History Main / TheCorruptible

* ''Fanfic/AbraxasHrodvitnon'': [[Characters/AbraxasHrodvitnonHumans Alan Jonah]] isn't a decent person by any stretch before his SanitySlippage induced by prolonged contact with an EldritchAbomination[='s=] remains starts showing, and it's probably why he went the way he did instead of becoming a suicidal ReluctantPsycho.

* The ''Film/GodzillaVsKong'' {{novelization}} hints that [[Characters/MonsterVerseHumans Ren Serizawa]]'s personality has been corrupted before the story's start by repeated exposure to [[spoiler:Ghidorah's subconsciousness]] when he uses the [[ElectronicTelepathy psionic uplink]] in test runs -- something which Ren's pre-existing [[AntagonisticOffspring lifelong resentment of his father]], [[ItsPersonal hatred of Godzilla]] and [[MugglePower humanism-based anti-Titan sentiment]] in his novelization {{Backstory}} most likely helped with.

** To some extent, this happened to Dutch Van Der Linde in ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemptionII'', although it's intentionally ambiguous how much his descent into villainy was this trope and how much he was EvilAllAlong and just fumbled the MaskOfSanity. Still, most of the game's problems start when he listens to [[TheSociopath Micah]], who's egging him on to be more violent and untrusting, and it's said that it was Micah who goaded him to kill a woman during a robbery just pre-game. At the very least, Micah encourages Dutch to not be subtle about his evil, while the kindest interpretation to Dutch makes Micah an OpportunisticBastard who took advantage of a decent man in a very bad place, purposefully worsening his mental state [[spoiler:so the Pinkertons can take advantage of Dutch's instability to trap the gang, as Micah is the traitor and is on their payroll]].

* ''VideoGame/{{Deltarune}}'': Noelle is a ShrinkingViolet who gets extremely powerful ice magic in the Dark World. [[spoiler:The SOUL [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential can exploit her submissive nature]], forcing her to freeze all the enemies in Cyber City, before making her cast [=SnowGrave=] on her friend Berdly, apparently killing him.]]

** To some extent, this happened to Dutch Van Der Linde in ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemptionII'', although it's intentionally ambiguous how much his descent into villainy was this trope and how much he was EvilAllAlong and just fumbled the MaskOfSanity. Still, most of the game's problems start when he listens to [[TheSociopath Micah]], who's egging him on to be more violent and untrusting, and it's said that it was Micah who goaded him to kill a woman during a robbery just pre-game.

* Scott Tyler from ''Literature/ThePowerOfFive''. Coupled with a stock crummy past like most of The Five [[spoiler: except for [[TheChick Scarlett]]]], Scott was pushed to the edge in the 3rd book when he was [[BeingTorturedMakesYouEvil tortured]] and brainwashed by [[EvilInc Night Rise]] to assassinate a presidential candidate. In the 5th book, Scott is identified as being the weakest link by the villains, invoking a FaceHeelTurn upon him. [[NeverBeHurtAgain He just wanted the pain to stop.]]

* In the manga ''Manga/TheLegendOfZelda: Four Swords'', Shadow Link hoped Vio might be one of these. [[spoiler:Turns out, he wasn't.]]

* ''VideoGame/DawnOfWarII: Chaos Rising'': The entire squad (minus Davian Thule) becomes this via the Corruption mechanic, culminating in one getting revealed as the traitor, all for different reasons:

** [[spoiler:Golbez himself turns to be this, as Zemus was able to control him because his envy towards his younger brother, Cecil.]]

* Kain from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV''.

