[[{{Shuffle}} http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/empty.jpg]]
[[caption-width:250:[[NightmareFuel It's like she's turned into a porcelain doll...]]]]

->''He always smiled, and he always chuckled, but inside he did not notice anyone, did not care; it was his body that smiled, nodded and shook hands. Nothing touched his mind, which remained remote.''
--> -- '''PhilipKDick''', ''Ubik''

->''"I'm smiling right now...right?"''
-->--'''Wolfgang Grimmer''', ''{{Monster}}''

Everyone loves PuritySue. [[LoveIsInTheAir They can't help it!]] She's practically perfect in every way. The StepfordSmiler is much like PuritySue: she's bright, chipper, and an all-around pleasant person to be with.

''It's all a lie, of course''.

The StepfordSmiler is obsessed with projecting an image of wholesome happiness in order to be accepted by her peers. Tragically enough, they'd probably [[ThePowerOfFriendship accept her]] for who she is regardless of her self-imposed {{Masquerade}}. Their flawlessly crafted façade hides a real person that's usually breaking like so much fine china in order to keep up the deception.

These are the three main types of Stepford Smiler:
'''Type A''': The character seems to be happy, cheerful, is always smiling and seems to live a perfect life, but inside she feels very sad and depressed.
'''Type B''': The character seems to be kind and cheerful, but her true self is [[ExtremeDoormat motiveless]] and [[EmptyShell hollow]].
'''Type C''': [[{{Yangire}} The smile hides a very unstable and crazy person.]]

Type A [[{{Heroes}} Heroines]] or show co-stars that are Stepford Smilers can either be played straight (they really are that [[TheDitz shallow]]) or to gain viewer sympathy as they struggle to live up to their own impossible ideals. [[{{Villains}} Villainesses]] like the EvilMatriarch who are Stepford Smilers are usually played one of two ways: it can either humanize them, much like the heroine, or it can accentuate their evil by contrasting it with their soullessness. Feminine pronouns are used throughout this trope because the StepfordSmiler is a traditionally female role, though there are many male examples too. Sometimes, they're even a couple.

The type B's mask itself can also hide a terrible secret... ''there is '''nothing''' behind it.'' The void is either a result of using up so much energy [[IJustWantToBeNormal pretending to be normal]] that nothing is left over, or because there was [[TheSoulless nothing there to begin with.]]

Scared yet? [[ItGotWorse It gets worse]].

If a StepfordSmiler smiles long enough without [[BrokenSmile cracking]], she can ''[[BecomingTheMask become]]'' [[BecomingTheMask the mask]] and turn into a type C. Some Stepford Smilers buy into the dead {{Barbie}} smiles to such a degree that they care for ''nothing'' other than maintaining appearances, having money, making sure their [[GoodHairEvilHair hair is]] ''[[PowerHair just right,]]'' and improving their social standing, all of which are pursued with equally [[{{Darwinist}} Darwinian]] means. Essentially, they become the materialist opposite of the NietzscheWannabe.

Not every {{Housewife}} is a StepfordSmiler, obviously. They often encounter one as a nemesis instead, in a post-HighSchool example of TheLibby. Still, some readers describe ''any'' {{Housewife}} raising her own children as a StepfordSmiler [[RealWomenNeverWearDresses on little if any evidence]], bringing in the UnfortunateImplications about "staying at home = women being slaves of [[TheUnfairSex those evil men]]."

The StepfordSmiler gets her name (as does the StepfordSuburbia in which she lives) from the book and later movies ''TheStepfordWives'', about a village whose men conspire to create the Barbie perfect wife, all with similar eerie smiles.

See also: ComedicSociopathy, TheCutie, ExtremeDoormat, EvilMatriarch, IJustWantToBeNormal, MarySue, {{Masquerade}}, UncannyValleyGirl, {{Yandere}}.\\
Contrast with: NietzscheWannabe, TheStoic, YamatoNadeshiko. Opposite number to TheDaria.
----
!!Female Examples

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder: Anime and Manga ]]

