killing rampage. One of Peketo's victory poses in the game consist of him showing ''his own severed head'' to his downed opponent.
* In ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemption2'', there's a NightmareFuel variation of this where the decapitated body is propped up on a horse and rode into camp with the head, [[EyeScream sans the eyes]], sitting in its lap. [[spoiler:Poor Kieran.]]
* In ''VideoGame/MiddleEarthShadowOfWar'', beheading the Overlord of a fort at the end of a siege will cause Talion to emerge with his head on display. He will then throw or kick it down to the orcs below depending on if the Overlord was an Orc or an Olog respectively.
* One event in ''VideoGame/SixAges: Ride Like the Wind'' has a neighboring chieftain show up brandishing the head of a third clan's chief, to propose a game of SeveredHeadSports. [[spoiler: And when Beren courts Redalda, one of the things her chieftain demands is the head of an enemy to prove his might and that of his clan.]]
* ''VideoGame/LoveOfMagic'': When Bella beheads Sir Tomas, she catches the head in the air and holds it up.
* In ''VideoGame/DoomEternal'', the Doom Slayer starts the game by breaking into Deag Nilox's room and ripping his head off. He carries it with him until he finds the remaining two Hell Priests later in the level, at which point he throws Nilox's head at their feet.
* At the end of Act 2 of ''VideoGame/{{ULTRAKILL}}'', a council member's head is presented to the citizens of Heaven. [[spoiler:By ''Gabriel'' at that, after he went through a deep epiphany from his latest defeat at V1's hands; he wanted to make sure the denizens knew they were free from the Council's tyranny now that he'd wiped them out]].

%%* Used by the secondary villain in ''Creator/TheBrothersGrimm''.
* In ''Film/KillBill Vol. 1'', O-Ren Ishii does this with the head of Boss Tanaka, who she had just beheaded for [[BerserkButton disrespecting her mixed heritage]], during her BadassBoast speech to the Yakuza.
-->'''O-Ren Ishii:''' The price you pay for bringing up either my Chinese or my American heritage as a negative is: I collect your fucking head. [''holds up Tanaka's head''] Just like this fucker here.
* In ''Film/{{Bowfinger}}'', Daisy shows the (fake) head of the woman she just decapitated.
* Marv from ''Film/SinCity'' does this with [[spoiler:Kevin]]'s head after he has [[RasputinianDeath disemboweled, dismembered and fed him to a wolf]]. He does it to show [[spoiler:[[BigBad Cardinal Roark]]]] that he killed him before killing him, too, as part of his RoaringRampageOfRevenge.
** Dwight does the same thing with [[spoiler:Jackie Boy]]'s head (although he wasn't the one who cut it off), offering to trade it to Manute and his men in exchange for Gail. Unfortunately, they don't notice [[spoiler:the grenade Dwight stuffed in the head's mouth until it's too late]].
* Sort of done in the cancelled [[Script/Godzilla1994 Tristar Godzilla film]].
* In ''Film/TropicThunder'', Ben Stiller goes back to his CaptainOblivious roots [[spoiler:and holds up what he thinks is a prop made to look like the director's head to explain that it's all a ruse to get the actors to [[EnforcedMethodActing feel like they're really in the Vietnam war]]. He even sticks the head on the tip of his rifle [[NauseaFuel and eats the things dangling from the severed neck]]. This kind of plays with the trope not only in that the presenter didn't kill the head's owner, but that it wasn't a traditional decapitation since the director died by stepping on a land mine.]]
* ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet''
** In ''Film/ANightmareOnElmStreet3DreamWarriors,'' Freddy does this in one of Kristen Parker's nightmares, decapitating her mother and presenting the head to Kristen... ''so it can bitch at Kristen for ruining her date.''
** At the very end of ''Film/FreddyVsJason'', Jason Voorhees emerges from Crystal Lake holding Freddy Krueger's severed head...which smiles and winks to the audience! In an earlier dream scene, Freddy produces the severed head of Jason's mother to inflict psychological damage to Jason's child-like psyche.
* The Messenger in ''Film/ThreeHundred'' has an entire string of them: the "crowns and heads of conquered kings" that he hoist at the gates of Sparta indicate what kind of message he brings. The Spartans are unimpressed.
** ''Film/ThreeHundredRiseOfAnEmpire'' has a moment that reveals that Xerxes did this with [[spoiler:Leonidas]]' head after his death.

