History Main / ShrunkenHead

* ''Series/{{Lewis}}'': In episode "[[Series/LewisS1E4 Expiation]]". A dying Le Plassiter makes a cryptic reference to "head shrink" and Detectives Lewis and Hathaway initially think it's a reference to TheShrink, Caroline Croft the psychiatrist. Nope, it's a reference to literal shrunken heads at the science museum. Murder victim Rachel Mallory liked to go there and look at them, and that's where Hugh, the killer, takes his daughters at the climax.

* ''Series/{{Lewis}}'': A dying Le Plassiter makes a cryptic reference to "head shrink" and Detectives Lewis and Hathaway initially think it's a reference to TheShrink, Caroline Croft the psychiatrist. Nope, it's a reference to literal shrunken heads at the science museum. Murder victim Rachel Mallory liked to go there and look at them, and that's where Hugh, the killer, takes his daughters at the climax.

* The ''Ride/JungleCruise'' in the Ride/DisneyThemeParks had Trader Sam, a native witch doctor at the end holding a few of these, seemingly to sell to passing tourists. River guides at this point will usually insert an IncrediblyLamePun. Though Sam was removed from the American versions of the attraction in 2021, he still maintains tiki bars on both coasts.

In fiction shrunken heads can appear anywhere with a tribal setting, sometimes in fantasy, or just when creators need to make it clear that viewers are not in familiar territory anymore. What the heads are used for varies as well, sometimes being in the background among the [[CreepySouvenir possessions]] of a NightmareFetishist or CollectorOfTheStrange. Other times they appear as the still-attached head of someone who ran afoul of some mystical tribe or WitchDoctor. Others will be an OracularHead.

* In the ''Comicbook/{{Tintin}}'' book ''The Broken Ear'', Tintin and Ridgewell are captured by the Bibaros, who cut their enemies' heads and shrink them. They escape thanks to Ridgewell's ventriloquism.

* In one of the final Pre-Crisis ComicBook/{{Batman}} stories from 1986, an axe-murderer does this with the head of an ex that he killed out of jealousy, just before sending it to one of her friends to make some kind of sick point. Batman mentions that the chemical that the killer used to shrink her head is similar to that used by the Jivaros, though as mentioned above, [[ScienceMarchesOn the actual technique that the Jivaros used to shrink heads was much different]].

[[folder:Fan Fiction]]
* ''FanFic/YouAwakenInRazorHill'': The character Scratch has [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} some that he keeps as pets]].

[[folder:Films -- Animated]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheNightmareBeforeChristmas'', the first boy to get a visit from Jack as Santa gets a shrunken head as a present.
* ''WesternAnimation/HotelTransylvania'' has shrunken heads on the room doors that seem to act as the "Do Not Disturb" cards in normal hotels. They also yell at the maids when the room needs to be cleaned.
* In ''WesternAnimation/ThePrincessAndTheFrog'', Dr. Facilier, the evil WitchDoctor states "I'm a royal too on my mother's side" during his VillainSong, and shows a woman's crowned, shrunken head to the prince he sings the song to.

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]

* ''Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanAtWorldsEnd''. During a conversation with Captain Teague (his father), Jack Sparrow asks, "How's Mum?" Teague shows him a shrunken woman's head.
-->'''Jack''': She looks good.

* The film ''Shrunken Heads'' from Creator/FullMoonFeatures is about three murdered teens whose shrunken heads are reanimated through HollywoodVoodoo.

* ''Literature/MobyDick''. The innkeeper tells Ishmael that Queequeg is off in the town trying to sell his head, much to Ishmael's confusion. Ishamel freaks out later when Queequeg shows up in the shared bedroom with a shrunken head.

* Creator/RobertBloch's short story "The Cure", which like many Bloch stories centers around a punny twist-- in this case, when Jeff sends Luiz to have his significant other Marie cured when she isn't well in the head, Jeff is aghast to learn that all that's left of Marie after the return trip is a shrunken head. Later adapted as an episode of ''Series/AlfredHitchcockPresents''.

* In more than one episode of ''Series/GilligansIsland'' the castaways, and especially Gilligan himself, are worried that the cannibal tribes from nearby islands will eat them and shrink their heads as souveniers.
* In ''Series/TheXFiles'' episode [[Recap/TheXFilesS02E24OurTown "Our Town"]] the semi-{{Mundanger}}ous Perp of the Week has some shrunken heads he ''claims'' are fake, non-human souvenier trinkets from his travels as a young man. But then it turns out that he and his [[CannibalClan small town/family]] are OlderThanTheyLook, keeping themselves young through [[ImAHumanitarian ritual cannibalism]] which he had learned from HollywoodNatives during those same travels.
* Featured in one ''Series/NightGallery'' segment "Logoda's Heads". The WitchDoctor Logoda maintains power over his people since he knows how to make his shrunken heads [[OracularHead speak to him]]. He comes into conflict with British authorities when they accuse him of murdering an explorer (who happened to be the brother of one of the men investigating him, meaning ItsPersonal). They try to get a local young woman to help them, but she demurs out of fear of Logoda's power. [[spoiler:Then Logoda is torn apart off-screen. The young woman reveals that she knew Logoda was guilty and wanted to take matters into her own hands. She is actually a more powerful witch doctor who knows how to make the shrunken heads kill. The segment ends with the camera zooming in on the shrunken heads, revealing traces of blood and flesh between their teeth...]]

