| 1 | %% |
| 2 | %% |
| 3 | %% STAFF NOTICE |
| 4 | %% |
| 5 | %% Due to the nature of this trope, finding a proper image will be very tricky. |
| 6 | %% Thus, do not add an image without bringing it to Image Pickin' first. |
| 7 | %% IP thread for reference: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1473185825084868500 |
| 8 | %% |
| 9 | %% NOTE TO EDITORS: The entries in each folder are alphabetized by name to make them easier to find and reduce the probability of duplicate entries being added. Please add new entries to the appropriate place alphabetically rather than automatically adding them to the end of the list. |
| 10 | %% |
| 11 | ->"''Well, I don't have to see the movie now.''" |
| 12 | -->-- StockPhrase by moviegoers after seeing certain trailers in previews. |
| 13 | |
| 14 | !!As this trope concerns spoilers, unmarked spoilers follow. Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned! |
| 15 | ---- |
| 16 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 17 | |
| 18 | [[folder:''Marvel Cinematic Universe'']] |
| 19 | Early in its formation, the ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'' had a bad reputation for spoiling key story beats in its trailers and TV spots. This was addressed in later films, with the marketing campaigns for entries like ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar'' and ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'' deliberately editing footage in order to hide certain characters or plot reveals: |
| 20 | * In ''Film/IronMan1'', the first theatrical trailer spoils almost every major plot point -- that Tony is captured by a group of terrorists, manages to escape with his own kitbashed armor, makes it back to America, builds a second version of his suit, tests it in amusing ways, faces off against a pair of military jets, and fights an enemy similar to himself being piloted by Creator/JeffBridges (with the armor closing around his head being shown). The post-credits scene is the only really cool thing in the movie that ''wasn't'' shown in the trailer. |
| 21 | * A trailer for ''Film/TheIncredibleHulk2008'' shows Creator/RobertDowneyJr appearing as [[Film/IronMan1 Tony Stark]]. This is ''the last scene in the movie''. Besides that, the theatrical trailer shows you everything else in the movie: that the Hulk is being pursued around the world by an elite military force, that one member has a pretty bad grudge against him, that they capture the Hulk and derive a Hulk-making serum from him, which they use on said soldier, which turns him into another Hulk, and the two have a big showdown fight. |
| 22 | * The first trailer for ''The Avengers'' subverted this trope. All you could tell from the trailer that the villain really, REALLY hated cars because there they were, being destroyed ...Until the SECOND trailer, which clearly shows and has several voice-overs from Loki. |
| 23 | * A minor controversy arouse after a TV spot for ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'' seemingly spoiled the death of ComicBook/NickFury. Even more erroneously, the fact that there were still several scenes with Fury in the trailer that hadn't appeared yet by the time his "death" came up spoiled that he actually survived. |
| 24 | ** The trailers and TV spots also have several prominent shots of the Winter Soldier unmasked, showing that he's ComicBook/BuckyBarnes. This is hardly a revelation to comic fans, but came as a surprise to audience members who hadn't read the source material. |
| 25 | ** All the trailers also showed Cap fighting in his original outfit from the first film, spoiling that he switches to it from his S.H.I.E.L.D. outfit he starts out with. |
| 26 | * Some TV spots for ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy2014'' showed off Baby Groot, which made it kind of obvious how he came back from his HeroicSacrifice. |
| 27 | * ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron'': |
| 28 | ** The billing on the final theatrical poster spoils that Creator/AnthonyMackie, Creator/IdrisElba, and Creator/HayleyAtwell have cameos as ComicBook/TheFalcon, Heimdall, and Peggy Carter respectively. What makes it odd is that Marvel previously went to great lengths to avoid revealing said cameos, to the extent that in interviews, Mackie went into borderline LyingCreator mode to express disappointment at not being asked to reprise his role. |
| 29 | ** Several trailers for the film a few weeks before release revealed that ComicBook/ScarletWitch and ComicBook/{{Quicksilver}} would turn on ComicBook/{{Ultron}} and join The Avengers. While long-term fans of the comic know that the pair are former villains turned longtime members of the team, they still spoiled a nice twist for those that didn't. The final theatrical poster also spoiled this by showing the two fighting alongside the Avengers, despite the previous trailer showing them fighting ''against'' the heroes. |
| 30 | ** A Japanese trailer pretty much gave away the whole subplot about ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}} being HappilyMarried, which was originally one of the most confidential parts of the movie before its world premiere. One of the Japanese posters even features Hawkeye embracing his children. |
| 31 | ** Ahead of the film's release, it was revealed that the movie would feature a "big death" in the final battle. Some astute fans noticed that there was a serious lack of merchandise for Quicksilver, and claimed this was evidence that he would be the one to die. [[IKnewIt They were correct.]] |
| 32 | ** The trailer prominently shows Wanda giving an anguished SkywardScream. Once you watch the movie, she has a very calm, calculating personality, making it clear that the only thing that could possibly force ''that'' level of emotion out of her would be the death of her beloved twin brother. Which is exactly what happens. |
| 33 | * A foreign TV spot for ''Film/AntMan1'' spoiled the surprise appearance from ComicBook/TheFalcon. The American TV spots soon followed suit, likely to play up the film's connections to ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron''. |
| 34 | * ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar'': |
| 35 | ** The fight between Iron Man and Cap/Bucky was heavily featured in promotional trailers. Yet towards the end, the three are teamed up for the final assault on the Hydra compound and that scene hasn't yet occurred. Obviously, something is going to happen to change matters. |
| 36 | ** The production team finally decided to get wise at this point, hiding Spider-Man's appearance in the airport fight by digitally removing him from the Team Iron Man lineup. However, this didn't exactly work, as the Japanese marketing did no such thing, and eagle-eyed viewers could see him running in the lineup in several foreign TV spots. |
| 37 | * Many were put off by the second trailer for ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'' due to the high possibility that it gives away several key plot-points of the movie that allows for the viewers to picture it in their head how the entire movie will be structured. One of these plot-points being the resolution of the battle that goes down on the ferry. The resolution being that Spider-Man screwed up the fight against the Vulture, so Iron Man has to come in and salvage the problem himself. Another dead giveaway the trailer provides is an interaction between Peter and Tony where it becomes quite clear that Tony is planning to take the Spider-Man suit back since he now believes that Peter isn't ready to be a superhero after screwing up the ferry battle. Adding to this near the end of the trailer, what looks to be the final battle between Spider-Man and the Vulture on an airplane high up in the sky, Spider-Man is seen wearing what looks like a makeshift supersuit he made himself. As a result, it becomes quite obvious that at some point in the movie, either Tony Stark goes through with taking back the Spider-Man suit, or Peter ditches it at some point. |
| 38 | * In ''Film/ThorRagnarok'', there is a big buildup to the Grandmaster's undefeated, savage, incredible champion, whose appearance was apparently intended to be a twist... except the trailers and posters all prominently feature the Hulk, including his entrance to the arena in gladiator gear. |
| 39 | * ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'': |
| 40 | ** At the Phase 3 announcement event, Marvel showed off an exclusive teaser trailer for the film, which mostly consisted of footage from previous movies. During a montage showing off the Infinity Stones from the past Marvel movies, a shot of Comicbook/{{Loki}}'s scepter from the first movie was included, spoiling that it was an Infinity Stone before this plot point was actually revealed in ''Age of Ultron'' a few months later. |
| 41 | ** The first trailer, which debuted in late November of 2017, prominently featured Thor and T'Challa, spoiling the fact that they both make it through their respective films (''Film/ThorRagnarok'' and ''Film/BlackPanther2018'') alive. As a result, when T'Challa is seemingly killed in the latter film, he's NotQuiteDead. Then, in a very, ''very'' questionable move on Disney's part, both films' theatrical runs showed a trailer for ''Infinity War'' before the feature. |
| 42 | ** While the filmmakers attempted to throw off audiences by digitally changing certain shots (namely, how many stones were on Thanos' gauntlet to keep viewers from guessing what point in the film the scenes were from), the marketing also heavily featured a shot of Peter Parker lying on the ground on Titan, telling Tony that "I'm sorry", and a later shot showing Tony appearing to be mourning on the planet. The shots are from the disintegration scene, where Tony watches Peter turn to ash in his arms. |
| 43 | * ''Film/AvengersEndgame'': |
| 44 | ** By necessity, the trailers and TV spots for the film spoil that half of the universe has died, showing several prominent character deaths in flashback (including Falcon, Scarlet Witch and Bucky Barnes). It also strongly implies that Hawkeye's daughter is dead, cutting from a flashback of him spending time with her at their family farm to a shot of him turning to face Natasha, looking distraught. |
| 45 | ** The trailers also spoil the ending of ''Film/AntManAndTheWasp'', showing that Scott Lang was stranded in the Quantum Realm for an unknown amount of time and was presumed dead by the rest of the team, before escaping and learning what happened to the rest of Earth before reuniting with them. |
| 46 | ** The home media ads for Endgame extensively show footage of the enormous battle at the film's climax, which, for obvious reasons, was kept pretty much entirely out of the marketing prior to the film's release in theatres. |
| 47 | * Creator/TomHolland himself recorded a warning not to watch the second trailer for ''Film/SpiderManFarFromHome'' if you haven't managed to watch ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' yet because it prominently references Tony Stark's HeroicSacrifice, an event which not only ends the climactic battle but directly leads into the epilogue. |
| 48 | [[/folder]] |
| 49 | |
| 50 | [[folder:''DC Extended Universe'']] |
| 51 | * ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice''[='=]s second trailer reveals that Batman and Superman eventually put aside their differences and team up with Wonder Woman to fight Doomsday. This example was so prominent that it was featured in a Website/{{Cracked}} article that touched on trailers that spoil key plot points. The article used an old interview from a trailer editor who mentioned that this technique is used to impress investors and help move merchandise. Basically, WB spoiled Wonder Woman and Doomsday's roles in the final battle to [[MerchandiseDriven drive action figure sales]]. A Brazilian Website/TheOnion-like site even ran [[http://www.sensacionalista.com.br/2015/12/03/cinemas-darao-desconto-de-50-em-batman-vs-superman-para-quem-viu-o-ultimo-trailer/ an article]] named "Theaters will give 50% discount on ''Batman v. Superman'' for those who've seen the latest trailer". |
| 52 | * The home media ads for ''Film/Shazam2019'' show Billy's foster siblings in their superhero forms. |
