History Main / FreudianExcuseDenial

* ''WesternAnimation/InfinityTrain'': Tulip isn't the villain of book 1, but she is a jerk sometimes. "The Cat Car" reveals that it's because her parents divorced, and she believed it was the moment they announced it that ruined her life. When Tulip actually rewatches what happens, along with other memories that had NostalgiaFilter over them, she has a JerkassRealization: her parents were fighting for a long time, and they were as broken-up about the decision as she was. Yeah, they didn't handle it well, but they weren't intentionally trying to hurt their only daughter. She exits the tape sullen but wiser and determined to get home.

* {{Deconstructed|Trope}} in ''Manga/OnePiece'': [[ArcVillain Hody Jones]] is a [[TheFundamentalist fanatically]] racist [[FishPeople fishman]] who wants nothing more than to [[KillAllHumans wipe out humanity]] as punishment [[FantasticRacism for their own racism towards fishmen]], preaching that the heavens have granted him and his officers the power to do so. By the time we meet him, however, he's crossed one too many [[MoralEventHorizon lines]], which leads [[WarriorPrince prince Fukaboshi]] to flat out ''ask him'' what the hell humans did to him to make Hody hate them so damn much. Hody's answer? [[spoiler:"[[WhamLine Nothing]]". [[FeelingOppressedByTheirExistence He was simply raised to hate humans without ever actually experiencing their racism himself.]] [[{{Foil}} This puts him in contrast]] with his idol, [[PredecessorVillain Arlong]], who ''did'' experience the racism yet is vastly more subdued in how he deals with humans (and would certainly ''never'' [[EvenEvilHasLovedOnes attack his own people]] or [[BadBoss use them]] as a HumanShield), and with Fisher Tiger, who was outright ''[[SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil enslaved]]'' by the [[AristocratsAreEvil World Nobles]] but tried to take his hatred to the grave. Fukaboshi acknowledges that Hody's New Fishman Pirates are possessed of hatred without substance and that Fishman Island itself is to blame for allowing them to fester unchecked in the [[WrongSideOfTheTracks Fishman District]] outside the island proper.]]

Contrast FreudianExcuse, where the person on whom the method is used thinks that the experience certainly ''did'' influence them. FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse is when another character says that the first character had a harsh upbringing, but it doesn't justify or make up for their actions. Can possibly overlap with this trope if the character doesn't believe in the justification either.

* {{Deconstructed|Trope}} in ''Manga/OnePiece'': [[ArcVillain Hody Jones]] is a [[TheFundamentalist fanatically racist]] [[FishPeople fishman]] who wants nothing more than to [[KillAllHumans wipe out humanity]] as punishment [[FantasticRacism for their own racism towards fishmen]], preaching that the heavens have granted him and his officers the power to do so. By the time we meet him, however, he's crossed one too many [[MoralEventHorizon lines]], which leads [[WarriorPrince prince Fukaboshi]] to flat out ''ask him'' what the hell humans did to him to make Hody hate them so damn much. Hody's answer? [[spoiler:"[[WhamLine Nothing]]". [[FeelingOppressedByTheirExistence He was simply raised to hate humans without ever actually experiencing their racism himself.]] [[{{Foil}} This puts him in contrast]] with his idol, [[PredecessorVillain Arlong]], who ''did'' experience the racism yet is vastly more subdued in how he deals with humans (and would certainly ''never'' [[EvenEvilHasLovedOnes attack his own people]] or [[BadBoss use them]] as a HumanShield), and with Fisher Tiger, who was outright ''[[SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil enslaved]]'' by the [[AristocratsAreEvil World Nobles]] but tried to take his hatred to the grave. Fukaboshi acknowledges that Hody's New Fishman Pirates are possessed of hatred without substance and that Fishman Island itself is to blame for allowing them to fester unchecked in the [[WrongSideOfTheTracks Fishman District]] outside the island proper.]]

* In ''Literature/{{Overlord|2012}}'', one of [[PsychoForHire Clementine]]'s hapless victims asks her how she became such a twisted killer. Clementine rattles off a series of generic Freudian Excuses… then admits that [[ILied she made them all up]] and that [[{{Sadist}} she just loves making people suffer]].

* In one issue from the nineties, ''ComicBook/{{Venom}}'' kills two men who, thinking he was just some hobo, tried to set him on fire. Venom says that such behavior often is blamed on violent movies and video games, but that he doesn't believe it, since he turned out just fine… while in the process of murdering them brutally.