[[folder:Newspaper Comics]]
* ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'': Calvin has an interest in them:
** [[http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/2013/07/07#.UxAnrvldV8F Among the ingredients]] Calvin's mom uses to make dinner, [[UnreliableNarrator or so he thinks]].
** He also makes [[http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/2014/01/25#.UxDlrfldV8E snow scupltures]] of them.
** [[http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/2012/06/30#.Ux4DSfmwLYg "A hundred shrunken heads of popular cartoon characters."]]
-->'''Mom''': Eww, [[MouthStitchedShut you stitched their mouths shut]]?
* ''ComicStrip/DickTracy'': Mr. Bribery employed the Ecuadoran native Nah Tay as a front for his criminal enterprise, and used Nah Tay's skill at shrinking heads to intimidate his associates. Bribery kept a collection of the shruken heads of his enemies under glass covers.
* ''ComicStrip/PiranhaClub'': Some South American headhunters kindnap Uncle Sid's pet piranha, Ernest, and replace him with the shrunken head of [[StockUnsolvedMysteries Jimmy Hoffa]].
[[/folder]]

* The ''Escape'' episode "Price of the Head" has a drunken loafer befriended by a South Seas islander; eventually the drunk commits murder and the islander offers to take him to his own home island. It turns out the loafer has a fine head of bright red hair, and having it as a trophy will make the native very powerful among his tribe...

* In ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'', [[AllTrollsAreDifferent Trolls]] are savage creatures (well, some of them) and practicioners of HollywoodVoodoo. Shrunken heads often show up in their culture, as trophies collected by their Headhunters or magic items used by their {{Witch Doctor}}s.

* A non-horror/superstition example. A case in ''VideoGame/LANoire'' features a shrunken head as a prominent clue. However, being a movie prop, it isn't actually real.

* ''VideoGame/GhostPiratesOfVoojuIsland'': Yamo is just a shrunken head who can't be understood, except by Papa Doc.
* ''VideoGame/HeroesOfTheStorm'': The Witch Doctor carries a shrunken Troll head.
* ''VideoGame/EdEddNEddyTheMisEdventures'': When the player collects a specific Easter Egg by chasing down a chicken, they will unlock the ability to shrink or grow the Eds' heads.

* Having fled the mansion of the MadScientist, ''WesternAnimation/JosieAndThePussyCats'' are soon captured by a tribe of Amazon natives. LovableCoward Alex Cabot wonders what the natives will do with their captives. GadgeteerGenius Valerie shows him some shrunken heads, and replies, "Do these answer your question?" Fortunately, the Pussy Cats are able to use the natives' superstition to effect an escape.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS13E1TreehouseOfHorrorXII Treehouse of Horror XII - Hex and the City]]": Homer sets off the fire sprinklers in the shop of a FortuneTeller and the shower re-hydrates the shrunken heads that she was keeping on a shelf.
-->'''Head''': Wait a minute, this isn't Cedars Sinai!
** The FortuneTeller is later seen using a hair-dryer to re-shrink the heads.

* The film of ''Film/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban'' has a number of [[OracularHead talking]] shrunken heads, most prominently the one on the Knight Bus that speaks instead of Ernie, the bus driver. They are mostly wise-cracking PluckyComicRelief characters, although they also provide some exposition. They [[CanonForeigner don't appear in the book]], though [[CreatorPreferredAdaptation J.K. Rowling has said she wishes she'd thought of it]]. The Knight Bus shrunken head reappears in the DVD extras interacting with the filmmakers, making it a sort of mascot for the film.

* The film of ''Film/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban'' has a number of [[OracularHead talking]] shrunken heads, most prominently the one on the Knight Bus that speaks instead of Ernie, the bus driver. They are mostly wise-cracking PluckyComicRelief characters, although they also provide some exposition. They [[CanonForeigner don't appear in the book]], though [[CreatorPreferredAdaptation J.K. Rowling has said she wishes she'd thought of it]].

-->'''Beetlejuice''': Is this a good look for me?

[[folder:Film -- Animated]]

[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]

* Creator/RobertBloch's short story "The Cure", which like many Bloch stories centers around a punny twist-- you can probably guess what given that it's listed here. Later adapted as an episode of ''Series/AlfredHitchcockPresents''.

[[folder:Comic Strips]]
* ''ComicStrip/DickTracy'': Mr. Bribery employed the Ecuadoran native Nah Tay as a front for his criminal enterprise, and used Nah Tay's skill at shrinking heads to intimidate his associates. Bribery kept a collection of the shruken heads of his enemies under glass covers.
[[/folder]]

* ''Literature/{{Goosebumps}}'': In ''How I Got My Shrunken Head'', the protagonist receives a shrunken head from his aunt, who's a scientist researching the island of Baladora. He later finds out that it glows because he possesses "Jungle Magic".

[[quoteright:350:[[Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanAtWorldsEnd https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/shrunkenhead2_6558.png]]]]

Part of HollywoodVoodoo. Related to BattleTrophy and HumanHeadOnTheWall. JustForFun/NotToBeConfusedWith TinyHeadedBehemoth, or the ''other'' meaning of "[[TheShrink head shrinking]]."

->''"Over here is Chief Momi. He's the jungle's head salesman, but lately his sales have been shrinking."''

* The ''Ride/JungleCruise'' in the Ride/DisneyThemeParks has a native witch doctor at the end holding a few of these, seemingly to sell to passing tourists. River guides at this point will usually insert an IncrediblyLamePun.