Line #35 Main/TakingTheKids


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9	A married couple have a heated argument about their relationship. Maybe cheating is involved, or maybe one or both parties just can't stand the life they have together any more. After a shouting match, one spouse storms out, but not before taking the kids with them. As an alternate scenario, they just leave, taking the kids and leaving a note while the other spouse is out at work.
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11	The direction this trope ends up taking is largely dependent on what the motivations of the significant other are in this situation. If a woman is dealing with an abusive husband (regardless of whether he's abusive to her, the kids, or both), then she is in the right and the husband is a villainous character whom we are clearly supposed to be rooting against. If she is shown to be an unpleasant character who is very selfishly taking the kids away as a means of spiting her husband, the husband is usually the hero.
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13	Another scenario involves relatively little animosity between the two at all -- if the husband has gotten embroiled in a crazy conspiracy theory and the wife thinks he is losing his mind, then she can leave while Taking the Kids without any real hard feelings. Sure, the theory that LittleGreenMen are preparing to invade the planet might actually be ''true'', but usually the husband and the audience can understand why the wife is skeptical and worried about the situation and don't hold it against her. In this situation, you can usually expect a happy reunion at the end once all the craziness is over with.
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15	If the estrangement explicitly turns into a divorce proceeding, usually the wife either gains full custody or the lion's share of the joint custody arrangement -- which makes this trope general TruthInTelevision, as custody cases tend to tilt toward the mother unless the father holds a very clear advantage (typically monetary, but sometimes emotional connection) over his ex-wife. Even then the usual outcome is not sole but joint custody.
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17	For extra drama, you can make one of the two abduct the kids and take them far away from the other. To take this trope in the opposite direction (or for a different sort of drama), have them argue over who gets the dog instead.
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19	It should be noted that in some countries, leaving and taking the kids counts as both spousal abandonment and kidnapping, regardless of their sex.
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21	Closely related is FinancialAbuse, where one (if not ''both'') parties only want the kids for the financial benefits. Not to be confused with CustodyBattle, which centers on the parents fighting for custody in court.
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23	!!Examples:
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25	[[foldercontrol]]
26
27	[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
28	%%* In ''Manga/DearBrother'', this happened in the past of one [[spoiler:Professor Misonoo]]. The kid is [[spoiler:Takehiko Henmi... who years later becomes the titular "Oniisama" and BigBrotherMentor to the heroine Nanako]]. %%What happened?
29	* In ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'' it's revealed that when Miyuki Shirogane's mother walked out on the family, she took his little sister Kei with her but left him behind, which seems to be the major reason he feels the need to prove his worth to the world. That said, she eventually goes back to her father and brother by the time of the present day partially because she felt guilty about leaving them behind and partially because she felt uncomfortable sharing a home with her mother's live-in boyfriend.
30	* ''Manga/{{Monster}}'': Early into his first [[ADayInTheSpotlight spotlight episode]], Inspector Runge comes home from work to find his wife and daughter standing by the door with their bags packed, waiting for a taxi. [[InspectorJavert He barely notices]].
31	[[/folder]]
32
33	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
34	* In ''Film/AboutABoy'', though the main character's mother is his primary guardian (which she arguably doesn't deserve to be, since she's refusing to seek treatment for mental illness in a way that's fairly damaging for her son), she actually wants to work out a visitation arrangement with Will, Hugh Grant's character, who isn't related to her or her son at all. It's a father/son story where the father still has no involvement with the kid (he appears for three minutes in the film at a Christmas dinner).
35	* In the film ''Film/{{Amadeus}}'', when Costanze loses her patience with Wolfgang Mozart's obsession with the hooded stranger, she gives him an ultimatum. When he sneaks out at night and then returns the next morning, he finds all her clothes gone, then discovers that neither she nor their son is in the apartment.
36	%%* Also shown in a subplot of ''Film/AmericanGangster''.
37	* ''Film/BoilerRoom'' revolves around Seth a college dropout that gets hired to work at [=J.T.=] Marlin, [[WhiteCollarCrime a brokerage firm that sells worthless stocks]] to [[TheCon unsuspecting investors]]. One of Seth's victims invests his family's life savings on a worthless company, and after several heated arguments with his wife, she takes the kids and leaves him alone in their home. Seth regrets his actions, and decides to scam the company and give the guy his money back, right before the Feds come in and arrest everyone. The unused alternate ending shows the man planning to [[GoingPostal go postal]].