| 53 | * In ''Film/{{Black Adam|2022}}'', the film hints that the titular anti-hero was a young boy who defied his king and was rewarded with the powers of SHAZAM, before being revealed as a RedHerring when he's killed after bestowing his powers onto his father, the true Black Adam. The trailers all reveal that Black Adam was already an adult with a wife and son when he was empowered. This did however get the audience off-guard when they saw his son become a superhero, as there was no hint in the trailers that he would play a greater role than "dead relative". |
| 54 | * The presence of Wonder Woman in ''Film/ShazamFuryOfTheGods'' was spoiled in a promotional video, which came after it became clear the film was tracking very low at the box office. Creator/DavidFSandberg had [[ExecutiveMeddling no control over the decision]] and urged people not to watch said video on social media. |
| 55 | [[/folder]] |
| 56 | |
| 57 | [[folder:A]] |
| 58 | * The trailer for ''Film/TheAdventuresOfPlutoNash'' hits a perfect combination of NeverTrustATrailer and TrailersAlwaysSpoil: not only does it try to sell the movie as reaching Franchise/ThePinkPanther-esque levels of ridiculousness[[note]]it would be better described as a science-fiction action movie with comedic moments than as a comedy[[/note]], one of the moments included in their gag reel is the dramatic reveal that Rex Crater is a clone of Pluto Nash -- i.e. ''TheClimax of the entire movie''. |
| 59 | * The trailer for ''Film/{{Affliction}}'' is a very serious example: it shows the ending of the movie, where Nick Nolte's character kills his father and then burns the body. |
| 60 | * The poster for ''Film/{{Airheads}}'' reveals that Chazz, Rex, and Pip are ultimately arrested and sent to prison. |
| 61 | * [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksnwIUyspps This trailer]] for ''Film/AnimalFarm1999'' may be more respectful to the film than [[NeverTrustATrailer the rest of the promotion]], but it also spoils the corruption of the pigs by the end of the movie. |
| 62 | * ''Film/{{Alien}}'' is a famous aversion of the trope, mostly consisting of shots of an egg that begins to crack as ominous music plays (coupled with a quick montage of out-of-context clips). That being said, the focus of many shots on Ellen Ripley (including footage of her running frantically through the ''Nostromo'', peering up over a ladder and closing her eyes when she sees an explosion in front of her) is a giveaway that her role is a bit more important than the [[OutOfFocus initially-unapparent]] background role she has through the first third of the film. |
| 63 | * The trailer for ''Film/{{Aliens}}'' spoils the existence of the Alien Queen, who originally wouldn't be shown until TheReveal to Ripley and Newt during the final sequence in the hive (and in the Director's Cut, would have been [[{{Foreshadowing}} hinted at earlier on]]). The trailer also has a pair of long xenomorph legs descending down a landing ramp, with Ripley looking on as the creature moves out in front of her. This takes place during the final confrontation between Ripley and the Queen onboard the ''Sulaco. |
| 64 | * ''The Alpinist'' is a documentary about the mountain climber Marc-André Leclerc. The film doesn't hide how dangerous climbing can be, but Leclerc's death happens without foreshadowing. The trailer, on the other hand, is about 50% people saying how dangerous climbing can be, and has a radio news report saying that a climber has gone missing. |
| 65 | * ''Film/TheApartment'' had its closing scene revealed in its original trailer. |
| 66 | * ''Film/ArlingtonRoad'''s main plotline involves whether or not Tim Robbins' character is actually a domestic terrorist or just a regular guy. If you've seen the trailer, however, you know the answer. In fact, Jeff Bridges spends much of the DVD commentary complaining about the film's tell-all marketing. |
| 67 | * ''Film/{{Avatar}}'': A major part of the first two-thirds of the film focuses on characters wondering if they can stop the military from attacking the Na'vi. The trailer shows lots and lots and lots of gunfire and [[GunPorn huge robots with rockets, not to mention the Home Tree being destroyed]]. Is Cameron doing this deliberately? |
| 68 | [[/folder]] |
| 69 | |
| 70 | [[folder:B]] |
| 71 | * ''Film/BallsOfFury'' tries really hard to make Feng's identity a secret, despite that Creator/ChristopherWalken is 99% of the star power (the other 1% being Creator/JamesHong). |
| 72 | * Averted and lampshaded in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j063r4O33OE the trailer]] for the 1947 film ''The Bishop's Wife'', in which actors Creator/DavidNiven, Loretta Young, and Creator/CaryGrant all appear as themselves on the Samuel Goldwyn backlot, deciding not to film a trailer because they don't want a trailer to give away the film's surprises. |
| 73 | * The theatrical trailer for ''Film/TheBlackHole'' spoils Durant's death scene as Anthony Perkins' name appears. This trailer also appears on several early Disney VHS tapes. |
| 74 | * Before ''Film/BlackSwan'' won an Oscar, the trailers and TV spots for the film showed Nina's disturbing swan morph, which happens at the end of the film. |
| 75 | * ''Film/Bloodshot2020'''s theatrical trailer spoils TheReveal -- Ray Garrison (Creator/VinDiesel) is being manipulated by his employer, Dr. Emil Harting (Creator/GuyPearce) to eliminate targets using manipulated memories, a development that occurs nearly halfway through the film. And if that wasn't enough, the trailer also spoils that Ray fights one of his fellow soldiers, and has a confrontation with an individual wielding a grenade launcher who has a mechanical hand that looks just like Harting's! |
| 76 | * ''Film/{{Bloodthirsty}}'': The trailer outright states it's a werewolf movie, explicitly shows Grey's transformation, and even has a howl heard at the end. This is in spite of Grey's lycanthropy meaning to be a big reveal on why she has her visions and cravings in the first place. |
| 77 | * The theatrical trailer for ''Film/TheBlueLagoon'' (aside from coming across as a mini-National Geographic documentary) spoils most of the key reveals in the film, including Richard and Emmeline finding Paddy's corpse, the two maturing and falling in love, Em being injured and Richard taking her to the statue, Richard witnessing the tribe sacrificing their own members and fleeing, building a raft, and Em giving birth to a child. |
| 78 | * Several trailers for ''Film/TheBoatThatRocked'' (''Pirate Radio'' in the U.S.) showed the [=DJs=] choosing to ignore the new laws passed to ban pirate radio, and the boat flooding. |
| 79 | * The unusual and lyrical trailer for ''Film/TheBrownBunny'' basically summarizes the whole film: On one side of the screen is Vincent Gallo's character's POV as he drives across the country, while the other side of the screen shows Chloe Sevigny's character at a party, passing out and being loaded onto an ambulance, ultimately spoiling the fact that she died before the movie started and Gallo is in mourning. |
| 80 | * ''Bye Bye Love'''s unbelievably long trailer practically showed you the whole movie, except that it piled on the [[InAWorld Common Comedic Elements]] so thickly that you would think it was ''just'' a romantic comedy. It is, but is much darker and more thoughtful than [[NeverTrustATrailer its trailer would imply]], although this is partly a matter of dramatic pacing. |
| 81 | [[/folder]] |
| 82 | |
| 83 | [[folder:C]] |
| 84 | * ''Film/TheCabinInTheWoods'': TheStinger in the trailer shows the elevator into the Facility, which is supposed to be the third act twist. For context, even the back cover of the DVD release only describes the plot as "bad things happening". |
| 85 | * The trailer for ''Film/{{Carrie 1976}}'' shows all the climax of the film, including the deaths of every significant character, which begs the question of why anyone, having seen it, would actually go and see the film. Worse, ''The 101'' (a Direct TV exclusive channel) advertised it as "A teenage psychic wreaks havoc at her high school prom". Way to not only skewer the plot, but also portray Carrie White as the villain! |
| 86 | * The trailer for ''Film/CastAway'' reveals that Creator/TomHanks makes it off the island in the end. Creator/RobertZemeckis argued afterwards that the audience most of his films are targeted toward ''want'' to know about the plot twists ahead of time rather than having an GenreShift sprung on them. This was invoked with ''Film/BackToTheFuturePartIII'', to assure audiences who were watching ''Part II'' that the story would finish in a matter of months, not years. |
| 87 | * The trailer for ''Film/CharliesAngelsFullThrottle'' revealed the identity of the BigBad (Madison Lee) despite its being set up as a big surprise in the film itself. As if that's not bad enough, in pre-release promotional interviews and press pieces, everyone involved was frank and forthcoming with the BigBad's identity. |
| 88 | * [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ze6M7EbB0R4 This trailer]] for ''Film/CharlieStCloud'' gives away every plot point from the film. |
| 89 | * ''Film/ChildrenOfMen'': The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VT2apoX90o trailer]] reveals Kee's pregnancy, which was carefully set up as a WhamShot in the movie. |
| 90 | * The original ''Theatre/TheChildrensHour'' trailer effectively spoils the entire twist of the story and Martha's suicide. |
| 91 | * The second trailer for ''Film/{{Cinderella 2015}}'' reveals that Lady Tremaine finds and breaks the slipper still with Ella before she can use it to prove who she is. |
| 92 | * [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=o9ri5DYLvkU The Book to Screen featurette]] of ''Film/CliffordTheBigRedDog'' shows the drawing from the end of the film where it is revealed Uncle Casey got a job. |
| 93 | * [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQLZlIoNI8c One trailer]] for ''Film/{{Cocoon}}'' explicitly revealed that Walter, Kitty, et al are aliens. |
| 94 | * ''Film/{{Collateral}}'' treats Tom Cruise/Vincent's occupation as a secret, but you already knew it if you saw any promotion at all. Even critics were unsure how to treat this bit of information, most saying something to the effect of "I guess this is a spoiler, but it's already spoiled." In a hilarious bit of probably accidental hypocrisy, [[https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/collateral-2004 Roger Ebert's review]] kindly tells you not to finish reading it if you don't already know, but the picture and caption at the top of the webpage give it away anyway. |
| 95 | * ''Film/CollateralBeauty'' has a very odd subversion of this phenomenon. The trailers seemingly spoil that the main character, Howard, is visited by the concepts of Death, Love and Time, who are trying to help him get past the death of his child from cancer. This is seemingly a ruse, as the actual premise in the film itself is that Howard's co-workers hire a trio of actors to pose as Death, Love and Time in order to prove that the former isn't in his right mind. Then the ending of the film shows that the "actors" really ''are'' Death, Love and Time -- except they've been helping Howard's co-workers just as much as him. |
| 96 | * Serials by Creator/ColumbiaPictures were particularly bad about this. As a serial, each chapter or episode ended with the hero in a cliffhanger facing certain death... meant to entice the audience back to the theater the next week to see if and how the hero will survive certain death. Columbia, however, always showed clips from the next chapter after the cliffhanger - which, inevitably, showed the very hero involved in the cliffhanger alive and in action. |
| 97 | * ''Film/{{Commando}}'''s plot is already razor-thin anyways, and it's transparently obvious that the bad guys will lose since it's a 1980s-style action movie. So just to really rub salt in the wound, the trailer spoils the movie... by ruining almost all of the best catch phrases, including the immortal, "[[BondOneLiner Let Off Some Steam, Bennett!]]" |
| 98 | * [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrhRsZ56b4g The theatrical trailer]] for ''Film/TheConversation'' spoils the very end of the movie. |
| 99 | * One of the cinematic trailers for ''Film/CowboysAndAliens'' reveals that Olivia Wilde's character is an alien. Trailers also showed her stepping naked out of the fire, so when you watch the movie, you know that she can't really be dead because that scene hasn't happened yet. |
