History Main / FoulFox

* ''Film/SongOfTheSouth'': Bre'r Fox, true to form, is one of the main antagonists who seek to eat Bre'r Rabbit (the other being [[BearsAreBadNews Bre'r Bear]]).

* Bre'r Fox is one of the most frequent antagonists of the Uncle Remus stories, whose activities frequently revolve around trying to eat main character [[GuileHero Bre'r Rabbit]].

* in most of Aesop’s Fables, a fox is the clever antagonist that uses trickery to get what he wants. [[KarmaHoudini Sometimes it works]], but [[KarmicDeath sometimes it doesn’t]].

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/e85ceb5e_db23_493c_8bf6_1fd96ecd54f8.jpeg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Photo via [[https://www.istockphoto.com/vector/fox-mascot-tearing-through-gm484980964-71728809 iStock]].]]

* ''WesternAnimation/CharlottesWeb [[DirectToVideo 2: Wilbur's Great Adventure]]'' has Farley, an antagonistic fox who recurrently steals chickens from the farm. When Wilbur tries to save Farmer Hirsch's chickens, Farley flees the coop to frame Wilbur (due to an overgrowth of vegetation sticking to Wilbur's skin, giving him the look of a wild pig). Farley also chases Cardigan the lamb to an abandoned farmhouse and tries to eat him, but his plan is foiled by Wilbur and his friends. Also, while the original film had NoAntagonist, Farley's wicked and sinister motive and actions [[VileVillainSaccharineShow contrast with the whimsical and cartoonish elements]] of the second film.

* in most of Aesop’s Fables, a fox is the clever antagonist that uses trickery to get what he wants. [[KarmaHoudini sometimes it works]] [[KarmicDeath Sometimes it doesn’t.]]

* in most of Aesop’s Fables, a fox is the clever antagonist that uses trickery to get what he wants. [[KarmaHoudini sometimes it works]] [[KarnicDeath Sometimes it doesn’t.]]

This trope has some basis in RealLife. Wolves are fine adversaries against adults, being vicious and skilled predators. Cattle ranchers and sheepherders are especially wary of wolves. Coyotes, too, for the same reason. Foxes, however, are too small for cattle and sheep, but can still terrorize a farm with pigs or chickens. Farmers have also discovered how intelligent and devious foxes can be, by thwarting farmers' attempts to shield their livestock from foxes. Plus, foxes have been a staple of folklore that's OlderThanFeudalism, and even if they are depicted as a [[FantasticFoxes fantastic fox]], you will always come across subversions.

* ''Film/SongOfTheSouth'': Bre'r Fox, true to form, is one of the main antagonists who seek to eat Bre'r Rabbit (the other being [[BearsAreBadNews Bre'r Bear]]).

* ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends: Ahri is a fox-like vastaya who emotionally manipulates and absorbs the souls of her victims.

** ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys'': Foxy is an animatronic with a fox suit who's just as dangerous as the other animatronics. Like them, he's hellbent on stuffing the nightguard into a spare animatronic suit.

%%* ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends: Ahri

* ''Animation/JiangZiya'': The film's BigBad is the [[{{Kitsune}} Fox-Devil]] Nine-Tailed, who is -- as her name suggests -- a sadistic nine-tailed fox-monster with four arms, responsible for driving King Zhou insane and instigating a war between Heaven, the Human Realm, and Hell.

* ''Animation/JiangZiya'': The [[{{Kitsune}} Fox-Devil]] Nine-Tailed -- a.k.a. Daji -- is the BigBad of the movie, seeking revenge against Jiang Ziya and the gods for foiling her plot at the beginning of the movie.

* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'': The Nine-Tailed Fox is a skyscraper-sized {{Kitsune}} who spends most of the series as Naruto's EnemyWithin, having been sealed inside him while rampaging through the Hidden Village of Konoha. [[spoiler:Towards the end of the series, he undergoes a HeelFaceTurn and goes from being Naruto's SuperPoweredEvilSide to providing his GoldenSuperMode.]]

* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'': The Nine-Tailed Fox is a skyscraper-sized {{Kitsune}} who spends most of the series as Naruto's EnemyWithin, having been sealed inside him while rampaging through the Hidden Village of Konoha. [[spoiler:Towards the end of the series, he undergoes a HeelFaceTurn and goes from being Naruto's SuperPoweredEvilSide to providing his GoldenSuperMode]].

* Both played straight and {{subverted|trope}] in ''TabletopGame/{{Crimestrikers}}''. The two main villains, Vance Coffin and Walter Mastron, are anthro foxes who run [[TheSyndicate an international crime syndicate]]. However, two of the story's major characters, Walter's AntagonisticOffspring Diana Mastron and her boyfriend Hendrik Alquist, are heroic foxes who are dedicated to stopping them.

* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'': Kurama the Nine-Tailed Fox is a skyscraper-sized {{Kitsune}} who spends most of the series as Naruto's EnemyWithin, having been sealed inside him while rampaging through the Hidden Village of Konoha. Towards the end of the series, he undergoes a HeelFaceTurn and goes from being Naruto's SuperPoweredEvilSide to providing his GoldenSuperMode.

* ''WesternAnimation/CharlottesWeb [[DirectToVideo 2: Wilbur's Great Adventure]]'' has Farley, a antagonistic fox who recurrently steals chickens from the farm. When Wilbur tries to save Farmer Hirsch's chickens, Farley flees the coop to frame Wilbur (due to an overgrowth of vegetation sticking to Wilbur's skin, giving him the look of a wild pig). Farley also chases Cardigan the lamb to an abandoned farmhouse and tries to eat him, but his plan is foiled by Wilbur and his friends. Also, while the original film had NoAntagonist, Farley's wicked and sinister motive and actions [[VileVillainSaccharineShow contrast with the whimsical and cartoonish elements]] of the second film.

* ''Film/SongOfTheSouth'': Bre'r Fox, true to form, is one of the main antagonists who seeks to eat Bre'r Rabbit (the other being [[BearsAreBadNews Bre'r Bear]]).

[[CunningLikeAFox Foxes are clever]], and humanity generally respects cleverness. But they also have qualities that earn the ire of many people. They're natural predators to animals like [[BunniesForCuteness rabbits]] and [[NiceMice mice]], which are often associated with innocence and sweetness. They're a menace to poultry farmers, often killing chickens, turkeys and waterfowl. They're an invasive species in certain places that are devastating to wildlife. They're notoriously associated with rabies. And the '''un'''-dog like sounds many species make are [[HellIsThatNoise the stuff of nightmares]].

In fiction, it's not uncommon for foxes to be portrayed as sneaky, conniving and unsavory. Antagonistic foxes will generally be {{evil genius}}es or {{manipulative bastard}}s. Even foxes who aren't predators get hit with this trope, especially if they are [[ScavengersAreScum dangerous scavengers]]. Sometimes, they're mean-spirited tricksters who [[BitchInSheepsClothing feign being good-natured]]. Sometimes, they're treacherous backstabbers who would sell virtually anyone up the river for a chance to get ahead, and other times they're just plain vicious bullies. Occasionally, they'll get portrayed as [[FoxyVixen evilly seductive]], sometimes complete with "foxy" wordplay.

This trope has some basis in RealLife. Wolves are fine adversaries against adults, being vicious and skilled predators. Cattle ranchers and sheep herders are especially wary of wolves. Coyotes, too, for the same reason. Foxes, however, are too small for cattle and sheep, but can still terrorize a farm with pigs or chickens. Farmers have also discovered how intelligent and devious foxes can be, by thwarting farmers' attempts to shield their livestock from foxes. Plus, foxes have been a staple of folklore that's OlderThanFeudalism, and even if they are depicted as a [[FantasticFoxes fantastic fox]], you will always come across subversions.

Compare SavageWolves, AngryGuardDog and {{Hellhound}} for another trope about wicked, wild canids.

* In ''The Snowman Postman'', the fox is one of the villains. She tries to trick the naive Snowman, is set on stealing the letter he is carrying and constantly fights even with her own cronies. Since she has a rather vague idea of what a letter actually is, she starts the whole fuss thinking that, if she hands the Snowman's letter to Father Christmas, the latter will give her [[EvilIsPetty a chicken or maybe a duck]].

* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'': Kurama the Nine-Tailed Fox is a skyscraper-sized {{Kitsune}} who spends most of the series as Naruto's EnemyWithin, having been sealed inside him while rampaging through the Hidden Village of Konoha. Towards the end of the series he undergoes a HeelFaceTurn, and goes from being Naruto's SuperPoweredEvilSide to providing his GoldenSuperMode.

** Nick Wilde is a fox who deep down is brave, loyal, helpful and trustworthy. Unfortunately, [[FantasticRacism everyone sees a fox as shifty and untrustworthy]]. Nick [[ThenLetMeBeEvil decides there's no trying to defeat the stereotype]], until he meets Judy.

* In ''Film/{{Antichrist}}'', the protagonist comes across a fox eating its own insides. The fox snarls at him, then speaks with a deep human voice: "Chaos reigns."

* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'': House Florent's sigil is a fox. They're also very ambitious and opportunistic when it comes to increasing their power. They initially support Renly over Stannis in the War of the Five Kings, despite Stannis being their in-law, because Renly has the stronger position. When they do go over to Stannis's side, they convert to an ApocalypseCult that practices human sacrifice. When the Head of the House Alester is arrested for treason, his cousin has no problem turning on him.

