History Main / YellowEyesOfSneakiness

* ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'': [[BigBad Risky Boots']] overworld sprites give her yellow sclerae. Her [[{{Mooks}} Tinkerbats]] consistently have yellow eyes that contrast their featureless black bodies.

* ''Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters2019'': [[Characters/MonsterVerseKaiju Rodan]] has yellow eyes, which is a huge contrast to his charred volcanic skin and they highlight his mischievously vile expressions that bring out more of his HotBlooded attitude.

* The Gerudo in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' are a tribe of DesertBandits with yellow and amber eyes who also have a habit of kidnapping innocent Hylians, while their king, [[BigBad Ganondorf]], is a SorcerousOverlord who wants to TakeOverTheWorld. Subverted by the time of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'', however, where they keep the eye color but have dropped both the thievery and the loyalty to Ganon.

** ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989'': Flotsam and Jetsam, the eel minions of the main villain Ursula, have yellow sclerae. To be more precise, each of them has ''one'' eye with a decidedly yellow sclera, while the other eye is much closer to white. When Ursula is scrying through their eyes, the "white" eye ''also'' turns yellow, and ''glows''.

*** ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKingIISimbasPride'': Zira has yellow sclerae paired with red irises and is pretty abusive and hateful, thinking that lions are intrinsically better than other animals.
** ''WesternAnimation/TheJungleBook'': Shere Khan, the main villain, and Kaa, the secondary villain have yellow sclerae .

* ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfTheAmericanRabbit'': Rodney, the lead Jackal, has these kind of eyes, which shows how menacing he is, as he threatened to cook Rob (as "rabbit stew") in his metal helmet, which he calls a kettle.
* ''WesternAnimation/FantasticMrFox'': In the original book by Creator/RoaldDahl, the eyes of Mr. Fox are just black spots on white sclera but in the animated version he actually has irises. The color of Mrs. Fox's eyes is blue, while Mr. Fox has yellow eyes that emphasize his [[GentlemanThief sneaky]] [[CunningLikeAFox nature]]. With a little FridgeLogic involved, this can even turn into a spoiler: [[spoiler:[[WellDoneSonGuy Ash Fox struggles to get his father to notice him]], while his cousin [[TheAce Kristofferson gets constant praise]] from Mr. Fox. In the end, Ash manages to save the day rather impressively... and his eyes are the same greenish yellow his father has, whereas Kristofferson has light blue eyes!]]

* Ruber from ''WesternAnimation/QuestForCamelot'' has light yellow scleras alongside his small green irises.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheBadGuys2022'', the devilishly charming Mr. Wolf, leader of the titular gang of thieves, has yellow scleras that immediately tell you the guy means trouble, [[spoiler:until he [[HeelFaceTurn reforms]], then they just look cartoonishly adorable]]. Mr. Piranha has yellow eyes also, but they convey that he's [[AxCrazy batshit insane]] rather than sneakiness.

* [[AIIsACrapshoot [=GLaDOS=]]] from the ''Videogame/{{Portal}}''-series has one bright yellow "eye" on the front of her chassis. She's murdered every scientist in Aperture and forces the surviving humans to preform tests for her. She's also a compulsive liar and a DeadpanSnarker of the finest variety.
* In ''Franchise/BlazBlue'', [[BigBad Hazama]]/[[FauxAffablyEvil Yuuki]] [[BitchInSheepsClothing Terumi]] sports these when he [[EyesAlwaysShut actually opens up his eyes]]. This is one of the signs in ''[[VideoGame/BlazBlueContinuumShift Continuum Shift]]'' that foreshadow his villainy.
* In ''Franchise/TouhouProject'', resident liar and [[PowerCopying (spell)thief]] Marisa Kirisame has yellow eyes, as does the very [[{{Youkai}} "youkai]]-[[BlueAndOrangeMorality like]] [[TheChessmaster youkai"]] Yukari Yakumo ([[DependingOnTheArtist when they're not]] [[PurpleIsPowerful purple]]).