* ''Manga/SoulEater'': It's said that while everyone has some kind of insanity in them, some are more susceptible to TheCorruption of Asura than others. [[ReluctantPsycho Stein]] is a prime example, as it takes a lot of effort from him and his friends to keep him from becoming a murderous psycho.
* Sasuke from ''Manga/{{Naruto}}''. What Itachi started with his return to Konoha, [[BigBad Tobi]] finished; Tobi is more than happy to take advantage of Sasuke's confusion and unhappiness after [[spoiler: Itachi's death]], and his reveal of the truth about Itachi pushes Sasuke right off the deep end.
* In the manga ''[[Manga/TheLegendOfZelda Legend of Zelda: Four Swords]]'', Shadow Link hoped Vio might be one of these. [[spoiler: Turns out, he wasn't.]]

* ''Fanfic/AbraxasHrodvitnon'': In this ''Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters2019'' fanfiction, [[Characters/AbraxasHrodvitnonHumans Alan Jonah]] isn't a decent person by any stretch before his SanitySlippage induced by prolonged contact with an EldritchAbomination[='s=] remains starts showing, and it's probably why he went the way he did instead of becoming a suicidal ReluctantPsycho.
* ''FanFic/{{Fade}}'': Two examples.

** The [[Characters/MiddleEarthFilmSauronsEvilForces nine Men who became the Nazgûl]] weren't exactly good people to begin with. Galadriel describes them as having been power-hungry, and Aragon states they were so blinded by greed they took Sauron's rings without thinking. They certainly paid for that one.

The role of this character is to be a constant threat of a FaceHeelTurn. While temptation sometimes happens to all heroes, it's more of a permanent condition with this guy. Whether it's a SuperpoweredEvilSide or a FatalFlaw he needs to suppress, a personal interest in him by TheCorrupter (often a family member or former loved one), or a deep dark past locked away by faltering LaserGuidedAmnesia, the corruptible will labour on, facing his personal demons alone.

* ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'':
** As he made clear from early on, Griffith's strongest trait was his devotion to his dream. Guts grew to feel a bond with him and think of him as a friend only to realise too late that everything and everyone was a means to that, when Griffith eventually sacrificed his men to a horde of demons in order to turn himself into a demon-god.
** Years of pent-up anger and pain have made Guts vulnerable to takeover by his EnemyWithin, the Beast of Darkness.

* Griffith from ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'' is a prime example of this trope. As he made clear from early on Griffith's strongest trait was his devotion to his dream. Guts grew to feel a bond with him and think of him as a friend only to realise too late that everything and everyone was a means to that, when he eventually sacrificed his men to a horde of demons in order to turn himself into a demon-god.
** And now, due to years of pent-up anger and pain, this is Guts whenever he is under the influence of his EnemyWithin, the Beast of Darkness.
** Farnese also had a bout of this during the Conviction Arc due to her only sexual release without breaking her vows to the Holy See being whipping people and whipping herself, which made her easy prey for possession by the demons after Guts when the Black Swordsman kidnapped her.

* In Creator/PoulAnderson's ''World Without Stars'', the crew of a crashed starship must survive among the primitive natives of a planet mostly conquered by a race of telepaths. Before meeting a group of these telepaths in person, the protagonist specifically explains to the reader that telepathic powers aren't actually that dangerous because "you know your own nervous system better than anyone, and you're closer to it". And then it turns out that [[spoiler: one slightly odd member of the crew was the victim of a botched medical procedure on his brain which resulted in him essentially no longer being able to recognize himself.]] And so the telepaths are able to immediately convince him to switch sides.

* {{Inverted|Trope}} in ''Manga/HunterXHunter'' with the [[UltimateLifeform Chimera Ant King]]. While introduced as a ruthless monster who exists solely to rule over everything, he is actually an extremely intelligent and philosophical man who is [[DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife still coming to terms with who he is and what it means to be a king]]. It's teased that [[HumanityIsInfectious contact with the right people]] could lead him to walk the path of [[ComesGreatResponsibility Noblesse Oblige]] and become a powerful force for good.