-->'''Germanic Chieftan:''' [Bellows something in his own language then flings the messenger's head toward the Romans]\\

* Near the end of ''Film/ApocalypseNow'' [[spoiler:Colonel Kurtz walks up to Willard and drops Chef's severed head in his lap.]]
* ''Film/TheJadeRaksha'' opens with the discovery of severed heads, victims of the titular character, being strung on poles in public, much to the horror of several townsfolk.
* ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings''
** In ''[[Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheReturnOfTheKing The Return of the King]]'', one particular Orc soldier goes through the whole battle of Minas Tirith with a human's head attached to the top of his helmet. Whether it was functional in battle or not is not addressed in the film.
*** Also the fact that Gothmog orders the severed heads of defeated Gondorian soldiers catapulted back into Minas Tirith.
** And in ''[[Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheTwoTowers The Two Towers]]'' an Uruk-Hai from the party that captured Merry and Pippin has his head stuck on a spear after Éomer takes them out.

* In the 1991 action BMovie ''Film/StoneCold'', the outlaw biker leader gives a gift of a full-face motorbike helmet to a couple of Mafiosi at a restaurant. One says, "I don't ride", but then lifts up the visor to find the head of a colleague is inside.

* ''Film/{{Nightbreed}}'': The homicidal Dr. Decker seems to be fond of this. He cuts off a motel clerk's head and places it on the front desk for his wife to find before killing her too. Later, he decapitates one of the Nightbreed and puts the head on a stick before showing it to his friends.
* Happens to Gunther on the orders of his sister Kriemhild after Hagen tells her he won't tell her the location of Siegfried's hoard as long as his liege is still alive. Dramatically shown towards the end of ''Kriemhilds Rache'', the second part of Creator/FritzLang's ''Film/DieNibelungen'' (1924).
* In ''Film/TheGrey'', Diaz cuts off the head of the wolf the survivors killed and cooked and brandishes it in defiance of the wolf pack that surrounds them and howl in the night.
* Happens several times in ''Film/TheScarletPimpernel1982'' (and likely all other versions of the tale).
* ''Film/InTheLandOfTheHeadHunters'': Maybe not surprising, given that title. Motana's father Kenada displays the heads of the sorcerer, and a few of the sorcerer's buddies, after killing them and rescuing Naida (Motana's intended) from the evil sorcerer's clutches.
* In ''Film/GalaxyQuest'', the BigBad presents the head of his former lieutenant on a stick who [[YouHaveFailedMe had failed him]] in an earlier scene.
* In ''Film/{{Braveheart}}'', after the Scottish forces sack York, William has the head of the Duke of York cut off and sent back to the king in a basket.
* The female protagonist in ''Film/{{Trauma}}'' is unable to see the killer's features because he is holding her parents' severed heads in front of his face. [[spoiler:Halfway subverted since her mother is actually the killer; she is holding her own head in such a way that it seems that she has also been decapitated]].
* In ''Film/TheExpendables2'', after defeating [[BigBad Vilain]], Barney Ross asks Maggie if she knows how to carve a turkey. He later presents Vilain's severed head in a bag to Trench and Church to prove he won.
* Used several times in ''Film/TheScarletPimpernel1982'', which is fitting as it's about the Reign of Terror. Played for laughs in one scene when the Pimpernel is smuggling aristocrats out in coffins, but also has coffins with beheaded aristocrats too. When he gets stopped by a guard who asks him to open the coffins, he throws the severed head to the guard, who promptly lets him go without checking the other two coffins with the live people inside.
* ''Film/ReturnOfTheLivingDead3'': After one of the Mexican hoodlums [[TooDumbToLive tries to rape zombie Julie]] offscreen, she comes back and throws his severed head at his buddies.
* At the end of ''Film/HardcoreHenry'', [[spoiler:after Henry has cut [[BigBad Akan's]] head in half, he tosses the top half at Estelle.]]
* ''Film/HeadsForSale'' have one that doubles as a TitleDrop, when the heroine kills two of the three villains and parades their removed craniums in a public square. While shouting at the top of her voice, "Heads for sale!"
* ''Film/The47Ronin'': A symbolic one, since the recipient is dead--but the 47 ronin bring the severed head of Lord Kira wrapped up in a cloth to the grave of Lord Asano, and Kuranosuke tells their story to the gravestone.
* ''Film/{{Shiri}}''. In their TrainingFromHell montage, the North Korean cadets being trained as assassins kill a roomful of prisoners in hand-to-hand combat, then assemble in ranks before their instructor, each holding a severed head.
* In ''[[Film/Priest2011 Priest]]'', at the end of the movie, the titular Priest tosses a vampire head at the foot of the Monsignor to prove that the vampires have returned. The Monsignor is not pleased.
* ''Film/{{Logan}}''. TheReveal that Laura is actually a [[LittleMissBadass mutant killing machine]] [[DistaffCounterpart like Wolverine]] is the SoundOnlyDeath of the mercenaries sent into a building to find her, followed by Laura walking out holding a severed head which she tosses at their leader's feet.
* ''Film/BringMeTheHeadOfAlfredoGarcia'' is all about this trope as various criminals and mercenaries fight with each other to be the one [[DemandingTheirHead to present a Mexican mob boss with the head of Alfredo Garcia]]--the man who knocked up his teenage daughter.
* In ''Film/BringMeTheHeadOfTheMachineGunWoman'', the Machine Gun Woman presents the heads of all of Longara's men that she has killed to her employers to prove she has killed them.
* ''Film/EightHeadsInADuffelBag''. This trope, times eight! In a duffel bag...
* ''Film/PhantasmIIILordOfTheDead'' starts with the Tall Man presenting [[spoiler:Liz's severed head]].
* In ''Film/ColdPursuit'', Viking sends Sly to present Dexter's head to White Bull as a peace offering.
* ''Film/{{Padmaavati}}'': [[BigBad Alauddin]] does this several times. Including his own uncle, whose head he displays at his coronation.
* ''[[Film/TheSilenceOfTheLambs Hannibal Rising]]'' (2007). Hannibal is being raised by his aunt, the Lady Murasaki-Lecter, whose samurai ancestor was into collecting the heads of his enemies. When she's insulted by a local butcher, Hannibal cuts off his head with her sword and presents it to her. His aunt is not pleased, but when Hannibal is arrested for the crime she impales the head on the railings outside police headquarters while Hannibal is being interrogated inside. The police naturally assume they have the wrong man and let Hannibal go.