* ''VideoGame/FarCry4'' features Amita, one of the two leaders of [[LaResistance the Golden Path]]. She is a Himalayan woman with amber eyes, and despite appearing to have noble intentions, she's an UnscrupulousHero [[spoiler:who turns FallenHero in her ending if you bring her to power, converting Kyrat into a drug country and forcibly conscripting child soldiers.]] Those eyes should've tipped Ajay off Amita is not a nice person.
* ''Franchise/{{Kirby}}'': Meta Knight has yellow eyes underneath his mask [[note]]Prior to ''VideoGame/KirbyPlanetRobobot'', they were white under his mask due to technical limitations[[/note]]. He's also very stealthy and a skilled swordsman, as well as an AntiHero in his most heroic moments.

* In the intro to ''[[VideoGame/MarioTennis Mario Power Tennis]]'' Wario and Waluigi's eyes turn yellow during moments of ill intent, something not seen anywhere else in the series.
* Ridley, the draconic antagonist in the ''Franchise/{{Metroid}}'' franchise has completely yellow eyes, and though he is crafty, murderous might be a better descriptor. In ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' his eyes appear before the rest of his body becomes visible.

* In ''VideoGame/RuneScape'', the Mahjarrat all have black sclerae and red irises... except [[ManipulativeBastard Sliske]], who has yellow irises for no apparent reason but this trope. "How do you know you can trust me? That's simple. [[AtLeastIAdmitIt You can't.]]"
* The [[MesACrowd many]] [[GrandTheftMe incarnations]] of Xehanort, the BigBad of the Franchise/KingdomHearts series' "[[StoryArc Dark Seeker Saga]]", are all known for having yellow irises. TheHeartless, who are usually the main enemy type in those games, also commonly have solid yellow GlowingEyes.

* Sir Jasper from ''VideoGame/DragonQuestXI'', who serves alongside Sir Hendrik and under King Carnelian in the Heliodorians' attempts to capture or kill the [[PlayerCharacter Luminary]]. Compared with the rough but still mostly chivalrous Hendrik (who has blue eyes), he uses more underhanded and deceptive schemes to try and nab the Luminary, such as tricking Doge Rotondo into believing the Luminary is the one who cursed his son into losing his voice. [[spoiler:Also unlike Carnelian and Hendrik, Jasper is genuinely evil. While Carnelian was only pursuing the Luminary because he was [[DemonicPossession possessed]] by [[BigBad Mordegon]], and Hendrik was merely [[JustFollowingOrders obeying "Carnelian's" orders]], Jasper knowingly and willingly went along with Mordegon's plan to destroy Yggdrasil because he was tired of being AlwaysSecondBest to Hendrik.]]

* The entire troll race of ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'' have yellow sclera. As a whole they are significantly more blood-thirsty than humans, and deceit and murder are a huge part of their lives. However, the unsavory aspects of their culture turn out to be the result of [[spoiler:an EldritchAbomination socially engineering it to be horrible]] - before that, they were peaceful, making it a subversion.
* Partially subverted in ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'' with Dimo. He's a [[SuperSoldier Jaeger]], who don't have the best reputation due to their UndyingLoyalty to the [[BigScrewedUpFamily Heterodynes]], and is a [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20060419#.Vv_66uIrLIU bloodthirsty killer]] when he needs to be. But he ''is'' loyal to Agatha, since she's a Heterodyne, which makes him a protagonist. And although none of the Jaegers are [[BoisterousBruiser particularly intelligent]], he's one of the more cunning of the ones we've met.
* Tiger from ''Webcomic/{{Consolers}}'' has yellow eyes, and is a sneaky JerkAss.

* Many in the Fire Nation from ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' fit this trope; Princess Azula in particular plays this trope deadly straight.