38	* ''Film/BreakingAndEntering2006'': When Bea was very young, she and her mother Liv moved from Sweden to England, leaving her father behind. Very little is known about the man.
39	%%* Attempted in ''Film/{{Casino}}'', but the wife comes back, given that her husband is in the mob. %%What was attempted?
40	* In ''Film/CloseEncountersOfTheThirdKind'', Roy Neary appears to be going crazy over his obsession with [[FlyingSaucer UFOs]] and creating sculptures of mountains, causing his wife and children severe emotional distress. His wife finally takes the kids and leaves him.
41	* In ''Film/FallingDown'', VillainProtagonist Bill had a HairTriggerTemper that caused his wife to live in fear of him, taking their home and daughter in the divorce and leaving Bill with nothing on top of a restraining order. This in addition to the loss of his job causes him to have a nervous breakdown, as the film revolves around his desperate efforts to reunite with his family escalating into a GoingPostal rampage.
42	* ''Film/TheFan'': The main character's wife taking his only son is one of the main things that drive him to homicidal rage and murder.
43	* Micheal Corleone's wife Kay plans to leave and take their children in ''Film/TheGodfatherPartII''. He refuses to let her, but frames his refusal with pleas for her to stay and work out their problems. When she reveals that she didn't miscarry their last child but instead had an abortion, he makes it clear he no longer wants anything to do with her--he slaps her--but again states that "you won't take my children!" She refuses to be cowed by this, stating "they're my children too!"
44	* In ''Film/IrreconcilableDifferences'', after Lucy realizes Albert has been cheating on her, she packs her bags and drives away with their daughter Casey. They spend the night in her car.
45	%%* Used in ''Film/KramerVsKramer''; the positive angle is on the divorced dad. %%What is used?
46	* ''Film/LargerThanLife'': When Jack was an infant, his mother took him and left his father, an irresponsible clown. She didn't tell him where they were living, so Jack grew up with no contact at all with his father.
47	* ''Film/LiarLiar'':
48	** At the beginning, Jim Carrey's ex-wife is threatening to take their son and go move with her boyfriend in Boston -- something which the lying, immature Carrey doesn't take seriously, and the audience sympathizes with her decision. However, by the end of the movie after Jim Carrey has realized just how important his son is to him, he makes a dramatic effort to stop her- and the audience is hoping he succeeds.
49	** Early on in the same movie, Jim Carrey convinces a GoldDigger client through some hilarious StrawFeminist arguments that she ''deserves'' a substantial portion of her husband's fortune to strike a blow for women everywhere. This is morphed to a DudeNotFunny moment later on when she uses this same argument to justify Taking The Kids -- for child support payments, when up to this point she had shown no interest in having custody.
50	--->'''Fletcher:''' But... you said he was a good father!\
51	'''Samantha:''' [[KickTheDog So?]]
52	* In ''Film/TheMaskOfZorro'', Don Diego's baby Elena is esentially abducted by his arch nemesis Don Rafael, who then raises the girl as his own. He justifies this (in his own mind, at least) by his [[LoveMakesYouEvil unrequited love for Diego's wife]] (apart from this, though, he does at least seem to be a relatively good father to her).
53	* ''Film/MiracleRun'': After Corrine breaks up with her boyfriend, she moves to a hotel with Steven and Phillip.
54	%%* This conflict drives the plot of ''Film/MrsDoubtfire''. %%What conflict?
55	* The movie ''Film/MyOneAndOnly'', set in the 50s, starts with TheDitz wife catching her rich husband with another woman, so she hits the road with her two sons. The sympathy's initially less with her than with the OnlySaneMan son, though eventually she gets some CharacterDevelopment. The mostly unlikeable husband spends the movie waiting for them to come back because he's quite certain they'll never learn to support themselves, [[spoiler:though when he finds out otherwise, he seems willing enough to let them go before he dies]].