* ''VideoGame/{{Deltarune}}'': Noelle is a ShrinkingViolet who gets extremely powerful ice magic in the Dark World. [[spoiler:The SOUL [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential can exploit her submissive nature]], forcing her to freeze all the monsters in Cyber City, before making her cast [=SnowGrave=] on her friend Berdly, apparently killing him.]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Deltarune}}'': Noelle is a ShrinkingViolet who gets extremely powerful ice magic in the Dark World. [[spoiler:The SOUL exploits her submissive nature, forcing her to freeze all the monsters in Cyber City, before making her cast [=SnowGrave=] on her friend Berdly, apparently killing him.]]

* This is how [[DependingOnTheWriter most]] ''ComicBook/{{Venom}}'' comics present the titular symbiote. It actually started out as the TokenGoodTeammate of its entire race, being shunned because it wanted a mutualistic relationship with its hosts. When it first bonded to Peter Parker, it was content being a hero with him, but after Peter got rid of it (having been spooked by the symbiote going on joyrides with his body), it bonded to a series of spectacularly unstable people (most notably Eddie Brock's IrrationalHatred of Spider-Man), driving it insane and creating the villain Venom. More recent comics have the symbiote as more of a straight hero after it was de-corrupted and Eddie got his marbles back.

* ''Fanfic/AbraxasHrodvitnon'': [[Characters/AbraxasHrodvitnon Alan Jonah]] isn't a decent person by any stretch before his SanitySlippage induced by prolonged contact with an EldritchAbomination[='s=] remains starts showing, and it's probably why he went the way he did instead of becoming a suicidal ReluctantPsycho.

[[folder:Film — Live-Action]]

* ''Literature/HarryPotter''
** [[DirtyCoward Peter Pettigrew]] was one of these, but his best friends never realized this at all. Some fanfics also subvert this trope by making the reason Sirius distrusted Remus either wrong conclusions due to mix-ups combined with Remus's lycanthropy, or having Remus be framed by Peter without Remus realizing it.
** Surprisingly, ''Deathly Hallows'' reveals that Albus Dumbledore was this in his youth. He was nearly manipulated into making a FaceHeelTurn by his [[ShipTease crush]] [[HoYay Gellert Grindelwald]] (the other major Dark Lord of the twentieth century and PredecessorVillain to Voldemort), and only rejected Grindelwald when those manipulations led to the death of Dumbledore's sister. Afterwards, Dumbledore became painfully aware that he was this, and as a result swore off love and stayed away from positions of power for the rest of his life.
* Some Gospel passages in the ''[[Literature/TheBible New Testament]]'' have Judas be one of these, often questioning Jesus' teachings.
* ''Literature/AssassinsCreedForsaken'' (a tie-in novel to ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedIII'') reveals that Reginald Birch was the man responsible for turning Haytham Kenway into a Templar after he murdered his father [[VideoGame/AssassinsCreedIVBlackFlag Edward]] and sold his sister Jennifer into [[SexSlave sexual slavery]].
* All male confessors from ''Literature/SwordOfTruth'' are this, since they do not need the recovery time necessary to restore their powers as female confessors do, and in such develop this unquenchable blood lust even ''before'' they hit adolescence. Because of this, [[spoiler: male infanticide is practiced, making the confessors a OneGenderRace.]]
* Lionel is easily corrupted by his own paranoia in ''Literature/TheSeaHawk''.
* Scott Tyler from ''Literature/ThePowerOfFive''. Coupled with a stock crummy past like most of The Five [[spoiler: except for [[TheChick Scarlett]]]], Scott was pushed to the edge in the 3rd book when he was [[BeingTorturedMakesYouEvil tortured]] and brainwashed by [[EvilInc Night Rise]] to assassinate a presidential candidate. In the 5th book, Scott is identified as being the weakest link by the villains, invoking a FaceHeelTurn upon him. [[NeverBeHurtAgain He just wanted the pain to stop.]]
* ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'': Among the many mortal wizards living in the world, any who use Black Magic once, thus breaking one of the Seven Laws of Magic, is seen as this now and for good and quick assurance no further rule breaking occurs, the wizard is deemed a warlock and killed.
** Titular hero Harry Dresden has been viewed as this since he was about 16 when he killed his first wizard mentor who tried to turn him into a brainwashed soldier loyal to him and him alone. Ever since, Harry has been tempted by the easiness of the dark side, the riches he could acquire if he was lax in his morals, the women he could buy, the power he could acquire. Harry knows this about himself and refuses the opportunities that have come up since.
*** Nicodemus, a roughly 2,000 year old evil man who works with a Fallen Angel, sees Harry as a prime candidate for recruitment and [[spoiler:threw a Coin containing a dangerous fallen near Harry and a small child guessing Harry would grab the coin to protect the child. Once his flesh touches the Coin, the shadow of the Fallen Lasciel entered his mind to slowly work him over until he would fully accept the true Lasciel]]. This however, backfires as [[spoiler:Harry is able to resist the Shadow for so long, the Shadow becomes her own distinct entity who eventually chooses to die to protect Harry]].
*** Queen Mab, Queen of the Winter Court, inspiration for all the evil queens of folk lore and lesson giver to them, has had her eyes on Harry for quite sometime. After her current Winter Knight proves himself wanting in many areas, she has sought Harry to become her new knight. As an immortal being, she is content in waiting years, knowing there will be a time and a moment when all other means for power are blocked and Harry must choose her to succeed in some desperate goal. She is right. [[spoiler:It takes the kidnapping of the daughter he just found out existed, but when Harry ends up in a truly bad situation, he finds himself before Mab asking for help. He notes, however, she is the least evil of his choices in this moment, another being calling on Lasciel properly and another is to kill thousands of people to become a necromatic god. Still, Mab is content for now she has time to work Harry and make him into her type of minion. Yet, still he resists inspired by two pieces of advice Harry was given by an Archangel of the Lord, Uriel. First, he tells Harry before the deal was struck, that whatever path he chooses, if it is done for Love then he won't go so far from the path he cannot find his way back. Second, he tells Harry that Mab cannot change who he is. These help him resist the corrupting nature of the Winter Knight's mantle]].
** Molly, Harry's apprentice and recovering Warlock like himself, is viewed by Harry as this. For that reason, he seeks to keep her away from either of the two stalking him with temptations of power because he fears she won't resist.

