History NeverTrustATrailer / AnimatedFilms

* Early press material for ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfTintin'' made it sound like Thom(p)son and Thom(p)son were the ''villains''. In reality, they are two bumbling cops who serve as comic relief.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TujkyDm4Oz8 The trailer]] for ''WesternAnimation/TheBraveLittleToaster'' describes the movie as cheerful and "sure to warm your spirits." It is, at times, but it's largely also something of a drama. Not to mention the several deaths and at least one suicide in the movie.

* ''WesternAnimation/CharlottesWeb'': The original theatrical trailer calls the film "the happiest movie of the year.", ignoring the fact that [[spoiler: it has a BittersweetEnding in which Charlotte dies]]. Some of the trailer's main clips of Charlotte singing are actually from [[spoiler: her death scene: attentive viewers will notice her half-closed eyes and weak voice.]] On a more minor note, it calls Jeffrey a "duckling" when actually he's a gosling.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheMitchellsVsTheMachines'' ads tended to go in the direction of NewTechnologyIsEvil, strongly implying that dependency on cell phones and communication devices is a bad thing, as typified by PhoneaholicTeenager Katie Mitchell and her conflict with her father Rick. The actual film defies these messages outright, and much of it is dedicated to the good things that technology gives people (such as greater interconnectedness and the ability to find one's own community), with the above views being credited to Rick's status as a [[TechnologicallyBlindElders Technologically Blind Elder]] who has trouble connecting to Katie, and something he grows past. It does take a dismal view on tech ''companies'', but it's more in the "they abuse their power if unregulated and have the potential to create destruction" vein than "they create those damn smartphones that my kids are on all the time."

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64lqQKG6KAA The original theatrical trailer]] describes Sykes as "the vicious villain determined to destroy Oliver." While he does [[spoiler:cause Oliver's DisneyDeath just before his own very real ([[FamilyUnfriendlyDeath and very brutal]]) death]], that's pretty much the extent of their direct interactions throughout the entire movie. In the actual movie, he's a LoanShark who spends much of the movie terrorizing Fagin [[spoiler:before moving on to Jenny]].

** In ''WesternAnimation/IceAge2TheMeltdown'', several trailers fail to mention or acknowledge [[KidAppealCharacter Crash and Eddie]], as well as Ellie's role or purpose in the film. However, [[TrailerJokeDecay one frequently-aired commercial did show the "I believe I can fly!" scene]] (a scene which involves Crash and Eddie).

* A lot of people didn't want to see ''WesternAnimation/{{Coraline}}'', even ranting about how it wasn't as scary as the book, after seeing the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9bOpeuvNwY theatrical trailer]], which made it seem more kid-friendly. This resulted in several people missing out on the film itself, and [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids many parents escorting terrified and crying children out of the theaters]]. Coincidentally, Creator/NeilGaiman cited the happy, childish trailer as his favourite. The theatrical trailer for Coraline is honestly pretty terrifying and accurate to the actual movie but the TV spots make it seem like lighthearted children's fare.

* The ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory'' franchise:
** ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory1'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L57fb5gtVWE trailers and TV Spots]]:
*** In the trailer, there is a clip where Buzz Lightyear says, "You're mocking me, aren't you?" and pushes a tool box off a shelf and onto Woody. Given the context of the prior scenes shown, it seems as though Buzz is getting revenge. In the actual context of the scene, Buzz is really trying to help Woody escape (he continues to push the tool box without knowing that Woody managed to get out), and the real line he says is "Almost... there..." The line as said in the trailer is actually used earlier on in the film, around the point where Sid is introduced.
*** A TV spot has Buzz saying "I changed my laser from stun to kill" and Woody replying "Oh great, now we can blink them to death" edited into the scene where they are riding on RC and being chased by Sid's dog.
*** When another TV spot shows the part where Little Bo Peep flirts with Woody, they added in a soundbite of Buzz saying "Don't even think about it, cowboy!". In reality, this is before Buzz is introduced.
*** One TV spot for a TV broadcast of ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory1'' has a character roll call, and the character, Hamm is credited as "Pig E. Bank".
*** Since the original theatrical run was during the holiday season, one TV spot consisted largely of footage from the Christmas epilogue, making the movie look like a Christmas story when most of it actually takes place in the summer. Likewise, since the original VHS release was on October 29, one of the TV spots for it consisted only of the movie's creepiest moments, making it look like a scary movie for Halloween.
** The trailer for ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory3'' hid the darker elements of the plot and made it look like the film was going to have the happy tone of the last two films, [[spoiler: [[TrailersAlwaysSpoil but in the later trailers it almost revealed that the real plot]] was an [[MoodWhiplash emotional rollercoaster.]]]]
*** The initial trailer for ''Toy Story 3'' was edited to make it appear that Buzz had been damaged when he attempted to leave the daycare, which is why the other toys had to reset him and accidentally made him speak Spanish. In the actual film, Buzz merely escaped the Caterpillar Room and was reset by Lotso and his gang to turn against the other toys.
** The focus on Forky in the ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory4'' trailers had audiences anticipating a more existential look at exactly what makes a toy a toy. However, Forky's identity crisis is resolved early in the movie, his ability to be animate [[TheUnreveal not able to be explained,]] and the movie's themes are more about the ''purpose'' of a toy, regardless of origins.