56	* In ''Film/ThePursuitOfHappyness'', which is based on Chris Gardner's RealLife, Gardner's wife, after an argument, leaves while Gardner is away and takes his son with her. Gardner catches up to them at his son's school the next day, and tells his wife in no uncertain terms never to take his son away from him again, regardless of any problems they might have. The wife, who has her own issues, eventually becomes an AbsentParent. At least in the movie.
57	* In ''Film/TheSantaClause'', Tim Allen's character's wife wants full custody of his son now that she's getting married, which is something neither he nor his son want. Of course, it doesn't help that he's slowly turning into Santa Claus, and his wife thinks he's going crazy, going so far as to arrest him when he goes out with his son on the fateful Christmas sleigh ride. It also doesn't help that her new husband is a shrink (and a bit of an ass).
58	* ''Film/{{Tar}}'': After Tár finds herself in the middle of a scandal where it's revealed that she [[spoiler:abused and groomed several young women she had power over, her wife Sharon leaves her and takes their daughter Petra with her. Petra is the ''one'' person Tár loves more than herself, so it hits especially hard to see her begging Sharon not to do this, especially since the film ends before we find out if Tár will ever see her daughter again]].
59	* In ''Film/ZeroHour1957'', Ellen is leaving her husband Ted Stryker with their young son because Ted's DarkAndTroubledPast is affecting his ability to be a good role model.
60	[[/folder]]
61
62	[[folder:Literature]]
63	* ''Literature/AlphaAndOmega'': In Gabriela's {{Backstory}}, her now ex-husband divorced her and took their three-year-old daughter, Heather, having been awarded custody because he worked out of his home and she was a globetrotting journalist.
64	* John from ''Literature/BeautifulMusicForUglyChildren'' used to be a MarriedToTheJob alcoholic. His wife got fed up and left him in 1974, taking their 13-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son. John spent the next five years [[DrowningMySorrows getting drunk every day]] before going cold turkey on the anniversary of their separation. He's barely been in contact with them since they left. Gabe calls John's kids when [[spoiler:he's in a coma]], and while Margaret is willing to talk to him, Patrick tells Gabe that [[DisownedParent his father died in 1974]].
65	* In ''Literature/TheBoyInTheStripedPyjamas'', when Bruno's mother realizes what it means for her husband to be the commandant of a concentration camp, they spend several days loudly fighting, with Bruno and his sister listening to their screams. Eventually, she decides to spend the remainder of the war at the house of a relative, along her two children. Unfortunately, Bruno decides [[spoiler:to sneak into the camp to say goodbye to his friend, gets mistaken for an inmate, and [[TogetherInDeath they're thrown together]] into a [[DownerEnding gas chamber]]]].
66	* In Creator/JKRowling's ''Literature/TheChristmasPig,'' Holly's mother simply tells her to pack one day so that they can leave while her father isn't home. We don't know the exact circumstances behind their divorce, but her father, Brendan, is [[GoodStepfather a sympathetic character]], and Holly seems to be closer to him than to her mom, so the experience was rather traumatic to her.
67	* ''Literature/ACryInTheNight'':
68	** A notable aversion is provided in the backstory; Jenny discovers letters between Caroline and her parents revealing she had decided to leave her husband, but she only had one ticket, implying she intended to leave her son behind with his father. Jenny - who can't imagine ever going away and leaving behind her daughters - wonders why Caroline would do this. [[spoiler:It turns out that Erich's [[EnfantTerrible disturbing]] [[TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior behavior]] was a big reason why Caroline wanted to leave, as she needed time away from her husband and son to [[DaddyHadAGoodReasonForAbandoningYou safely come up with a way to help Erich]].]]
69	** Jenny plots to leave Erich with her children and return to New York [[spoiler:but Erich figures out what she's up to and leaves with the children first. When Jenny manages to get in contact with him and demands he return her daughters, Erich points out they're ''his'' daughters as well, as he legally adopted them, and he has the right to take them wherever he wants]].
70	* In ''Literature/EvidenceOfThingsNotSeen'', Dwight and his mom finally leave his dad after he violently beats them one too many times.