* Fai from TsubasaReservoirChronicle. It's so painfully obvious that two of his four crew members know very well he's a stepford smiler and regularly call him out on it. And all this lampshading is not enough to account for the extent of Fai's inner depression.
* Pictured above: Kaede in ''{{Shuffle}}''. Once [[spoiler: Rin starts paying more attention to Asa than to her]], oh boooooy.
* Mima and Rumi in the animated movie ''PerfectBlue''.
* Many characters in ''{{Evangelion}}'', the most notable ones being Asuka, Misato and Ritsuko.
* ''KareKano'''s lead female Yukino Miyazawa follows the sympathetic kind (and there's a good lot of jokes on it, too).
* Kasumi Tendo of ''[[RanmaOneHalf Ranma 1/2]]'' - though the fandom is divided over whether Kasumi is putting on a happy face for her family (because *somebody* has to) or that she really '''is''' [[PollyAnna that indestructibly upbeat]].
** Kasumi is like this all the time, as seen when she was possessed by an evil spirit - it freaked out her family that she was still so upbeat throughout.
** That being said, her personality is mostly a result of [[FlanDerization flanderization]]. In the early chapters and anime episodes she showed a far deeper personality.
* It is strongly implied that Yoko Nakajima, the main character of ''TheTwelveKingdoms'', starts out the series as a junior version of this in regards to her home and social life; she reveals later the fear that there was truly nothing inside.
* Masane from ''WitchBlade'' has this to a degree. After losing all her memories in the great quake, and even her old name, all she had to build a new life was her daughter Rihoko. She is constantly saying that Rihoko is the only thing she has and aside from being her mom, there really isn't that much to Masane. Well until she activated the Witchblade and became an ActionMom. As the series progresses, she gets better.
* Tohru Honda from ''FruitsBasket'' is a genuinely kind and caring person, but has serious insecurities that she hides behind her smile and [[{{Pollyanna}} cheerful disposition]] to avoid troubling her friends.
* ''DigimonTamers'' had a StepfordSmiler in training in Juri Katou. Early on, her main character traits are being cheerful and carrying around an alternatively cute and creepy puppet; later in the series, we find out that she never quite got over her biological mother's death, and [[BreakTheCutie everything went to crap]] as soon as the series' running "joke" happened: for non-fans, [[MegaNeko Leomon]] ''always'' [[DeadSidekick dies]], and ''this'' time, he just so happened to be Juri's [[BondCreatures Bond Creature]].
** And ''then'' the D-Reaper forced Juri to relive the moment of Leomon's death ''over and over again, in an attempt to grow stronger on her despair.''
* Asakura Ryoko from ''SuzumiyaHaruhi'' fits this trope more or less. As she acts like a PuritySue, she keeps a cute, caring and friendly appearance, even when she is about to stab you with her [[KnifeNut beloved combat knife]], ''or'' when dying. Since she is an ArtificialHuman, unable to empathize with humans, it is very likely that it is just a fixed masquerade.
** It becomes especially disturbing when you consider that it's likely the only time only time she's ''really'' smiling is when [[spoiler:she's trying to kill Kyon]]. She's also, arguably, a deconstruction of both the StepfordSmiler and the PuritySue. How is it possible to never stop smiling for a moment? To have no understanding of what the expression means.
* It's plainly obvious that the overly optimistic and cheerful Kafuka Fuura from ''SayonaraZetsuboSensei'' is a StepfordSmiler. Even though she hides her traumatic past, some of her classmates are acutely aware of her mask and are mortally terrified of her. It doesn't help that she's secretly [[spoiler:stalking Itoshiki-sensei by disguising herself as a college student who lives next door...]]
* Wakaba Shinohara in ''RevolutionaryGirlUtena''. Effervecently [[GenkiGirl bubbly, energetic, and perky]]... until during the Black Rose Arc, we find that [[spoiler: she deeply resents people who are special, having a rather low sense of self-worth herself.]]
** To say nothing of [[EmotionlessGirl Anthy]]. She is initially presented as a demure, somewhat shy and even submissive girl, but by the end of the series [[spoiler: it has been revealed that not only has she been living with an unimaginable amount of both physical and emotional pain, but she could even be considered the series' BigBad.]]
* As of episode 6 of the second season, ''EfATaleOfMemories'''s [[spoiler: Amamiya Yuuko. Complete with {{Broken Smile}} to the extreme.]]
* Orihime Inoue from ''{{Bleach}}'' is a very gentle, sweet girl as well as the local GenkiGirl BarrierWarrior. Also has huge self-esteem problems, views herself as inferior to the Shinigami, feels troubled because she adores said Shinigami (and specially Rukia) ''and'' [[spoiler: is in love with Ichigo]]. Cue to her almost having quite the breakdown in the Arrancar arc... [[spoiler: and a full-blown one in the Hueco Mundo arc]].
** Rukia herself is a milder version. We met her as a spunky {{Tsundere}} who takes no crap, but the Soul Society arc shows us that [[spoiler: she actually is a FailureKnight who had to kill the man she loved, and carries such a heavy guilt afterwards that she thinks she's unworthy of living and sees her upcoming execution as a SuicideByCop]]. She gets better, thank God.
* After going through a long [[BreakTheCutie cutie-breaking]], Aoi from ''InfiniteRyvius'' spends a couple of episodes acting this way before finally having a HeroicBSOD.
* Dawn from ''{{Pokemon}}'', oddly enough, fits this trope. She fails at keeping it a secret though.
** Not odd at all. She lost a good 3 or so contests in a ''row'' before her self esteem broke,she seems to naturally have self esteem problems probably due to bullying as a child,and maybe her mothers wanting for her to be like her,and since she is a bubbly cutie who worries about her friends..Not at all odd.
* Mary Magdalene in ''ChronoCrusade'' almost constantly smiles, even though she's constantly having visions of the future and the past, some of them horrifying and violent. In fact, she has so many visions she has no memory of her childhood or even her name--except for a reoccurring vision of [[spoiler:Chrono killing her with tears streaming down his face]]. She's even smiling when [[spoiler:[[GoOutWithASmile she dies]]]].
* Mai Tokiha from ''{{Mai-HiME}}'' keeps a smile on her face almost constantly because she doesn't want to burden any of her friends with her personal problems, which include a [[ParentalAbandonment dead mother]] and a [[IllGirl sick younger brother]].
* Kyouko Mogami from ''SkipBeat'', due to having had an abusive, unpleasable mother, and later living and working in a ''ryokan'' (Japanese inn) where she picked the attitude of "clients shouldn't see you upset ever". Any time her real feelings and temper come to surface, she managed to put them back quickly, to no disturb the people around. Kyouko only breaks with this when she is properly informed that all her efforts will be not rewarded at all, and then realizes that living like she was constantly tending clients neither does her any good.
* There's also Takako Shimizu from ''{{Chobits}}'', Shinbo and Hideki's {{cram school}} teacher. She always smiles and helps them out, but hides how [[spoiler: her husband ignores her in favor of his persocom...]]
* Dita from ''{{Vandread}}'' was surrounded by people who were depressed often as a little girl. This, in turn, depressed her. She tried to cheer people up by acting as a [[TheDitz ditzy]] [[TheCutie cutie]], it worked, so the habit stuck.
*In SailorMoon ''Stars'', Usagi/Moon slowly becomes one of these [[spoiler: to hide her worry because Mamoru hasn't come in contact with her ever since he left to study in the USA]]. She thought he was working too hard in university, but unbeknownst to her, [[spoiler: poor Mamoru was dead through BusCrash]].
** In the live-action ''PrettyGuardianSailorMoon'', a somewhat similar theme's explored when Usagi learns from Mamoru that [[spoiler: her own negative emotions are empowering [[SealedEvilInACan Metaria]] and helping bring about TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt]], and so remakes herself into a Stepford Smiler. After [[spoiler: Minako has died]], Usagi tries to greet him with a teary-eyed, obviously fake smile, and when he tells her it's okay to cry now, she practically falls into his arms in tears.
*Seras Victoria from ''{{Hellsing}}''. She's unnaturally cheerful and goofy for someone who's had all of her police partners killed, being nearly raped and killed by a vampire and then is actually turned into one. That's just the first volume/episode. Also [[spoiler:her parents killed in front of her and her mother raped. In that order.]] The manga was a bit more subtle about this but the OVA series comes right out and says it.
* [[spoiler: Himawari Kunogi]] from ''[[XxxHolic xxxHOLiC]]'' is a lovely schoolgirl best described as concentrated ''cute''. She later reveals she suffers a curse that makes her a magnet for tragedies, and everyone around her dies horrible deaths or at least suffers terrible accidents, ever since she was a little child. And she tells this story ''with a smile on her face''. [[TearJerker Sniffff. ;-;]]
*Most of the members of the "Scratch" cult in ''CowboyBebop''. Faye's smile while talking about getting rid of her debts by getting rid of her body is especially unsettling...
* Hakkai from Saiyuki routinely scares his own friends in spite of his Stepford Husband appearance. Whether he's ironing shirts or dismembering youkai, the smile never ever slips...
* The characters do this in ''HigurashiNoNakuKoroNi'' in the question arcs, and first two answer arcs, to try and hide things.
** Rena is also a perfect example of a Type A. [[spoiler:It's all a facade, but she does it to escape from her sadness.]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Comic Books ]]

* When fans fell in love with [[{{Spiderman}} Mary Jane Watson]], many writers attempted to reconcile her "devil may care" party girl image from her first couple of years of existence by revealing that her party girl facade was something she came up with to cover up her screwed up homelife, which included a physically and mentally abusive father.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Film ]]

