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[[quoteright:319:[[VideoGame/MarioParty2 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mario_party_2_ending.png]]]]

One of the best ways you can end either a show or a series is to have all the characters all come together in such a way that summarizes the entire show. The order in which they appear is generally minor or tertiary characters first, then characters that were more important take their bows, and the progression repeats until the major characters take their bow, often with the leading lady and leading man taking their bows individually.

This procedure originated as common theatre courtesy from the cast, so that the audience may show their appreciation for the cast, and the cast to thank the audience for taking their time to watch them. This practice later migrated to other forms of media, with live-action TV series and films (being evolutions of the theatre medium) being the most common. This trope is very common among {{Pantomime}} productions, even more so if one of the members of the cast is portrayed by a celebrity of some sort.

Animated media and video games can also do it, usually relying on the AnimatedActors trope, but this is less common.

See also CreditsMedley, another way of summing up a show with elements throughout. In fact, they're commonly played during Curtain Calls. EveryoneComesBackFantasyPartyEnding is a subtrope. See also EnemyRollCall.
!!As this is an {{Ending Trope|s}}, [[Administrivia/SpoilersOff unmarked spoilers abound]]. [[Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned Beware]].
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!!Examples:
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
* The final chapter of ''Manga/FrankenFran'' has Fran fall asleep and dream that every single significant character she encountered throughout the manga attends a party in her honour. She eventually starts worrying that there are going to be too many guests for the room to contain, but Okita reassures her that she doesn't need to worry since her heart is so big that everyone she has ever met have plenty of room within it.
* ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'': "[[MindScrew CONGRATULATIONS!]]"[[note]]''All'' of the named characters of the show appear at one final scene, congratulate Shinji on his epiphany, and then congratulate ''you'', dear viewer.[[/note]]
* At the end of ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'', a picture appears showing the silhouettes of all {{Magical Girl}}s in the show [[spoiler:including the Witches]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
* ''Film/EightWomen'', which is based on a play, ends with a shot of all the women standing side by side, holding hands and facing the camera as if acknowledging an audience.
* ''Film/TheAdventuresOfBuckarooBanzaiAcrossThe8thDimension'': During the end credits, Buckaroo and all of the heroic characters assemble in a dry urban aqueduct to march together while synth music thumps to the rhythm of their steps.
* ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' uses this at the end of their film, displaying characters from across the entire Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse, culminating with the original six Avengers.
* ''Film/TheBadSeed1956'' has a curtain call ending with Rhoda being spanked over her mother's knee. This may have been borrowed from the play.
* In TheMovie of ''Theatre/TheFantasticks'', the cast comes on for a curtain call after it's over. They're done in order of credit, so the first-credited people (Joel Grey and Barnard Hughes) come on first, even though they don't have the lead parts.
* ''Film/GalaxyQuest'' has ClassicallyTrainedExtra Alexander Dane who is talking to himself about getting three curtain calls as Theatre/RichardIII.
* Happens during the ending of ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheChamberOfSecrets'' during the celebration of Hagrid's return showing shots of minor characters as they applaud, and it culminates with shots of the main trio. That being said, it was supposed to be the final Harry Potter film with director Chris Columbus leaving, but it proved to be a SeriesFauxnale, and more films followed after.
* ''Film/HighSchoolMusicalThreeSeniorYear'' ends with the main cast singing a song about the franchise. At the end of the song, the six main cast members (Troy, Gabriella, Sharpay, Ryan, Chad and Taylor) walk out on a stage, with curtains and the franchise title dropping down behind them, a la the first movie's poster.
* ''Film/TheLifeAquaticWithSteveZissou'': Homages ''Film/TheAdventuresOfBuckarooBanzaiAcrossThe8thDimension'', with most of the film's characters marching in time to a Portuguese version of a Music/DavidBowie song. The last character to join the march is Alistair because he is played by Creator/JeffGoldblum, who was in ''Buckaroo Banzai'' and its corresponding scene. After this, Creator/SeuJorge, who plays Pele and performs this and other Bowie covers throughout the film, gets a solo scene and credit for his musical contributions.
* In the "Christmas in Heaven" scene from ''Film/MontyPythonsTheMeaningOfLife'', most (if not all) of the characters we've seen in the film appear in the Heaven nightclub.
