History Main / TenLittleMurderVictims

* ''Series/Whodunnit2013'' also did this, although played much more straight here. The contestants were all ostensibly invited to the RealityTVShowMansion by Giles, the show's host, under the killer's anonymous orders as their employee. Giles [[MouthOfSauron receives and passes on instructions]] from TheMole, who "kills" each episode's worst-performing player in some convoluted way, thus presenting a mystery for the contestants to figure out in the next airing.

* ''Series/Whodunnit2013'' also did this, although played much more straight here. The contestants were all ostensibly invited to the RealityTVShowMansion by Giles, the show's host, under the killer's anonymous orders. Giles receives and passes on instructions from TheMole, who "kills" each episode's worst-performing player in some convoluted way, thus presenting a mystery for the contestants to figure out in the next airing.

* ''Film/SawII'' has a group of apparent strangers finding themselves locked in an abandoned house, which is obviously full of Jigsaw's traps. They soon begin to learn that something links them all together... And one of the "survivors" was actually in on it.

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]

[[folder:Film -- Live Action]]

* ''Film/SawII'' has a group of apparent strangers finding themselves locked in an abandoned house, which is obviously full of Jigsaw's traps. They soon begin to learn that something links them all together...

[[folder:Theater]]

* One arc of the manga ''Manga/BlackButler'' follows this trope's description to the letter, complete with large, dark mansion, gathering of wealthy guests, and the raging storm that means no one gets to go home. (And Ciel is most definitely fitting enough for the role of "mysterious host".) [[spoiler:It turns out to be some bizarre, mind-boggling combination of E and I and involving one of the "victims" faking his own death]].

** In the very first book, when Councillor William Blackstone is found dead. the title characters order the house sealed, with everyone stuck inside. The other guests start dropping dead soon after.

* ''Series/{{Whodunnit}}'' also did this, although played much more straight here. The contestants were all ostensibly invited to the RealityTVShowMansion by Giles, the show's host, under the killer's anonymous orders. Giles receives and passes on instructions from TheMole, who "kills" each episode's worst-performing player in some convoluted way, thus presenting a mystery for the contestants to figure out in the next airing.

* A: One person will seem to actively hinder the investigation. He'll drop the radio, breaking it just before a description of TheMole is broadcast. He'll have a panic attack at a critical moment endangering the group. He'll be suspiciously uninformed about whatever his job is supposed to be. This person is ''never'' TheMole. [[RedHerringMole He's just an idiot.]] (See HanlonsRazor.)

* In the ''WesternAnimation/{{Metalocalypse}}'' fanfic [[https://archiveofourown.org/works/278242 Deth by Murder]], Nathan desires to have a murder mystery dinner, and Offdensen takes the opportunity to 'clean house', as it were, by eliminating people that were threats to Dethklok, such as Damien Cornickelson (who had tried to force Dethklok into a byzantine contract that only benefitted him), Pickles's brother Seth (a constant thorn in Pickles's side since Pickles was TheUnfavorite of his family), and Dr. Twinkletits (fradulent psychology degree and disrespected Dethklok). Notably, both Dr. Rockso and Dick Knubbler were GenreSavvy enough to realize this would happen, with Rockso fighting the Klokateers on going, and Knubbler preparing a dossier explaining why he should be spared. [[spoiler:Offdensen had no intention of killing Knubbler, and had invited him to keep Murderface company when Murderface inevitably had a hissy fit. As for Rockso, he accuses Offdensen of the murders, and Nathan, not wanting him to go to jail, accuses Rockso instead of the murders. Luckily, Nathan found plausible enough motives to pin it on Rockso and a Klokateer planted evidence on him that 'proved' it, and Rockso is dragged away to be arrested.]] Skwisgaar still thinks TheButlerDidIt, though.

* The 2020 miniseries ''The Head'' involves several murders among the ten people wintering over on an isolated Antarctic research station, though this trope only becomes apparent halfway through when it turns out events are related to a death on a previous research station several years earlier.

* In volume 30 of ''Manga/DetectiveConan'', {{Captain Ersatz}}es of famous detectives were invited to an abandoned mansion and die off one by one. [[spoiler:Only one of them actually died. The rest faked their deaths once they deduced who the real killer was in order to PullTheThread on her]].

* Referenced by title, and played with, in the ''Series/{{Leverage}}'' episode "The 10 Li'l Grifters Job". TheMark invites all his favorite enemies to a murder mystery dinner party. Right after announcing that someone is about to die, the lights go off, and someone actually kills him. Nathan, realizing that he would be the prime suspect, has to figure out who actually committed the murder...while simultaneously trying to convince the rest of the guests that it's actually [[AllPartOfTheShow all part of the event]].

** In ''Wolf in the Wolf'', when Hawk and Fisher go undercover in a tower belonging to a noble family, they once again get sealed in for a day, with a mysterious murderer on the loose.

