False protagonist

In fiction, a false protagonist is a literary technique, often used to make the plot more jarring or more memorable by defying the audience's preconceptions, whereby a character who the audience assumes is the protagonist is later revealed not to be.

A false protagonist is presented at the start of the fictional work as the main character, but is then removed from the role, often killed (usually for shock value or as a plot twist) or relegated to a different role in the story (i.e. making them a lesser character, a character who leaves the story, or revealing the character to actually be the antagonist).

Overview

In film, a character can be made to seem like the main protagonist based on a number of techniques (beyond just simply focusing the plot on their role). Star power is a very effective method; audience members generally assume that the biggest "name" in a movie will have a significant part to play. An abundance of close-ups can also be used as a subliminal method. Generally, the star of a film will get longer-lasting and more frequent close-ups than any other character, but this is rarely immediately apparent to viewers during the film. Alternatively, the false protagonist can serve as the movie's narrator, encouraging the audience to assume that the character survives to tell the tale.

Many of the same techniques used in film can also apply to television, but the episodic nature adds an additional possibility. By ending one or more episodes with the false protagonist still in place, the show can reinforce the viewers' belief in the character's protagonist status. Also, because TV shows often have changes of cast between seasons, some series can have unintentional false protagonists: characters who begin the series as main characters but then are replaced early in the show's run by other characters entirely. When the series is viewed as a whole, this can lead to the appearance of a false protagonist.

In video games, a false protagonist may initially be a playable character, only to be killed or revealed to be the antagonist. One key way in which video games employ the method that differs from uses in non-interactive fiction is by granting the player direct control over the false protagonist. Since most video games allow a player to control only the main characters (and their success or failure is based on playing skill, not pre-determined story), the sudden demise of the character that is being controlled serves to surprise the player.

Examples

Literature

The Book of Samuel starts with Samuel as a young boy. He was the main focus in the first few chapters until he eventually becomes a minor character.

• The Book of Samuel begins with Samuel's birth and God's call to him as a boy. At this point, the readers are led to believe that Samuel is the central figure in the book. By the sixteenth chapter, the book starts to primarily focus on David.
• The story of Aladdin in the Arabian Nights begins with a sorcerer making a difficult journey from Morocco to China, to obtain a marvelous magic lamp – giving the clear impression that he is the protagonist. Even when he makes contact with the boy Aladdin, pretending to be his long-lost uncle, this is still told from the sorcerer's point of view. Only after the sorcerer quarrels with Aladdin and leaves him trapped in a dark cavern does the point of view shift to Aladdin and it becomes clear that he is the true protagonist and that the sorcerer is the story's antagonist.
• George R. R. Martin's novel A Game of Thrones, the first entry in the A Song of Ice and Fire epic fantasy series, features chapters told from the point of view of numerous characters, but the most prominent is Ned Stark, who is the viewpoint character for the greatest number of chapters; in the television adaptation Game of Thrones he was portrayed by Sean Bean, the best-known actor in the cast. He appears to be the novel's main protagonist until the final chapters, in which he is unexpectedly executed.
• Kumo Kagyu's light-novel Goblin Slayer begins Volume 1 with a young swordsman, a magician, and a monk recruiting a Priestess for a goblin killing contract where they are violently eaten, poisoned to death, and violated to the point of becoming unresponsive. Before coming to any lethal harm, she was rescued by the legendary Goblin Slayer who replaces her 3 three escorts as the protagonist.

Film

• Alfred Hitchcock's film Psycho opens with Marion Crane as the main character. However, she is killed partway through the film, making the murder far more unexpected and shocking. Hitchcock felt that the opening scenes with Marion as the false protagonist were so important to the film that when it was released in theaters, he compelled theater owners to enforce a "no late admission" policy.

Video games

• Bandai Namco's Tekken fighting game series featured Kazuya Mishima (三島 一八) as the protagonist of Tekken 1 (1994) and a major antagonist for each following game. He participates in and wins the King of Iron Fist Tournament hosted by his abusive father Heihachi Mishima (三島 平八). Believing he killed Heihachi, Kazuya appointed himself CEO of the Mishima Zaibatsu. Rather than cleansing the company of his father's corrupt practices he engaged in more ruthless endeavors such as kidnapping, genetic engineering, conquering Hokkaido, and making plans for world domination. Even after Heihachi regained control of the Zaibatsu, both he and his father remain major antagonists. Their conflict is described as part of the Mishima family's cycle of abuse which Jin Kazama (風間 仁), Kazuya's son and Tekken's true protagonist, wants to break.
• Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2001), developed and published by Konami, begins with the player controlling the preceding game's protagonist Solid Snake, who is investigating the creation of a new Metal Gear. The tanker Snake is on sinks, and he is presumed dead. For the rest of the game, the player controls Raiden, a rookie FOXHOUND operative, even after Snake is revealed to be alive. The game's design document claimed Raiden was envisioned for female players to more easily empathize with him than they might have with Snake. Hideo Kojima, the game's writer and director, revealed that one reason for introducing Raiden was that the frequent use of the in-game CODEC radio that provided the player with valuable information would have made less sense being used by the veteran soldier Snake. He also wanted to introduce a story theme of identity and probe at Snake's popularity among gamers by portraying him as a legendary figure from other characters' perspectives, which required the player no longer be in control of him.
• Assassin's Creed III (2012), developed and published by Ubisoft, has the player controlling Haytham Kenway, ancestor of the titular Assassin Brotherhood, for the first three chapters of the game leading the player to believe him an Assassin and the game's main protagonist. After fighting alongside members of the American Revolution, and becoming intimate with a Native American woman who bears his son, it's revealed that Haytham is actually a member of the Templar Order, the sworn enemies of the Assassins. From the fourth chapter onward Haytham serves as the game's main antagonist and the player takes control of his son, Ratonhnhaké:ton, an Assassin who fights the Templar's influence in the revolting colonies, resulting in Ratonhnhaké:ton and Haytham becoming sworn enemies. They attempt to reason with each other during their feud but ultimately cannot compromise their beliefs, resulting in Ratonhnhaké:ton killing Haytham.
• Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony (2017), developed and published by Spike Chunsoft, has the player controlling Kaede Akamatsu, the Ultimate Pianist, during the prologue and first chapter leading the player to believe her as the game's main protagonist. After a certain point in the first trial, she is revealed to be the culprit of the first case, and from then onward Shuichi Saihara, the Ultimate Detective, serves as the game's main protagonist.
• The Last of Us Part II (2020), developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment, introduces the antagonist Abby early in the story when she kills, Joel, for unknown reasons. Ellie seeks revenge and is controlled by the player over three in-game days until she encounters Abby again. At this point, the player begins controlling Abby in a flashback, playing the same three days from her perspective and learning her motivation for killing Joel. Upon reaching the point of her encounter with Ellie, the player fights her while in control of Abby. The player then alternates between both characters, culminating in a final battle against Abby while playing as Ellie.

Television

• Anime series Gurren Lagann, produced by Studio Gainax and premiering in 2007 gives Kamina a large amount of focus. The story is told from his point of view until Episode 8, where a plot twist has Kamina sacrifice himself and delegate trust in his friend Simon, who takes the role as the protagonist.

See also

• Antihero
• False hero
• Plot twist
• Red herring (narrative)