* ''MeanGirls'': Gretchen (the 'one small step from a complete nervous breakdown' version, rather than the 'empty inside' version).
* Well... TheStepfordWives, [[TropeNamer obviously.]]
* Just about... scratch that, ''every'' character in the movie ''{{Pleasantville}}'' is a StepfordSmiler, what with it being a [[TrappedInTVLand 1950s sitcom world made real.]] Subverted later on when the teens zapped into Pleasantville start spreading new thoughts and emotions, causing the townsfolk to ''literally'' gain color, and with it, depth.
* Gina [=McKee=] plays a particularly creepy variant of this in ''Mirrormask''.
-->'''Black Queen:''' Because we are...what?
-->'''Guard:''' Not a home to Mr. Grumpy, Your Majesty.
-->'''Black Queen:''' Exactly!
* ''The Chumscrubber'' is essentially about an entire suburb full of {{Stepford Smiler}}s.
* In Tim Burton's adaptation of ''CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory'', Violet Beauregard's mom has definite Stepford vibes, especially regarding her perfectionist coaching of her daughter.
** Speaking of Tim Burton,''EdwardScissorhands'' features a good amount of Stepford Smilers.
* Child star Darla Dimple of ''[[CatsDontDance Cats Don't Dance]]'' maintains a facade of being [[http://toonguru.com/CDD/screens/scenes/14/pages/CDD014_009.htm sweet and adorable.]] Heaven help you if [[{{Yandere}} she's angry]] at you when [[http://toonguru.com/CDD/screens/scenes/06/pages/CDD6_019.htm it breaks.]]
*Carolyn Burnham from ''AmericanBeauty'' is a prime example of this trope, subscribing to the adage, "In order to be successful, one must project an image of success at all times."
* Katherine in ''CruelIntentions'' pretends to be an upstanding junior-league type schoolgirl, when in reality she's an oversexed, scheming coke fiend who takes out her frustrations on her fellow female classmates by way of convincing them to become whores and ruin their reputations as a result.
** I don't remember any of the girls being '''paid''' for sex, which is kind of a prerequisite for 'whore', I think. And if you meant 'slut', I would have thought that would take more than losing your virginity or sleeping with two guys, one of whom got you drunk.
* Asami Yamazaki in ''{{Audition}}''. The male protagonist Aoyama is instantly smitten with [[YamatoNadeshiko her beauty and demureness]], and ignores his friend's comments on how there's something ''wrong'' about her. She turns out to be a [[FreudianExcuse victim of childhood abuse]] ''and'' an AxCrazy murderer, which would be a spoiler if not for [[TrailersAlwaysSpoil the DVD cover and trailer showing her wielding a syringe]]. The climactic scene is made all the creepier by her perky voice and grin
-->Kiri, kiri, kiriiii...! (Deeper, deeper, deeepeeeer...!).
* ''Serial Mom''. This troper has been afraid to wear white shoes after Labor Day ever since.
* The Other Mother in ''{{Coraline}}''. Along with those button eyes... [[UncannyValley brr...]]
* Subverted with the town of Spectre in ''BigFish''. While it's a perfect, pleasant town that almost no one wants to ever leave, it's not sinister in any way. It's just nice.
* PlayedForLaughs in ''ShockTreatment'': Denton is a hybrid of a [=TV=] station and a town, so naturally it encourages its residents to be shallow, cheerful consumers.
* Nicole Kidman's character in ''To Die For'' is a sterling example. For extra fun, the movie is [[BasedOnATrueStory based on the real-life story of Pamela Smart.]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

* The Other Mother from ''{{Coraline}}''.
* On the heroic side, Leitha from Eddings's ''TheRedemptionOfAlthalus'' -- she pretends to be cheerful and witty, but is secretly neurotic, insecure, and self-hating.
* Petunia Dursley from the ''HarryPotter'' novels is a fine example of the sort who ''is'' her mask.
** However, ''Deathly Hallows'' suggests that [[spoiler: her mask developed as the means to deal with her jealousy over her younger, "perfect" sister Lily getting magic and not herself.]]
** And, of course, we have [[CompleteMonster Dolores]] [[TheUmbridge Umbridge]].
* William Sleator's ''Others See Us'' has Annelise, who is well loved by everyone, including her cousin Jared, until he gains telepathy and realizes she's a StepfordSmiler of the worst sort. At one point he visits her mental landscape, it's an infinite sun-parched desert with her face as the huge sun, and the only other feature is a gigantic mirror, reflecting her face.
** [[CSLewis C.S. Lewis]]' short story ''The Shoddy Lands'' also has its protagonist experience a telepathic vision of a StepfordSmiler's mental landscape.
* The Goddess Media from ''AmericanGods'' by NeilGaiman was like this in her true form. As the humanoid manifestation of The Media, when she wasn't possessing characters on television she was described as looking like the sickeningly sweet hostess one of those morning shows filmed in a fake living room.
* Countess Rostov from ''WarAndPeace'' is very much like this except when she's talking with her daughters. Pierre Bezukhov's wife Hélène would be a subversion in that she goes from having no role in society except being beautiful (and smiling a lot) to one of the eminent hostesses on the Moscow and St. Petersburg scene after getting married.
* Part of the reason Will Navidson moved his family into the titular [[color:blue:house]] in ''HouseOfLeaves'' was to get closer to his family, including his StepfordSmiler wife, Karen Green.
* Lilith de Tempscire from ''{{Discworld}}'' is a variant of a StepfordSmiler. In Lilith's mind, life should be just like a storybook. [[spoiler: As the witch in charge, politically, in the city of Genua,]] she likes things to be the way people expect them to be--i.e., cooks should be fat and jolly and bustle a great deal, innkeepers should have big red faces, toymakers should whistle and sing the whole day long and tell amusing stories to children, etc. And woe betide anyone who doesn't live up to Lilith's expectations; she makes certain that they suffer for it. To quote the book ''Witches Abroad'', "Lilith held up a mirror to Life, and chopped off the bits of Life that didn't fit."
* Ira Levin's book TheStepfordWives, the TropeNamer.
* Kaitlyn Werhner from the short story, ''Dark Red Mind''. If you were to see her smile at you with those piercing blue eyes, ''run.'' Not that it would help you any.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

* ''Most'' characters in ''TwinPeaks'' live this trope - it is one of the key fascinations of David Lynch and common in his work. The key theme of TwinPeaks is taking a dreamy, perfect small rural town with white picket fences and exposing the hypocrisy, instability and literal evil that underlies it everywhere. Shades of grey abound.
* Many, many characters in ''DesperateHousewives'' -- but Bree stands out as the most Stepfordish. In the pilot, her son Andrew even says that she always acts "like [she's] running for mayor of Stepford."
* Julia [=McNamara=] from ''[[NipTuck nip/tuck]]'' is half StepfordSmiler and half DefrostingIceQueen. You have to have a little sympathy for the woman, as she ''has'' been keeping her son's paternity secret from both his natural father and assumed father. Unfortunately, her eternal struggle over "Sean or Christian?" just annoys most people.
* Betty Draper from ''MadMen'' could be used as a textbook example; she's playing the role of '50s wife and mother so perfectly that her impending nervous breakdown seems like a surprise even to ''her''.
* ''KeepingUpAppearances'' is basically a long look at one woman's failing attempts to maintain the mask. HilarityEnsues.
* Celia from ''{{Weeds}}''. Nancy [[YourMileageMayVary may have]] become one as well.
* Barb Ballantine, the 'perfect' mom from ''TheMommies'' showed signs of this trait.
* Amy Poehler's impression of Hillary Clinton on ''SaturdayNightLive'' seems to draw a good deal of inspiration from this trope.
* One of Tara's [[SplitPersonality split personalities]] in ''TheUnitedStatesOfTara'' is a "perfect 50's housewife who's secretly filled with ''seething rage''", according to the press releases.
* Being a spunky fifties parody, the gang from {{Pushing Daisies}} has met their fair share of this trope. For example, [[spoiler: Hillary Hundin]] from "Bitches", [[spoiler: Madeline [=McLean=]]] from "Corpsicle" and [[spoiler: Mrs. Vandersloop]] from "The Legend of Merle [=McQuoddy=]".
* Daisy from ''DeadLikeMe''. She starts out as a [[TheDitz ditzy]] BottleFairy and former actress who ReallyGetsAround, loves to brag about it, and acts more than happy with herself, but then her last thought is revealed: "Why has no one ever loved me?", revealing that she only ''acts'' happy with her life (and her un-life, given what the show is about).