* ''Film/TheresSomethingAboutMary'' has this in its DancePartyEnding.
* ''Film/TilliesPuncturedRomance'' (1914) has a curtain call ending in which Marie Dressler, Creator/MabelNormand, and Creator/CharlieChaplin come out in front of a curtain and bow for the camera.
* The remake of ''Film/ToBeOrNotToBe'' by Creator/MelBrooks has a curtain call at the end. It begins as part of the ShowWithinAShow, but then the actors who are not ''playing'' actors also [[BreakingTheFourthWall come out for a bow]].
* ''Film/YoungFrankenstein'' has a deleted scene with the actors parading through Dr. Frankenstein's castle. Director Creator/MelBrooks comes at the very end.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* Done in a typical LeaningOnTheFourthWall way in the last episode of ''Series/ThirtyRock'', where the cast and staff of ''[[ShowWithinAShow TGS With Tracy Jordan]]'' come out to say goodbye - which is really just the staff of ''30 Rock''.
-->'''Tracy Jordan/Creator/TracyMorgan''': That's our show. Not a lot of people watched it, but the joke's on you, because we got paid anyway!
* [[Theatre/{{Annie}} Annie Live!]] ends with its cast members taking a bow for the studio audience over a final reprise of "Tomorrow".
* The end of ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' episode "Once More With Feeling". They don't bow, but they're all onscreen together singing the last song, with Buffy and Spike kissing at first, then singing with the rest. They even appear to lampshade it.
-->'''Cast:''' The curtains close on a kiss, God knows, we can tell the end is near...
* ''Series/DoctorWho'' has this happen several times in the revival era.
** In the episode "Journey's End", all the previous companions from the past 4 seasons return to help the Doctor save the universe.
** In the episode "End of Time, Part 2", which was the final episode of the Tenth Doctor, the Doctor travels around to bid everyone goodbye.
** Variation in "Twice Upon a Time", the Twelfth Doctor's GrandFinale: He spends much of the story with a Testimony avatar of his companion Bill Potts (who left in the previous episode). As the Doctor prepares to leave the World War I battlefield, the Testimony also manifests avatars of [[spoiler: his other companions, Clara Oswald and Nardole,]] to bid him goodbye. Moreover, this [[spoiler: restores the Doctor's memories of Clara, which he lost in "Hell Bent"]].
* ''[[Film/{{Grease}} Grease: Live!]]'' ends with all of its cast members taking a bow for the studio audience, while singing a reprise of "We Go Together", and before delivering one more performance of "Born to Hand Jive".
* Each of Creator/{{NBC}}'s live musicals beginning with ''[[Theatre/{{Hairspray}} Hairspray Live!]]'' also ends with the cast taking a bow for the studio audience.
* ''Series/HomeImprovement'' ends with the cast breaking character and taking a bow.
* The end of the ChristmasEpisode of ''Series/TheHoneymooners'' featured Creator/JackieGleason and his castmates breaking character to wish the audience and viewers at home a Merry Christmas.
* The finale of ''Series/TheMaryTylerMooreShow'' famously ends with the cast breaking character and having Mary Tyler Moore pay tribute to her castmates.
* Each episode of ''Series/TheMickeyMouseClub'' has the Mouseketers coming together to sing a slow reprise of them theme song, followed by Mickey Mouse himself saying goodbye to the viewers.
* Creator/MontyPython:
** ''Series/MontyPythonsFlyingCircus'': In the episode about the Golden Age of Ballooning, at the end of the title sketch there's a curtain call of all of the actors in the sketch, featuring the butler.
** There's also one for the troupe's farewell show, ''Film/MontyPythonMostlyLiveOneDownFiveToGo''. It consists of Creator/EricIdle leading everyone in the O2 Arena in one final performance of [[spoiler:-- what else? -- "[[Main/SignatureSong Always Look on the Bright Side of Life]]"]].
* Each episode of ''Series/RadioEnfer'' ends with all the actors who appeared in the episode breaking character and walking towards the cheering audience.
* Each individual episode of ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'' ends with the entire cast and any guest stars (and musicians in the guest band) gathering on the stage, with the ending theme music playing.
* The SeriesFauxnale at the end of ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'' season 8 ends with JD walking down a hallway and meeting a lot of the actors that has appeared on the show. A few dead people too. Some of them make comments referencing their story arcs.
