History Main / DetachableDoorknob

* In ''VideoGame/PajamaSam in: No Need to Hide When it's Dark Outside'', Sam can enter the hall of doors in Darkness' House once he completes the Brain Tickler challenge hosted by Wink and Blink. One of the doors in the hall has a loose doorknob, which comes off if you click on it. The loose doorknob then becomes an item in Sam's inventory, and he can use it to open the door of the riverside shack, where he can find his flashlight in the path where it's there or a hammer in the paths where the flashlight is in the mines or his mask is in Darkness' living room.

* ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan'': [[DefiedTrope Defied]]. When Peter Parker first gets his powers and becomes Spider-Man, he has [[DoesNotKnowHisOwnStrength difficulty controlling his newfound strength]] and makes a mess of the bathroom. As a result, when he leaves the room, he ''very'' carefully turns the doorknob to prevent himself from damaging it.

* A scene of ''WesternAnimation/TheEmperorsNewGroove'' has Yzma and Kronk trapped in a closet in Pacha's house when Chicha, Tipo, and Chaca remove the closet door's handle.

* The [[WhatCouldHaveBeen original story treatment]] of ''WesternAnimation/MonstersInc'' concerns Johnson as he tries to scare one more kid to save his job. However, as he enters Mary's bedroom, he accidentally breaks the doorknob and tries to fix it. After Mary ambushes him (thinking it's one of her brothers trying to prank her) and accidentally gets whisked away to the Monster World, Johnson tries to open the door to return her to her world. Unfortunately, the doorknob on the other side breaks as well and the door has to be sent to the repair department.

* ''Manga/The100GirlfriendsWhoReallyReallyReallyReallyReallyLoveYou'': In Chapter 54, after Chiyo is accidentally given a kissing zombie drug by Kusuri, she rips the doorknob off the rooftop's only door to ensure Rentarou can't escape from her. Rentarou has to break down the door so Kusuri can get to her lab to make the MagicAntidote.

* ''Franchise/HomeAlone'':

Can be considered a SubTrope of NoOSHACompliance, as it could cause problems should people need to escape from a serious hazard. Also a SisterTrope to BrokenLeverOfDoom.

* In ''Film/FourteenOhEight'', once Enslin realizes that the titular hotel room he's staying in [[GeniusLoci is, in fact, evil]], he tries to escape, but not only does the door eat the inside key, the knob suddenly breaks off. This comes after the window slams itself completely shut, [[SealedRoomInTheMiddleOfNowhere solidifying the fact that he's now trapped for good.]]

* ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan'': Defied. When Peter Parker first gets his powers and becomes Spider-Man, he has [[DoesNotKnowHisOwnStrength difficulty controlling his newfound strength]] and makes a mess of the bathroom. As a result, when he leaves the room, he ''very'' carefully turns the doorknob to prevent himself from damaging it.

* The original story treatment of ''WesternAnimation/MonstersInc'' concerns Johnson as he tries to scare one more kid to save his job. However, as he enters Mary's bedroom, he accidentally breaks the doorknob and tries to fix it. After Mary ambushes him (thinking it's one of her brothers trying to prank her) and accidentally gets whisked away to the Monster World, Johnson tries to open the door to return her to her world. Unfortunately, the doorknob on the other side breaks as well and the door has to be sent to the repair department.

This can can be accidentally caused by a character who DoesNotKnowHisOwnStrength. If this happens, expect a gag where they casually try to put the doorknob back in the door and pretend nothing is wrong, probably with a NotSoInnocentWhistle.

* One ''ComicBook/ArchieComics'' story has Archie learn that Hiram Lodge has a distaste for tarnished brass. Seeking to get on his good side, Archie removes a doorknob from the Lodge mansion, and takes it home to polish it. When he returns, Archie tries to reattach it, but only succeeds in pushing the shaft out through the other side. He leaves the knob in its collar, intending to remedy it later. When Hiram Lodge returns home, it's during a rainstorm, and he tries to rush through his front door before he gets soaked. The knob comes off in his hand to his great chagrin. He quickly deduces that Archie is behind his predicament, and asks himself if Archie would like to have that brass doorknob for lunch.
* Played with in the first incarnation of ''ComicBook/TheAtom'' from the 1940's. There, he was just a small man who underwent an intensive training routine that boosted his strength to Peak Human. Not knowing how strong he'd become, he tried opening a stuck door and ripped the knob right out when it wouldn't open.

* A scene of ''WesternAnimation/TheEmperorsNewGroove'' has Yzma and Kronk trapped in a closet in Pacha's house when Chicha, Tipo and Chaca remove the closet door's handle.