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Music ]]

* The song "Happy Go Lucky" by Steps is made of this trope.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Theater ]]

* Mrs. Lovett in the play ''SweeneyTodd''. She is cheerful and kindly, but has no problems whatsoever chopping up human bodies nor really with Sweeney's killing, and she is really only interested in improving her social standing. While not necessarily hollow, she certainly doesn't give a lot of moral considerations to her actions.
* In the musical ''How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying'', Rosemary is a StepfordSmiler in training.
* All four main characters in the Sondheim musical ''Follies'' are {{Stepford Smiler}}s of one sort or another. Their masks do fall eventually, and the comparison to their [[TimeshiftedActor younger counterparts]] in {{Flashback}}s becomes painful: back then, they had a reason to smile -- at least, they ''thought'' they did. (It says something that ''DesperateHousewives'' gets many of its episode titles from musical numbers in ''Follies''.)
* Amanda from Tennessee William's "The Glass Menagerie" possibly qualifies, though she's most interested in [[EvilMatriarch living her ideal life vicariously through her children]].
** On that note, Stella and especially Blanche from ''AStreetcarNamedDesire.''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

*''{{Psychonauts}}'' features both a female and male example. Crystal and Clem are two seemingly cheerful and enthusiastic campers who like to root their fellow campers on (especially Raz)... and also harbor suicidal tendencies. Most of this is PlayedForLaughs: "I feel so stupid for throwing myself off the roof!" "Why did you throw yourself off the roof?" "Because the poison didn't work, duh!"
**A more depressing version is [[spoiler: Milla, a perpetually cheerful party girl who hides the fact that she worked at an orphanage that burned down, killing all inside. As if that wasn't enough, she also wound up psychically hearing their screams for help as they died.]] [[AlternateCharacterInterpretation Interpretations]] vary with the player with some seeing her as someone who's ''coped'' with the trauma in her past. WordOfGod says it's the latter, and that "locking up" nightmares is a perfectly healthy way of dealing with that level of trauma.
* Sagiri from ''SuikodenV'' was trained to be this kind of character, a ruthless killer with a permanent smile on her face. By the time you meet her she's mostly rehabilitated, however she still finds herself unable to adopt any other expression.
* Colette from ''TalesOfSymphonia'' is a Stepford Smiler, always having a smile on her face, even as she [[spoiler: starts to lose her humanity]] and later on [[spoiler: starts slowly turning into a Cruxis Crystal]] while trying as hard as she can to keep it a secret from everybody.
* [[spoiler:Shiki]] from ''TheWorldEndsWithYou'' has this as she [[spoiler:tries to pretend to be her bubbly best friend because she feels the real her is worthless.]]
* In ''FireEmblem 7'', the [[StaffChick Cleric]] Serra is a mix of GenkiGirl and RichBitch who [[WellExcuseMePrincess acts like a princess]]... [[spoiler: but truly is an orphan dropped at a small, miserable Ostian convent by an Etrurian clan in danger of being wiped away. Her parents never came back for her and she was badly traumatised by their abandonement.]] Get her to support with people like Hector or Lucius to get more details.
* ''{{Tsukihime}}'' (the game, at least) has [[spoiler: Kohaku.]]
** Also analyzes the concept a bit. Along the lines of [[spoiler: "Isn't having the same expression all the time the same as being completely expressionless?"]]
** [[spoiler:She's all three types, really. Depression and abuse lead to mask then leads to thinking of herself as a ''doll'' and being hollow and finally in order to have a reason to live she turns into a type 3 by plotting against the Tohno's while admitting she doesn't really hold a grudge, but that it's what a 'real' person would do, right?]]
*Perhaps Midna of ''TheLegendOfZelda: Twilight Princess'' qualifies; for the first part of the game, she's almost always cackling with amusement and smugly going about her own plan, but later reveals how torn up she is that [[spoiler:she, as the titular princess, fled her people after being turned into her imp form by Zant, and how touched she was watching Link and Zelda's [[MessianicArchetype self-sacrificing ways]].]]
* ''{{Fallout}} 3'' features a whole town of Stepford Smilers, well-groomed but down-to-earth, assured Anandale is the best little town, that their blessed country will protect them from the commies, and that all is right with the world. But for such ''normal'' folk, they sure are preternaturally alert to a Master Sneak peeking into their basement...
* [[ZigZaggingTrope Played with in]] FateStayNight. Rin Tohsaka pretends to be a wonderful honor student, kind and good at everything. However, underneath that is someone selfish who can't get up in the morning and gets angry easily. But that's a bit of a {{jerkass facade}} because under ''that'' is a genuinely kind person who ''thinks'' that they need to be a heartless jerk like magi are supposed to be. [[spoiler:And under that is an immensely guilty layer over her estranged sister Sakura because, while she doesn't know much about the Matou family, she knows they're not nice people. She simply underestimates ''how much''. This final layer is finally uncovered in the ''Heaven's Feel'' path instead of merely being hinted at.]]
** Also Ilya. Oddly enough, she doesn't actually fool Shirou for very long despite doing what seems to be a pretty good acting job.
** Sakura becomes one in the "Heaven's Feel" route, after sexual/physical abuse by her adoptive brother Shinji, among other things. She goes from ExtremeDoormat to Stepford Smiler once she falls in love with Shirou. Unfortunately, that doesn't stop her from [[FreakOut freaking out]] ''majorly''. Fortunately, [[IGotBetter she gets better]].
* In the second game of ''ArTonelico'', this is Luca's defining feature. BecomingTheMask is the goal of her path, but she is [[TheScrappy very unpopular]] among many players who feel she hit a MoralEventHorizon somewhere along the line.
* Melody from ''RuneFactory'' is a Type A example.
* In System Shock 2 you find the protocol droids, robots made to work like secretaries, greet people, give directions, etc. When they turn against you, they walk around searching for you, saying things like "Where are you, sir?" "I cannot help you if you keep hiding. "Please wait, I can offer you my assistance.". When they get near to you, they FRIGGIN EXPLODE.
* [[spoiler:Haru]] from ''DevilSurvivor''. [[spoiler:Behind her typical idol singer personality lies a suicidal depression.]]
* In ''[[BackyardSports Backyard Basketball]]'', Kevin Garnett serves this purpose. He is Type A.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Webcomics ]]

* Erika in ''{{Megatokyo}}'', while currently a DeadpanSnarker as well as a {{Badass}} ActionGirl, was a voice actress and IdolSinger in her day, and still can't bear the thought of her fans thinking of her as anything but upbeat and bubbly. Dom calls her out on it by showing that even in the midst of a rampage of rabid fans and excessive taunting by him, she feels a need to keep her smile going.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Web Original ]]

* Aki of ''SailorNothing'' starts out as one, repressing her real emotions to [[InWithTheInCrowd fit in with the]] [[GirlPosse popular group]] at school. After she's exposed, she drops the act but has a hard time adjusting to being a normal person.
* Rhianna von Adolph from ''OpenBlue''. A KnifeNut in charge of the special operations department of TheEmpire's intelligence agency.
* [[TheGuild Clara's]] smiling, friendly demeanor hides a criminally neglectful mother and [[spoiler:a treacherous backstabber who creates an alternate character to attack Vork and makes out with a man Codex is interested in.]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