* ''Franchise/TheIncredibles'' franchise:
** In ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', like other trailers for Pixar films, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UaGUdNJdRQ the trailer]] is basically a sketch that doesn't appear in the film, but the trailer is also deliberately misleading in that it changes all the memorabilia in Bob's office to indicate that he has always worn the red Mr. Incredible suit, as opposed to the blue one. Even worse: the sketch depicts him answering a hotline phone in his office with a voice on the other end saying, "Mr. Incredible, we need your help." In the movie's main timeline, superheroes are outlawed and Bob is underground.
*** The theatrical trailer also shows the superheroes from E's "no capes!" montage...and cuts away right before they all die.
*** Jack-Jack was featured prominently in promotional material in his supersuit even though he does not go on any adventures. He does, however, play a major role in the sequel.
** ''WesternAnimation/Incredibles2'': The scene of Bob discovering Jack-Jack's powers is altered for the trailer. In the trailer, they're in their house, but in the movie, the scene takes place in the backyard. Additionally, Jack-Jack doesn't singe Bob's hair in the actual movie.
*** "The elephant in the room" isn't Mom's new job. The scene, in fact, occurs well before the job offer. It's actually the fact that the attempt to stop the Underminer at the beginning went horribly wrong.
*** The trailers and the television spots for the movie made it seem like the main focus will be on Bob learning to adjust to being a HouseHusband. It's actually the ''B-Plot'' of the movie, with the main story actually being Helen's search to take down Screenslaver.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', like other trailers for Pixar films, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UaGUdNJdRQ the trailer]] is basically a sketch that doesn't appear in the film, but the trailer is also deliberately misleading in that it changes all the memorabilia in Bob's office to indicate that he has always worn the red Mr. Incredible suit, as opposed to the blue one. Even worse: the sketch depicts him answering a hotline phone in his office with a voice on the other end saying, "Mr. Incredible, we need your help." In the movie's main timeline, superheroes are outlawed and Bob is underground.
* ''WesternAnimation/Incredibles2'': The scene of Bob discovering Jack-Jack's powers is altered for the trailer. In the trailer, they're in their house, but in the movie, the scene takes place in the backyard. Additionally, Jack-Jack doesn't singe Bob's hair in the actual movie.

* Parodied in the trailer for ''WesternAnimation/AquaTeenHungerForce Colon Movie Film for Theaters'', which gives a long list of things that '''do not''' appear in the movie. Except the flaming chicken.

* A lot of people didn't want to see ''WesternAnimation/{{Coraline}}'', even ranting about how it wasn't as scary as the book, after seeing the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9bOpeuvNwY theatrical trailer]], which made it seem more kid-friendly. This resulted in several people missing out on the film itself, and [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids many parents escorting terrified and crying children out of the theaters]]. Coincidentally, Creator/NeilGaiman cited the happy, childish trailer as his favourite. The theatrical trailer for Coraline is honestly pretty terrifying and accurate to the actual movie but the TV spots make it seem like lighthearted children's fare.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheMitchellsVsTheMachines'' ads tended to go in the direction of NewTechnologyIsEvil, strongly implying that dependency on cell phones and communication devices is a bad thing, as typified by PhoneaholicTeenager Katie Mitchell and her conflict with her father Rick. The actual film defies these messages outright, and much of it is dedicated to the good things that technology gives people (such as greater interconnectedness and the ability to find one's own community), with the above views being credited to Rick's status as a TechnologicallyBlindElder who has trouble connecting to Katie, and something he grows past. It does take a dismal view on tech ''companies'', but it's more in the "they abuse their power if unregulated and have the potential to create destruction" vein than "they create those damn smartphones that my kids are on all the time."