| 100 | * One DVD release of ''Film/CrouchingTigerHiddenDragon'' had the very final scene of the movie as the background for the language menu. Anyone who wanted to see the movie in any format other than English dubs had to spoil the ending for themselves. |
| 101 | * In the trailer for ''Film/Critters4'', ''all'' of the major character deaths are shown, along with how all of the critters are killed (including parts of the climax from the film). |
| 102 | * The trailers for ''Film/TheCuriousCaseOfBenjaminButton'' detail every event in the movie, showing everything important that happens in Benjamin's life. That being said, the source material for the film, a story by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is so short that you could pick up a compendium of Fitzgerald's short stories which include "Benjamin Button", flip to where the story is, and within 10 - 15 minutes know how the entire story goes. |
| 103 | [[/folder]] |
| 104 | |
| 105 | [[folder:D]] |
| 106 | * The trailer and several posters for ''Film/TheDarkestMinds'' show Ruby's body disintegrating at several points, which in the movie is a visual representation of Ruby erasing herself from a person's memory. This is made worse in that the trailer specifically shows a shot of this happening in front of Liam, which is one of the very last scenes of the film. |
| 107 | * ''Film/TheDarkKnightTrilogy'': |
| 108 | ** A TV spot for ''Film/BatmanBegins'' revealed, in order, that [[LateArrivalSpoiler Bruce's parents died]], Wayne Manor burns down (something that happen 3/4's of the way through the film), and that Bruce has a reconciliatory conversation with Rachel that happens right beside the ashes of said burned-down manor. |
| 109 | ** ''Film/TheDarkKnight'''s trailers featured a few scenes involving Gordon (the Joker interrogation, smashing the Batsignal) that took place after his apparent death, tipping viewers off that he wasn't really dead. |
| 110 | * ''Film/DarknessFalls'' has a glaring plot hole involving a character getting killed, despite not having met the requirements for the token supernatural serial killer to choose to kill her... that is, unless you saw the deleted scene [[NeverTrustATrailer in the trailer]]. |
| 111 | * Watch the trailer for the hip, black version of ''Film/DeathAtAFuneral'' and you don't need to bother seeing ''either'' movie because it shows the boyfriend accidentally getting high then getting naked, the elderly uncle's bathroom problems, and the two brothers (who are also rivals) learning their father was having a homosexual affair -- with the same actor as the original! |
| 112 | * ''Film/DeepImpact'''s trailers give away several late-stage plot points, including a giant tidal wave ripping through New York City, Jenny holding her father and crying as he looks up at something massive headed towards them, and Leo and Sarah taking the latter's baby brother from her parents before riding away on a motorcycle, then looking out in shock some time later while bloodied and bruised. |
| 113 | * Several promos and trailers from ''Film/{{Descendants}}'' feature scenes of Ben's coronation, Maleficent as a dragon, and the whole cast dancing together, which spoil the climax of the movie. |
| 114 | * The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=La__tO35CnA trailer]] for ''Film/DesperateLiving'' spoils some of the film's climax, including Princess Coo-Coo having rabies, the death of Queen Carlotta, and Muffy becoming the new Queen of Mortville. |
| 115 | * The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxf73ebZfeY trailer]] for the ridiculous and sub-par SlasherMovie ''Detention'' (2010) (best known as one of [[Series/KungFu1972 David]] [[Film/KillBill Carradine's]] last appearances before his rather unusual death) tells you absolutely ''everything''. Who our group of victims is, who gets killed, the [[SinsOfOurFathers entire back-story]] for the killer's rampage, exactly which two characters survive until the end, and who the LargeHam killer is. About the only detail it leaves out is whether or not those last two make it to the end-credits, but it's a ForegoneConclusion. |
| 116 | * The ''Film/DieHard2'' trailer showed John [=McClane=] fighting Major Grant at the end, revealing his FaceHeelTurn as TheMole near the end of the film. |
| 117 | * [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luSqcSVGknU This trailer]] for ''Film/DOADeadOrAlive'' is notable for including the ''very last scene in the movie''. Now, it's a short gag scene, but it does reveal that Kasumi and Ayane end up on the same side despite Ayane spending most of the movie trying to kill Kasumi. |
| 118 | * The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pKdCHvH310 trailer]] for ''Literature/ADogsWayHome'' is a 2-minute summary of the entire film, including the ''ending'' where Bella finds her way back home. |
| 119 | * ''Film/DoubleJeopardy'' was infamous for its trailer, revealing that: Ashley Judd goes to jail for the murder of her husband, she finds out her husband is alive and framed her, a fellow inmate informs her that she cannot be convicted for the same crime twice, and that she escapes custody, and then menacingly points a gun at her husband while Tommy Lee Jones (who was investigating Judd) sits back and watches. What's even worse is that it shows all of this in ''chronological'' order. |
| 120 | * While many critics found the Tom Hanks/Dan Aykroyd comic reboot of ''Series/{{Dragnet}}'' stagnant, audiences howled with laughter (and was subsequently spoiled) at the trailer scene where Sgt. Friday emerges from a tank to engage in the big fight scene and Hanks' character quips "Thank God it's Friday!" |
| 121 | * The Moonbeam Entertainment family film ''Film/{{Dragonworld}}'' has one of the most egregious examples of this trope of all time, in that it quite literally explains the entire movie in sequential order while spoiling every single plot point and beat along the way, right up to the climax. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVui7PLwNYM See for yourself.]] |
| 122 | * The trailers for ''Film/DreamHouse'' included the revelation that the protagonist is actually a recently-released mental patient accused of killing his own family -- the very person he'd been searching for information on, since he believed his family was still alive and the murders had happened to the previous occupants of his house. While this is admittedly not the final [[TheReveal important reveal]], and happens about halfway through the movie, it is by FAR the film's biggest twist, and having it spoiled in advance makes the first half of the film hopelessly boring. |
| 123 | * ''Film/DunePartTwo'': In the [[Film/Dune2021 previous movie]], Gurney Halleck (Creator/JoshBrolin) was last seen charging into battle against the Harkonnen and Sardaukar forces. The trailer shows him still alive and looking even more grizzled after an indeterminate amount of time. This is, of course, no surprise for people familiar with ''Literature/{{Dune}}'' and/or previous adaptations of it. |
| 124 | [[/folder]] |
| 125 | |
| 126 | [[folder:E]] |
| 127 | * The teaser for ''Film/{{Elysium}}'' was fairly opaque, but one of the full-length trailers has two specific shots (Max yelling "I have five days to live!"; Max carrying the DelicateAndSickly girl) that give away pretty much the entire plot. Another goes into even more detail, basically summarizing the entire first half-hour. |
| 128 | * The trailer for ''Film/EndersGame'' features a shot of the bugger homeworld being destroyed, through people unfamiliar with the book might not realize the context. This would happen to be ''the absolute climax moment for the film.'' Also, the casting of Creator/BenKingsley couldn't really help but reveal that Mazer Rackham is still alive. |
| 129 | * The Music/JenniferLopez movie ''Film/{{Enough}}'' is about an abused wife who goes on the run, but her husband tracks her down and she realizes the only way to stop him is to TakeALevelInBadass. The trailers showed her confronting him after her training, which is the climax of the movie. |
| 130 | * The trailers for ''Film/{{Eraser}}'' give away that James Caan's character is the villain. |
| 131 | * A trailer aired during the MTV Music Awards in 1996 for ''Film/EscapeFromLA'' shows a shot where Commander Malloy (Creator/StaceyKeach) walks up to Snake (Creator/KurtRussell) and attempts to hit him with a rifle in front of a burning object, which [[TheReveal reveals]] that Snake is a hologram. This is the big twist during the ending, and occurs during the second-to-last scene in the film. |
| 132 | * ''Film/ExMachina'': |
| 133 | ** One U.S. TV spot spoils Ava turning on the two human characters, which is fairly shocking if you don't know it's coming. |
| 134 | ** Also, one U.S. trailer shows Kyoko peeling back her face (another shows her robotic arms breaking as she's battering a wall), thus spoiling TheReveal that she's an gynoid. |
| 135 | [[/folder]] |
| 136 | |
| 137 | [[folder:F]] |
| 138 | * {{Creator/Nickelodeon}} began releasing trailers for ''Film/AFairlyOddMovieGrowUpTimmyTurner'' over a month before the movie aired. One of the earliest trailers showed a clip of Tootie talking to Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof after Timmy introduces them to her, which takes place late in the film. |
| 139 | * ''Film/TheFall'' starts out as a cute story about a couple of patients in a hospital narrating and imagining a fantastical epic. It slowly sinks into a darker tone when you realize that one of the main characters is suicidal, eventually becoming very dark indeed. The trailer showed the main character attempting suicide, explained outright that he had made up the story to get his friend to steal morphine for him, and showed the death of nearly every main character. |
| 140 | * The trailers for ''Film/FantasticFourRiseOfTheSilverSurfer'' reveal the plot point that the team exchanges powers, and shows the climax, where they combine all their powers into Human Torch. |
| 141 | * The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt2FzvTkteQ trailer]] for ''Film/FemaleTrouble'' shows [[Creator/{{Divine}} Dawn Davenport's]] electrocution. |
| 142 | * The ''Franchise/FinalDestination'' series is really bad about this. The trailers or pre-release clips spoil [[EyeScream Evan's death, Tim's Death, [[YourHeadASplode Nadia's Death]], [[EyeScream Samantha's death]], Andy's Death, [[AssholeVictim Hunt]] dying in a pool, George's Death, [[StuffBlowingUp The Theater Explosion]], Lori's "death" by Escalator, [[YourHeadASplode Isaac's Death]] (Hard to catch, but it IS in one of the TV Spots), [[DisneyVillainDeath Olivia's Death]], Dennis's Death, and [[TwistEnding the ending twist of Final Destination 5]]. Throw in pre-release pictures and you can count Candice's and [[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice Peter's]] deaths too!]] |
| 143 | * The trailer for ''Film/{{Firewall}}'' pretty much spoils every important plot point and detail up until the final showdown. |
| 144 | * The trailer for ''Film/FirstDaughter'' spoils the true identity of the boyfriend, a surprise twist revealed very late in the movie. |
| 145 | * The trailer for ''Film/{{Flightplan}}'' shows several shots from the climax, making it rather obvious that there is a villain and who it is, and also reveals in one final shot [[spoiler: the explosion that happens in the end]]. |
| 146 | * The trailer for ''Film/FloatLikeAButterfly'' spoils the ending, where Frances wins her fight against Eamann. |
| 147 | * One ad for ''Film/{{Focus}}'' blatantly spells out that Margot Robbie's character was just playing Will Smith's character for a fool. This turns out to be a subversion, as Jess has a HeelFaceTurn and realizes she loves the main character by the end of the film. |
| 148 | * The trailer for the Creator/NatalieDormer flick ''Film/{{The Forest|2016}}'' showed the ending of the movie, where Sara is pulled under the forest floor and killed. |
| 149 | * The trailer for ''Film/FreeWilly'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6bSTWtAo0U does exactly this]], outlining every major plot point in just under two minutes (including the climactic jump over the wall at the end of the movie). Hell, the poster for the film spoils the exact moment where the orca jumps! |