* [[{{Yandere}} Berry]] from the ''{{Fosters Home For Imaginary Friends}}'' episode "Berry Scary". She at first appeared overly cutesy and kind, especially around Bloo, who she had fallen in love with, but when faced with obstacles to her perceived "relationship" with Bloo, she dropped the cutesy persona and went off on bouts of jealous rage. Her mask eventually cracked at the end of the episode, when Bloo finally spelled it out for her: "Whoa whoa whoa, who said anything about love Heather?" "[[ThisIsSparta MY NAME IS BERRY]]!!!!"
* Lois in the ChristmasEpisode of ''FamilyGuy'' tries mightily to salvage Christmas despite her family's efforts to the contrary, climaxing in a [[BreakTheCutie nervous breakdown]] over [[RantInducingSlight missing wash towels]] and an epic [[BewareTheNiceOnes freakout.]]
** That might be a TakeThat or ShoutOut to a {{Simpsons}} Christmas episode wherein all they're left with is a washcloth, which Marge uses to play keep-away with the family.
** Don't forget [[ButtMonkey Meg]]. She goes to town with this trope.
* The brainwashed Joo Dees (shares acronym with Jane Doe) from ''AvatarTheLastAirbender.'' Mentally, they're practical StepfordWives.
* Bloberta Puffington, Orel's mother from ''MoralOrel'', exemplifies the psychotic version of this trope. "Ah, yarn... yarn... yarn ! YARN ! YAAARRRNNN-- ... Welcome home, dear !"
** Hell, ''everyone'' in [[WhatTheHellTownsPeople Moralville]], who as a whole are more concerned with the ''appearance'' of faith then actually following it. A few get better. Most, probably, do not. The fact that this is based on the creator's [[FreudianExcuse childhood experiences]] is depressing.
* Marge Simpson of ''TheSimpsons'' has repeatedly been portrayed this way, commenting on bottling up her feelings and staying with Homer "no matter what" after he does something truly horrible. Lisa has pointed this out on at least one occasion. This has become more and more relevant as the show has descendent into unrepentant farce, to the point that one episode even has Marge admitting that she only stays with Homer for appearances sake, due to the fact that everyone else in Springfield is single, divorced, or in a marriage hit by marital infidelity and as such, the entire town consider Homer and Marge's marriage to be roaring success in comparison.
** Depends on what episode you're watching. A lot of episodes go out of their way to prove that Marge and Homer do still love each other. The show thrives on NegativeContinuity, after all...
* ''HeyArnold'': Helga's older sister Olga is a Type A version of this. She looks perfect on first glance, being very good at academics, music, has a personality many consider pleasant, and is considered very beautiful. However, with enough pressure this facade of perfection can crack revealing a young woman that's dangerously neurotic and melodramatic due to having to live up to her parents' constant attention and enormously high standards. In Olga's own words: "[Helga,] You're lucky to not have them [their parents] all over you!"

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Real Life ]]

* Martha Stewart's reaction to cookie monster's [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Orxd5L5qFLI unscripted]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FYvxa9RKp0 voraciousness]] in his guest appearance on ''Martha Stewart Living'' show signs of her being a StepfordSmiler.
** You think that's the best example of Martha's crazy? She once threatened a van full of people with a shotgun for ''getting lost, and pulling up into her driveway''. And this was ''before'' she went to jail.
* Just look at Wendy Wright while she's being [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4mLGmPMvls interviewed by Dr. Richard Dawkins]]. She's the living embodyment of this trope.
* Judy Garland tried to maintain a cheerful façade despite the fact that her [[StageMom mother]] kept feeding her pills to increase her productivity. In her later years, Garland became a bankrupt addict, dying of medicinal overdose.
* The teenage girls in the Westboro Baptist Church. It is downright disturbing how they'll giggle and smile when asked if they've ever once thought what they do is wrong.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Other ]]

* This troper has seen a fair share of AzumangaDaioh fics that portray [[GenkiGirl Tomo]] as one of these. [[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/2552320/1/Cold_Nights I]] [[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/3594480/1/Fallen_Happiness am]] [[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/2724513/1/Rouge_et_Noir dead]] [[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/3313358/1/Wednesday_Morning_3am serious]].


!!Male Examples

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder: Anime and Manga ]]