* ''Film/AGoodWomanIsHardToFind'': Sarah is being terrorized by a crime lord, Leo, who is looking for Tito, who stole drugs from him. Sarah finally tells Leo she'll bring Tito to him. [[spoiler:She brings him Tito's severed head, in which she has hidden a gun]].
* ''Film/GodzillaVsKong'': Kong [[OffWithHisHead rips MechaGodzilla's head off]] with his bare hands and holds it up high in the air like a trophy, roaring and beating his chest triumphantly -- it seems Mike Dougherty wasn't entirely joking when he said decapitation is a RunningGag where Ghidorah's left head is concerned (in some form or another).
* ''Franchise/StarWars: Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'': Kylo Ren drops the head of an alien informant, Boolio, on the conference table in front of the First Order's ruling council. Boolio's character design, with large horns protruding from his head, was even dictated by the desire for Kylo to have something to hold onto.
* ''Film/TheRiseAndFallOfIdiAmin'': When one of [[UsefulNotes/IdiAmin the titular dictator's]] wives falls ill, Dr. Oloya goes to pick up some ice, only to find the severed heads of two of Amin's political opponents in the freezer. When confronted on this, Amin explains that whenever there is a regime change in Africa, a few heads will inevitably roll.
* At the end of ''Film/{{Doomsday}}'', Eden informs [[spoiler:the cannibal tribe of her KlingonPromotion to their new leader by tossing her predecessor's severed head at their feet, quoting an earlier line of his: "If you're hungry, try a piece of your friend".]]
* At the end of ''Film/War2007'', Rogue sends a metal suitcase containing a valuable MacGuffin to the wife of a crime boss, with a note telling her to start a new life. Meanwhile DaddysLittleVillain (who wanted Rogue to kill the wife and her child) gets an identical suitcase and the same note. This suitcase contains her father's head.
* ''Film/TheWarlords'' have Creator/TakeshiKaneshiro's character, Wu-yang defeating the rebel leader in a massive battle climaxing the second act, and removing the leader's head before holding it on a hill to stop both armies from fighting, the battle is over now that one of their generals is dead.
* ''Film/JonahHex2010'': BountyHunter Jonah Hex turns up dragging three corpses of the notorious Clayton Boys behind his horse. When the sheriff points out there are four Clayton boys and quibbles about payment, Jonah throws him a sack with the head of the fourth inside, saying he was too fat for his horse to haul.
* In ''Film/DeathMachines'', [[DragonLady Madame Lee]] invites Mr. Gioletti to dinner, where she presents him with the severed head of his limo driver Mike.
* ''Film/{{Napoleon|2023}}'' (2023) starts the day of UsefulNotes/MarieAntoinette's PublicExecution. Once she's guillotined, her head is lifted for the crowd to cheer.