| 150 | * ''Franchise/FridayThe13th'': |
| 151 | ** The trailers for the original ''Film/FridayThe13th1980'' and its [[Film/FridayThe13thPart2 first sequel]] showed enough of ''every'' death scene in the movie to know who was going to die before ever seeing the film. Also a case of NeverTrustATrailer, as both trailers implied that there were thirteen deaths in each movie, when in fact there were only ten in each (if you count the killer in the first one). |
| 152 | ** A cross between this and NeverTrustATrailer; everything from the trailers to the box art of ''Film/JasonX'' market Jason's futuristic upgrades, which he only gets within the last 15 minutes of the movie. |
| 153 | * At least one trailer for ''Film/FromDuskTillDawn'' makes explicitly clear that the inhabitants of the bar are vampires, which is a twist halfway through the movie. |
| 154 | * The trailer for Creator/JuddApatow's ''Film/FunnyPeople'' shows that Creator/AdamSandler's character has a life-threatening disease. That's part of the premise that's been widely-known. Then it goes and says outright that he may have beaten the damn thing. This happens two-thirds into the film. Yep. |
| 155 | [[/folder]] |
| 156 | |
| 157 | [[folder:G]] |
| 158 | * The trailer for ''Film/TheGallows'' spoils Cassidy's death. While she was a minor character (and an arguably [[FlatCharacter flat one at that]]), it is played out the exact same way in the movie. |
| 159 | * The trailer for the 1987 movie ''Film/TheGate'' included every single special effect in the entire film except one. |
| 160 | * ''Film/TheGeneralsDaughter'' is a thriller full of plot twists. The trailer spoiled every single one of them. (It ''almost'' spoiled the actual murderer. While it didn't show the murderer, it showed a short clip from the final scene, where the murderer is revealed.) |
| 161 | * ''Film/GhostbustersAfterlife'': |
| 162 | ** A [[https://twitter.com/gbafterlife/status/1447568930772602894?s=21 trailer]] for the film spoils a major reveal that the cast and crew took pains to keep secret even during early screenings -- a character (suggested to be Egon Spengler) is shown crashing a truck in a field, along with hunting and trapping a ghost in Summerville, prior to the events of the story. It also shows a shot of Callie (played by Carrie Coon) dressed in an outfit that looks suspiciously like that of Dana Barrett [a.k.a. the Gatekeeper] from the original film (a notion that bears itself out, as she's briefly possessed by a Terror-Dog), as well as four distinct proton beams being shot at something as the teenage characters look on in awe (part of the second-act reveal of Egon's defenses in the Shandor Mine). Notably, this trailer leaked several weeks prior to the film's release, and resulted in fans encouraging people ''not'' to watch it, citing this trope. |
| 163 | ** The "final" trailer goes one step further and spoils the biggest reveal of the third act -- that '''the original Ghostbusters''' (Ray, Peter and Winston) get involved in the plot, with a body shot of three proton wands being aimed at the camera, with Peter saying, "Have you missed us?" As a result, the comparable sequence in the film proper (where Callie and the other kids are unable to fend off Gozer, prompting the surprise arrival of the original team -- which occurs in the ''last ten minutes'' of the film) to be slightly less impactful if you've already seen the trailer. |
| 164 | * Since the Eiffel Tower's collapse is the MoneyMakingShot of ''Film/GIJoeTheRiseOfCobra'', its inclusion on the trailer kinda ruins some of the tension of the Paris scenes. A scene from the final part of the movie involving an airplane being devoured by {{Nanomachines}} is also in the previews. |
| 165 | * The trailer for ''Film/GIJoeRetaliation'' shows the destruction of London. However, this particular part of COBRA's plan is not revealed until 2/3rds of the way through the movie. As soon as it is, the viewer knows exactly what is going to happen. |
| 166 | * A commercial for ''Literature/TheGirlOnTheTrain'' reveals that the perfect couple the protagonist spies on every day and is obsessed with is actually her ex-husband and his babysitter/lover. |
| 167 | * The trailer for ''Film/TheGiver'' spoils basically every last surprise in the [[Literature/TheGiver book]]. People don't see colors any more? 'Release' is just a euphemism for execution? The mandatory shots dull emotions? The Community is just a big dystopia? Boom. All spoiled. Basically the only thing ''not'' spoiled is Jonas' relationship with Gabe. Justified since the book is required reading in dozens of schools. |
| 168 | * The ''Film/GlengarryGlenRoss'' trailer features Williamson accusing Shelley of robbing the office. |
| 169 | * The original theatrical trailer for ''Film/TheGodfather'' features stills from the movie, including almost every single murder (such as Sonny's, which is meant to be a huge shock in the film). |
| 170 | * The trailer for the film adaptation of ''Literature/GoneGirl'' uses this trope nicely. The scenes shown in the trailer and the general theme of the trailer all point towards Nick being guilty and explicitly show Amy's dead body. The twist is that not only is she not dead and Nick isn't guilty, but that he's actually being framed by Amy for her murder, and completely turns the film on its head. |
| 171 | * The poster art for ''Film/{{Grease}}'' (and some re-release trailers) usually have a heavy emphasis on Sandy as she looks at the end of the film, when it's meant to be TheReveal. |
| 172 | [[/folder]] |
| 173 | |
| 174 | [[folder:H]] |
| 175 | * The original ''Film/{{Halloween 1978}}'' theatrical trailer gives away the first scene's twist - that the killer is the victim's six-year-old brother. |
| 176 | * The DVD trailer for ''Film/TheHangover'' spoils almost every significant plot event, including Ed Helms' character marrying a hooker, that the group is attacked by an Asian gang, the poker scene, and the fact that there are two Dougs in the film. |
| 177 | * The trailer for ''Film/{{Hanna}}'' gives away the minor plot twist when Marissa sends a double into the holding cell where Hanna is (from the back the person looks and sounds exactly like Marissa), and Hanna starts crying and then snaps the woman's neck. |
| 178 | * Both the trailer and the description on the back of ''Film/HappyAccidents'' give away that Sam may or may not be from the future and he is trying to save Ruby from dying. |
| 179 | * The trailer of ''Film/Hardware1990'' is a serious contender to be the most egregious example of this trope, for its trailer is basically just a 2-minute cut of the movie. It works as a short film of the same plot all by itself. The actual movie just adds a couple of subplots, minor characters and one obvious plot twist to the end. |
| 180 | * ''Film/HarryPotter'' |
| 181 | ** The trailer for ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallowsPart1'': Harry and Voldemort fight! Ollivander isn't dead! Hogwarts erupts into battle! Ron uses the sword! There's a dragon! Griphook comes back! Harry hands himself over to Voldemort! The worst part about all of it is that most of this stuff is from what has to be the ''second part''. So not only are they spoiling a good section of the book, they're spoiling a good section of the ''second movie''. |
| 182 | ** If you thought that was bad, just wait until you see the theatrical trailer for ''[[Film/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallowsPart2 Part 2]]''. It shows two of the most important parts of the battle of Hogwarts. The first, though only a flash, is Ron visibly cradling Fred's dead body. The second is Lupin and Tonks holding hands before what is most likely their death, and the third is Molly and Bellatrix fighting. Might as well spoil the fact that Snape loved Lily. The trailers also show a scene where Harry speaks to dead friends and loved ones, like his parents -- as well as a certain character (Prof. Remus Lupin) who was still alive last time we checked. And said character is quite prominent, meaning it's hard to miss. Whoops. |
| 183 | ** A lot of the scenes from said trailer show Harry after his death and resurrection, removing the dramatic tension leading up to his death. |
| 184 | * While the red-band trailer for ''Film/HatchetII'' inadvertently spoiled a major character's death (well, half of it) the one for ''Film/HatchetIII'' went even further and showed almost every death in the film save one or two. |
| 185 | * Bizarrely subverted in that the DVD cover of ''Film/HeLovesMeHeLovesMeNot'' looks [[RomanticComedy good enough at first glance]], but on closer inspection all the review quotes seem to be describing a PsychologicalThriller, mirroring the plot of the film. |
| 186 | * In the Creator/JohnWoo film ''Film/HeroesShedNoTears'', the film's trailer spoils Every. Single. Named Protagonist death with the exception of two, both of which would be too gruesome for the trailer. |
| 187 | * The trailers for ''Film/Hellboy2019'' show off bits from the Six-Months Later pre-credits scene. |
| 188 | * The trailer for the Colombian mystery movie ''The Hidden Face'' (2011) gives away the twist of the girl behind the mirror. |
| 189 | * ''Film/HomeAlone'' was really bad about this. The trailer showed every booby trap and pratfall, most of which happen during the final confrontation with Harry and Marv at the end of the film. |
| 190 | * The trailer for ''Film/HotFuzz'' focuses almost entirely on the two main characters fighting against the entire population of a surprisingly well armed rural community, despite the fact that not only does this not happen until two thirds through the movie, but it reveals that Danny does a HeelFaceTurn, before he is ever revealed to be on the same side as the townsfolk. |
| 191 | * ''Film/HotTubTimeMachine'': |
| 192 | ** Depending on which trailer you saw, one of them shows Lou aboard the huge yacht he bought himself after inventing Lougle, therefore spoiling the fact that he stays in the past. |
| 193 | ** Another trailer showed Jacob seeing his mother in 1986, and then shows her in bed with Lou saying "I feel pregnant". |
| 194 | * The trailer for 2013's ''Film/TheHundredYearOldManWhoClimbedOutTheWindowAndDisappeared'' casually spoils the scene where the main bad guy dies near the end of the movie. |
| 195 | * ''Film/TheHungerGames'': |
| 196 | ** The trailer for ''Film/TheHungerGamesCatchingFire'' spoils that Katniss will have to participate again in the Hunger Games. The movie itself does not foreshadow this, as she is pushed in the role of victor and mentor. |
| 197 | ** One trailer for ''Film/TheHungerGamesMockingjayPart2'' consists largely of an emotional montage of Katniss and Prim. It's not too hard to guess what that means, even if you haven't read [[Literature/TheHungerGames the book]]. |
| 198 | * Trailers for ''Film/HuntForTheWilderpeople'' presented many of the jokes from the movie, but did so without the proper set-up, so they weren't funny. Then when watching the movie itself, they weren't funny because you've already seen them in the trailer. So the trailer managed to ruin every joke ''twice.'' |
| 199 | [[/folder]] |
| 200 | |
| 201 | [[folder:I]] |
| 202 | * The advertisings for TheFilmOfTheBook of ''Literature/InhabitedIsland'' by the Creator/StrugatskyBrothers spoils ''every'' major plot point. One trailer even reveals that TheHero and the BigBad turns out to be on the same side, what was supposed to be a TwistEnding. |
| 203 | * One of the trailers for ''Film/IntoTheWoods'' seems to give away the fact that Cinderella's Prince isn't as loving and sincere as he's letting on (and that he cheated on her). Look closely at the scene where the Baker's Wife is getting kissed by someone: it's the Prince. For anyone who's actually seen the play, this wouldn't be too much of a surprise. |
| 204 | * ''Film/TheIsland2005'' built up suspense in the beginning that was impacted by revealing in the trailer that the people shown were clones and showing the escape into the real world, which all was part of the midway twist, along with figuring out what the island was. |
| 205 | * The trailer for ''Film/ItsAMadMadMadMadWorld'' gives away that the money is lost to the crowd watching them fight over it. |
| 206 | [[/folder]] |
| 207 | |
| 208 | [[folder:J]] |
| 209 | * ''Film/JamesBond'' |