* Several, but most notably, Tatsunosuke, Suzu, and Tetsunosuke in ''PeacemakerKurogane''.
** Hold the phones. No mention of Okita Souji? Okita "I smile constantly, love candy, play with the neighborhood kids, am pretty much a male YamatoNadeshiko wife to Hijikata, and am pretty much the most terrifying swordsman in all of Japan" Souji? [[spoiler: Okita "I've been killing since I was eight and don't appear to actually regret it" Souji?]] That man's a TEXTBOOK StepfordSmiler!
* The villainous Sojirou Seta, TheDragon of ''RurouniKenshin'''s best known story arc, also fits here -- a cheerful young person who's capable of incredible violence because he has no soul or conscience behind the mask. (Or at least that's what ''he'' thinks.)
* Ichimaru Gin of ''{{Bleach}}'' hides a cruel and sadistic personality behind a set of [[EyesAlwaysShut perpetually closed eyes]] and a [[ObfuscatingStupidity dumb grin]].
* You Takami from ''DeadmanWonderland'' seems to be one of the friendlier people in the prison/themepark, but he's not above [[spoiler:stealing the antidote for Ganta's poison, taking someone's ''entire'' ear for their earring, selling out [[TheDitz ditzy]] possible DarkActionGirl Shiro to the guards, and killing his own father]], although the last part was because he thought he was protecting his sister. Then again [[spoiler:he doubted that his dad could've really raped her]] so one wonders exactly what kind of person You was ''before'' being imprisoned.
* IntrepidReporter Wolfgang Grimmer, from ''{{Monster}}'', a rare male version of the mask as the only personality. [[spoiler:The fact that sometimes he snaps in a Hulk-like killer alterego with no memories afterwards doesn't help his case, although he pleads [[FreudianExcuse childhood abuse]] and unethical assassin training.]]
** Male lead Dr. Tenma, too.
*** Johan smiles at all times, even as he's manipulating people and committing other various atrocities against them. But the thing is ''he doesn't get any pleasure from his actions, he quite possibly doesn't care about anything''.
* Fay from ''TsubasaReservoirChronicle'' has traits of the StepfordSmiler, though by the time the series [[YourMileageMayVary Grows The Beard/Jumped the Shark]] this has begun to crack and continues to do so as more and more time passes.
* Chichiri from ''FushigiYuugi'' has a literal mask that helps him pull off the goofy, care-free smile; it's a significant plot-point when he takes it off to relay his tragic backstory.
* Yuki Sohma from ''FruitsBasket'' is so terrified of being rejected by his peers that he uses his numerous skills (martial arts, good looks, charisma, etc.) to hide the inferiority complex that ParentalAbandonment and Akito's MindRape gave him.
* Souichirou Arima from ''KareKano'' is, at the beginning, as much of a Stepford Smiler as his girlfriend Yukino is. Except that while Yukino does it out of obsession with her own image and is a bit of a ButtMonkey for that, Arima does it to prove himself a worthy person [[spoiler: after hearing his relatives wonder if his parents' bad traits may be passed on to him even after they left him to be adopted by his uncle and aunt after years of neglect, and also because of the abuse doled on him by his birth mother.]]
* ''{{Trigun}}'''s Vash the Stampede combines this with ObfuscatingStupidity so that nobody realizes just how dangerous he is, or what horrific memories and experiences he lives with every day. In the whole series, only Nicholas D. Wolfwood is able to see right through Vash's act - in his first episode, Nicholas shares some food with a pair of hungry children while Vash watches, then tells Vash that he looks good with a real smile on his face, not the fake one he's been showing.
** [=Manga!Millie=], who's dumbfounded by this, eventually compares Vash's fake smile with the grey colour you obtain when you mix paints of all colours.
** Nicholas D. Wolfwood himself thrives on this trope, although it's clear almost from the beginning he is a dark, conflicted, and potentially angsty character.
** And let's not forget that in the manga, young Knives managed to [[spoiler: hide his feelings of agony and murderous hatred from Vash and Rem]] by having fun with them just as usual, making crepes while smiling and laughing, claiming to go all 'business as usual' because he had to go on with his life etc.
* Cho Hakkai from ''{{Saiyuki}}'' qualifies, as he smiles constantly even while fighting, despite his angsty past [[spoiler:which includes but is not limited to killing over 1000 demons to rescue his lover Kanan (who is really his twin sister), then watching Kanan kill herself with his sword because she was raped and impregnated by a demon, then to top it off, [[KarmicTransformation becoming a demon himself]]. Whew]]. His companions note that whenever he actually ''does'' stop smiling and looks angry, it's extremely scary.
* Shuusuke Fuji of ''ThePrinceOfTennis'' was a bit like this due to the problems with his younger brother Yuuta that caused him to bear a huge guilt. He starts acting more genuinely cheerful when he and Yuuta patch their relationship.
*In ''TokyoMewMew'', [[spoiler: Masaya Aoyama]] is revealed to be one of these, keeping up his "perfect" mask to hide the fact that he hates all of humanity. Ironically, most of the [[FanDumb fandom]] seems to ignore this, taking his Smiler-ness as both his true personality and an excuse to [[DieForOurShip pair Ichigo up with someone else.]]
* Koizumi Itsuki from ''SuzumiyaHaruhi'' always keeps a constant smile and a cheerful attitude, regardless of how much is Haruhi casting upon the Universe. Granted, he's still mostly sane and calm, but his Stepfordness always creeps Kyon out to no end. [[BrokenSmile But when his smile disappears... you better start fearing the worst!]]
** At points in the novel it's made pretty clear that Itsuki's finding it difficult to keep smiling, such as in volume 9 [[spoiler:he's been unable to sleep well for a lengthy period of time due to constant closed space activity, appearing exhausted and using a rather forced version of the usual grin, which falls off if he isn't concentrating.]] What is he really thinking? Who knows, [[MrExposition it's the one thing he doesn't really talk about. Probably.]]
* Both male and female Contractors in ''DarkerThanBlack'' qualify and while sociopathic rather than psychopathic like {{Dexter}} are much like him personality wise and feel bad about this to varying degrees. One, a British spy code-named November 11 might be the best fit, as he's very much TheCharmer, unfailingly friendly and polite but in a way that's so calm it's unsettling. Admittedly, he and other contractors are [[NobleDemon generally open about being this way]].
* Ivan/Russia from ''AxisPowersHetalia'' was, at first, [[CloudCuckooLander a not 100% stable but pleasant nation]]. The Bloody Sunday incident in 1905 finally [[FreakOut makes him snap]] and become a {{Yandere}}. It says in the manga that while he's always smiling, his eyes are ''not''.
** Alfred/America is usually portrayed as this in fanworks, although according to canon he really ''is'' that [[AdultChild happy/dense]].
** Yon-soo/South Korea is also portrayed as one in darker fanworks as well.
* Tohma Seguchi of ''{{Gravitation}}'' initially seems to be a polite, mild-mannered man until he shows other characters just how far he's willing to go to protect his brother-in-law Yuki, which includes [[spoiler:pushing a man in front of a car]] and [[spoiler:making Yuki break up with Shuichi by threatening to hurt Shuichi if he didn't do so]]. All while smiling calmly. He stops smiling for more than one panel only when he's in full-on {{Yandere}} mode.
* In ''DeathNote'', Light Yagami is Type C to his family and friends, and....anyone but his victims, and Ryuk. He has an image of being absolutely perfect and absolutely content, but he's bored to the extent that it seems a good idea to commit mass-murder on an epic scale and style himself as a God.
* The lead... no, ''all'' of the ''Code: Breakers'', seeing as they're super-powered [[AxCrazy Ax Crazies]] put to good use by the government (or something).
* Kaito Kuroba/Kaitou KID from {{Detective Conan}} thrives on his use of "Poker Face", an important skill taught to him by his father when he was young. Kaito's poker face (both as Kaito and KID) is pretty much always some variation of a smirk, and he rarely lets it drop even when things go wrong.
** Let's put it this way: if Kaitou KID ever stops smiling, ''everything'' has GoneHorriblyWrong.
* Kaworu Nagisa from NeonGenesisEvangelion seems to fit this trope as well. He's always smiling, but in reality, he just wants [[spoiler: the world's end]]. [[ItGetsBetter It Got Better]] for a while, but shortly after, ItGotWorse.
** Also, Ryouji Kaji, who was smiling calmly in the very moment [[spoiler: he was shot to death]]
** Don't forget Shinji. For most of the series he walks around quietly with a little smile on his face, even when it becomes clear he's dying inside.
* Oz Vessalius from ''PandoraHearts'' determined to keep [[AngstWhatAngst perky and optimistic]] no matter what life throws at him. Said life keeping a good record by hurling issues of [[AbusiveParents Parental Hate]], [[DeathsHourglass Tick Tock of Death]], and being [[BarrierMaiden Barrier Lad]]. Seeing that Oz ''still'' smiles, apparently life needs to ''try harder''
* Oh so many people in ''CodeGeass''. Lelouch Lamperouge and Suzaku Kururugi, to start. Lelouch is a Type B (seems kind and cheery, but is hollow and futile inside), at least intially, and Suzaku becomes a Type A (seems kind and cheery, but feels sad and depressed) over the course of the series.
* In ''KatekyoHitmanReborn'', the BigBad of the TYL arc, Byakuran, is a StepfordSmiler who currently has shown no other expression other than his smile.
** He is beginning to show cracks, though; we got a nice "oh fuck" face with [[spoiler: Uni's]] arrival.
** Rokudo Mukuro can also definitely be considered one. He apparently copes with his [[AxCrazy insanity]] and [[BreakTheCutie horrible past]] by being a StepfordSmiler NietzscheWannabe. Especially noticeable when he continues smiling, even when he [[EyeScream stabs his own eye out]]. Of course, [[TheMessiah Tsuna]] manages to get him to [[NotSoStoic break part of that facade]], at least momentarily. Make what you will of Mukuro's subsequent [[spoiler: [[HoYay attachment and obsession]] with him]]...
* ''{{Naruto}}'' himself. He smiles near-constantly, which, during his childhood, was to mask the sadness of his lonely life. Those who are closest to him are able to recognize when his smile isn't genuine.
* [[AlternateCharacterInterpretation Part]] of the ''[[DragonBall DBZ]]'' fandom sees Gohan as this, post-Cell Saga. Considering what the poor guy [[TheWoobie went]] [[BreakTheCutie through]], it's not hard to understand why.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Film ]]

*''{{Coraline}}'' has the Other Wybie, who was literally ''made'' to smile despite his actual emotions. [[spoiler:So much so, that when he expresses his dissaproval [[TheSpeechless through a frown]], the Other Mother ''[[HighOctaneNightmareFuel sews his lips into a perma-grin.]]'' The stiches are cut, but not before we see what [[TheDarkKnightSaga the Joker]] might have looked like as a child.]]
* Aside from Ms. Beauregard listed above, Tim Burton's ''CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory'' also has Willy Wonka recast as a StepfordSmiler.
* From the Trope Namer, the 2004 version of TheStepfordWives had a gay couple, one of whom, [[spoiler: played by Roger Bart]] was a male example. If this troper recalls correctly, the [[spoiler: main 'leader', played by Christopher Walken]] was one, too.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Comic Books ]]

* Ken in ''TheSandman'' collection, ''The Doll House''. He lives with a woman named Barbie, and while she has depth that is later revealed, he's a creepy Bateman-esque living Ken Doll.
** Boss Smiley from ''World's End'' is, as one can deduce from his name, an exaggerated example.
* In ''{{Transmetropolitan}}'', one of the presidential candidates is known as 'The Smiler', and is shown as willing to kill just about anyone, including his wife, to improve his ratings.
*[[{{ComicBook/TeenTitans}} Gar]] [[{{DoomPatrol}} Logan]] is a mix of types A and C; with profound self esteem issues and [[{{FutureMeScaresMe}} a bleak future to look forward to]] thrown in for good measure.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Commercials ]]