Reality check: A human head weighs around 5 kg (or for those living in the US, 11 lbs.). The brain alone weighs around 1.5 kilograms, famously likened to the weight of a bag of sugar, with the skull and other tissues making up the remainder of the head's weight. However, few shows manage to portray this [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome realistically]]. Of course, if someone had trouble carrying 11 lbs, [[RequiredSecondaryPowers they probably wouldn't have the physical strength to decapitate someone anyway]].

Reality check: A human head weighs around 5 kg (or for those living in the US, 11 lbs.); however, few shows manage to portray this [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome realistically]]. Of course, if someone had trouble carrying 11 lbs, [[RequiredSecondaryPowers they probably wouldn't have the physical strength to decapitate someone anyway]].

Compare DeadGuyOnDisplay, HumanHeadOnTheWall, AlasPoorYorick. See also SeveredHeadSports, where the humiliation of the beheaded is taken even further. Can be parodied with LosingYourHead if the decapitated somehow ''survives'' the beheading.

-->"That took me two hours. ''[[ImpliedDeathThreat You wanna see what I can get down in a whole evening?]]''"\\

* In ''Literature/{{Overlord|2012}}'', in a last-ditch effort to appease [[TheNecrocracy Ainz's Sorcerer Kingdom]] from destroying their capital city, the nobles of the Re-Estize Kingdom betray and behead their acting king [[spoiler:[[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething Prince Zanac]]]], offering his severed head to Ainz as they beg for mercy. [[EvenEvilHasSTandards Ainz]] decides not to have them killed, but [[CruelMercy instead has them sent]] to [[TortureTechnician Neuronist Painkill]], [[RewardedAsATraitorDeserves where they are to be kept alive until they beg for death]], [[NoKillLikeOverkill and then not allowed to die for some time after that]].

* When [[spoiler:Governor Gekkei]] confronts [[spoiler:Queen Kekai, Princess Shoukei, and Hourin the kirin]] in ''Literature/TheTwelveKingdoms'', he shows them the head of [[spoiler:King Chuutatsu, whom he decapitated as punishment for his KnightTemplar misdeeds.]]
* ''Manga/ViolenceJack'': One scene at the beginning of the "Hell's Wind" arc has this scene after Jun's boyfriend, Tetsuya, gets dismembered.

* In ''Literature/SwordArtOnline'''s Alicization arc, one of Vecta's first displays of power and brutality is him presenting the head of his would-be assassin, [[spoiler:Lipia]], encased in a block of ice.
* In ''Literature/Overlord2012'', in a last-ditch effort to avoid [[TheMagocracy The Sorcery Kingdom of Ains Ooal Gown]] from destroying their capital of E-Rantel, the nobles of the Re-Estize Kingdom betray and behead their acting commander [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething Prince Zanac]], showing his severed head to Ains as they beg for mercy. Ains decides not to have them killed, but [[CruelMercy instead has them sent to]] [[TortureTechnician Neuronist Painkill]], [[RewardedAsATraitorDeserves where they are to be kept alive until they beg for death]], [[NoKillLikeOverkill and then not allowed to die for some time after that.]]

* The Creator/HBO adaptation of ''[[WesternAnimation/ToddMcFarlanesSpawn Spawn]]'' saw mafia boss Tony Twist order his subordinate, Castellano, to fly to Rome and ingratiate himself to "the man" after cybernetic hitman Overkill came off worse in a tangle with Spawn. Later in the episode, Twist is presented with a box containing Castellano's head—and a note that lets him know just how unhappy the Italian mafia is with the situation.