| 210 | ** The trailer for ''Film/GoldenEye'' revealed the plot twist that Bond's old partner Alec Trevelyan (006) was the film's main villain. |
| 211 | ** The trailer for ''Film/DrNo'' told the audience the whole plot, including the final scenes. |
| 212 | ** Averted by ''Film/LiveAndLetDie'' and ''Film/TheWorldIsNotEnough'', the two twistiest Bond films. The trailers for the former conceal the fact that Mr. Big and Dr. Kananga are one and the same, and the trailers for the latter hide the fact that Elektra was the true mastermind behind Renard's schemes, deciding to work with him (and falling in love with him along the way) to ruin her father after Renard kidnapped her. |
| 213 | * ''{{Film/Juliana}}'': One of the last scenes of the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQW2qRCrCbY trailer]] shows that Cobra discovers her secret and tells everyone, including their employer Don Pedro, that "Julián" is in truth a girl called Juliana. |
| 214 | * ''Franchise/JurassicPark'': |
| 215 | ** The [[Film/JurassicPark1993 original film]] was a notable aversion of this during its marketing campaign. The first trailer for the film only showed workers excavating a mine and finding some amber, which zooms in to reveal that there is some DNA related to dinosaurs found within a fossilized mosquito. It told the audience little about what was actually in store, save for the fact that someone financed the creation of an island and is bringing dinosaurs back to life. Even the second trailer (the first with film footage) showed off ''very'' little of the dinosaurs, save for a T-Rex foot and the snout, claws and silhouette of a velociraptor. |
| 216 | ** The ACU members' deaths were spoiled in early trailers for ''Film/JurassicWorld''. Starting with the Super Bowl spot, the trailers and TV ads have also frequently depicted Zara getting lifted up by a ''Pteranodon''. A more complex example is present with Simon Masrani's death. The second full trailer shows a helicopter crashing through the Aviary and exploding on the ground, which doesn't reveal much by itself. But anyone who later goes to the movie and sees Masrani flying his own chopper both to reach the island and to help hunt down the ''Indominus rex'' will probably fill in the dots and conclude that he goes down in the crash. Leading up to the movie's second weekend in theaters, Universal released a TV spot showing, among other things, the BigEntrance of the ''Tyrannosaurus rex''. |
| 217 | ** Several of the trailers for ''Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom'' show part of a speech (including a TitleDrop) that [[TheBusCameBack Ian Malcolm]] makes in front of a Senate committee, along with a shot of the Mosasaurus having apparently left its pen at the park and swimming near a group of surfers before opening its mouth to eat one. Both shots are seen in the film's ending, spoiling them for anyone who'd seen the trailer beforehand. |
| 218 | [[/folder]] |
| 219 | |
| 220 | [[folder:K]] |
| 221 | * ''Film/KaamelottPremierVolet'': The trailer showed the Burgundians destroying Kaamelott with their SiegeEngines, something that happens only near the end of the movie. |
| 222 | * Defied (and PlayedForLaughs) with the teaser trailer for ''Franchise/KamenRider The Winter Movie: [[Series/KamenRiderGotchard Gotchard]] & [[Series/KamenRiderGeats Geats]]''. To prevent the narrator and trailer from spoiling too much of the film, a pair of cartoon [[{{Mon}} Chemies]], [=Hopper1=] and the Geats Chemy (a white nine tailed fox) bounce all over the screen "fighting" with each other, resulting in them blocking the screen and drowning out the narrator, much to their annoyance. |
| 223 | -->''"Hey! Stop it already!"'' |
| 224 | * ''Film/KeepingUpWithTheJoneses'': Yes, the glamorous, mysterious Joneses are spies. Yes they are (apparently) good guys (in as much they don't just kill the everydude couple once their cover's blown). Yes, the dumpy everydude couple who are so suspicious of them get involved in their operation. Yes, of course said couple gets gussied up to go on a mission in the Jonses' place. And all of this is casually dropped in the very first trailer. |
| 225 | * Trailers of ''The Kindred'' and ''Centipede'' spoil the demise of their respective monsters. |
| 226 | * The trailer for ''Literature/TheKiteRunner'' bizarrely chooses to focus on the last third of the movie and reveals that Hassan dies and makes it seem like the whole movie is about Amir trying to save Hassan's son, even though most of the movie is about their childhood friendship. |
| 227 | [[/folder]] |
| 228 | |
| 229 | [[folder:L]] |
| 230 | * Subverted in the case of ''Film/LarryCrowne''. While people might think that the trailer gives away the entire film, it mostly only shows what happens in the first hour. Most of the film's third act was not shown in the trailer. |
| 231 | * Most of the footage for the theatrical trailer of ''Film/TheLastStarfighter'' comes from the last half hour of the movie. |
| 232 | * If you watched the trailer for ''Film/LawAbidingCitizen'', you see every single murder that is committed in the movie. Plus a clip of the last scene, just for good measure. |
| 233 | * ''Film/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen'' had most plot points which were intended to be a big twist end up getting spoiled by the trailer. The worst offender is probably Dorian Gray's immortality and Mina Harker's vampirism, both of which were clearly intended to be a surprise to the audience, but both of which were shamelessly spoiled by every single trailer. That said, those "twists" may also lean more on ItWasHisSled for audience members familiar with the original stories. |
| 234 | * The trailer for ''Film/LittleShopOfHorrors'' gave away TheReveal that the plant is an alien. |
| 235 | * Anyone who's seen the trailer for ''Film/TheLoneRanger'' knows the climax involves the Ranger and Tonto fighting the antagonists on board a moving train. |
| 236 | * In certain circles (that is, the obsessive ones), the trailer for ''[[Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheTwoTowers The Two Towers]]'' is rather notorious for giving away what is clearly set up in the film (and more so in the book) as a point of mystery and contention -- the identity of the mysterious White Wizard who is following Aragorn's Terrific Trio around. |
| 237 | ** In the book, Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas were surprised to find out that Gandalf had returned from the dead, and when they heard about a "White Wizard", and at first when they finally came across him, they thought it was Saruman, not Gandalf. In the movie, to maintain this, Peter Jackson actually went so far as to have Gandalf the White speak with the voices of ''both Lee and [=McKellen=]'' imitating each other's voice, with their voices overlaid on top of each other. You can hear the transitions quite well, and for a moment Gandalf sounds like he's talking with the VoiceOfTheLegion because of this. |
| 238 | ** Well, it might have been somewhat hard to keep the revelation that Gandalf's alive out of the trailer, since he shows up at the end of the first fourth of the movie. Then again, he leaves shortly after not to return until the end, so it might have been feasible. The fact that he was also on all the merchandise for the film (and there was a ''lot'' of it) didn't help either. |
| 239 | [[/folder]] |
| 240 | |
| 241 | [[folder:M]] |
| 242 | * The people editing the trailer for ''Film/TheMachinist'' thought it would be a brilliant idea to hint at the plot twist at the end too heavily, including the answer to the hangman game, "KILLER". |
| 243 | * ''Film/{{Magnolia}}'': Not a major twist, but posters for the movie reveal the final unexpected scenes of frogs raining from the sky. |
| 244 | * If you paid even the slightest bit of attention to the ending of one particular trailer for ''Film/{{Maleficent}}'', you'd see that Maleficent's ''raven'' (who is a shapeshifter here) is turning into the dragon, not her. |
| 245 | * The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ue4PCI0NamI first theatrical trailer]] for ''Film/TheMartian'' spoils quite a few details of the story, most significantly Watney using the Pathfinder probe to contact Earth, and his crewmates on ''Hermes'' going back for him in violation of [=NASA=]'s orders. |
| 246 | * Given the young target audience, it's not surprising that the trailer for ''Film/{{Matilda}}'' showed the headmistress getting her comeuppance. |
| 247 | * ''Film/TheMatrixReloaded'': |
| 248 | ** The trailer revealed that Agent Smith was not only still alive, but has gone rogue and could replicate himself by jamming his hand into other people/programs. Though all of this was shown ''fairly'' early on in the film, many scenes were clearly meant to be reveals that would surprise and confuse the viewers, such as the scene where Smith speaks to another Agent only for the camera to pan over and reveal the other Agent is also Smith. |
| 249 | ** A more minor example would be the Twins and their ghosting ability. Within the progression of the story itself, their ability to phase into intangible ghost-like forms came as a surprise to the main characters, but scenes with them using said ability were featured pretty heavily in the film's marketing. As such, as soon as the Twins first showed up on screen, probably everybody in the theater started eagerly anticipating when they'd get to see their powers in action, which actually didn't happen until a good chunk of time after their first appearance. |
| 250 | * ''Film/{{Max|2015}}'': The extended trailer for that played in front of ''Film/JurassicWorld'' gave away that one of Max's handler's squad-mates is after something in his "friend's" storage locker and is willing to harm the guy's father to get it. |
| 251 | * Almost all the trailers for the 2001 film ''Film/MaxKeeblesBigMove'' give away the suprise twist that the titular character won't move away. |
| 252 | * The trailer (and the VHS cover art) for ''Film/MeetTheFeebles'' shows the surprise ending in action. |
| 253 | * ''Film/MeetTheParents'' would have been a lot funnier if the trailer hadn't given away that the girl's father isn't really a retired florist, but actually an ex-interrogator for the CIA. |
| 254 | * The Dynasty Dragon re-release of the Creator/ShawBrothers action film, ''Film/MercenariesFromHongKong'', is promoted with an insanely spoilerific [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhULQcl4ymI trailer]] that gives away plenty of plot points, betrayals, a ColdBloodedTorture sequence involving a drill, and how the main villainess meets her demise, by way of rocket launcher at the end. |
| 255 | * The trailer for ''Melvin and Howard'' shows mostly the last third of the film where Melvin gets the will that names him as a heir to the Howard Hughes fortune, as well as much of the ending while leaving out much of the family drama that takes up much of the first two-thirds. |
| 256 | * Several of the trailers for ''Film/MightyMorphinPowerRangersTheMovie'' spoil many of the movie's twists, including Ivan Ooze destroying the Command Center, the team traveling on a jungle planet and learning something called "Ninjetti", and much of the final fight against Ooze (complete with a shot in the first theatrical trailer of the team holding their hands in the air as Zordon reforms, which is the second-to-last scene in the film). |
| 257 | * A more subtle example occurs in the trailer for ''Film/MillionDollarBaby'', which clearly shows Maggie lying on the ground with a doctor kneeling over her. This one is somewhat excusable because they didn't actually show her getting punched or landing on the stool before hand, and the viewer might not easily guess that she ends up paralyzed after this scene. Also to be fair, they also had the decency ''not'' to spoil the incredibly dark turn taken by the last quarter of the film, where Maggie is paralyzed from the neck down and the story becomes about Frankie's efforts to cope with what's happened. |
| 258 | * The trailer for the movie ''Film/TheMillionDollarHotel'' shows a scene of Jeremy Davies' character [=TomTom=] confessing that he "went ahead and pushed him off". |
| 259 | * An aversion occurs in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDC5H2MdtEw the trailer]] for 1942's ''Film/MiracleOnThirtyFourthStreet''. It is similar to that of ''The Bishop's Wife'', having characters spend the entirety of the trailer narrating why they don't want to give away the film's surprises.. |
