History Main / ShadowDictator

* By the second season of ''Manga/DeathNote'', [[spoiler:most of the world's countries have declared their support for Kira, and the United States eventually backs down and obeys his orders. Japan doesn't, however]]. Nobody actually knows what Kira looks like, only that he/she/it will kill anyone who commits a wrong. The cult who is building a temple to Kira assumes that Kira is [[GrandpaGod an old man with a beard]], though in actuality, Kira is a handsome young man who makes use of a few proxies.

Compare UnseenEvil

* ''VideoGame/{{Tyranny}}'': The overlord of TheEmpire, Kyros, is an enigma to almost everyone. Male characters tend to portray them as female, female characters tend to portray them as male (unless they're lesbians), and the ones who do know deliberately obfuscate the issue, be it because it's their job or because they say ''[[NothingIsFunnier not telling is funnier]]''. Whatever they are, they might be alien.

* Subverted in ''Videogame/PhantasyStarIV'': the immortal wizard (and Phantasy Star I veteran) Lutz reigns over the magic users of the planet Dezolis from the depth of the Esper Mansion... except [[spoiler: his body grew too old to even be maintained through hibernation and life prolonging methods inherited from Algo's golden age, so now he uploads his mind into capable young sorcerers, like party member Rune, and send then around the Algo solar system to seek signs of Dark Force reemergence.]] The actual ruling of the Esper Mansion is apparently left to the ''mortal'' elder mages, with Lutz only taking part in some ritual ceremonies when he's around.

* ''Literature/MonstrousRegiment'': The sovereign of Borogravia is the Duchess, who has not been seen in decades. [[spoiler: It is eventually revealed that she died some time ago, but her spirit has remained as a harassed demi-goddess because the citizens of the country have gotten in the habit of praying to her.]]

Sometimes, an EvilOverlord will forego the MalevolentMugshot spam in favor of staying hidden from their society, ruling from the shadows- or perhaps their face is all we see of them. They will not make any public appearances nor grand speeches, instead [[MouthOfSauron relying on their followers]] to spread and enforce their word.

* In ''Manga/OnePiece'', [[spoiler:the mysterious Great Imu is revealed as the true ruler of the World Government, someone that the Five Elders (thought to be the actual rulers) bow to. Their existence is a complete secret to everyone but a few people, and it's believed that if knowledge of them got out, the world would descend into war and chaos.]]

* The Principal in the ''Manga/SchoolRumble'' manga.

* Wolfram and Hart's "Senior Partners" in ''Series/{{Angel}}''.

* Before being beaten in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, the Japanese Emperor was thought to be a God and the Japanese people weren't even supposed to look at him because they weren't worthy. Supposedly, when he went on the radio to announce their surrender, hearing his voice was as much of a shock as the surrender itself.

* ''TabletopGame/HcSvntDracones'' has {{Mega Corp}}s with "Shadow Presidents" whose identities are unknown to everyone but themselves and their immediate successors and predecessors, but who pass on the access codes to networks of agents threaded throughout their MegaCorp so they can keep ambitious executives and subsidiaries in line. [[spoiler: In recent history four of the ten shadow presidents in the solar system have died without designating a successor. Two of whom were usurped by entities that pried the passwords from their brains.]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Tyranny}}'': The overlord of TheEmpire, Kyros, is an enigma to almost everyone. Male characters tend to portray them as female, female characters tend to portray them as male (unless they're lesbians), and the ones who do know say ''[[NothingIsFunnier not telling is funnier]]''. Whatever they are, they might be alien.

* ''LightNovel/UndefeatedBahamutChronicle'' has the King of Vices, who runs the Republic of Heiburg as military dictatorship and directs a cabal of assassins from the shadows, but no one knows their true identity. [[spoiler:Many citizens suspect the King is the country's ObviouslyEvil champion, Rosa Granhide, but it turns out that the real King is actually Rosa's aide and that Rosa herself is just a brainwashed decoy]].

* ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''. In [[Recap/StarTrekS2E21PatternsOfForce "Patterns of Force"]], a Starfleet historian sets up a Nazi dictatorship on an alien planet. By the time Captain Kirk arrives on the scene, he's been secretly deposed and kept in a drugged state so he can be used to make televised speeches while TheStarscream runs the planet.

* In ''Series/{{Star Trek Deep Space Nine}}'', the Dominion is ruled by the Changeling Founders, a race of shapeshifters. The Founders' contempt for "solids" means that they avoid interaction with non-Changelings, save for their Vorta and Jem'Hadar underlings. Most of them cloister themselves in the Great Link, with a small number serving as spies, infiltrators, or Dominion representatives. It's apparent that several races that have been victimised by, or even ''belong to'' the Dominion believe that the Founders are just a myth (which carries the implication that for any who don't believe that the Vorta run the show, the identity of the Dominion's leaders is a mystery).

* Several versions of ''Franchise/PowerRangers'' and ''Franchise/SuperSentai'' have the villains answer to some sort of SealedEvilInACan who is seldom seen or heard from before the final arc's events permit/require the true BigBad to step out of the shadows. The same went for most of the early ''Franchise/KamenRider'' series, where the "Great Leader" of the villain organization was usually the voice of Creator/GoroNaya on the other end of an audio-only communication device. (It's eventually revealed in that ''every'' Great Leader is the same guy changing identities and forms; we can only speculate about the Naya-voiced villains who were ''not'' called "Great Leader.")