** In ''Literature/AGameOfThrones'', King Joffrey Baratheon takes [[BreakTheCutie Sansa Stark]] to the battlements to show her the heads displayed on spikes: [[spoiler:the one of her father Ned, whom he had executed despite promising not to, the head of her tutor Septa Mordane, and the heads of other members of her household]].
** In ''Literature/AClashOfKings'', Catelyn Stark notes the trope with irony when various pretenders to the throne offer her 'justice' for her husband's treatment by delivering Joffrey's head.

** In ''Literature/AStormOfSwords'', [[spoiler:following the Red Wedding, the Freys decapitate Robb Stark and his direwolf Grey Wind post-mortem, and sew the latter's head to the former's body, as a final insult to the King of the North]].
** In ''Literature/AFeastForCrows'', Queen Cersei Lannister is presented with the heads of [[spoiler:various dwarfs, but not the one she actually wants -- her dwarf brother Tyrion, whom she wrongly believes killed Joffrey. Having offered a lordship to any man who does so, innocent dwarfs are being murdered at random in the hope of claiming the reward]].

Reality check: A human head weighs around 5 kg (or for those living in the US, 11 lbs.); however, few shows manage to portray this [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome realistically]]. Of course, if someone had trouble carrying 11 lbs, they probably wouldn't have the physical strength to decapitate someone anyway.

* * In ''Literature/SwordOfTheRightfulKing'', Gawaine decapitates the bandit who killed Arthur's beloved hound and offers the head to Arthur. Arthur refuses the gift, reminding Gawaine that they aren't supposed to engage in pagan practices anymore. Morgause, who is scrying from afar, sees this refusal as weakness on Arthur's part.

* ''Film/JonahHex''. BountyHunter Jonah Hex turns up dragging three corpses of the notorious Clayton Boys behind his horse. When the sheriff points out there are four Clayton boys and quibbles about payment, Jonah throws him a sack with the head of the fourth inside, saying he was too fat for his horse to haul.

-->''"Look, Diane — Glover's here! He'll sleep with you every night now. Only you won't sleep — because all you'll see is '''this!'''"''

"[[Recap/InterviewWithTheVampire2022S1E3IsMyVeryNatureThatOfADevil Is My Very Nature That of a Devil]]": Lampshaded by Louis de Pointe du Lac when he asks Lestat de Lioncourt if the newspaper article he's reading mentions that the heads of executed slaves were piked on the iron gates of St. Louis Cathedral.
"[[Recap/InterviewWithTheVampire2022S1E6LikeAngelsPutInHellByGod Like Angels Put in Hell by God]]": Lestat holds up the severed head of the train conductor he has just murdered so that Claudia can see it.

* ''Series/InterviewWithTheVampire2022'': In "[[Recap/InterviewWithTheVampire2022S1E6LikeAngelsPutInHellByGod Like Angels Put in Hell by God]]", Lestat de Lioncourt holds up the severed head of the train conductor he has just murdered so that Claudia can see it.

* In ''Literature/SwordOfTheRightfulKing'', Gawaine decapitates the bandit who killed Arthur's beloved hound and offers the head to Arthur. Arthur refuses the gift, reminding Gawaine that they aren't supposed to engage in pagan practices anymore.

* In ''Daryl Gates' VideoGame/PoliceQuest: Open Season'', the severed head of one of the killer's victims can be found in his refrigerator.

** Orgrim Doomhammer is seen doing this to Blackhand in the instruction manual for ''VideoGame/WarcraftII''.

* The Green Knight holds up his own head by the hair after Sir Gawain chops it off in ''Literature/SirGawainAndTheGreenKnight''.
* From the Literature/{{Deryni}} works:
** Duke Jared [=McLain=] orders the execution of his architect Rimmell [[spoiler:for his part in the deaths of his son Kevin and his future daughter-in-law Lady Bronwyn Morgan]], and he tells his executioner, "I would see evidence of your work before you leave the garden, Fergus." Fergus shortly returns from the terrace holding Rimmell's head by the hair.
** Loris' messenger does this with Bishop Henry Istelyn's head at Kelson's court in ''The Bishop's Heir''.

* There's a variation of this in the novel ''Literature/{{Barrayar}}''. Instead of holding would-be usurper Lord Vordarian's severed head up, Cordelia rolls it out of the shopping bag she has been transporting it in. The possibility of leaving it on the table while conducting ceasefire talks with the elements of the military who have backed Vordarian's coup is briefly discussed, but Aral isn't that sort of regent.