* After the scene where Mildred is appointed to Head Girl, the original broadcast of the GrandFinale of the 2017 version of ''Literature/TheWorstWitch'', on Creator/{{CBBC}}, has the cast, in videos all shot from their homes, saying goodbye to the fans and thanking the cast and crew for the fun four years they've had together. Even Bella Ramsey, dropped in to say goodbye. Sadly, [[EditedForSyndication this tribute cannot be seen in the BBC iPlayer and Netflix, as well as encore presentations of the finale, as the credits rolled immediately after the final scene, dropping the tribute altogether]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Music]]
* This happens at the end of the music video for Music/{{Madonna}}'s [[spoiler:"Like a Prayer"]]. Significant in that you don't realize until this point that the tense (and controversial!) video was all just a play, and the curtain call can actually serve as NightmareRetardant.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Pro Wrestling]]
* An infamous moment in the history of ProfessionalWrestling: Wrestling/TheKliq (some of whom were heels and some faces) broke kayfabe on Nash & Hall's final night in the WWF, celebrating in the ring and taking bows in front of the audience at Madison Square Garden. It's actually called "the curtain call" in pro wrestling history.
* In Wrestling/{{WWE NXT}}, the Four Horsewomen (Wrestling/{{Bayley}}, Wrestling/BeckyLynch, Wrestling/{{Charlotte}} and Wrestling/SashaBanks) did this at NXT Takeover: Brooklyn as a MythologyGag to the Kliq's curtain call before Becky, Charlotte and Sasha left NXT for the main roster.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Theater]]
* Nearly every single theatre show, as it's common courtesy for a theatre troupe to do this so as to allow the audience to applause and for the cast to show their appreciation. Except for actors who play characters who are only on stage before the intermission, as they are allowed to go home or to their hotel early if they choose.
** While ''most'' theatrical productions have this, occasionally the director will decide to [[AvertedTrope skip it]] for emphasis.
*** The first Broadway production of ''Theatre/SeventeenSeventySix'' had no curtain call, likely because it would have been too jarring after the solemn reverence of the ending.
*** The 2006 Broadway revival of ''Theatre/TheThreepennyOpera'' also nixed the curtain call.
*** In the original, two-part version of ''Theatre/HarryPotterAndTheCursedChild'', there is no curtain call after Part 1, as the story isn't over yet, and [[spoiler:bringing about a timeline where [[TheBadGuyWins Voldemort wins]]]] isn't really a cause for celebration.
* Also universal at the end of every {{ballet}} performance in the form of "révérence" -- a series of [[EveryProperLadyShouldCurtsy curtsies]] made to the audience and the orchestra. This generally follows the theatre format above, with the ''corps de ballet'' bowing first and progressing through the dancers until the principal leads make their individual bows/curtsies at the end.
* The Shakespearean romantic comedy ''Theatre/AsYouLikeIt'' incorporates this as part of the story, where all good characters make an appearance for their marriage and subsequent end of the play.
* At the ''Theatre/CrazyHorse'' cabaret in UsefulNotes/{{Paris}}, [[IntercourseWithYou "You Turn Me On"]] closes the shows, and it's usually performed by all the nude female dancers that took part to the show that day.
* Creator/TakarazukaRevue productions (specifically shows that take place at the Grand Theater and the Tokyo Takarazuka Theater) typically end shows - even depressing ones like ''Theatre/{{Elisabeth}}'' - with an out-of-context lavish finale in which the cast dress up in trademark sparkly outfits and entertain the audience with remixes of the songs in the show. Depending on the production, number types include (but are not limited to): a ChorusGirls kickline, a ''musumeyaku'' (female role actress) dance, an ''otokoyaku'' (male role actress) dance, a duet dance (''duedan'' or ''duendan'') between the top star and top ''musumeyaku'', and some kind of mixed group number. The parade always ends the show, with the actresses in (one of their) in-show costumes descending the Grand Staircase in ascending order of rank within the troupe, with the ''étoile'' (a promising young actress singing a short solo) first and the top musumeyaku and top star (the leading actors and highest-ranked actors in their categories) dead last. They sing an upbeat medley of prominent songs in the show, and wave goodbye to the audience. In contrast, small theatre Zuka shows usually only have the curtain calls typical in "normal" musical theatre.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry1'', ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry2DiddysKongQuest'', and ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry3DixieKongsDoubleTrouble'' all feature a parade of enemies and [=NPCs=] in their respective games, with the latter game presented as a photo album. This tradition has not been revived in ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryReturns'' or ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryTropicalFreeze'', however.