| 260 | * The trailers for ''Film/MissionImpossibleFallout'' makes it pretty obvious that Walker is one of the main villains of the movie and part of the BigBadDuumvirate, especially since it shows the climax where he shoots at Ethan's helicopter or when he's brutally fighting it out with Ethan on the edge of a high cliff. To be fair, the movie itself downplays the reveal that Walker is a bad guy and treats it almost as a ForegoneConclusion. |
| 261 | * The trailer for ''Film/MonsterHunter2020'' features the scene of the Rathalos attacking the Boeing E-3 Sentry, giving away the major plot point that at least one of the monsters will get through to Earth. |
| 262 | * The trailer for ''Film/MontyPythonsLifeOfBrian'' gives away one of the funniest - and most unexpected - gags in the movie: the [[BigLippedAlligatorMoment spaceship chase sequence.]] |
| 263 | * The trailer for ''Film/{{Multiplicity}}'' gave away that the movie has four Creator/{{Michael Keaton}}s, a development that does not happen until about 80 minutes into the 120 minute movie. Though it's not so much that there ''is'' four of them, since the whole premise is basically ''MesACrowd: TheMovie'', but that Keaton #4 is a copy of a copy, and is developmentally disabled as a result. |
| 264 | * One trailer for ''Film/{{Morbius|2022}}'' showed the Vulture from ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'', when in the movie itself he is only in TheStinger, undermining the UnexpectedCharacter impact. |
| 265 | * The trailer for ''Film/TheMuppetMovie'' includes the showdown sequence, with Kermit telling Doc Hopper if he's not so nice deep down then to kill him, and Doc telling his henchmen to kill Kermit. Of course it doesn't show the outcome to that. |
| 266 | * In the trailer for ''Film/MuppetsFromSpace'', the very first Muppets that you see are none other than Gonzo's family. |
| 267 | * ''Film/MuppetsMostWanted'': |
| 268 | ** Most promotional materials for the film show the climactic [[ItMakesSenseInContext Muppet Ladder used to save Miss Piggy]]. They don't specifically mention it, but it becomes extremely apparent once it occurs at the end of the film. |
| 269 | ** A [[http://perezhilton.com/tv/Muppets_Most_Wanted_Adele_Dazeems_Let_It_Go_Review/?id=06d3ef5d0a73c#.V87vFvkrLIU commercial]] was also made in the wake of the "Adele Dazeem" indecent at the 2014 Oscars. Though brief (15 seconds), it gave away a pretty big spoiler: the Muppets' new manager was bribing journalists to write good reviews for their less-than-stellar European tour. |
| 270 | [[/folder]] |
| 271 | |
| 272 | [[folder:N]] |
| 273 | * The trailer for the Martin Lawrence film ''Film/NationalSecurity'' gives away the film's ending where Steve Zahn's character gets his job back and Lawrence fulfills his dream about being a cop... at the very beginning of the trailer. A few seconds later, you see the tail end of the film. |
| 274 | * ''Film/NationalTreasure2BookOfSecrets'' was pretty bad about trailer spoilers. Ben kidnaps the president, Ben was just kidding when it looks like he loses his hand to the eagle, and the treasure is hidden under Mt. Rushmore. It's pretty bad when a movie's trailers subject it to [[LateArrivalSpoiler You Should Have Forgotten This By Now]] spoiler tagging. |
| 275 | * Trailers for ''Film/TheNegotiator'' revealed that Spacey's character would eventually side with Jackson's; particularly egregious, in this instance, as it did so by using a line of dialogue that wasn't even in the final cut of the film. David Letterman parodied the trope using an expanded version of this particular trailer. His version included an announcer who summed up the entire movie plotline beginning to end ("Oh, and this guy dies too.") |
| 276 | * In ''[[Film/ANightmareOnElmStreet1984 A Nightmare on Elm Street]]'', only four characters are killed; the trailer shows all of the deaths and the order they happen. |
| 277 | * The trailer of ''Film/NowYouSeeMe'' shows Michael Caine's character ordering Morgan Freeman's character to expose and ruin the Four Horsemen. While this isn't as a bad a spoiler as some, given the movie's extra twists, it does completely deflate the tension out of an earlier scene where Caine is trying to threaten and intimidate Freeman to refrain from exposing the Four Horseman that takes place before the Horsemen have double-crossed Caine. |
| 278 | [[/folder]] |
| 279 | |
| 280 | [[folder:O]] |
| 281 | * ''Film/{{Obsessed}}'' spoils the biggest moments and scenes from the movie, not leaving much else to be desired. |
| 282 | * ''Film/{{Oblivion 2013}}'': |
| 283 | ** The fact that humanity isn't completely dead and there's a [[LaResistance resistance led by Creator/MorganFreeman]] would have been a great plot twist if it hadn't been included in the very first trailer. Fortunately, there are other twists that the trailer managed to omit. |
| 284 | ** The Netflix splash screen is a clear image of Tech 49 Jack Harper fighting Tech 52 Jack Harper. |
| 285 | * If you pay close enough attention, the trailer for ''Film/OnlyLoversLeftAlive'' shows the scene where Ian (Creator/AntonYelchin) is thrown into a pool of acid. |
| 286 | * ''Radio/OurMissBrooks'': Through the series, Miss Brooks' SeriesGoal had been marriage to they shy biology teacher, Mr. Boynton. The trailer for the [[TheMovie cinematic]] [[GrandFinale series finale]] shows Mr. Boynton giving Miss Brooks a romantic kiss. The trailer ends showing part of a dream sequence where Miss Brooks fantasizes about marriage to Mr. Boynton. Audiences going into the movie knew that, after eight years of television and radio, Miss Brooks was finally going to get her man. |
| 287 | [[/folder]] |
| 288 | |
| 289 | [[folder:P]] |
| 290 | * In ''Film/PaperTowns'', during their trip to find Margo, one of the major concerns the gang has is that they won't make it back in time for Prom. Many commercials for the movie reveal the scene where the gang is dancing together at Prom. |
| 291 | * New trailers for ''Film/ParanormalActivity'' show a shot of Micah's body flying toward the camera from the final scene. |
| 292 | * The second trailer for ''Film/PetSematary (2019)'' spoiled that in this version it is Ellie who is killed and resurrected instead of Gage. |
| 293 | * ''Film/{{Philomena}}'' had [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rG3QP8foCvg#t=1m53s one trailer]] give away the fact that Philomena's son was Michael Hess. |
| 294 | * The trailer for ''Film/Piranha3D'' finishes up with the last scene of the film! Which happens to be a stinger showing the death of one of the main characters. |
| 295 | * ''Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanAtWorldsEnd'': The trailer clearly shows Will Turner on the helm of the Flying Dutchman as he becomes Captain. You can even see the scar on his chest. |
| 296 | ** Every single trailer showed Jack Sparrow, clearly back from the dead. Sure, it was pretty obvious that would be happening in the last movie, but it still might have been more tense had they avoided showing him at all in the trailers. |
| 297 | ** Even the first trailer spoils to a lesser extent: when a viewer remembers that, in the trailer, they saw Jack standing in front of the gallows, they won't be concerned that Jack is really dead when Barbossa impales him, since that scene hasn't happened yet. |
| 298 | ** One piece of merchandise for the third movie (which came out before the film) was called "Will Turner, Captain of the Flying Dutchman". |
| 299 | * Poster art for the Soviet crime drama ''Plumbum, or The Dangerous Game'' (1987) shows a girl falling from a roof. This is the female lead character's death at the end of the movie. |
| 300 | * The first half of ''Film/PoliteSociety'' makes it ambiguous whether or not Ria is ProperlyParanoid about the Shahs or if she's just overreacting to the idea of her beloved sister leaving; it's not revealed until later that they're actually evil. Pretty much all the promotional material for the film seems dedicated to spoiling the twist, showing off several of Raheela's more overtly villainous moments as well as fight scenes from the movie's climax. |
| 301 | * ''Film/{{Predator}}'': The theatrical trailer notably spoils Dillon's death scene, which comes near the end of the film and shows him being stabbed in the chest by the titular creature and screaming. It also shows the Predator without his cloaking ability (a reveal that doesn't happen until the team is down to one survivor) and also shows Dutch running from a massive explosion going off behind him, which is the climax of the film. |
| 302 | * The "shocking" revelation that they're all not on Earth, but another planet in ''Film/{{Predators}}'' might have been more surprising if it hadn't been seen in EVERY theatrical trailer and TV spot. |
| 303 | * The theatrical trailer for ''Film/ThePrincessBride'' spoils the Clergyman's funny voice, Count Rugen going into a battle stance before running away, the outcome of the battle of wits, and Wesley's "death". |
| 304 | * Apart from [[TrailersAlwaysLie glossing over the film's comic tone]], the trailer to Paul Bartel's ''Private Parts'' (1972) reveals the main plot twist from the end of the film. |
| 305 | * The trailer for ''Film/TheProfessional'' makes it abundantly clear that the film will end in an explosive showdown between Leon, Mathilda and Stansfield. Additionally, observant viewers can deduce that Leon and Stansfield are going to die from the same grenade and Mathilda will escape the apartment to enroll at Spencer School in New Jersey. |
| 306 | * The final trailer for Netflix's adaptation of ''Theatre/TheProm'' spoils most of the plot of the movie, including glimpses of Emma's fake prom, Emma and Alyssa breaking up, and the inclusive prom at the end of the movie. |
| 307 | * All trailers for ''Film/{{Prometheus}}'' show things that happen in the last 10 minutes into the film. The same is true for one of the international posters advertising the film. Namely, that the titular ship crashes into the alien vessel. To be fair, that was a very quick shot which only lasted about two seconds, so it's pretty easy to miss unless you've actually ''seen'' the movie. |
| 308 | * ''Film/{{Psycho}}'' unfortunately unveils the murderer's identity in the synopsis included with every home video release from 2008 onward. Some home video trailers even have the nerve to show Norma Bates' stuffed corpse! |
| 309 | [[/folder]] |
| 310 | |
| 311 | [[folder:Q]] |
| 312 | * You know the part of the trailer for ''Film/Quarantine2008'' where the lady gets dragged screaming into the darkness? ''That was the ending to the movie.'' This is also featured on the DVD cover, TV spots, ''and every piece of marketing for the film.'' |
| 313 | [[/folder]] |
| 314 | |
| 315 | [[folder:R]] |
| 316 | * In ''Film/Rampage2018'', the fact that Ralph has flight membranes like a flying squirrel is left unrevealed through about 7/8 of the movie, and only revealed in the film's climax. However, it's one of the key moments in all the trailers. |
| 317 | -->"Of ''course'' the wolf can fly." |
| 318 | * ''Film/RepoTheGeneticOpera'' treats Nathan Wallace's secret identity as the Repo Man like it's a big secret, and "Legal Assassin," his first big solo a third of the way into the movie, is TheReveal. The official website's designers were clued into this: they treat Nathan and the Repo Man as separate characters. The people who made the trailer did not get that memo, however: they used part of "Legal Assassin" in the trailer, complete with visuals of Nathan donning the uniform, and declared that the film starred "Anthony Stewart Head as Repo Man"! Heck, almost the ''whole movie'' is spoiled by the trailer. |
| 319 | * The green-band trailer for ''Film/RepoMen'' appears to show the death of Liev Schreiber's character, in addition to most of the plot. |
| 320 | * ''Film/TheRocketeer'': If you watched all the trailers and TV commercials, you saw every action scene in the movie before ever setting foot in the theater -- including the death of a rather important antagonist. Some people blamed this for the movie's poor box office. People felt they had already seen the film, and didn't need to spend money on a ticket. |
