History Main / DontTellMama

* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'': In "Legs From Here to Homeworld", [[spoiler:this is inverted when Yellow Diamond [[TakeMeInstead offers herself up]] to speak to [[AbusiveParents White Diamond]] on "Pink Diamond"'s (actually Steven's) behalf lest the latter be put in a bubble for millennia]].

* ''Series/{{Firefly}}'': After Jayne betrays the Tams during a heist and nearly gets the entire crew caught, Mal is about to throw him out the airlock. The only thing that saves Jayne's life is that he asks Mal not to tell anyone what he did, revealing that he does care about the rest of the crew and what they think of him to some degree.

* ''Series/FireFly'': After Jayne betrays the Tams during a heist and nearly gets the entire crew caught, Mal is about to throw him out the airlock. The only thing that saves Jayne's life is that he asks Mal not to tell anyone what he did, revealing that he does care about the rest of the crew and what they think of him to some degree.

* ''Series/Firefly'': After Jayne betrays the Tams during a heist and nearly gets the entire crew caught, Mal is about to throw him out the airlock. The only thing that saves Jayne's life is that he asks Mal not to tell anyone what he did, revealing that he does care about the rest of the crew and what they think of him to some degree.

* Inverted at the end of the first ''Film/SpiderMan1'' film. "Peter... don't tell Harry." It takes an actor of Willem Defoe's caliber to do all the things the Green Goblin did in that film and still make that last request a TearJerker - and it's doubly poignant when you realize that Peter honored that request. Led to PoorCommunicationKills in the following two movies.

* ''Series/SharpObjects'': [[spoiler: It is revealed at the end of the series that the main character (Camille)'s sister is the killer, and Amma has previously said "dont tell mama" in other instances/]]

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' provides the former page quote. When they went to Florida during Spring Break, the local sheriff was disappointed with Joe C. (the foul mouthed little person who toured with Kid Rock). A parody as much as anything, given the utterly inconsequential matter.

** The episode ''Stare Master'' has the villain set right by Fluttershy threatening to tell his mom on him.
** Subverted in ''Bridle Gossip''. Applejack tells Apple Bloom not to go into the Everfree Forest or she'll tell Big Macintosh on her. Since she was previously shrunken by Poison Joke, you can see where this is going.

* In an episode [[Recap/DarkwingDuckS1E47LetsGetRespectable Let's Get Respectable]] from ''WesternAnimation/DarkwingDuck'', the villain-vanquishing vigilante is trying to improve his public image, and as a result is not allowed to use his gas gun or karate skills to take down some criminal thugs. What does he do? He resorts to threatening to tell their mothers. Amazingly, it's more effective than one would think.

* In ''Literature/HarryPotter'', when Hermione finds the Weasley twins testing out their homemade joke candies on younger students, Hermione demands that they stop. They taunt her by saying "Or what? You'll put us in detention?" Hermione coldly responds with "No, but I will write to your mother." This scares the twins so badly that they immediately comply, an action that has never been seen before or since.

* [[http://www.garfield.com/comics/vault.html?yr=1990&addr=900702 Jon was at Irma's Diner and she pointed out he didn't eat the vegetables]]. He sarcastically asked if she'd tell his mother. When she said that she would, he quickly started eating them. {{Garfield}} told Irma to tell Jon's mother he ate the dessert first.

* Tohru's mom in ''WesternAnimation/JackieChanAdventures'' is unaware that her son is working as a thug for Valmont and not knowing that the latter is a DiabolicalMastermind. All she knew was that Valmont was a rich gentleman and assumed Tohru was doing legitimate work. Because of this, she sees [[HeelFaceTurn working as Uncle's apprentice]] to be an enormous step ''down''.

* One of the manatee shorts in ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' shows Donny and Marie Osmond in bed together, with Donny saying "We can NOT tell Mom about this!"

* ''VideoGame/MiddleEarthShadowOfMordor'' plays it for laughs in the "Strange Rock" artifact memory, a father snarking about his wife to his daughter.
-->Now, Doom is a foul place, angry and mean. It will explode when Sauron is near and plotting, spitting all manner of foulness into the air: smoke and dust and rocks that burn the ground. It does this as a warning: I will not stay silent for long! [[YourMom Sort of like your mother.]] Don't tell your mother I said that.

* An episode of ''TotallySpies'' shows what happens when this trope is defied. Clover discovers that every girl in school is actually dating the same guy, who was jilted on Valentine's Day and for revenge planned to jilt as many girls as he could at the Valentine's Day dance. Clover exposes him to every girl at the dance, but for a fitting punishment, she told his very large mother that he had been taking expensive jewels from her store to give to the girls as gifts. We then hear rather ominous stomping before his mother bursts into the gym screaming "'''''EUGENE!'''''" The last we hear of the guy is his horrified shrieks.

* In ''If Thems The Rules'' [[Franchise/HarryPotter Tom Riddle]] doesn't want to disappoint [[MoralityChain Harry]] so he makes sure he hides his darker tendencies.

-->--''WesternAnimation/JackieChanAdventures''

* Odd inversion: Peter Wiggin of ''EndersGame'' and the ''Ender's Shadow'' sequels, rather than having to hide an evil secret, is reluctant to let his parents find out that he has a secret identity as the great [[TheChessmaster Chess]][[BigGood master]] named Locke. When he tells his parents, it turns out that they already knew; and as it happens, Bean and Sister Carlotta [[IKnowYouKnowIKnow knew that Peter's parents knew before Peter knew it.]]