* Socrates from ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresFromTheBookOfVirtues'' has these, to show that while he may be seem rather sneaky, he is actually shown to have a good heart because of his hidden innocence.
* ''WesternAnimation/Ben10UltimateAlien'': [[Characters/Ben10VillainsOriginalSeries Zombozo]] is redesigned with yellow eyes when he returns for the first time since the [[WesternAnimation/Ben10 Original Series]], and is he ever sneaky and nasty...
* ''WesternAnimation/FinalSpace'': [[Characters/FinalSpaceCelestialEntities Invictus]], though its eye color in its true form and when it's possessing others is purple, exhibits yellow eyes in its disembodied devil-face astral form which has a red theme.
* Plankton from ''WesternAnimation/SpongebobSquarepants'', despite having only one eye, would actually also count for this, as he is often scheming to steal the Krabby Patty secret formula.
** Squidward on his... sneakier days.
* Wile E. Coyote from Creator/ChuckJones' ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'' has yellow eyes compared to the Road Runner's ivory white eyes, since he is always coming up with sneaky schemes to catch the Road Runner, although without any success.
* Tom Cat from MGM's ''WesternAnimation/TomAndJerry'' has yellow eyes in his early cartoons compared to those of Jerry Mouse, often scheming against the mouse. The yellowness would disappear by the time of the Cinemascope cartoons, but reinstated in all modern depictions after that.
* The [[CunningLikeAFox foxes]] in ''WesternAnimation/TheFoxbusters'' have yellow eyes, to denote that they are always scheming to catch the chickens on the farm.
* ''WesternAnimation/SuperMarioBrosDic'': In all three cartoons, sneaky CardCarryingVillain [[ReptilesAreAbhorrent King Koopa]] has these. He is constantly drawing up schemes, some with his Koopa Kids in the latter two series.

* Many of the villains and jerks in ''WesternAnimation/OneHundredAndOneDalmatiansTheSeries'' had yellow eyes, including [[HonestJohnsDealership Swamp Rat]] and one of his henchmen, Cydne (who also happens to be a [[ReptilesAreAbhorrent snake]]), Cruella De Vil (which is odd, since in the original movie she had white eyes), as well as most of her family of De Vils. Mooch also had yellow eyes to show off how much a {{Jerk Jock}} he is. Interestingly, Spot the chicken has large yellow eyes, despite being part of the main cast, as well as Sergeant Tibs the cat (yellow scleras with green pupils) who is the Colonel's most loyal rank member.
* When Bill Cipher [[DemonicPossession possesses people]] on ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'', they gain glowing yellow sclerae and slit pupils. Oddly, Bill himself has [[{{Cyclops}} a slit pupil]], but his sclera is white.
* ''WesternAnimation/CourageTheCowardlyDog'':
** Katz from has a pair of yellow eyes that help enhance his ObviouslyEvil appearance.
** As does one-shot villain [[NeverSmileAtACrocodile Fusilli]].
* In the earlier seasons of ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'', the Joker has yellow sclerae, possibly a side-effect of the acciden that made him into the Joker. The later seasons gave him jet-black sclerae with white pupils.
* ''WesternAnimation/SheRaPrincessOfPower'': If ever a background object, particularly a blue one, suddenly shows a pair of these, it's a safe bet it's actually Horde Spy Imp.
* ''WesternAnimation/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower'' has Double Trouble, an elf-like shapeshifter with yellow eyes and a penchant for causing chaos and discord among people.
* In ''WesternAnimation/MuzzyInGondoland'', Corvax, the EvilChancellor who serves as the main antagonist, has yellow eyes along with his [[GreenAndMean green skin]].
* ''WesternAnimation/Xyber9NewDawn'': EvilOverlord Machestro has copper irises with slit pupils, as well as yellow sclerae. The rank and file Machina soldiers also have yellow sclerae, though all other parts of their eyes are normal.
* The ''ComicStrip/USAcres'' segments of ''WesternAnimation/GarfieldAndFriends'' gave Gort yellow eyes as one of the ways it made Orson's three [[BigBrotherBully bullying older brothers]] [[DivergentCharacterEvolution more distinguishable than their counterparts in the original comic strip]].