* In ''Film/EightMM'', "Machine" (TheBrute of the tale, a violent rapist who killed a woman in a SnuffFilm, starting the whole plot) is finally unmasked by the protagonist, who's struck by how very [[TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse normal and non-threatening]] the guy looks in person. Noticing this reaction, he ups the ante by making clear that he wasn't abused, or molested, or traumatized in any way. He does what he does because ''[[ForTheEvulz he likes it]]''. [[DisappointedByTheMotive This ends up enraging Tom]] so much that he [[ExtremeMeleeRevenge pistol whips Machine to death]].

* In ''Film/EightMM'', "Machine" (TheBrute of the tale, a violent rapist who killed a woman in a SnuffFilm, starting the whole plot) is finally unmasked by the protagonist, who's struck by how very [[TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse normal and non-threatening]] the guy looks in person. Noticing this reaction, he ups the ante by making clear that he wasn't abused, or molested, or traumatized in any way. He does what he does because ''[[ForTheEvulz he likes it]]''.

* A version appears in Sheriff Ed Tom Bell's opening monologue in ''Film/NoCountryForOldMen.'' Ed Tom tells of arresting a young man for murdering a teenage girl. Though the newspapers call it a crime of passion, the boy tells Ed Tom he'd wanted to kill someone his whole life, and if released he'd simply do it again.

* ''Series/BreakingBad'' / ''Series/BetterCallSaul'': The emotional climax of each protagonist's character arc is basically this.

* In ''Fanfic/DanganronpaLastHurrah'', [[spoiler:Jirou Katashi]] claims to have been driven by a desire to become the Ultimate Scholar due to his parents ignoring him in favor of his brother [[spoiler:after being outed as the second murderer]]. Much later, [[spoiler:after Jirou turns out to have survived his execution and is revealed as the mastermind]], he admits that he didn't actually care about his parents ignoring him.
-->'''Nao:''' Was your story about your family real?\\
'''[[spoiler:Jirou]]:''' Of course, it was real. But, I am not affected by it. I am not that shallow. [[TheUnFavorite I don't care if my parents don't give me as much attention as my brother.]] I don't need them to take care of myself.
* ''Podcast/TheCodotVerse'': Oh, Edward by no means denies that he was horrifically abused his father, but [[spoiler:during his CallingTheOldManOut speech]] he claims that he became The Riddler because he wants to rather than because of his father, refusing to give him credit for who he is today.

* In ''Fanfic/ThisBites'', after Cross came down from a rage against two bigoted fishmen, Koala asks him "Who was it?", assuming someone close to him was victimized by racism. Cross angrily tells her that he was never personally affected by bigotry and sure as hell doesn't ''need'' a personal reason to hate it fundamentally.

* ''ComicBook/{{Preacher}}'': Invoked by the Reaver-Cleaver [[spoiler:AKA Simon Coltrane]] while explaining his origin to [[spoiler:Tulip]]. He didn't have a bad childhood or any traumatic incident, he just hit and killed a man driving home one night, hid the body, and got away with it. He then realized that not only could he could get away with murder, [[ForTheEvulz but that he also enjoyed it]].

* In ''Series/MalcolmInTheMiddle'', when Hal is asked by Lois why he is so bad at decision-making, he gets a flashback to his childhood birthday party. He chose to have both a clown and a petting zoo for the party, resulting in the clown being suffocated by a snake, possibly to death. Cut back to the present and Hal denies it and says there was probably no reason, and that she might as well try to explain his fear of clowns and snakes.

** PlayedWith in the episode "[[Recap/TheOwlHouseS2E14ReachingOut Reaching Out]]". While Luz's actions stemmed from her long-dead father, she admitted that she can't use it as an excuse and sincerely apologize to Amity.

** PlayedWith in the episode "Reaching Out". While Luz's actions stemmed from her long-dead father, she admitted that she can't use it as an excuse and sincerely apologize to Amity.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'', [[Characters/TheOwlHouseEmperorBelos Emperor Belos]] is shown to have DarkAndTroubledPast [[spoiler:where he was raised in a Puritan community of witch hunters, got separated from his big brother, Caleb, when he was a young teenager, attempted to find his brother in the Demon Realm only to kill him in a fit of rage when he discovered that his brother had fallen in love with a witch and abandoned witch hunting altogether, and then spent 400 years trying to [[ReplacementGoldfish recreate his brother through clones]] and [[FinalSolution exterminate all the witches]] to cope with his trauma]]. But this backstory is only shown in the background of his mindscape and never brought to the forefront because Belos adamantly refuses to believe that he could be motivated by personal trauma or selfish reasons, insisting that all his horrible actions were ForTheGreaterGood.