* ''Literature/WatershipDown'' has select rabbits from Hazel's warren travel to Efrafa, seeking breeding does. En route, Bigwig detects a fox paralleling their course, and decides to misdirect it away from the rabbit party. As it turns out, Bigwig encountered Groundsel and some other rabbits from Efrafa in a wood. The Efrafans were so fixated upon detaining Bigwig that the fox caught them by surprise. It's also mentioned that the defeated Efrafan force, while returning from Watership Down, had their numbers culled by a fox, further loosening their control of the Efrafa warren.

** Downplayed. [[FoxFolk Fuchsbau]] have a reputation amongst the [[BeastMan Wesen]] community for being sly and deceptive, and are commonly found in at least questionable trades. However, all the Fuchsbau to appear have been presented as reasonably sympathetic. With [[TheSmartGirl Rosalee Carvert]] being one of the shows main heroes.

* In Myth/ChineseMythology, Huli-jing are vampiric shapeshifting foxes with up to nine tails, are composed of yin, and need to seduce men to drain their yang.
* In Myth/JapaneseMythology, {{kitsune}} are shapeshifting foxes with up to nine tails tails, and like their Chinese and Korean counterparts can be malicious predators or seductresses who drain the life-force from their victims.

** All fox hengeyokai characters must be of Evil alignment (ChaoticEvil, NeutralEvil or LawfulEvil).
** The Hu Hsien are a race of foxes that can shapechange to human form. They are ChaoticEvil.

* ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'': Koyanskaya of Light, also known as Tamamo Vitch, is a kitsune and [[spoiler:one of the candidates for the Beasts of Humanity]]. She works for the [[ArcVillain Crypters]], operates exactly like a black ops specialist, and states repeatedly that she loathes humans and wants to kill them. Her class, Assassin, reflects that attitude.

* The main antagonist on the ''WesternAnimation/BabyHuey'' cartoons is a fox who tries to eat Huey's duckling friends. Huey at first thinks he's friendly, which the fox tries to use to his advantage, only to be stymied by the giant gosling's NighInvulnerability and StoutStrength. Eventually, Huey wises up and realizes "You're the fox, and you're trying to eat me!" and lays the smackdown on the fox.

* The main antagonist on the ''WesternAnimation/BabyHuey'' cartoons is a fox who tries to eat Huey's duckling friends. Huey at first thinks he's friendly, which the fox tries to use to his advantage, only to be stymied by the giant gosling's NighInvulnerability and StoutStrength. Eventually, Huey wises up and realizes "You're the fox, and you're trying to eat me!" and lays the smackdown on the fox.* ''WesternAnimation/{{Bluey}}'': In "Blue Mountains", the villain of the game the Heeler family are playing is a fox (played by Bandit's hand) who pretends to be "kindly" and tricks Big Sister (Chilli's hand) into getting trapped in a cave (Bandit's mouth).

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Bluey}}'': In "Blue Mountains", the villain of the game the Heeler family are playing is a fox (played by Bandit's hand) who pretends to be "kindly" and tricks Big Sister (Chilli's hand) into getting trapped in a cave (Bandit's mouth).

In fiction, it's not uncommon for foxes to be portrayed as sneaky, conniving and unsavory. Antagonistic foxes will generally be {{evil genius}}es or {{manipulative bastard}}s. Even foxes who aren't predators get hit with this trope. Sometimes, they're mean-spirited tricksters who [[BitchInSheepsClothing feign being good-natured]]. Sometimes, they're treacherous backstabbers who would sell virtually anyone up the river for a chance to get ahead, and other times they're just plain vicious bullies. Occasionally, they'll get portrayed as [[FoxyVixen evilly seductive]], sometimes complete with "foxy" wordplay.

Compare SavageWolves for another trope about wicked, wild canids.

-->'''Stu Hopps:''' You know what? Pretty much all predators, and Zootopia's full of 'em.
-->'''Bonnie Hopps:''' Oh, Stu.
-->'''Stu Hopps:''' And foxes are the worst!
-->'''Bonnie Hopps:''' Actually, your father does have a point there. It's in their biology.

[[folder:Eastern European Animation]]
* One ''Animation/TheLittleMole'' short features a hungry fox antagonizing the Mole and the other woodland critters, who [[ScarecrowSolution paint themselves to bright colors to scare the fox away]].
* In ''The Snowman Postman'', the fox is one of the villains. She tries to trick the naive Snowman, is set on stealing the letter he is carrying and constantly fights even with her own cronies. Since she has a rather vague idea of what a letter actually is, she starts the whole fuss thinking that, if she hands the Snowman's letter to Father Christmas, the latter will give her [[EvilIsPetty a chicken or maybe a duck]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Films -- Animated]]

* ''Animation/JiangZiya'': The [[{{Kitsune}} Fox-Devil]] Nine-Tailed -- aka Daji -- is the BigBad of the movie, seeking revenge against Jiang Ziya and the gods for foiling her plot at the beginning of the movie.

