History Main / AssassinsAreAlwaysBetrayed

* In ''Literature/{{Dune}}'' the Baron Harkonnen not only has Yueh killed after he opens House Atreides' defenses and brings Duke Leto to him, he kills Yueh's wife whom he was [[IHaveYourWife holding hostage]] as well. Though, Yueh was expecting that and hid a poison gas capsule in the Duke's teeth.
* The ''Literature/JohnRain'' novels by Creator/BarryEisler
** In ''A Clean Kill In Tokyo'', Rain discovers that [[spoiler:he's been working all along for his CIA nemesis from UsefulNotes/TheVietnamWar.]]
** In ''Extremis'', [[spoiler:Rain goes to great lengths to protect Midori, who ends up betraying him to the Yakuza in the belief that he'll always be a threat to their son.]]
** In ''The Detachment'', [[spoiler:Colonel Horton hires Rain, Dox, Treven and Larison to forestall TheCoup which he claims is being plotted by senior American officials. However Horton is working both sides and intends to LeaveNoWitnesses of his involvement.]]

* A variation occurs on the ''WebVideo/DreamSMP'', as Purpled isn't ''necessarily'' an assassin, but is a mercenary nonetheless. A week before the [[WhamEpisode Red Banquet]], he catches Quackity filling his UFO with TNT (to get his attention), but is convinced to help him crash the Banquet after being promised payment from [[TheCasino Las Nevadas]]. After the Banquet, Purpled collects his money... only for Quackity to blow up his UFO anyway... and then try to convince him to join Las Nevadas with promises of a preserved legacy, now that his UFO, which used to be one of the few major builds on the server Purpled has done, is gone.

* ''WebOriginal/KnightsOfJebalot:'' A group called the Crew brings in two supers for their clients, and are paid [[spoiler: by killing two and turning one against her will into an immortal soldier.]]

Often an example of YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness. This betrayal usually takes the form of a ContractOnTheHitman.

* Ah Jong from ''Film/TheKiller'' is betrayed by his boss upon completing his last job.

* ''VideoGame/{{Hitman}}'':

'''Warning: Due to this trope's nature as a Plot Twist, spoilers may be unmarked!'''

* ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreed'':
** In ''VideoGame/{{Assassins Creed|I}}'', it turns out that Al Mualim was actually a Templar and has sent Altaïr to assassinate the other leaders of the Templars in order to get the piece of Eden himself.
** This later leads another Assassin to make a power grab and turn the other Assassins against Altaïr.

* A variation occurs on the ''LetsPlay/DreamSMP'', as Purpled isn't ''necessarily'' an assassin, but is a mercenary nonetheless. A week before the [[WhamEpisode Red Banquet]], he catches Quackity filling his UFO with TNT (to get his attention), but is convinced to help him crash the Banquet after being promised payment from [[TheCasino Las Nevadas]]. After the Banquet, Purpled collects his money... only for Quackity to blow up his UFO anyway... and then try to convince him to join Las Nevadas with promises of a preserved legacy, now that his UFO, which used to be one of the few major builds on the server Purpled has done, is gone.

[[folder:Film]]

* {{Downplayed|Trope}} in ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyJusticeForAll''. The assassin in the fourth case has been recorded by his client, in an attempt by said client to blackmail the assassin later. [[spoiler:This turns out to be a ''major mistake'' on the part of the client, as the assassin works by a code of trust between himself and the client...and by doing this, the client has betrayed that code of trust. When the assassin learns the truth, he breaks their current agreement and promises to go after the client next, trapping the latter in a [[MortonsFork no-win situation]]: either confess to hiring the assassin and possibly getting the death penalty or maintaining his innocence and get killed by the assassin.]]

* ''Anime/TheWorldsFinestAssassin'' [[labelnote:full title]]The World's Finest Assassin Gets Reincarnated in Another World as an Aristocrat[[/labelnote]] opens with "Allen Smith" doing OneLastJob for "the organization" which he grew up in and which taught him to be the titular "World's Finest Assassin." After the job is completed he is supposed to transfer to Japan to work as a teacher in one of the organization's assassin schools. Unfortunately for him, this trope is in full effect and the plane he's on from LA to Tokyo is "hijacked" and then shot down by an American fighter jet. Killing him and leading to his reincarnation.

* According to conspiracy theorists, this is what happened to Lee Harvey Oswald. Part of the reason why the [[WhoShotJFK Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories]] got started in the first place was that Oswald was killed before he could testify, leading the suspicious-minded to believe he was killed because HeKnowsTooMuch.

* ''Series/Daredevil2015'': Wilson Fisk regularly discards of underlings once he no longer has further use for them. This sometimes includes the very assassins he hires for hits.

* ''Film/BitterLake'' has a villainous example. It ends with the BigBad murdering the assassin after [[TheBadGuyWins he successfully carried out the plan to murder the diplomats at Bitter Lake]]. TheStinger implies that he is about to be betrayed and assassinated himself however.

* ''Film/BitterLake'' has a villainous example. It ends with the BigBad murdering the assassin after he successfully carried out the plan to murder the diplomats at Bitter Lake. TheStinger has the BigBad receiving a letter from "a friend" which implies that he is about to be betrayed and assassinated himself.

* Downplayed in ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorney: Justice For All''. The assassin in the fourth case has been recorded by his client, in an attempt by said client to blackmail the assassin later. [[spoiler:This turns out to be a ''major mistake'' on the part of the client, as the assassin works by a code of trust between himself and the client...and by doing this, the client has betrayed that code of trust. When the assassin learns the truth, he breaks their current agreement and promises to go after the client next, trapping the latter in a [[MortonsFork no-win situation]]: either confess to hiring the assassin and possibly getting the death penalty or maintaining his innocence and get killed by the assassin.]]