* In ''Film/SistersOfDeath'', there are two moles: The one responsible for Liz Clyburn's death seven years earlier and a witness who knew the gun had real bullets in it but stayed silent. The latter turns out to be [[spoiler:Sylvia]]. The former, [[spoiler:Judy]] claimed that Liz switched the rounds herself to commit suicide. [[spoiler: [[ShockingSwerve Judy lied.]]]]

* ''Film/{{Alien 3}}'', which has been described as "''Literature/AndThenThereWereNone'' [[RecycledInSpace in outer space]]" by Entertainment Weekly, had the entire population of Fiorina 'Fury' 161, save for one prisoner (Morse), killed off by the xenomorph that had infiltrated the prison. [[spoiler:This includes Ellen Ripley herself, who died as a combined result of the chestbursting chewing its way out of her, and a suicide dive into the prison's metalworks]].

* By the end of ''Film/TheLadykillers1955'', the robbers have all killed one another except the Professor, who is struck on the head by a railway semaphore. Little Mrs Wilberforce is left with all the "lolly".

* Before the Liam Neeson flick of the same title, a film called ''Film/{{Unknown|2006}}'' combined this with EasyAmnesia and ParanoiaFuel. Several men, some of them kidnappers and others, their kidnappees, wake up with no memories and find themselves locked in a warehouse, having all been overcome by an accidentally-released toxic gas. A brief phone call from the kidnappers' accomplices reveals that more thugs will arrive soon, and presumably kill the ones who aren't on their side, but none of the trapped men know if they're the culprits or the victims...

** Heck, [[spoiler: the Freys]] are also busy being hamstrung by the fact that they're quietly being incrementally murdered ''outside'' Winterfell, too -- despite having taken hostages as a precaution to try preventing this outcome. [[spoiler: That's right, folks: most of the Riverlands is quietly aiding and abetting anybody who kills Freys, however they kill those Freys and with whatever excuse they can think of using to do it, particularly if they happen to be attached to the [[JustLikeRobinHood Brotherhood Without Banners]], so... PlausibleDeniability.]] The region isn't exactly being very picky, since the family has annoyed it ''that'' much over decades by being the local pains. This is what happens when you dedicatedly turn yourself into House AssholeVictim and then give everybody with a grudge a fairly socially acceptable, justifiable excuse to swoop and take you to the cleaners. By proxy. And, alongside everybody else. Even the less involved, more innocent members of the family are in acute danger of getting murdered either by the actual neighbours or with said neighbours' tacit support -- and, with nobody raising much of a stink about where the suddenly freed-up lands or anything may go... can we say out-of-control CycleOfRevenge? Yeah: it's that. And, a nice excuse to land-grab on the side.

* ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManAndHisAmazingFriends'': In "Seven Little Superheroes," [[MasterOfDisguise the Chameleon]] invites Spider-Man, Iceman, Firestar, Captain America, Doctor Strange, Namor the Sub-Mariner, and Shanna the She-Devil to an island where they are trapped by a forcefield and targeted one at a time. The episode's name even reflects the alternate name of the novel. [[spoiler: Too bad Aunt May's puppy sneaks in and then becomes a SpannerInTheWorks since she acts as an EvilDetectingDog...]]

* ''VideoGame/AmongUs'' is this trope RecycledInSpace. One or two alien Imposters versus a crew of astronauts.

* Several of Creator/SimonRGreen's ''Hawk And Fisher'' stories use this trope. His Literature/SecretHistories novel ''The Spy Who Haunted Me'' has a variant that plays out among spies held together in a group by the terms of their mission, rather than by geographic isolation.

* Two, count them, TWO ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'' episodes featured this trope: "Mystery Train" and "The Creeps". [[spoiler:Both of them were practical jokes that all the apparently "killed" people were in on]].

** Oddly, while it's established mid-way through book five that most of the murders were committed by [[spoiler: Maynce Raydner and his spear-wives, they deny killing one victim in particular (Little Walder Frey), meaning that there are at least two sets of independent murderers in Winterfell.]]

* ''VideoGame/AmongUs'' practically runs off this trope. One or two Imposters versus a crew of people.

** The episode "Proving Ground" took the theme UpToEleven. Given that the SGC's primary foes are {{Body Snatcher}}s, they select new members through complex training exercises where EveryoneIsASuspect [[TheMole Mole]]. These exercises tend to be {{Total Party Kill}}s. One particularly promising group that refuses to get their act together finds that their umpteenth test is NotAGame. [[spoiler:It was a game with one of their own being a ReverseMole whose job was to up the ante. When they knew it was all a game, they slacked off. When they thought it wasn't, they ended up distinguishing themselves under fire and becoming a quality team]].

* ''{{Franchise/Danganronpa}}'':

** ''VisualNovel/SuperDanganRonpa2'' goes a step further by having the mastermind reveal ''from the start'' that one of the sixteen students is a "traitor". [[spoiler:However, this "traitor" is not a murderer but an observer sent to ''help'' the students. Furthermore, the knowledge of this "traitor"'s presence does not drive anyone to murder out of paranoia: the victim of Chapter 5 does take lengths to flush out the traitor, but it is decidedly not "murder out of paranoia". In fact, his goal is actually to ''kill everyone but the traitor''.]]