| 321 | * The trailer for ''Film/RockyIV'' completely spoiled the death of Apollo Creed as one of the main plot points, so nobody was shocked when he did within the film. On the other hand, the trailer for ''Film/RockyIII'' averted this by giving no indication whatsoever Mickey would die. |
| 322 | * The original ''Film/TheRockyHorrorPictureShow'' trailer shows parts of the last few minutes of the film, specifically Columbia getting shot by Riff-Raff, the radio tower falling on Frank and Rocky, and the castle blasting off. |
| 323 | * The trailer for ''Film/{{Room}}'' shows that Jack and Ma escape Room. Granted, this happens halfway through the story, but this might end up removing a lot of the tension out of the film's first half. However, chances are that this was intentional, as for one thing, a movie that takes place entirely in one room might be hard to sell, but also, according to the film's director, "...The question posed by the first half is not so much "How will they get the door open?" but "How will Jack have the courage to go through it, and Ma the courage to let him?" |
| 324 | * The two-minute long trailer of ''Film/TheRoom2003'' is essentially a mini-version of the film itself, giving away every plot twist and development with the exception of Johnny's suicide. |
| 325 | * ''Film/{{Rope}}'' drew all its drama from the fact that they hid the corpse in the trunk and whenever someone would open it. Too bad that the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCFP6vDkSUE trailer]] included the climactic shot of the trunk flying open and the ensuing fight. |
| 326 | [[/folder]] |
| 327 | |
| 328 | [[folder:S]] |
| 329 | * The trailers for ''Film/ScottPilgrimVsTheWorld'' give away the fact that one of Ramona's exes is not an ex-''boy''friend which was supposed to be a minor twist. |
| 330 | * The trailers for ''Film/TheSecretOfMySuccess'' gives away the whole plot: after being turned down from a promised job, Brantley Foster gets a lowly job as a mail clerk at his uncle's company, [[FawltyTowersPlot before bluffing his way into making people think he's Carlton Whitfield, a junior executive in the company]]. |
| 331 | * ''Film/TheSeventhSeal'' had part of its resolution narrated in the trailer: the reason for the spilled chess pieces. |
| 332 | * Both trailers for ''Film/{{Seventh Son|2015}}'' show the death of Kit Harrington's character, which is intended to be a shock death that happens within the first third of the film. |
| 333 | * ''Film/ShadowInTheCloud'': The trailer shows that the plane crashes and Maude fights the gremlin in the ocean afterward. If you pay close enough attention, it also shows exactly which crew members are still alive after the crash. Finally, one of Maude's more impressive near-death experiences (falling out the bomb bay doors but being blown back in by the force of an explosion) is shown. |
| 334 | * The menu screen on the first edition DVD release of ''Film/TheShawshankRedemption'' uses the pivotal scene of Andy Dufresne escaping from Shawshank by crawling through a sewage pipe as its background. This is particularly JustForFun/{{egregious}} as the movie was something of a sleeper hit, so many viewers would not have already seen it in theaters. The trailer itself contains a major spoiler. The scenes leading up to Andy's escape are obviously intended to create a credible suspicion that he has committed suicide. The trailer entirely gives away the conclusion to this suspenseful scene. |
| 335 | * The trailer for ''Film/{{Sideways}}'' reveals that Miles accidentally lets slip that Jack is getting married, and Stephanie beating Jack up when she finds out. |
| 336 | * In some trailers of the movie ''Film/TheSignal2014'', we can see Nic, with his bionic legs, sprinting at supersonic spedd across a bridge where he hits an invisible barrier and breaks through. This happens less than five minutes before the credits roll, being the [[TheReveal ultimate reveal]] in the film. |
| 337 | * The ''Film/SinginInTheRain'' trailer ends the same way the movie does, with Don and Kathy kissing in front of a billboard for their latest movie. |
| 338 | * The trailer of ''Film/TheSixthSense'' spoiled a major revelation, which made a large chunk of the film rather lame since everyone knew what was going on. Luckily, that's not all there is to it. That said, the soundtrack album does give away a fairly major plot twist in the title of the final track ("Malcolm Is Dead"). |
| 339 | * ''Film/SkyHigh2005'': The trailer makes it seem like the main conflict of the movie is the main character's lack of superpowers. Then, approximately 10 seconds later, it shows him with super strength and flight -- at which point the viewer realizes there's probably more to this movie that they're not telling, and there goes the element of surprise. |
| 340 | * The trailer for ''Film/SnakeEyes'' reveals that Gary Sinise is the villain, even though this is supposed to be a twist revelation over half an hour into the film. |
| 341 | * ''Film/TheSting'' trailer spoiled the fact that Robert Redford's character wasn't really dead by showing a shot of him from later in the same scene giving the NoseTapping signal. |
| 342 | * ''Film/{{Solanin}}'''s trailer spoils Taneda's death and Meiko taking his place in the band. Which is kind of the whole plot. |
| 343 | * The first trailer for ''Film/{{Sonic the Hedgehog|2020}}'' ends with Dr. Robotnik marooned on a mushroom world, having gone bald, and sporting a giant mustache that makes him resemble his video game counterpart, which only happens in the first [[TheStinger stinger]]. |
| 344 | * ''Film/SoylentGreen'' had this, in that in one part of the trailer, it shows the main character seeing a conveyor belt with body bags on it, and in the next cut, you can see soylent green on the same conveyor belt. Then the trailer voice asks, "What is the secret of Soylent Green?" |
| 345 | * The final trailer for ''Film/SpaceJamANewLegacy'' has a blink-and-you'll-miss-it shot of a banner that says "Tunes Win!". |
| 346 | * The ''Franchise/SpiderMan'' feature films haven't been very discreet: |
| 347 | ** A [[https://www.instagram.com/tv/B_AvR8wgP_J/ TV spot showing various critic reviews]] for ''Film/SpiderMan1'' is made up of nothing but ''the final scene of the film'', starting from the point where Peter walks away from Mary Jane at Norman's grave, all the way through the final swing. |
| 348 | ** The trailer for ''Film/SpiderMan2'' shows the strain Peter is under as Spider-Man, him quitting the superhero biz, Doc Ock's origin, his deal with Harry Osborn, him kidnapping Mary Jane, Peter becoming Spider-Man again only to be delivered to Harry by Ock and unmasked; essentially, the first four-fifths of the movie. |
| 349 | ** The ''Film/SpiderMan3'' trailer shows Spider-Man's new popularity, Peter's decision to marry Mary Jane, Harry attacking Peter as the New Goblin, Harry being hospitalised, Sandman's origin, Peter discovering that Sandman killed his uncle, being taken over by the symbiote and turning evil, fighting Sandman, Sandman being dissolved in water, Peter fighting Eddie Brock, throwing a bomb at Harry, hurting Mary Jane, realising he's gone too far and tearing the black suit off. The online version of the first trailer had a stinger that showed a bit of the symbiote fall on Eddie, and it ends with a shot of Venom. |
| 350 | ** By this standard, the original ''Film/SpiderMan1'' trailer seems restrained in only revealing about two thirds of the plot; Peter Parker becomes Spider-Man, Norman Osborn becomes the Green Goblin, and the two end up fighting one another. |
| 351 | ** The trailers for ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan2'' are possibly the worst offender, because it practically shows ''[[ExaggeratedTrope every major detail in the plot]]''. It shows Peter trying to balance his relationship with Gwen Stacy, his tension with his returning friend Harry Osborn, Norman Osborn's death, Max Dillon's obsession with Spider-Man, his transformation into Electro, his fight with Spider-Man in Times Square, Electro teaming up with Harry, Spider-Man defeating Electro in the climax, Harry becoming the Green Goblin and killing Gwen, Gustav Fiers planning to form the Sinister Six, and Spider-Man confronting the Rhino (the last scene of the movie). |
| 352 | * ''Franchise/StarTrek'': |
| 353 | ** The trailer for ''Film/StarTrekIIITheSearchForSpock'' ended with the shot of the ''Enterprise'' spectacularly exploding while the narrator says "Join us on this, the final voyage of the Starship ''Enterprise''!" Although this is not really the "ending" - it occurs about two-thirds of the way through the film - the producers had wanted the ship's destruction to come as a complete surprise to the audience, given that the title made the other major element (Spock's return) pretty obvious. Obviously, that didn't happen. |
| 354 | ** Not learning their lesson, ''Enterprise''-D's crashing saucer was shown in the ''Film/StarTrekGenerations'' trailer. |
| 355 | ** One of the final TV spots for ''Film/StarTrekBeyond'' shows that Creator/IdrisElba's Krall WasOnceAMan, something that's treated as an actual twist in the movie. |
| 356 | * ''Franchise/StarWars'': |
| 357 | ** The theatrical trailer for ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'' spoils a climactic death. Obi Wan screams "[[BigNo NO!" in the trailer, and there's a shot of Qui-Gon in pain during the BigNo.]] |
| 358 | ** In ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'', Count Dooku's effectiveness as a mysterious villain would undoubtedly have been more effective if his action figure packaging hadn't given away the fact that he was a Sith Lord months before the movie was released. Even if you never saw anything that gave away his Sith Lord status, the movie still did a horrible job of hiding it. |
| 359 | ** At least one of the trailers for ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'' clearly begins by showing Darth Vader as seen in the original trilogy (who doesn't appear as such until the last five minutes of the movie). The main trailer shows pretty much the entire plot. Granted, ForegoneConclusion meant we knew pretty much the whole plot ''anyway'', but they didn't need to also show every piece of Anakin's fall, including some of the climatic duel between him and Obi-Wan. |
| 360 | ** To the new generation who had yet to see ''Franchise/StarWars'', the trailer for the 1997 re-release of ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' was this, as it included the big LukeIAmYourFather reveal. Sure, ItWasHisSled for the adults, but we can assume that not ''everybody'' told their kid that. |
| 361 | ** ''Film/TheForceAwakens'': |
| 362 | *** The marketing went to great lengths to avoid a repeat of the ''Phantom Menace'' and Count Dooku situations by deliberately holding off on releasing any merchandise or action figures hinting that Rey becomes a Jedi and is the true protagonist of the movie. This caused a bit of a backlash since people accused Disney of downplaying the character for sexist reasons, but once the film was out in theaters for several weeks, a new wave of merchandise prominently featuring Rey was released. |
| 363 | *** However, the trailer for the ''Force Awakens'' play set in ''VideoGame/DisneyInfinity'' had a FreezeFrameBonus that played this trope straight. The ending showed a recreation of the fight between Finn and Kylo Ren (which was heavily played up in the pre-release stuff for the movie), but slipped in a brief shot showing Rey wielding Anakin's lightsaber against the villain. |
| 364 | *** Poe Dameron is seemingly killed off in the first half hour of the film. Most fans knew it wouldn't stick, since not only had he been hyped up as part of the new PowerTrio, most footage of the character in trailers and the like was from after he was revealed to have survived. |
| 365 | ** The home media ads for ''Film/TheLastJedi'' show Yoda as a Force Ghost. |
| 366 | * In ''Film/TheSumOfAllFears'', the trailer reveals that a nuclear bomb goes off in a major downtown city, with Morgan Freeman's character only realizing it while he's sitting with the President in the middle of a crowded stadium. |
| 367 | * The trailer for ''Film/SupermanIII'' showed that not only does Gus Gorman (''Creator/RichardPryor'') become a good guy, but that Superman beats the computer. Granted, it's a Superman film so you probably could have figured out that last part, but still. |