71	* When Ekaterin walks out on Tien in ''Literature/{{Komarr}}'', she takes their son Nikki with her, which presents several unfortunate legal complications in the next book. [[spoiler:In spite of Tien being ''dead'', not least because Miles had to go to great lengths to prove he didn't [[MurderTheHypotenuse bump the man off to get a clear shot at Ekaterin]].]]
72	* In ''Literature/{{Kurenai}}'', Souju gets Benika to promise to kidnap Murasaki and take her away from the Kuhoin estate.
73	* ''Literature/TheLightJar'' opens with Nate's mum waking him in the middle of the night, hours before her abusive boyfriend is due to get back from a business trip, and telling him to pack so they can go on holiday. They drive off the boyfriend's car. Nate doesn't realize they're not really on holiday until they arrive at the HorribleHousing where Nate's mum says they now live.
74	%%* In the {{backstory}} of Laurie R. King's ''Locked Rooms'', Literature/MaryRussell's mother did this in the wake of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, although her parents did not divorce. %%What's she do?
75	* The basic premise of the novel ''Literature/LolaRose'' is Nikki fleeing [[JustifiedTrope her abusive husband]] along with their two children. Although Jay had been abusing her for years, [[LoveMartyr she simply put up with it]] until he hits their daughter; believing he will start beating Jayni as well, she finally decides to leave him to protect them. Jayni is completely fine with it because her dad terrifies her, while her brother Kenny takes a bit more persuading because he's younger and doesn't fully understand what's happening. When Nikki later wonders if she overreacted, Jayni reassures her she did the right thing.
76	* In ''Literature/TheSchoolForGoodMothers'', Frida's [[spoiler:parental rights are terminated and she is forbidden to have any contact with her daughter until Harriet turns 18, and only if Harriet seeks her out. She ends up abducting Harriet, fully expecting to get caught but figuring one last chance to spend time with her daughter is worth it]].
77	* In ''Literature/TheSpiderwickChronicles'', the mother took the kids and left because her husband was cheating, and one of the kids still idolizes the dad because he was LockedOutOfTheLoop.
78	* In ''Literature/TheStoryOfValentineAndHisBrother'', the vagabond [[OnlyOneName Myra]] marries the aristocrat Richard Ross, but finds life as a ProperLady unbearable and runs away with their twin sons.
79	* ''Literature/{{Thora}}'': In the first book, Thora gives a figurine her mother found in a river to her friends Ricky and Lynne Rukle. Their mother sells the figurine and uses the money to move into a new house with Ricky and Lynne, taking them from her husband, whose gambling habit has kept the family in poverty.
80	* In Alice Hoffman's ''Literature/TurtleMoon'', one of the plot points is that the female lead insisted on taking the kid after her divorce, even though said kid despises living in Florida with her and has his calendar rather spectacularly marked for when he goes to visit his father in New England for the summer -- he refers to it as "home".
81	* In Olivia Goldsmith's ''Literature/YoungWives'', Jada gave her husband an ultimatum: give up his mistress and try to make the marriage work. ''He'' then filed for divorce and complete custody, although she'd been sole breadwinner and doing all the homemaking, hence the ultimatum, crowning it with a demand for alimony. [[spoiler:In the end, played straight as she kidnaps the kids and takes them out of the country, albeit with their last-minute consent.]]
82	[[/folder]]
83
84	[[folder:Live Action TV]]
85	%%* The "divorced dad as a hero" angle is so common that it was parodied in ''Series/ArrestedDevelopment'' with the [[ShowWithinAShow Film Within a Show]] ''Homeless Dad'': "I just want my kids back %%Angle of what?
86	* In ''Series/BetterThanUs'', Alla is Georgy's ex-wife, and they have joint custody of their children. Alla wants to move to Australia to be with her husband, but she wants the kids to come with her, which Georgy won't go for. She tries to spy on Georgy to get evidence that he's an unfit parent, and also tries to simply escape to Sydney with the kids on multiple occasions (possession being nine-tenths of the law).
87	* In one episode of ''Series/CriminalMinds'', Hotchner took back his decision to transfer to Virginia with his wife and son to a less time consuming job. The episode ends with Hotchner coming home and finding it empty.