* Also shows up in Creator/LewisCarroll's poem "Literature/{{Jabberwocky}}" (from ''Literature/ThroughTheLookingGlass''): "He left it dead, and with its head, he went galumphing back."
* In the ditch of the Sowers of Discord in Dante's ''[[Literature/TheDivineComedy Inferno]]'', one of the damned holds 'his own head' up, "in the manner of a lantern," and speaks to the narrator's horror.
* At the end of the first ''Literature/SwordOfTruth'' book, Richard does this to [[spoiler:his stepbrother Michael]], who turned out to be TheMole earlier in the book.
** At the end of the sixth book, Richard sends the head of [[BigBad Jagang]]'s mentor to be left in the path of his army, with a spell to prevent decomposition. As soon as Jagang touches it a few months later, it [[NoOntologicalInertia rots into a skull]]. Presumably, he was displeased.
* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire''
** In ''Literature/AGameOfThrones'', King Joffrey Baratheon takes [[BreakTheCutie Sansa Stark]] to the battlements to show her the heads displayed on spikes: [[spoiler:the one of her father Ned, whom he had executed despite promising not to, the head of her tutor Septa Mordane, and the heads of other members of her household]].
** In ''Literature/AClashOfKings'', Catelyn Stark notes the trope with irony when various pretenders to the throne offer her 'justice' for her husband's treatment by delivering Joffrey's head.
--->How they loved to promise heads, these men who would be king.
** In ''Literature/AStormOfSwords'', [[spoiler:following the Red Wedding, the Freys decapitate Robb Stark and his direwolf Grey Wind post-mortem, and sew the latter's head to the former's body, as a final insult to the King of the North.]]
** In ''Literature/AFeastForCrows'', Queen Cersei Lannister is presented with the heads of [[spoiler:various dwarfs, but not the one she actually wants -- her dwarf brother Tyrion, whom she wrongly believes killed Joffrey. Having offered a lordship to any man who does so, innocent dwarfs are being murdered at random in the hope of claiming the reward.]]
** Daario Naharis creates a scandal when he strides into Queen Daenerys Targaryen's presence, throws the severed head of an enemy at her feet, and [[AllGirlsWantBadBoys snogs her in front of the entire royal court]].
** After his death by slow poisoning, Cersei sends the skull of Gregor Clegane to the Martells as a peace offering, as Clegane had killed Oberyn Martell, and some Dornish are agitating for war against the Lannisters as a result.
** The Dance of the Dragons, as depicted in the backstory novel ''Literature/FireAndBlood'', has a lot of these:
*** Upon beheading Prince Jaehaerys Targaryen, Blood attempted to flee from King's Landing while carrying his head, but was captured by the gold cloaks. Under torture, he confessed that he planned to deliver the head to Jaehaerys' great uncle, Daemon, who had ordered the killing, as proof that the deed was done.
*** After Criston Cole's UndignifiedDeath at the [[CurbStompBattle Butcher's Ball]] (his enemies had him [[HumanPincushion shot full of arrows]] so [[DroppedABridgeOnHim there could be no romanticisation of his death]] as punishment for his driving role in starting a CivilWar), his killers hacked his head off and stuck it on a spear to use as a battle standard.
*** Maelor Targaryen was either crushed to death or torn apart by a mob while being evacuated to Oldtown. His head was sent to his aunt Rhaenyra.
*** After killing Rhaenys Targaryen and her dragon Meleys, the Greens hacked off Meleys' head and paraded it throughout King's Landing (they couldn't do the same to Rhaenys herself as her body was burned beyond recognition).
*** Following the Storming of the Dragonpit, the Shepherds and his followers murdered all of the dragons in the Dragonpit, decapitated them, and hung their heads on the castle walls as the Shepherd preached beneath them.
* Creator/RobertEHoward
** In the Franchise/ConanTheBarbarian story "Literature/AWitchShallBeBorn", Salome brings the head of Krallides.