* In ''WebVideo/DragonBallZAbridged'', Goku suggests that Vegeta became evil because of the DarkAndTroubledPast he suffered thanks to Frieza. Vegeta quickly sets the record straight.
-->'''Vegeta:''' I've lived my entire life under Frieza's rule... My entire kingdom, my race, was enslaved to his bidding...\\

* In an episode of ''Series/{{Frasier}}'' the good doctor's briefcase is stolen. When Frasier catches the thief, he mockingly asks if his [[FreudianExcuse sob story]] involves [[DaddyIssues parent]] [[MommyIssues issues]] or bullying. The crook says no: "Dad loved me, Mom spoiled me, and I ''was'' the bully next door." He steals 'cuz he's [[LazyBum too lazy to work]]. Frasier is nonplussed by this.

* ''LightNovel/HowNotToSummonADemonLord'': The celebrated Paladin, Batutta, reveals he was EvilAllAlong and kidnaps Lumachina and Rem. When he reveals his truly sickening plan, Lumachina asks what could have happened to him to make him be this way. Batutta says that he lost his family and his soldiers… then immediately says he was making that up and he has no excuse for his actions other than [[ForTheEvulz he enjoys them]].

* [[NobleDemon Romsca]] in ''[[Literature/{{Redwall}} Pearls of Lutra]]'' tells Abbot Durral that she became a corsair because she likes it, and while she had a hard life, she will not use it to excuse her choices in life.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'', [[Characters/TheOwlHouseEmperorBelos Emperor Belos]] is shown to have DarkAndTroubledPast [[spoiler:where he was raised in a Puritan community of witch hunters, got separated from his big brother, Caleb, when he was a young teenager, attempted to find his brother in Demon Realm only to kill him in a fit of rage when he discovered that his brother had fallen in love with a witch and abandoned witch hunting altogether, and then spent 400 years trying to [[ReplacementGoldfish recreate his brother through clones]] and [[FinalSolution exterminate all the witches]] to cope with his trauma]]. But this backstory is only shown in the background of his mindscape and never brought to the forefront because Belos adamantly refuses to believe that he could be motivated by personal trauma or selfish reasons, insisting that all his horrible actions were ForTheGreaterGood.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': [[Characters/TheOwlHouseEmperorBelos Emperor Belos]] is shown to have DarkAndTroubledPast [[spoiler:where he was raised in a Puritan community of witch hunters, got separated from his big brother, Caleb, when he was a young teenager, attempted to find his brother in Demon Realm only to kill him in a fit of rage when he discovered that his brother had fallen in love with a witch and abandoned witch hunting altogether, and then spent 400 years trying to [[ReplacementGoldfish recreate his brother through clones]] and [[FinalSolution exterminate all the witches]] to cope with his trauma]]. But this backstory is only shown in the background of his mindscape and never brought to the forefront because Belos adamantly refuses to believe that he could be motivated by personal trauma or selfish reasons, insisting that all his horrible actions were ForTheGreaterGood.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': [[Characters/TheOwlHouseEmperorBelos Emperor Belos]] is shown to have DarkAndTroubledPast [[spoiler:where he was raised in a Puritan community of witch hunters, got separated from his big brother, Caleb, when he was a young teenager, attempted to find his brother in Demon Realm only to kill him in a fit of rage when he discovered that his brother had fallen in love with a witch and abandoned witch hunting altogether, and then spent 400 years trying to recreate his brother through clones and [[FinalSolution exterminate all the witches]] to cope with his trauma]]. But this backstory is only shown in the background of his mindscape and never brought to the forefront because Belos adamantly refuses to believe that he could be motivated by personal trauma, insisting that all his horrible actions were ForTheGreaterGood.

Contrast FreudianExcuse, where the person on whom the method is used thinks that the experience certainly ''did'' influence them. FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse is when the character says that they had a harsh upbringing, but it doesn't justify or make up for their actions. Can possibly overlap with this trope if the character doesn't believe in the justification either.

* Dr. Robotnik in ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020'' grew up orphaned, with no friends and a burdensome power, much like Sonic. [[NotSoSimilar Unlike Sonic]], he decided to embrace the loneliness by retreating into his ego, deciding he was superior to the rest of humanity and that friends would only drag him down, and used his power for his own irresponsible self-benefit rather than to help anyone. In the present day, he gladly boasts about his troubled childhood as having helped him become the "superior" person that he is now.

* ''VideoGame/TheAmazingSpiderMan2'': Cletus Kasady is a [[StrawNihilist nihilistic]] SerialKiller who is noted to have an abusive childhood. When talking to his therapist in an unlockable file, however, Kasady rebukes that his childhood made him what he is, pointing out a lot of other people had it even worse than him and turned out just fine.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'': Kivas Fajo from "The Most Toys" acts like he's playing this card when he tells Data of his poor youth, growing up on the streets... and when Data tells him that [[FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse his past misfortunes don't excuse his criminal actions]], he admits that it's all bullshit, as his father was a wealthy GentlemanThief.