88	* In the ''Manga/DeepLove'' adaptation, as a child when Ayu's parents divorced, her mother took her to her new lover and the father never visited her again even though he had shown her nothing but love when he was allowed to see her.
89	%%* ''Series/DivorceCourt'' (the 1980s version) and ''Series/TheJudge'': A staple trope of these courtroom dramas. %%Example has neither context nor specificity.
90	%%** A line uttered by Tom Jane, who in ''Series/{{Hung}}'' went on to say "Who do I have to fuck around here to get my kids back?!"
91	* In ''Series/{{Lost}}'', Susan is able to take Walt from Michael partly because she's the mother and partly because she's the one with the money and the good job.
92	* In one episode of ''Series/MalcolmInTheMiddle'', Hal has a cancer scare, and Lois becomes more aggravated than usual, and eventually Malcolm and Reese come to the conclusion that Lois and Hal are getting a divorce. After Hal gets a second opinion that says he does not have cancer, Reese and Malcolm, [[LockedOutOfTheLoop not being told of what was going on]], and with packed bags, tell Lois and Hal that they accept the divorce, and ask Hal how soon can they move in to his new place. Lois, with a mischievous smile, says that they both agreed that should they ever get a divorce, [[AlmightyMom she would get full custody]].
93	* On ''Series/MyNameIsEarl'', Joy tricks Earl into giving her their old trailer home as well as full custody of the kids when she tricks him into [[ArtisticLicenseLaw signing divorce papers under the influence of morphine]]. To be fair, the kids are not biologically Earl's, and Earl is unemployed and [[HomelessHero technically homeless]] anyway. [[spoiler:Well, one of them isn't. It's later revealed that Earl ''is'' the biological father of Dodge, but he and Joy did not know that because they conceived him at a Halloween party while wearing their costumes. At the point of the divorce, Joy thinks his biological father is Li'l Chubby, though she claims it's some random guy she met at a concert.]]
94	* In ''Series/OneDayAtATime1975'', the mom took the daughters and left her husband. Why? Just because she wanted to prove that she could.
95	* ''Series/TheOuterLimits1995'': In "Simon Says", Zoe is involved in a custody battle with her estranged husband Randall over their daughter Hannah. Randall was granted temporary custody and delays the custody hearing three times as he knows that Zoe does not have enough money to keep up the fight.
96	* In a recurring bit on ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'''s "Weekend Update," Heidi Gardner plays "Angel, the girlfriend from every boxing movie ever." Her main schtick is claiming, emotionally, that if her boyfriend Tommy goes through with that one last fight, it's the last straw, and "I'm takin' the kids to my sister's!"
97	* At one point in ''Series/TheShield'', [=Mackey's=] wife leaves with the kids and he doesn't know where they are. [=Mackey=] is the hero [[SociopathicHero well, at least we ''think'' he's the hero]], so he's still portrayed positively.
98	* In ''Series/SquidGame'', the protagonist Gi-Hun's ex-wife already took their daughter prior to the start of the series with full custody over his [[TheGamblingAddict gambling addiction]], although he was allowed to see her from time to time despite his wife making it clear she didn't trust him. She got re-married and had another kid. Gi-Hun initially joins the DeadlyGame after learning that the stepdad got a new job in America and hoped to use the prize money to get custody.
99	* Sela from ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' explains that she was raised on Romulus where her mother (a {{time\|Travel}}-traveling Tasha Yar) was a prisoner of war. One night her mother tried to flee the planet and was taking the girl with her -- but Sela was afraid of the idea of leaving her home and raised the alarm. When her mother was executed, Sela says "Everything in me that was human died... all that remains is Romulan!"
100	%%* ''Series/TwoAndAHalfMen'' has the antagonist ex-wife use this as a threat from time to time in order to drum up zany sitcom conflict so that the main characters try to find some way to appease her. %%Threaten with what?
101	* ''Series/WithoutATrace'': Fed up with him always putting his FBI work ahead of his family, Jack's wife, Maria, accepts a job offer in Chicago and takes their daughters, Hannah and Kate, with her, leaving him alone in NYC.
102	* ''Series/YoungSheldon'': In "A Computer, a Plastic Pony, and a Case of Beer", Mary takes Sheldon and Missy to live at Connie's house in order to prove a point to George.