* ''WesternAnimation/TheMitchellsVsTheMachines'' ads tended to go in the direction of NewTechnologyAreEvil, strongly implying that dependency on cell phones and communication devices is a bad thing, as typified by the PhoneAddictedTeenager. The actual film defies these messages outright, and much of it is dedicated to the good things that technology gives people (such as greater interconnectedness and the ability to find one's own community), with the above views being credited to the father's status as a TechnologyBlindElder who has trouble connecting to his kids, and something he grows past. It does take a dismal view on tech ''companies'', but it's more in the "they abuse their power if unregulated and have the potential to create destruction" vein than "they create those damn smartphones that my kids are on all the time."

* ''WesternAnimation/TheMitchellsVsTheMachines'' ads tended to go in the direction of TechnologyIsBad and NewMediaAreEvil, strongly implying that dependency on cell phones and communication devices is a bad thing. The actual film defies these messages outright, and much of it is dedicated to the good things that technology gives people (such as greater interconnectedness and the ability to find one's own community), with the above views being credited to the father's status as a TechIlliterateElder who has trouble connecting to his kids, and something he grows past. It does take a dismal view on tech ''companies'', but it's more in the "they abuse their power if unregulated and have the potential to create destruction" vein than "they create those damn smartphones that my kids are on all the time."

* ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles2'': The scene of Bob discovering Jack-Jack's powers is altered for the trailer. In the trailer, they're in their house, but in the movie, the scene takes place in the backyard. Additionally, Jack-Jack doesn't singe Bob's hair in the actual movie.

* Similarly, an early trailer for ''Film/TeamAmericaWorldPolice'' gave a long list of actors and political figures... followed by the note that "They're all going to hate this movie" (since it's a send-up of UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror and directly makes fun of many of them, including having all of them be the villains).

* Similarly, an early trailer for ''Film/TeamAmericaWorldPolice'' gave a long list of actors and political figures... followed by the note that "They're all going to hate this movie" (since it's a send-up of UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror and directly makes fun of many of them).

** All the ads play up the CGI scenes... which take up about 20 minutes of the movie. The majority of the animation in film is actually hand-drawn, with plenty of {{Art Shift}}s.

* ''Dragon Quest: Your Story'' ended up misleading everyone in Japan. The trailers seemed like a straight adaptation of VideoGame/DragonQuestV, and the movie did very well in its first weekend. [[spoiler: However, it turns out that the subtitle for the movie, Your Story, is quite literal, in that the movie's plot ends up being nearly identical to the infamous plot twist of ''Star Ocean Till The End Of Time," -- the movie is actually about a kid from the real world entering the video game world of Dragon Quest V. Not only was this not implied in any of the marketing for the movie but it ruined the reputation for the movie as a whole, and with V being seen as one of the most iconic entries in the series next to III, fans were '''not''' happy, to say the least.]] The movie itself would go on to tank in box office sales in the following weekend onwards. It didn't help that movie's director said this was put in because of the increasing popularity of {{Isekai}} stories in Japan and abroad, hoping it would give the movie more of a global appeal, despite there being no plans to release the movie outside of Japan (Though there is a Netflix listing for the movie)...

** According to Creator/TreyParkerAndMattStone's commentary on the film, the trailer the studio originally put together for the film was incredibly misleading, depicting the film as more of a family-friendly comedy. They hated this trailer so much that Matt Stone attempted to ''steal the trailer footage.'' The official trailers were more honest to the film's themes.

----

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W97RmQCnwa4 This exaggerated trailer]] makes the film look like a humorous parody of the disaster movie genre, with the titular character and a group of goofy friends tasked with battling a thrilling and chaotic alien invasion. While the movie itself has an alien invasion plot, it's nowhere near as epic-looking at this trailer makes it to be. ''Chicken Little'' received mostly negative reviews on release and was considered a big disappointment from Disney, and misleading trailers like this certainly didn't help.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W97RmQCnwa4 This exaggerated trailer]] makes the film look like a humorous parody of the disaster movie genre, with the titular character and a group of goofy friends tasked with battling a thrilling and chaotic alien invasion. While the movie itself has an alien invasion plot, it's nowhere near as epic-looking at this trailer makes it to be. ''Chicken Little'' received mostly negative reviews on release and was considered a big disappointment from Disney, and misleading trailers like this certainly didn't help.