* In ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'', [[BigBad Hazama]]/[[FauxAffablyEvil Yuuki]] [[BitchInSheepsClothing Terumi]] sports these when he [[EyesAlwaysShut actually opens up his eyes]]. This is one of the signs in ''Continuum Shift'' that foreshadow his villainy.

* ''WebAnimation/Musophobia2012'': A majority of the rodents in the dream have bright glowing yellow eyes, making them more menacing towards the musophobic elephant. During the scene where the elephant runs through the woods, there are dozens of yellow eyes in the background, indicting that the rodents are watching them run.

* ''Franchise/{{Kirby}}'': Meta Knight has yellow eyes underneath his mask. He's also very stealthy and a skilled swordsman, as well as an AntiHero in his most heroic moments.

* ''LightNovel/KagerouDaze'':

* ''WesternAnimation/SuperMarioBros'': In all three [=DiC=] cartoons, sneaky CardCarryingVillain [[ReptilesAreAbhorrent King Koopa]] has these. He is constantly drawing up schemes, some with his Koopa Kids in the latter two series.

* ''Anime/{{FLCL}}''. Haruko Haruhara has yellow eyes. She slyly manipulates people and hides her true identity, goals and personality throughout the series.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheBadGuys'', the devilishly charming Mr. Wolf, leader of the titular gang of thieves, has yellow scleras that immediately tell you the guy means trouble, [[spoiler:until he [[HeelFaceTurn reforms]], then they just look cartoonishly adorable]]. Mr. Piranha has yellow eyes also, but they convey that he's [[AxCrazy batshit insane]] rather than sneakiness.

Compare SupernaturalGoldEyes, BlackEyesOfCrazy and RedEyesTakeWarning (both of which are commonly paired with this trope).

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheBadGuys'', the devilishly charming Mr. Wolf, leader of the titular gang of thieves, has yellow scleras that immediately tell you the guy means trouble, [[spoiler:until he [[HellFaceTurn reforms]], then they just look cartoonishly adorable]]. Mr. Piranha has yellow eyes also, but they convey that he's [[AxCrazy batshit insane]] rather than sneakiness.

* ''Webcomic/TheLegendOfGenji'': Malik has bright amber eyes and is introduced as a shady person from Genji's past that Genji is hesitant to get involved with again. In his first scene, he talks Genji into helping him out with a "job" that later turns out be smuggling illegal goods for a terrorist group.

* ''Webcomic/TheLegendOfGenji'': Malik has bright amber eyes and is introduced as a shady person from Genji's past that Genji is hesitant to get involved with again. In the first chapter, he talks Genji into helping out with a "job" that later turns out be smuggling illegal goods for a terrorist group.

* ''Webcomic/TheLegendOfGenji'': Malik has bright amber eyes and is introduced as a shady person from Genji's past that Genji is hesitant to get involved with again. In the first chapter, he enlists Genji's help for a "job" that turns out be smuggling illegal goods for a known terrorist group.

* ''Webcomic/TheLegendOfGenji'': Malik has bright amber eyes and is introduced as a shady person from Genji's past that he is hesitant to get involved with again. In the first chapter, he enlists Genji's help for a gig that turns out be smuggling illegal goods for a known terrorist group.

* ''WesternAnimation/FinalSpace'': [[Characters/FinalSpaceCelestialEntities Invictus]], though its eye color in its true form and when it's possessing others is [[SupernaturalIsPurple purple]], exhibits yellow eyes in its disembodied devil-face astral form which has a red theme.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheBadGuys'', the devilishly charming Mr. Wolf, leader of the titular gang of thieves, has yellow scleras that immediately tell you the guy means trouble, [[spoiler:until he [[HellFaceTurn reforms]], then they just look cartoonishly adorable]]. Mr. Piranha has yellow eyes also, but they convey that he's [[AxCrazy batshit insane]] rather than sneakiness.