103	[[/folder]]
104
105	[[folder:Music]]
106	%%* Music/DropkickMurphys' song "The State of Massachusetts" is about child services doing this to a woman because of her husband who is "violent, malicious, and distant." %%Doing what?
107	* Music/GeorgeJones' classic 1974 hit "The Grand Tour," which ends solemnly and bitterly: Without explanation, a young man's wife walks out on him "taking nothing but our baby and my heart."
108	* Earlier live versions of Music/MeatLoaf's "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" end with the couple arguing about divorce and the wife declaring she's taking their child, who has been ignored by the signer until now.
109	* Music/MontgomeryGentry's "I'll Keep the Kids" has the narrator telling his wife that she can take whatever she wants, including his favorite shirt that he hopes fits old what's-his-name, but that he'll keep the kids.
110	[[/folder]]
111
112	[[folder:Newspaper Comics]]
113	* A comic for ''ComicStrip/TheFarSide'' showed an angry female insect telling her husband "I'm leaving you and taking the grubs with me!" Larson was going to have her say "And I'm taking the maggots with me!" but the publisher said that was too gross.
114	[[/folder]]
115
116	[[folder:Stand-Up Comedy]]
117	* Creator/KevinHart describes in one of hits bits how he couldn't storm out after arguments with his ex-wife because his son would always want to go with him. He talks about how dumb it sounded when he was cursing out his wife while swinging a diaper bag behind him.
118	[[/folder]]
119
120	[[folder:Theatre]]
121	* Inverted in ''Theatre/JasperInDeadland'' - Jasper's mother explicitly tells Jasper that she ''doesn't'' want to take him with her as she leaves her husband.
122	[[/folder]]
123
124	[[folder:Video Games]]
125	* At the start of ''VideoGame/FishingVacation'', the player character's friend mentions that the last time they spoke to their uncle, he was going through a divorce from his then-wife. Upon arriving at the cabin - where no one seems to have lived in a while - you can find a note on the wall indicating the uncle's wife left him and took their daughter with her. [[spoiler:The truth is [[AwfulTruth far worse]], as the wife and daughter never got the chance to leave.]]
126	* In the ''VideoGame/HarvestMoonAWonderfulLife'' if you don't do any farm work or ship ''anything'' at all, in the second or third chapter your spouse will eventually start asking you if the farm is doing okay. You can apologize and promise to work harder, or you can give rude and negative answers until your spouse gets fed up and [[NonStandardGameOver walks out along with your child]]. Afterwards, Takakura tells you that if you don't like farm work, you should go find something you're more suited to.
127	[[/folder]]
128
129	[[folder:Webcomics]]
130	* In ''The Collab'', Heshe declares that she's leaving and taking the kids a couple times (the first time was before the kids were even born [[MisterSeahorse from Axel]]).
131	* In [[http://superredundant.com/?comic=123-assumptions one]] ''Webcomic/LeagueOfSuperRedundantHeroes'' strip, a man coming home early from work finds his wife being tied up by a strange man, both of them wearing [[DressedLikeADominatrix kinky]] [[{{Stripperific}} scanty]] outfits. He angrily storms off, taking the goldfish bowl with him. [[NotWhatItLooksLike It turns out]] that the outfits are their supervillainess and superhero costumes, and he's capturing her to turn over to the authorities.
132	* In ''WebComic/TheOrderOfTheStick'', [[spoiler:Vaarsuvius goes crazy with power and terrifies hir mate and their children in the process of saving them from a vengeful dragon. After V saves them and leaves to try and singlehandedly defeat the BigBad, hir partner sues for divorce and full custody of their children. With V having undergone an enormous MyGodWhatHaveIDone realization in the meantime, shi does not fight the motion, thinking that it is far better for hir now former partner and their children to be safer away from hir adventuring]].
133	[[/folder]]
134
135	%%[[folder:Western Animation]]
136	%%* Lois in ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' when Peter gets amnesia and starts going and having sex with other women.
137	%%* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': Marge Simpson did this when Homer bought a gun. She does it again in [[TheMovie the movie]]. %%What's she did?
138	%%[[/folder]]

Context Main / TakingTheKids