* That creepy Bob fellow in those commercials for Enzyte's "natural male enhancement". If you can't quite seem to figure out just what he's smiling about from the DoubleEntendre laden narration, [[SwissMoment give it time]].
** That is not a smile. That is a rictus of agony from unceasing pain. The eyes implore the viewer for the merciful release of sweet death.
* TheBurgerKing from the Burger King advertisements is a particularly disturbing example (it could be that he's wearing an actual mask though...).
* How about the guy in the [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgfzdgWgEZ4 Axe commercials]]? He turns into chocolate and all the girls in town go crazy and take bites out of him, and all the while he sports that insanely creepy perpetual grin and wide eyes.
** [[NightmareFuel AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!! ;-;]]
* [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hn5EP9StlVA This]] commercial for LendingTree.com.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

* The title character in Edward Arlington Robinson's poem "Richard Cory" is a male Stepford Smiler whose secret unhappiness isn't revealed until the last lines: "And Richard Cory, one calm summer's night,/Went home and put a bullet through his head." The Simon and Garfunkel song based on the poem keeps the trope intact, but makes it slightly scarier when the EveryMan chorus, instead of being deterred by the suicide, continues singing about how much he wishes he could be Richard Cory.
* Here's one you've probably never heard of. Many of the characters in Edward Bloor's novel ''Tangerine'' definately fit this trope. The three most glaring examples are Joey, Erik, and Paul. In fact, Erik may even be the king of this trope.
* Frank Chalmers in ''[[RedMarsTrilogy Red Mars]]'' is somewhere between a type A and type B. Coming from a poor family, he's almost entirely consumed by his ambition to succeed. At one point he looks at his life and realizes that all of it is an facade created to impress his superiors, and that he doesn't really have a self.


[[/folder]]

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

* The android Ted from ''BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' was obsessed with reliving his creator's idea of a 1950s dream marriage, albeit with the aid of narcotics. (Though an android, he's chauvinistic enough to qualify.)
**Spike himself also falls within this stereotype; despite all of his posturing as far as being a murderous bad-ass vampire, with the body-count to back up his swaggering, the dude is still the horribly insecure, momma's boy nerd who writes crappy poetry who overcompensates for his nerdiness by acting like a big time vampire. This was most notably shown in his origin episode, which contrasted Spike's boastful tales of past exploits with flashbacks that reveal how lame he used to be, right down to revealing that his nickname "William the Bloody" actually referred to his "bloody awful poetry".
* A pair of Pagan gods in an episode of ''{{Supernatural}}''. One was the traditional female StepfordSmiler, the other was the male variant.
** If you know what's going to happen next, Dean comes off as a version of this trope in the supposed lighter moments. Whether it's the Daddy Issues or {{Survivor Guilt}} or his impending death/suicide, he loves to pretend that everything is perfect when it's really, ''really'' not.
* ''{{Dexter}}''. On the surface, he comes of as a well-adjusted and funny, if somewhat morbid blood spater expert (and even his more morbid tendencies can be explained by having to work with corpses on a regular basis). On the inside, though, he's empty.
** More accurately, he ''thinks'' he's empty, which is a fairly common pathological trait among serial killers due to any number of dissociative mood disorders linked to their psychosis that suppress extreme emotions such as anger. The emotions are there, and they're expressed externally (say... [[AxeCrazy with an axe]]) but not felt internally. Dexter Morgan seems to actually be relatively well-adjusted, comparatively, at least until he comes up on a room completely soaked in blood, but as a psychopath I think we can call him an UnreliableNarrator.
* Nobori Taiga from ''KamenRiderKiva'': Friendly, polite and nice to his old friends, but secretly working to destroy humankind.
* Pretty much every male cast member of TheShield fit this description. But most notably, there are Curtis "Lem" Lemansky (popular police officer and all around good guy who has ZERO self-esteem and basically serves as a doormat for his "best friends" on the Strike Team, leading to crippling ulcers, a mini-nervous breakdown, committing criminal acts that ultimately lead to his arrest, death, and ultimately denounced as a monster), Shane Vendrell (who loves his family to the extent that he murdered his best friend/partner rather than risk having him turn states evidence against them, but basically murders his pregnant wife and toddler son rather than risk having Vic Mackey reveal to his children the sins committed by his father), Police Captain turned City Councilman and Mayoral Hopeful David Acaveda (affable but somewhat slimey boss who is into rough sex, arranged the murder of a man who raped him, strained relationship with his wife after being told by her that she would have preferred him being killed to him being raped, willingness to work with the Mexican Mafia and use their blackmail files of prominent people to further his career), Ronnie Gardocki (lovable nerd who's darkness manifests itself in full force in season seven, by way of the lengths he was willing to go to see Shane Vendrell murdered as payback for Shane killing Detective Lemansky), and John Kavanaugh (brilliant and decorated Internal Affairs police officer who's devotion to law and order hides the fact that he cruelly divorced his mentally unstable wife the moment she became an annoyance to him).
**Not to mention Vic Mackey, who's stepford smile hides a monster that all others pale in comparision to. So it says something that in the end, Vic loses EVERYTHING in the finale including his "good" name but ends up in the final scene of the series, putting on a stepford smile and walking into the darkness, as far as not letting his karmatic final fate as a glorified temp desk worker with the Feds slow him down.
* Spoofed somewhat in season six of [[TwentyFour 24]]; after the father of one of Jack's unlucky girlfriends lampshades in graphic detail how bad things always befall Jack's loved ones, to the point of outright telling Jack that he's cursed and that he would never never be allowed near his daughter again as a result, Jack spends the last moments of the season breaking into the father's house and holding a gun on him, while ranting incoherently about how he's not cursed and ordering the guy to take back what he said.
* ''{{House}}'' makes a big show of being sarcastic and cynical, but it's been shown several times that he's just as insecure as anyone else.
** House himself is a better example of JerkassFacade. ''Wilson'' on the other hand...
* On ''{{CSI NY}}'' Flack has started to become one in season 6 of the show since [[spoiler:his girlfriend was killed in the season 5 finale]]. Characters are starting to guess something is seriously wrong, however, because he doesn't keep the mask completely on all the time.


[[/folder]]

[[folder: Web Comics ]]

* Skids of ''BoyMeetsBoy'' is mostly genuinely cheerful. But when things start to get him down, he simply pretends to be even more cheerful. This is extraordinarily creepy.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Web Original ]]

* In ''SurvivalOfTheFittest'', former gamer Warren Pace gives himself a [[JerkJock complete image makeover]] to fit in with the football team due to his perceived images of jocks.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* Zelos from ''TalesOfSymphonia'' is arguably a StepfordSmiler, as he struggles to hide a truly twisted past [[ObfuscatingStupidity behind a mask of frivolity and promiscuity]]. At one point he talks about his past to the main character, then laughs it off as a lie. Whether he's lying or telling the truth is left to the viewer.
** His goal is to drive his comrades away from him, because he [[DeathSeeker doesn't want to be missed]]. Realizing the ButtMonkey of the group is also a SadClown can be quite [[{{Tearjerker}} jarring]], especially [[spoiler: if you chose the ending where [[LovableTraitor you kill him]].]]
* Another example is Jade Curtiss from ''TalesOfTheAbyss''. He does it due to being TheStoic, and to mask the fact that he [[spoiler:Accidentally [[DeadLittleSister killed his teacher]]]]. Plus, it helps a DeadpanSnarker to keep a straight face.
* [[spoiler: Forde]] from FireEmblem 8. He states in one of his supports that he acts cheerful and relaxed mostly to keep his friends and companions happy in the middle of the war.
* CreepyChild Chris from TheKingOfFighters fits this trope very well, as he's almost a modern version of the aforementioned Soujirou. Always with a smile in his face, even when killing random people. The fact that he's the BigBad's host doesn't help, either.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