* ''Series/BabesInTheWood'': One episode had Leigh and Caralyn dealing with a contractor who has a very StayInTheKitchen attitude. When he successfully fixes the toilet for them and attempts to leave, the doorknob comes off on both ends of the bathroom door, leaving him trapped. The girls proceed to mock him over his attitudes and refuse to fix the door for him until he gives them a discount for fixing the toilets.
* ''Series/BananasInPyjamas'' has an episode where the Teddies get stuck in their bedroom due to the doorknob coming off (as well as from the other side when the Bananas come to rescue them). The Bananas not only have to deal with the broken door, but also with getting food to the trapped Teddies since it was so close to dinnertime.

* ''Series/GreenAcres'': A common RunningGag on the show involves the doorknobs on the front door of the Douglas's house often coming off whenever someone uses them. This can create quite a shock for guests, especially those who are unaware of exactly where Oliver and Lisa are living.
* ''Series/HoldTheSunset'': In "Birthday", Phil goes into the garden shed to convince Roger to give up his newfound BasementDweller ways and go back to his wife and children so that he can sell the house. When he tries to leave however, the doorknob detaches, leaving him trapped and forcing him to attempt to fix it whilst Roger tries to talk him out of selling the house.

* In the ''VideoGame/ResidentEvilRemake'', there's a door near the second save room which serves as a convenient shortcut to the main hall. However, after a certain amount of uses it will suffer this trope, leading to a sort of inverted DoorToBefore scenario where the player has to take a longer way around later in the game.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Caillou}}'': In the Season 2 episode "Lost And Found", when Caillou is looking for his missing sock, he goes down into the basement to look for it. When the basement door shuts, Caillou goes to open it, but ends up pulling the doorknob out of the socket. He gets scared and starts banging on the door for help. When his dad deduces what happened, he tells Caillou he has to turn the knob on his side slowly. When both Caillou and his dad are stuck in the basement, mom tries to come to their aid, only for the doorknob to come out on her side as well. Caillou's dad instructs her on how to put it back in, and once they're out, Caillou and his dad finish up the episode fixing the knob.

** In "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS21E6PranksAndGreens Pranks and Greens]]", Bart and Milhouse go to the house of a former Springfield Elementary School prankster named Andy. Bart grabs the doorknob only to realized that it was super glued and came off the door.

* ''Series/TheGoesWrongShow:'' Early in "[[Recap/TheGoesWrongShowTheLodge The Lodge]]," Max attempts to open the door to the eponymous HauntedHouse's kitchen, only for the doorknob to snap off in his hand. After trying and failing to get it open, Max is forced to improvise by pretending that he's entered the kitchen, and everyone on set follows suit - to the point Trevor provides the intended refreshments by punching a hole in the door and pouring scalding-hot tea into Max's outstretched hands.

* ''VideoGame/{{Soma}}'': Variant combining BrokenLeverOfDoom; during a visit to Upsilon's comm centre, Simon carefully shuts the door behind him so his radio conference with Catherine won't be interrupted by the monsters infesting the area - though given that this story predominantly takes place in an UnderwaterBase, the door is a giant hatchway operated by a lever next to the stairs. Unfortunately, the conversion ends with the roof of the comm centre beginning to give way. Players who react quickly enough will naturally try to reopen the hatch, only for the lever to snap off in Simon's hand. Seconds later, the roof caves in and Simon has just enough time to mutter a PrecisionFStrike before the Atlantic Ocean crashes down on top of him. [[spoiler: However, he survives - a sudden RoboticReveal demonstrating that he no longer needs to worry about drowning.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/EdEddnEddy'': In the episode "Honor Thy Ed", Eddy flicks a spider off the front door's doorknob, causing it to fall loose and roll into a hole in the floor. He tries to jimmy the latch open with his finger, but this only causes the knob on the other side to fall out, and his finger gets stuck.

Can be considered a SubTrope of NoOSHACompliance, as it could cause problems should people need to escape from a serious hazard. Also a SisterTrope to BrokenLeverOfDoom

[[folder:Anime And Manga]]

[[folder:Film -- Animation]]

** ''Film/HomeAlone2LostInNewYork'': Marv encounters a variant of this trope at the front door of the house he?s trying to break into in the climax. The doorknob has been attached by rope to a staple gun, and Marc?s attempts to get it open cause the staple gun to go off, first shooting him in the behind, then the groin, and finally the nose.

* ''Manga/The100GirlfriendsWhoReallyReallyReallyReallyReallyLoveYou'': In Chapter 54, after Chiyo is accidentally given a kissing zombie drug by Kusuri, Rentarou tries to get back into the school to retrieve the MagicAntidote, but the doorknob breaks off in his hand, forcing him to break down the door to get inside.

* ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'': In "[[Recap/HowIMetYourMotherS5E01Definitions Definitions]]", Lily [[TenMinutesInACloset traps Barney and Robin]] in Robin's bedroom by disconnecting the doorknob, in an effort to force them to define their relationship.