History Main / ThisIsAWorkOfFiction

* ''[[FiveHundredDaysOfSummer (500) Days of Summer]]'' begins with the standard disclaimer, and then appends, "[[EspeciallyZoidberg Especially]] [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial you, Jenny Beckman.]] [[ThisIsForEmphasisBitch Bitch.]]"

* ''[[FiveHundredDaysOfSummer (500) Days of Summer]]'' begins with the standard disclaimer, and then appends, "[[EspeciallyZoidberg Especially]] [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial you, Jenny Beckman.]] Bitch."

* ''DirkGently's Holistic Detective Agency'' claims that it bears no resemblance to any people "...living, dead, or wandering the night in ghostly torment."

* The 1969 film ''{{Z}}'', that satirizes the military dictatorship ruling Greece at that time, has the notice: "Any resemblance to actual events, to persons living or dead, is not the result of chance. It is DELIBERATE."

Although not a DeadUnicornTrope, this can easily be mistaken for one by the unobservant. When played straight, the disclaimer is generally buried amid a bunch of similar legalese (at the end of the credits or on the copyright page of the book, for example) where it might be easily missed. More playful versions are generally given much more prominent placement, so everyone can recognize how clever the creators are being.

See also NoCelebritiesWereHarmed, NoCommunitiesWereHarmed and OurLawyersAdvisedThisTrope. Contrast DanBrowned, where you have a work of fiction that the author tries to pass off as true or accurate.

* ''Sick Puppy'' by Carl Hiassen has:
-->This is a work of fiction. All names and characters are either invented or used fictitiously. To the best of the author's knowledge, there is no such licensed product as a Double-Jointed Vampire Barbie, nor is there a cinematic portrayal thereof.\\

However, while most events described in this book are imaginary, the dining habits of the common bovine dung beetle are authentically represented.

--> ''"This novel is fiction, except for the parts that aren't."''

->"Really? I thought water-walking, bisexual, bullet dodging vampires were a regular occurrence these days"

"Really? I thought water-walking, bisexual, bullet dodging vampires were a regular occurrence these days"

-->"This programme is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to the real Plan to Turn Humanity Into Livestock, Ozeki or Che Guevara is purely coincidental."

* Tom Siddell uses this Trope's name almost word for word in the annotation for [[http://www.gunnerkrigg.com/archive_page.php?comicID=380 this]] GunnerkriggCourt strip. However, the the message here is not "Although this looks like it could have really happened, it didn't." but rather [[MST3KMantra "I KNOW this is impossible! It's {{Fantasy}}, OK?]]"

* ''TheGoodWife'' had an interesting take on this where a film studio made a movie about a ''[[TheSocialNetwork Mark Zuckerberg]]'' Expy internet billionaire and got sued for defamation. If they admit that they intentionally made the guy look bad they are guilty of defamation. If they publicly say that the movie was [[ThisIsAWorkOfFiction a work of fiction]] then the movie loses a lot of its appeal since they based their advertising and ProductPlacement on the fact that it is an accurate depiction of actual events.

* ''TheGoodWife'' had an interesting take on this where a film studio made a movie about a ''[[SocialNetwork Mark Zuckerberg]]'' Expy internet billionaire and got sued for defamation. If they admit that they intentionally made the guy look bad they are guilty of defamation. If they publicly say that the movie was [[ThisIsAWorkOfFiction a work of fiction]] then the movie loses a lot of its appeal since they based their advertising and ProductPlacement on the fact that it is an accurate depiction of actual events.

* ''SenkouNoNightRaid'' which is set in China in 1931 and deals in a great part with the events leading up to the SecondSinoJapaneseWar, had this disclaimer at the end of every episode:

** This is pretty gutsy from a series that in fact goes against the popular (in Japan) interpretation by not ignoring Japan's role in what happened and presenting it as a bad thing.

* ''SenkouNoNightRaid'' which is set in China in 1931 and deals in a great part with the events leading up to the SecondSinoJapaneseWar, had this disclaimer at the end of every episode: ''This is a work of fiction. Although it is based on real historical events, the characters have been created for the sake of this story. We are not trying to present a new interpretation of the era and events.'' This is pretty gutsy from a series that in fact goes against the popular (in Japan) interpretation by not ignoring Japan's role in what happened and presenting it as a bad thing.

Unless you believe in them...

See also NoCelebritiesWereHarmed, NoCommunitiesWereHarmed and OurLawyersAdvisedThisTrope.

** The first-season ''L&O'' episode "Indifference" ended with a caption and voice-over pointing out the differences between its storyline and the real-life child-killing of Lisa Steinberg. This remains the only explicit disclaimer of a real case in the franchise's history.

''This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.''

Some form of this disclaimer can be found at the front of nearly every novel out there as well as in the credits of most films and TV episodes. It's an attempt to stave off libel suits; it seems to have been originated as a response to a suit against the makers of the 1932 film ''Rasputin and the Empress'' by a Russian princess who believed one of the characters to have been modeled on her. Think of it as the more professional equivalent of IDoNotOwn (though, as publishing companies and Hollywood studios unlike fanfic authors actually have lawyers working for them, it's more likely to carry some amount of legal force).

This disclaimer is sometimes included even when it's a {{Blatant Lie|s}}, especially when [[HistoricalDomainCharacter the real people in question lived long enough ago that they're not going to sue anybody]]. (And sometimes publishers make the mistake of putting it in books openly BasedOnATrueStory, e.g. the [[http://www.nizkor.org/features/denial-of-science/schindler-04.html first printing of the Touchstone paperback edition]] of ''[[SchindlersList Schindler's List]]''.) Works BasedOnATrueStory may use a modified disclaimer, acknowledging the historical basis for the work but stating that it doesn't necessarily conform 100% to history.

Although not a DeadUnicornTrope, this can easily be mistaken for one by the unobservant. When played straight, the disclaimer is generally buried among a bunch of similar legalese (at the end of the credits or on the copyright page of the book, for example) where it might be easily missed. More playful versions are generally given much more prominent placement, so everyone can recognize how clever the creators are being.

!!Interesting uses: [[hottip:*:As the disclaimer itself is ubiquitous, only parodies, [[BasedOnATrueStory inversions]], InUniverse examples, and the like should be listed.]]

[[AC:Anime]]

[[AC:Film -- Live Action]]

[[AC:Literature]]
* ''AmericanGods'' has a long version of the disclaimer, including discussion of precisely how real certain locations discussed in the book are, and ending "Furthermore, it goes without saying that all the people, living, dead, and otherwise in this story are fictional or used in a fictional context. Only the gods are real."

* [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] in MichaelCrichton's ''{{Next}}'', an AuthorTract about the dangers of genetic engingeering loosely based on some real events.

[[AC:Music]]
* "...any persons living, dead or undead" is also used by the music video for ''Thriller'' (which, like ''An American Werewolf in London'', was directed by John Landis).

* Used at the beginning of ''MetalGearSolid 2'' (and that game alone), because it was written in 1999, depicted terrorist attacks in New York, and [[TooSoon was completed in September, 2001]].

[[AC:Western Animation]]

-->"All characters and events in this show --even those based on real people-- are entirely fictional. All celebrity voices are impersonated ... [[SelfDeprecation poorly]]. The following program contains coarse language and due to its content it should not be viewed by anyone."
* The [[CouchGag opening caption]] in the ''{{Futurama}}'' episode "The Route of All Evil" is "DISCLAIMER: Any resemblance to actual robots would be really cool".

[[AC:Literature]]