* In ''{{Film/Antichrist}}'', the protagonist comes across a fox eating its own insides. The fox snarls at him, then speaks with a deep human voice: "Chaos reigns."

* ''Film/SongOfTheSouth'': Bre'r Fox, true to form, is one of the main antagonists who seeks to eat Bre'r Rabbit (the other being [[BearsAreBadNews Bre'r Bear]]).

[[folder:Mythology & Religion]]

-->'''Emmet''': Wait! Ain't we all the same on Christmas day?
-->'''Frankie''': Oh, we're not the same, cause I ain't dead! Merry Christmas!

* ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPandaLegendsOfAwesomeness'': Junjie the fox [[GreenEyedMonster deeply envies Shifu for being the master of the Jade Palace instead of than him]]. He's also a ManipulativeBastard.
* ''WesternAnimation/PeterRabbit'': Mr.Tod is an antagonistic fox who is usually seen trying to eat Peter Rabbit and his friends. He also tends to think of himself as somewhat of an evil genius and takes pride in being the top predator in the area.

!!Examples

[[folder: Eastern European Animation]]

[[folder: Fairy Tales]]

[[folder: Fan Works]]

[[folder: Films -- Animated]]

[[folder: Film -- Live-Action]]

[[folder: Folklore]]

[[folder: Literature]]

[[folder: Live-Action TV]]

[[folder: Mythology and Religion]]

[[folder: Tabletop Games]]

[[folder: Video Games]]

* ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys''
** ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys'': Foxy is just as dangerous as the other animatronics, and like them, he is also hellbent on stuffing the night watchman into his suit.
** ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys2'': Mangle is a fox animatronic, and just like its predecessor Foxy, it attacks and kills the player.

** ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys4'': Nightmare Foxy jumps out and murders the player ([[WouldHurtAChild who is possibly a child]], if they're the same person as the boy seen in the cutscenes).
** ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddysSisterLocation'': Funtime Foxy is as dangerous as the rest of the animatronics; if they're found in the dark, they'll leap out, screaming, with their jaws snapping and their face lifting up, revealing their endoskeleton.

[[folder: Web Animation]]

[[folder: Western Animation]]

[[/folder]]

* ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys'': Foxy is just as dangerous as the other animatronics, and like them, he is also hellbent on stuffing the night watchman into his suit.
* ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys2'': Mangle is a fox animatronic, and just like its predecessor Foxy, it attacks and kills the player.
* ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys3'': Phantom Foxy is just a hallucination, so he can't kill you, but he will give you a nasty JumpScare and give Springtrap more time to get to you.
* ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys4'': Nightmare Foxy jumps out and murders the player ([[WouldHurtAChild who is possibly a child]], if they're the same person as the boy seen in the cutscenes).
* ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddysSisterLocation'': Funtime Foxy is as dangerous as the rest of the animatronics; if they're found in the dark, they'll leap out, screaming, with their jaws snapping and their face lifting up, revealing their endoskeleton.
* ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddysVRHelpWanted'': Grimm Foxy is [[ManOnFire always wreathed in flames]] and the second he has you in his sight, he'll chase you down and try to kill you.

[[folder: Comic Books]]
* ''ComicBook/ArchieComicsSonicTheHedgehog'' has Fiona Fox. As a child, Fiona was imprisoned by Dr. Robotnik during his rise to power as a result of being abandoned by Sonic and Mighty the Armadillo. Understandably, she developed a grudge against the two for what happened, and over time, her grudge worsened the darker aspects of her personality, until eventually, she fell from grace entirely and became an outright villain. Fiona has a history of mild illegal activity, including robbery. She's also extremely clever and has an acute memory. However, she is clearly reluctant to talk about her past. When she chose to follow a darker path in life (likely due to her past), she developed a relationship with Scourge, Sonic's EvilCounterpart, preferring him to the virtuous real deal. She is also great at gymnastics, as she once performed a backflip off a bamboo tree.

* In Myth/ChineseMythology, Huli-jing are vampiric shapeshifting foxes composed of yin who need to seduce men to drain their yang.

-->'''Bonnie Hopps:''' Bonnie Hopps: Oh, Stu.

Compare SavageWolves and ThoseWilyCoyotes for other tropes about wicked, wild canids.