* Patrick Bateman in the book and later film ''AmericanPsycho''. In fact, everyone in ''AmericanPsycho'' is like this, but he's the only one who has anything underneath -- the others are of the 'there was nothing there to begin with' type, whereas he is only just deep enough to know that he is essentially superficial.
** Even more the characters from Lunar Park, by the same author, Bret Easton Ellis.
* CiaphasCain is supposed to be a fearless [[BadassLongcoat Imperial commissar]] who is willing to lay down his life to destroy the enemies of the [[{{Warhammer40000}} God-Emperor of Mankind]]. [[DirtyCoward He]] [[FakeUltimateHero isn't]], although that doesn't stop him from [[AccidentalHero accidentally bumbling into]] [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome Crowning Moments of Awesome]] time and again.
* ''{{Discworld}}'' serial killer Carcer is deceptively cheerful and innocent-looking, with his smile catching people off gaurd...until they look in his eyes and see the madness behind the mask.
* From ''{{The King in Yellow}}'': "I wear no mask."
* Todd Bowden from StephenKing's ''Apt Pupil'' maintains the image of a cheery all-American golden boy even while he's blackmailing the neighborhood [[ThoseWackyNazis Nazi-in-hiding]] into telling gruesome concentration camp stories. It's all downhill from there.
* Mr. Happy was like that at, at least the start of ''Mr. Men A Christmas Carol'' to help and keep Mr. Mean, happy. Ironically, this book was made shorty before ''The Mr. Men Show'' came on air...
* [[XWingSeries Ton Phanan]], though we don't really get to see it until late. He's a DeadlyDoctor, a DeadpanSnarker, caustic and funny and able to put aside the sarcasm in the right moments. He also feels that the cybernetics he started to get after [[EmergencyTransformation almost being killed]] couldn't replace his future, [[CyberneticsEatYourSoul which died.]]


[[/folder]]

[[folder: Fanfiction ]]

* Zirah, from ''[[{{Fanfic/TheSacredAndTheProfane}} The Sacred and the Profane]]''.
-->"He won't stop crying."
-->"And you're going to stop him by killing him?" Hastur said.
-->Zirah stared at him in wide-eyed innocence. He looked puzzled.
-->"Why not?"

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Music ]]

* Mr. Smiley from the Mustard Plug song of the same name is a variation of the classic smiley-face badge thing. A Type C - he goes nuts and kills his entire family.
* Nick Cave's Good Son.
* The song "The Great Pretender" describes this kind of person, who puts on a happy facade to hide his (well, the singer is male) sadness about losing a lover.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

* Mr. Happy from ''The Mr. Men Show'' is the example of the sympathetic kind. While in the books, he was nearly always happy, in this show's version, there's been times, when he tends to hide other emotions behind a smile to keep other people's spirits up. There's been episodes to show that like "Lake", "Canned Goods", "Collecting", "Music", "Ships" and others.
* The Bloopers Guy from ''RobotChicken'' puts on an enthuthiastic and chipper act, but considering he tries to commit suicide after every show, there is ''something'' wrong with him.

!! Mixed-Gender Examples


* Peppy Happy Gary and Peppy Happy Betty from ''FairlyOddParents''.
* Just...the music video for Soundgarden's song "Black Hole Sun".
* Paul and Mary Bland of ''Eating Raoul'' are probably the world's most upbeat and together conservative couple ever, even as they descend into [[spoiler:theft, murder and cannibalism]].
* Gem and Gemma of PowerRangersRPM. The disturbingly cheerful smile never leaves their faces, whether they're talking about explosives, military strategy, their time imprisoned by the enemy and forced to do hard labor in an enemy factory producing {{Mooks}}...
** They also love drawings of unicorns, butterflies, and rainbows, and work them into anything they write or draw (including a very, very confusing map to said factory, composed ''entirely'' of unicorns and rainbows).
* In ''SoonIWillBeInvincible'', the Champions are a cracking facade of glossy superheroism [[spoiler: concealing bulimia, pain killer addiction, and the usual shenanigans]].
* The backstory for the Pleasant family in ''TheSims 2'' is scripted like this: MarySue and Daniel have a perfect suburban life. He's shtupping the maid, she's about to get fired, and their daughters hate each other.
* "Bonjour! Bonjour!" The villagers in Disney's ''[[Film/BeautyAndTheBeast Beauty and the Beast]]'' sure seem to be a happy, friendly bunch...but they think Belle is a CloudCuckoolander in part because she's always reading and seems to be the only person in town who doesn't think anything of VillainWithGoodPublicity Gaston, whom everyone ''loves'' to the point that they help set up a wedding for him when he hasn't even proposed to her yet (and this doesn't even get into the cruelties heaped upon her poor dad, Maurice). By the end, this shallow bunch has become a TorchesAndPitchforks mob headed off to kill the Beast because "We don't like what we don't understand/In fact it scares us"...
* Real-life example: News anchormen/women/folk. To watch them [[MoodWhiplash report happy, light-hearted stories immediately preceding reports of tragedy and/or horror,]] or to hear them banter and joke with each other, you're left with the distinct impression that they are doing so not because they genuinely feel this way, but rather because it is the "appropriate" behavior to express. [[YourMilageMayVary Maybe it's just me,]] but the whole thing comes across as [[UncannyValley unnatural.]]
* Given that it's set in TheFifties, many civilians in ''DestroyAllHumans'' fall under this heading, particularly the residents of [[StepfordSuburbia Santa Modesta]]. Quite naturally, these suburbanites like to present themselves as flawless and contented, but a quick [[{{Telepathy}} peek at their thoughts]] reveals that the men only manage to suppress their psychotic rage with their collective obsession with lawnmowers and automobiles, and the valium-addicted women are engaged in fierce and unending competition over the best home and garden, broken only by tupperware parties and neglected children. Exactly one citizen manages to realize how miserable she really is, and in the end, she decides to drown her sorrows in cheap meaningless sex. And of course, being an alien invader, you have the opportunity to put every last depressive one of them out of their misery in the most painful way possible.
*The Happy Smilers, a group in ''AdventuresInOdyssey'', are largely composed of these types -- people hiding behind smiles, assorted mantras and ''pooositive thoughts!'' lest they be affected by, say, the passing of one of their friends. Aubrey is creeped out by them from the beginning, and it turns out that their own founder has become disillusioned with being "happy" all the time.
* Every vampire from [[VampireTheRequiem Vampire: The Requiem]] slowly loses its [[KarmaMeter Humanity]] as the years go by, but the [[VampiresAreSexGods Daeva]] [[TheBeautifulPeople clan]] are particularly prone to this. They are presented as [[EvilIsSexy sexy]] and [[ManipulativeBastard manipulative]] [[TheCasanova men]] and [[TheVamp women]] that ooze sensuality, and maintain the image of the perfect vampires, but inside they're completely rotten. Years of manipulation drain their ability to feel true attachment until they can no longer [[WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove comprehend human emotions]] and even though they seem to be passionate and claim to understand desire, they only feel need. This causes many Daeva to became [[TheHedonist depraved]] and desperate to feel again. Things get worse each passing decade, because vampires tend to forget to fake breathing and blinking, gradually turning them into [[EmptyShell Empty Shells]] and truly establishing their Stepford Smilers status and {{UncannyValley}} natures. This, of course, makes humans (as well as [[EvilDetectingDog animals]]) feel that there's something [[NightmareFuel atrociously wrong]] with them.
** This quote (about their opinions on mortals) sums up the idea:
--->''Such simple creatures I'm grateful not be one any longer. Still... I do wish to remember just a bit more clearly what it felt like.''\
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