| 368 | * The entire campaign for ''Film/{{Surrogates}}'' was a spoiler: James Cromwell's character (who invented the surrogates) describes them as "an addiction", which makes him easy to guess as the killer, and every trailer and TV spot showed the surrogates shutting down and collapsing in the street, which is the ending to the movie. |
| 369 | * The regular promo for ''Film/TheSwap'' on Disney Channel spoils the scene where Ellie and Jack are getting their bodies switched back to normal. |
| 370 | [[/folder]] |
| 371 | |
| 372 | [[folder:T]] |
| 373 | * The horror anthology ''Film/TalesFromTheHood'' trailer spoiled quite a bit of the film... including the end of the framing sequence that connected the tales together where the mortician turned out to be Satan himself. |
| 374 | * ''Film/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2014'': |
| 375 | ** The second trailer shows Leo, Mikey, and Donnie getting kidnapped by the Foot Clan, with Raph having to go rescue them. And Splinter getting beaten by Shredder, being put into critical condition. |
| 376 | ** The second trailer also gives away that Eric Sacks is not the Shredder; he's just working for the guy. |
| 377 | * All of the ''Franchise/{{Terminator}}'' sequels were guilty. |
| 378 | ** ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' was filmed with the idea that audiences wouldn't know what would happen, assuming that the T-800 is the villain again with Robert Patrick's character as a more adjusted and affable version of the Kyle Reese-esque protector role. However, the last trailer released straight up spoiled the surprise that T-800 was now a heroic Terminator protecting John Connor from a Terminator made of liquid metal. |
| 379 | ** [[Film/Terminator3RiseOfTheMachines The third movie]] has scenes from all over the film in the trailer, including a shot of numerous missiles firing into the air and destroying ground targets, which is part of the final scene in the film. |
| 380 | ** The trailers for ''Film/TerminatorSalvation'' give away the fact that Marcus is a Terminator, something that's set up as a big reveal in the film. |
| 381 | ** ''Film/TerminatorGenisys'' gets hit with this with it's second official trailer where, it's revealed that Skynet has created a Terminator clone of ''John Connor'' himself. At least it's oblique enough for the movie to still a shock once it's revealed that it's actually the original John Connor post-UnwillingRoboticisation. |
| 382 | * The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4URRp39XOo trailer]] for ''Film/{{Them}}'' spoils the twist that the film isn't a noir but instead a monster movie about giant ants. It gets even more egregious when it spoils nearly every major scene featuring the ants, including both the death of Ben Peterson and the last shot of the movie featuring the defeat of the ants, which is also the last shot for the trailer. |
| 383 | * Subverted in ''Film/TimeTrap''. The trailer clearly shows that there is significant TimeDilation in the cave, with one of the characters saying that they could have been inside the cave for weeks or even months, even though they only experienced about an hour or so. what the trailer does not spoil is that the time dilation is [[YearOutsideHourInside a year outside, a second inside, meaning that they had been inside the cave for four ''thousand'' external years.]] |
| 384 | * ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'': [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCy5WQ9S4c0 The trailer]] is essentially a four minute summary of the entire plot. Every moment, from the expositional set up, the meeting between the star-crossed lovers, the striking of the iceberg and the following chaos and class war that occurred onboard are shown, all in the film's order. |
| 385 | * The marketing campaign for ''Film/TopGunMaverick'' took pains to keep footage from the film's third act as vague as possible. [[https://vimeo.com/762446930 A Memorial Day TV spot]], however, spoiled far more than it intended, with shots including Maverick sitting in a cockpit that's exploding behind him (seen when he pulls the HeroicSacrifice to save Rooster), the daring maneuver that leads an Su-57 pilot to inadvertantly destroy his disabled co-pilot's aircraft (as Maverick flies around the latter), and Rooster (very noticeably sitting in the ''backseat'' of a jet) cheering as the plane explodes behind him, spoiling that there's more to the film after the climactic operation to destroy the nuclear enrichment facility.. |
| 386 | * ''Film/TotalRecall1990'''s main trailer is the majority of the movie, especially several of the best parts, including Quaid rolling out onto the surface of Mars as the reactors come online and the one-liner ("Consider that a divorce!"). |
| 387 | * The trailer for ''Film/TheTown'' has a fairly mild example, in that the last line in the trailer is actually the last line in the film. Granted, it's tough to tell outside of context. |
| 388 | * The poster for ''Film/TradingPlaces'' features Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd in each other's arms, smiling and surrounded by dollar bills. They spend much of the film as adversaries, so this spoils the fact that they eventually team up to get lots of money. |
| 389 | * ''Film/TransformersFilmSeries'': |
| 390 | ** ''Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen'': |
| 391 | *** Late trailers go out of their way to reveal [[BackFromTheDead Megatron's return]]. To be fair, anyone who thought Megatron wouldn't back for the sequel really [[LateArrivalSpoiler should've known]] [[JokerImmunity otherwise]]. |
| 392 | *** Devastator would have been a kickass awesome surprise. He just ended up being kickass awesome. |
| 393 | *** There were also several TV spots released, and made available on the director's website, that showed the entire Sideways chase-sequence, including his death at the bladed hands of Sideswipe. |
| 394 | ** The theatrical trailer for ''Film/TransformersDarkOfTheMoon'' clearly revealed Starscream's death, while later TV spots even showed glimpses of how it happens. Likewise, the TV spots spoiled the death of Shockwave, showing how Optimus punches a hole in him. |
| 395 | * The teaser trailer for ''[[Film/{{Twilight}} The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2]]'' spoiled the revelation that Bella becomes a vampire. |
| 396 | [[/folder]] |
| 397 | |
| 398 | [[folder:U]] |
| 399 | * One of ''Film/UndercoverBrother'''s trailers specifically said that Penelope Snow was White She Devil, AKA "Black Man's Kryptonite", which was a major reveal/surprise. |
| 400 | * ''Film/{{Unknown 2011}}'': The trailer shows the people telling the protagonist that the person he thinks he is does not exist - the HUGE twist (although it only gives the line, not much context of it), and it shows the explosion, and one even showed them faking the picture. |
| 401 | [[/folder]] |
| 402 | |
| 403 | [[folder:V]] |
| 404 | * ''Film/Venom2018'': In a manner similar to ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan2'' (which featured the final shot of the movie as a prominent part of its marketing), the second trailer does something similar by showing most of the final scene -- Eddie[=/=]Venom finally stands up to (and subsequently eats) the thug who is running a protection racket on Mrs. Chen's convenience store, complete with his signature line ("We... are Venom.") and final joke ("Oh... I have a parasite. Goodnight, Mrs. Chen!") The second trailer also reveals that Riz Ahmed's character, Carlton Drake (the BigBad), is possessed by a symbiote named Riot, which occurs three-quarters of the way through the film. |
| 405 | * Good luck finding a ''Film/{{Vertigo}}'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5jvQwwHQNY trailer]] that doesn't [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyAN7IP4tYQ reveal]] the HalfwayPlotSwitch. |
| 406 | [[/folder]] |
| 407 | |
| 408 | [[folder:W]] |
| 409 | * There is no reason to see the film ''Film/WarmBodies'' because the trailer casually spoils the fact that it's a reverse parody of ''Film/{{Twilight}}'' where the zombie boy gets turned back into a human by the love of a human girl. Unless the producers do a DoubleSubversion where she gets turned and the plot occurred for naught, but since this is Hollywood, they'll never do anything ''that'' creative. Or would they? |
| 410 | * EnforcedTrope in the case of ''Film/TheWatch2012'', about a neighborhood watch group that stumbles on an AlienInvasion in progress. The movie, whose original title was ''Neighborhood Watch'', had its marketing pulled from movie theaters in the wake of the fatal shooting of 17-year-old [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_of_Trayvon_Martin Trayvon Martin]] by a neighborhood watch person in Sanford, Florida. The film was subsequently renamed ''The Watch'', with the marketing revamped to focus more on the alien aspect than the neighborhood watch. However, upon watching the film, it's obvious that the alien invasion was meant to be a surprise. |
| 411 | * You watch ''Film/WeekendAtBernies'' because the trailer made you laugh, then realize the trailer had all the laughs. |
| 412 | * The original theatrical trailer for ''Film/WhatEverHappenedToBabyJane'' makes a point at the end of trying not to spoil the film, yet there is still a glimpse at the part where Blanche is tied up to her bed. |
| 413 | * The trailer for Creator/WoodyAllen's ''Film/WhateverWorks'' shows Boris's second suicide attempt, which occurs near the end of the movie. |
| 414 | * The trailers for ''Film/WhatLiesBeneath'', they reveal the identity of the ghost, which makes watching the wife sneak around suspecting the neighbor of killing his wife painful and awkward to watch. However, the trailer doesn't give away that Harrison Ford is the bad guy. |
| 415 | * Promotional material for ''Film/WhatsTheMatterWithHelen'' visibly shows Adelle's corpse tied to a ladder, completely ruining the film's CruelTwistEnding. The film's ad campaign was roundly criticized for spoiling the ending, and apparently led to film studios becoming much more careful about doing so. |
| 416 | * In ''Film/WhatWeDoInTheShadows,'' it's a surprise when Nick is turned into a vampire. The trailer focuses heavily on him as a vampire. |
| 417 | * ''Film/WhiteWolves III: Cry of the White Wolf'': Quentin dying some time after the plane crash and then appearing in visions is made very clear in the trailer. |
| 418 | * In ''Film/TheWizard'', the final selection for the climactic tournament being ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3'' is treated as TheReveal, but since the movie is essentially a 90-minute advertisement for Creator/{{Nintendo}} products, they obviously wanted to make sure the trailer gave kids a nice, clear shot of the title screen for the then-unreleased game, to entice them to go see the movie for an extended sneak preview and a free gameplay tip (that the kids in the movie [[PlotHole are somehow already aware of]]). |
| 419 | * The first ''Film/{{Wonka}}'' trailer shows [[spoiler:an Oompa Loompa]] in the last minute. |
| 420 | * The trailer for ''Film/{{Wyrmwood}}'' spoils Brooke gaining the ability to summon and control zombies, which is a late-film plot development. |
| 421 | [[/folder]] |
| 422 | |
| 423 | [[folder:X]] |
| 424 | * ''Film/XMenFilmSeries'' |
| 425 | ** The trailer for ''Film/XMenOriginsWolverine'' inadvertently revealed Weapon XI, whom Wolverine fights at the end of the film. And [[http://splashpage.mtv.com/2009/02/19/x-men-origins-wolverine-spoilers-in-new-deadpool-action-figure/ the toy packaging]] spoiled that he is ComicBook/{{Deadpool}}. |
| 426 | ** The trailers for ''Film/XMenFirstClass'' did show virtually every single scene from the climax -- but edited them so as not to show exactly what was happening. |
| 427 | ** The first trailer concealed the reveal of X-24 for ''Film/{{Logan}}'' except for one shot. |
| 428 | [[/folder]] |
| 429 | |
| 430 | [[folder:Y]] |
| 431 | * Trailers for ''Film/YoureNext'' showcase the very first member of the party to die. |
| 432 | [[/folder]] |
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/context.php
FollowingContext TrailersAlwaysSpoil / LiveActionFilms
Go To
- Show Spoilers
- Night Vision
- Sticky Header
- Wide Load