** In ''Literature/TheShadowOfTheVulture'', Mikhal Oglu is promised the weight of the mercenary Gottfried's head in gold if he delivers it to Suleyman the Magnificent. Instead the Sultan's victory celebration is spoiled when he receives a gift-wrapped package from Gottfried and Red Sonya, containing Oglu's preserved head.
* The ''Literature/SanoIchiro'' mystery ''Bundori'', which revolves around the {{Samurai}} tradition of turning the heads of conquered enemies into war trophies.
* Pushed up a notch by Leo Bonhart in ''Literature/TowerOfTheSwallow'', who [[ForcedToWatch forces Ciri to watch]] as he saws off her TrueCompanions' (whom he previously slaughtered) heads off, leaving her FirstLove ([[BuryYourGays a girl, to boot]]) for last, and then presents them proudly to her. Ciri doesn't take it very well, to say the least.
* ''[[http://www.gutenberg.org/files/32032/32032-h/32032-h.htm The Second Variety]]'': Decades before Ahnuld played an unstoppable assassin robot, Creator/PhilipKDick showed him how it's done. The cover art shows a man holding up the severed head of a destroyed android assassin [[spoiler:that looks like a 13-year-old boy, not a giant thug.]]
* Happens all the time in ''Literature/RomanceOfTheThreeKingdoms'', with both heroes and villains using the trope. Late in the story, the sons of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei would casually announce that they've defeated an enemy general and "here is his head." This was even mocked in ''Webcomic/SanThreeKingdomsComic'', a parody of this novel, as described in its own entry.
* In ''Literature/TheGeneralSeries'', Raj Whitehall's army happens to kill the brother of the Squadron's leader in a skirmish. He takes the opportunity to attempt to provoke their (large, but disorganized) army into a ZergRush at his prepared position, and sends one of his men to present the head to the Admiral during the pre-battle truce. The result is shock and horror amongst the Squadron nobles, enough that they actually open fire on the officer and kill him despite the white truce flag. Raj has every single noble responsible crucified, after a battle in which his army takes effectively no other casualties.
* In the last book of ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'', [[spoiler:Lan Mandragoran]] does this with [[spoiler:Demandred]], to show the result of their duel, and to [[DecapitatedArmy dishearten his army]].
* ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'':
** The Rohirrim slaughter a party of Orcs and burn their bodies. We're told that "Upon a stake in the middle was set a great goblin head".
** When the Orcs catapult into Minas Tirith "all the heads of those who had fallen fighting at Osgiliath" it's depicted as an atrocity.
* In the ''Series/{{Highlander}}'' tie-in novel, "The Path", after Duncan kills the Big Bad Immortal and tosses his head to his army, asking who will be next to face him.

* ''The Ballad of Boh Da Thone'' by Creator/RudyardKipling. A British officer promises a hundred rupees to anyone who delivers the head of a notorious bandit chief. After he's retired, a package arrives in the mail with a polite request for said payment, and a head rolls out in front of his wife. Unsurprisingly, she faints.
* In ''Literature/MemorySorrowAndThorn'', [[TheFairFolk the Sithi]] come to liberate the occupied nation of Hernystir, and announce that the job is complete by dropping the head of Skali Sharp-Nose at the feet of Count Eolair, the acting leader of Hernystir. When Eolair acts disturbed the Sithi are confused since a prior prince of Hernystir had done the same with his enemies [[TimeAbyss five hundred years ago]].
* ''Literature/TheExecutioner''. Happens on several occasions with TheMafia; when the ''capo'' says, "I want his head", he usually means it literally.