* ''VideoGame/DynamiteHeaddy'', [[JustifiedTrope being set as]] a [[ShowWithinAShow puppet show/stage play]], has a sequence where all the enemies and characters in the game come out with their names displayed near them before the credits.
* ''VideoGame/DoomII'' and ''VideoGame/Doom64'' both have a version of this after the final text sequence when you defeat the FinalBoss, individually displaying and naming each enemy in the game. They normally show off their walking animation in this sequence, occasionally firing in the direction of the camera as well, until you press a button, at which point that enemy dies and the sequence moves on to the next enemy. It also includes the player character himself in this sequence, after which it goes back to the starting Zombieman and [[UnendingEndCard continues looping like this until you quit the game or start over]].
* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'' has a Curtain Call that plays as the characters escape Kefka's Tower in which a vintage-style photo screen names each of the characters as well as objects symbolizing them then the screen shows each of the characters doing their part in the teamwork needed to escape.
* The credits to several ''VideoGame/MegaManClassic'' and ''[[VideoGame/MegaManX X]]'' series games start with one for the Robot Masters/Mavericks featured in that game.
* ''VideoGame/{{Mother}}''
** ''VideoGame/{{EarthBound|1994}}'' and ''VideoGame/Mother3'' both have curtain calls played out in cast rolls when the game ends and before the credits. ''VideoGame/EarthBoundBeginnings'' has a different variation, the cast running underneath a screen of Ninten sleeping and looking at the player before running off the screen.
** The fangame ''VideoGame/CognitiveDissonance'' follows suit on the former example.
* The final scene of ''VideoGame/OdinSphere'', literally called CurtainCall.
* During the credits of both ''VideoGame/Persona3'' and ''VideoGame/Persona4'', silhouettes of all playable characters are shown together with their Persona.
* Every ''VideoGame/RhythmHeaven'' game traditionally ends with a sequence depicting all of the minigames' focus characters, before thanking you as well. The first game ends with images of some but not all of the characters, while ''Megamix'' ends with the game also displaying how many times you’ve played each game.
* Throughout the credits of ''VideoGame/ShiningWisdom'' we see all the enemies appearing and preforming an attack (their only animation besides walking) and at the very end all the good main characters appear and bow. All except the player character which you can [[MiniGameCredits make walk around the ending screen]].
* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'':
** ''VideoGame/MarioParty2'' ends with the playable characters (and Bowser) coming on stage to wave to the players.
** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioRPG'', ''VideoGame/{{Paper Mario|64}}'' and ''VideoGAme/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor'' each feature a parade comprising of the respective game's enormous cast.
* ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'', in the vein of ''Mother'', ends with a cast roll depicting every enemy in the game. The game also shows the major characters accomplishing their dreams.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* At the end of Turner Feature Animation's ''WesternAnimation/CatsDontDance'', studio mogul L.B. Mammoth commands the photographers, "Get a picture, boys. These kids are going to be big." All the significant animal characters from Farley Wink's Animal Agency are in the shot. Missing, of course, are the villainous Darla Dimple and her lackey, Max.
* ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' ended on a Curtain Call combined with AndTheAdventureContinues in its GrandFinale with all the members of the League running/flying down from the steps of Metro Tower in thematically-linked groups (i.e. characters who frequently teamed up in the comics or were created by the same writer), concluding with the original seven members. In a note of BookEnds for the whole Franchise/DCAnimatedUniverse franchise, Franchise/{{Batman}} is the very last hero seen on-screen; he was the [[WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries very first hero]] of the DCAU.
* Luanne's wedding on ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'', when everyone, even the most obscure characters, showed up.
* The closing bumper for Creator/CartoonNetwork's ''The Looney Tunes Show'' (not to be confused with [[WesternAnimation/TheLooneyTunesShow the 2011 series]]) features a curtain call with Bugs Bunny and other members of the main ensemble (except [[ButtMonkey Daffy]], of course).
[[/folder]]
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