* Sauron himself in ''Literature/TheSilmarillion,'' actually. He starts out as a [[OurAngelsAreDifferent Maiar]] who resembles a giant housecat, and when he decides to bring some order to Middle-Earth, he thinks the best guy to help him is Morgoth, the Legendarum's CaptainErsatz of ''{{Satan}}!'' Naturally, this leads to him becoming a Demon of Oppression, and the archetypical EvilOverlord.

* Cassandra from ''WesternAnimation/TangledTheSeries''. She pulls a FeelHaceTurn in the season 2 finale and becomes a fully-fledged villain throughout season 3, which was due to her having an InferioritySuperiorityComplex and the GreaterScopeVillain Zhan Tiri manipulating her into revoking her friendship with Rapunzel. A rather odd example as Cassandra seemed to be the kind of character who’s too strong-willed for this trope.

[[folder:Fanfiction]]

* Griffith from ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'' is a prime example of this trope. While not wholly "good," Griffith's strongest trait was his love and loyalty for his men. Eventually he sacrificed his men to a horde of demons in order to turn himself into a demon-god.
** And now, this is Guts whenever he is under the influence of his EnemyWithin, the Beast of Darkness.

* In ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', [[Characters/SupernaturalDemons Azazel (The Yellow-Eyed Demon)]] plays TheCorrupter for [[Characters/SupernaturalSpecialChildren the Special Children]] by manipulating their {{Fatal Flaw}}s (killing or threatening family and loved ones, promising power and glory, or exploiting feelings of loneliness or a desire for revenge).