* ''Literature/LightThickens'', by Creator/NgaioMarsh, is built around a production of ''Theatre/{{Macbeth}}''. Superintendent Alleyn is [[BusmansHoliday in the audience]] when the prop head brought in on the end of a claymore is replaced with a real one.
* In ''Literature/TheZombieKnight'', [[AgentProvocateur Desmond]] drafts a group of Atreyan soldiers to use for a FalseFlagOperation by holding up the severed head of their CO (whom he refers to as Teddy because he didn't bother to learn his name), saying that Teddy was brave and refused to do what he and his fellow [[ReligionOfEvil Abolishers]] asked, and advising the soldiers not to be brave like Teddy.
* In the Literature/McAuslan short story ''The Gordon Woman'', a tale is told of a legendary woman of that clan who, upon being presented with the head of her husband, kept up her DissonantSerenity to the confusion of his killers, delaying their departure [[IronLady until her own men turned up to slit their throats]].
* ''Literature/{{Parker}}'': At the end of ''The Man With the Getaway Face'', Parker unzips a travel bag to show May the severed head of Wells: proving that he has upheld his end of the bargain and Wells is dead.
* In JosephWambaugh's book ''TheChoirboys'', two of the police officer protagonists are called out to a nasty traffic accident with multiple dead people. One of the officers notices a dead woman in very bad condition and decides to use her as a prank. When a car rolls by and a couple are looking at the carnage, the woman is shocked. The officer mentions to them how it's a bad accident, then holds up the severed head of the woman killed in the accident by the hair, and says, "This one didn't come out too good." The woman onlooker in the car screamed so loudly she drowned out the arriving ambulance siren.
* In the backstory of ''Literature/{{Renegades}}'', this is how the Battle of Gatlon ended - with Captain Chromium walking out of the cathedral with Ace Anarchy's behelmeted head on a pike. The image is so famous in-universe, he still takes the helmet out on a pike during the annual parade (although without the head in it, as [[spoiler:Ace is still alive]]).
* ''Literature/CaptivePrince'': The Regent has [[spoiler:Nicaise]]'s head delivered to Laurent as a threat, claiming he was RewardedAsATraitorDeserves. Laurent snarks that murdering a helpless child isn't much of a show of force, but is privately extremely distraught at the boy's death.
* ''Literature/TheTribe'': In the second book, "Camp Cannibal", [[spoiler:Yardstick]] leads Spencer [[spoiler:and Charles]] to a raccoon's severed head mounted on a spike. [[spoiler:The Tribe used it to mark the location of the cave they lived in prior to taking over Camp New Leaf]].
* In Creator/SimonRGreen's ''Shadows Fall'', the Warriors of the Cross send Father Callahan a box containing the severed head of his good friend and childhood hero, Lester Gold. It's only then that Callahan realizes that the Warriors with whom he'd been collaborating are ''not'' the God-serving crusaders he'd been led to believe, but a horde of invaders out to exterminate everyone in the town who dares defy or offend them.
* ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'': When King Corb of the Fomor arrives at the titular PeaceConference in ''Literature/PeaceTalks'', he gets everyone's attention by tossing [[spoiler:Gwynn ap Nudd]]'s head at Mab's feet. Things only go downhill from there.

* In the Literature/MatthewScudder novels by Lawrence Block, Irish-American gangster Mick '"TheButcher" Ballou is the subject of an old legend in which he supposedly cut off a rival's head and then drove around town with it in a bowling ball bag, showing it to people. Mick never does confirm whether the story is true.
* ''{{Literature/Wulfrik}}'': Wulfrik completely breaks Viglundr by presenting him with the head of [[spoiler:Sveinbjorn]]. The act itself isn't that shocking- this ''is'' Norsca, and Wulfrik goes around wearing the skulls of defeated enemies- but its repercussions are: [[spoiler:Sveinbjorn]] dead means war with his tribe, and Wulfrik made it look as though [[spoiler:Sveinbjorn]] abandoned hundreds of men deep in the Empire (which, to be fair, he had intended to do), which his tribe will blame on Viglundr. Not only that, but the tribes of the abandoned men will demand reparation when Viglundr needs every coin he can get to hire mercenaries.
* ''Literature/BazilBroketail'': After cutting off Nesessitas' head, Puxdool picks it up and presents it to the cheering crowd in the arena.
* ''Literature/SwansBraidAndOtherTalesOfTerizan'': In "Swan's Braid" Swan delivers the heads of the notorious bandit leader Hyrantaz with his followers to the ruling council of Oreen, after having hunted them down with her mercenary band the Wing.

* ''Manga/TheElusiveSamurai'' takes place during 14th century Japan, where beheading an enemy commander's corpse and parading the head around the battlefield as proof of victory was a common tactic used to break the opposing army's morale to the point of surrender. This is exactly what happens to [[spoiler:Shokan]] after he is slain by Tokiyuki and Fubuki in combat.

* ''Year of the Dragon'' (1985). Up-and-coming Triad gangster Joey Tai travels to Burma to buy drugs from the guerrillas there. They're reluctant to do business with him, preferring their established contact, White Powder Ma. Joey responds by placing Ma's head on the table.

* In ''Literature/TheGeneral'' series, Raj Whitehall's army happens to kill the brother of the Squadron's leader in a skirmish. He takes the opportunity to attempt to provoke their (large, but disorganized) army into a ZergRush at his prepared position, and sends one of his men to present the head to the Admiral during the pre-battle truce. The result is shock and horror amongst the Squadron nobles, enough that they actually open fire on the officer and kill him despite the white truce flag. Raj has every single noble responsible crucified, after a battle in which his army takes effectively no other casualties.