** Ironically, the first chapter of the Literature/BookOfRevelation has John interacting directly with God, writing down His messages to the seven churches. Verses 12-17 even give a broad description of Him. He looks a lot like the traditional GrandpaGod image, but other elements that stand out are the gold belt around His waist, His eyes [[FireballEyeballs glowing like fire]], His feet shining like polished brass and His voice sounding like a roaring waterfall.

* The ruler of Tolbi city, Lord Babi from ''VideoGame/GoldenSun''. Even though the heroes get to see him in the game, very few normal people actually see the old geezer themselves

The reasons for this secrecy may vary. They may simply want to avoid potential assassins. They may not even exist at all, or could be DeadAllAlong, or [[EldritchAbomination not even human]] to [[CosmicHorrorReveal begin with]]. TheManBehindTheCurtain is also possible. Overlaps with NoOneSeesTheBoss, which deals with the overarching conspiracy surrounding our mystery person. May overlap with TheManBehindTheMan if they prefer to act with intermedies or use a PuppetKing as a face.

* ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'': No one in TheEmpire has actually ''seen'' the Emperor, not even the Darths on the Dark Council. He does have a network of "voices" and "hands" -- avatars who have sacrificed their very existences to providing him a public face. That doesn't stop the Empire from their fanatic loyalty. Too bad it's completely misplaced as he's an omnicidal nut who doesn't give a damn about his empire ''or'' anything but wiping out everything in the universe but himself.
** At the end of the Jedi Knight class quest, [[spoiler: the Knight confronts and "kills" the Emperor himself. The Emperor persists as a Force ghost, as powerful Sith are wont to do.]] Then, in ''Shadow of Revan'', [[spoiler: Revan himself plans to reincarnate the Emperor and kill him properly this time -- except that, while he's successful at the first part, the second is beyond his abilities. The Emperor had deluded Revan into believing he could kill him; what if anything actually ''can'' has yet to be seen.]] The upshot of this is, [[OmniscientCouncilOfVagueness the Dark Council is in charge]] [[RegentForLife for all practical purposes]]. The ''Knights of the Fallen Empire'' expansion reveals why the Emperor hasn't been seen in centuries: [[spoiler:he was busy forming another empire under another identity that comes out of nowhere to conquer both the Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic.]] We don't get to see his true face until he's finally KilledOffForReal in the ''Onslaught'' expansion.

* PlayedWith in ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels''. [[BigBad Emperor Palpatine]] meets Ezra via hologram in the final episode, but he takes the appearance of his Supreme Chancellor days to make himself [[FauxAffablyEvil look more friendly and benevolent]], despite this being post-''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'' where he claims to have been hideously scarred by the Jedi. Ezra sees right through it and so Palpatine drops the act and (still as a hologram) immediately comes out InTheHood as normal, confirming that his previous image was just a ruse but implying that this how he wants the galaxy at large to see him. He also claims that he spends most of his time running the galaxy, when in face he spends most of his time studying the Force and trying to acquire more and more Dark Side power.

May not exist at all, or could be DeadAllAlong, or [[EldritchAbomination not even human]] to [[CosmicHorrorReveal begin with]]. TheManBehindTheCurtain is also possible. Overlaps with NoOneSeesTheBoss, which deals with the overarching conspiracy surrounding our mystery person. May overlap with TheManBehindTheMan if they prefer to act with intermedies or use a PuppetKing as a face.

May [[TheMan not exist at all]], or could be DeadAllAlong, or [[EldritchAbomination not even human]] to [[CosmicHorrorReveal begin with]]. TheManBehindTheCurtain is also possible. Overlaps with NoOneSeesTheBoss, which deals with the overarching conspiracy surrounding our mystery person. May overlap with TheManBehindTheMan if they prefer to act with intermedies or use a PuppetKing as a face.

* For years many people suspected that UsefulNotes/OsamaBinLaden was already dead and his terrorist organization was controlled by others. This was proven wrong in 2011 when US troops stormed his compound in Pakistan and killed him.

** The city of Waterdeep in ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'' is governed by a ruling council known as the Lords of Waterdeep, whose members are shrouded in secrecy and are often the subject of rumors regarding their true identities. The Open Lord is the only member within the council whose identity is publicly known.
** The "ruler" of Sigil, the Lady of Pain, in ''TabletopGame/{{Planescape}}'' is seen partially, but direct interaction tends to be a bad idea.

* The "ruler" of Sigil the Lady of Pain in ''TabletopGame/{{Planescape}}'' is seen partially, but direct interaction tends to be a bad idea.
** The Silent King of the [[TheNecrocracy Dead Nations]] in ''VideoGame/PlanescapeTorment'' is never seen by anyone but Hargrimm, who speaks for him. [[spoiler:Because the Silent King is dead, and not the restless kind of dead, and the Dead Nations would collapse if anyone knew this.]]
* The Dark Powers from ''TabletopGame/{{Ravenloft}}''. Many Darklords also qualify, as some do not openly rule their domains, lurking in the shadows behind a stand-in, servant, or puppet. Some citizens don't even know they exist at all.