History Main / HarsherInHindsight

[[caption-width-right:350:1992: FunnyBackgroundEvent\\
2001: [[UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror Tasteless joke]]]]

* During the ''Podcast/RiffTrax'' commentary of ''Film/Terminator3RiseOfTheMachines'', either Mike Nelson or Kevin Murphy makes an offhand comment about Creator/HeathLedger dying of a drug-related matter. Although this was released back in 2006 while he was still alive, anyone who's heard it after the unfortunate events of January 2008 when Ledger died of a sleeping pill overdose has to just cringe.
* On the ''Film/TheAvengers2012'' commentary, when Loki grabbed Tony by the neck after talking about "performance issues", Mike Nelson said "Yes! Choke him before he goes full Robin Williams! Thank you". This was two years before Williams hanged himself.

** Similarly, on the ''Film/TheAvengers2012'' commentary, when Loki grabbed Tony by the neck after talking about "performance issues", Mike Nelson said "Yes! Choke him before he goes full Robin Williams! Thank you". This was two years before Williams hanged himself.

Note that if the event in question is something inevitable, such as actors dying, that's not necessarily this. We all have to go at some point. It would only be this trope if the death was somehow similar to how they died onscreen. It is possible that the actor portraying a sympathetic character turns out to be a heinous person, but that is not enough to deem all of their scenes as harsher in hindsight; the moment in the work must be somehow related to their heinous actions then felt worse because of the scandal.

* The October 2022 issue of ''Vanity Fair'' continued an article that previewed a book discussing how [[UsefulNotes/CharlesIII Prince Charles of Wales]] had his speech prepared for when he became King after the death of his mother. ''The very day'' the issue was published, Queen UsefulNotes/ElizabethII died at the age of 96, with the newly crowned King Charles making that very speech the next day.

* The October 2022 issue of ''Vanity Fair'' continued an article that previewed a book discussing how [[Prince Charles UsefulNotes/CharlesIII]] had his speech prepared for when he became King after the death of his mother. ''The very day'' the issue was published, Queen UsefulNotes/ElizabethII died at the age of 96, with the newly crowned King Charles making that very speech the next day.

* The April 8, 2011 issue of ''Entertainment Weekly'' had an editor's note saying "we had a tough choice to make" in their covers: Either the planned story on "The Governator", a planned animated series that would be the first big project of Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger since leaving the office of Governor of California or the death of Creator/ElizabethTaylor. ''EW'' decided to have the main cover on "The Governator" and a "flip cover" on Taylor and her life. As soon as the issue hit, the reaction made it clear the ''vast'' majority of readers felt the passing of an iconic Hollywood and pop culture legend merited the cover more [[WorstNewsJudgmentEver than a cartoon show that wouldn't air for at least a year]. But just one month later, Schwarzenegger's wife, Maria Shriver, filed for divorce, revealing he'd fathered a child with their maid 14 years earlier. The resulting scandal ultimately canceled the cartoon show to make the cover choice far worse.

* Naturally, any ''Magazine/TVGuide'' cover featuring Creator/BillCosby comes off much worse today. Notably, in 2013, he was chosen to represent TV of the 1980s for covers marking ''TV Guide's'' 60th anniversary, less than a year after the horrific reports of his crimes came to light.

* At Ride/{{Disneyland}}, the BlackComedy ending of "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride" has the riders, in the role of Toad, collide with an oncoming train and go to FireAndBrimstoneHell. This ending has no basis in the film the ride is based on, ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfIchabodAndMrToad'', or in its source, ''Literature/TheWindInTheWillows''. The ride's designers presumably (hopefully!) didn't know that Alastair Grahame, the son of ''Wind in the Willows'' author Kenneth Grahame, [[WrittenForMyKids for whom he wrote the stories]] and of whom the character of Mr. Toad is an affectionately comic caricature, was struck and killed by a train at age 19 in what was most likely a suicide.

* While the infamous [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sports_Illustrated_cover_jinx Sports Illustrated Cover Jinx]] is often the source of laughs, it can also go the other way.

* The June 1993 ''Magazine/DisneyAdventures'' cover featured Music/MichaelJackson carrying a delighted WesternAnimation/{{Pinocchio}} (his favorite Disney character, according to the magazine) on his shoulders. Two months later, Jackson was first accused of child molestation and in the years to come his Neverland Ranch would be compared to Pleasure Island, where young boys were free to play but had to pay a horrific price for their fun -- including at his 2004-05 trial on a second set of charges. Similarly, all the "Pied Piper of Pop" accolades that flew around him in TheEighties turned sour in the wake of the accusations, as people remembered [[InvasionOfTheBabySnatchers what happened to the kids he enchanted]]. (A ''Cracked'' back cover in '93 spoofed this with Jackson as "The Pied Piper of Encino".)

** In 2019, the “Dumbest thing” of the year was the assumption that Mad would stop publishing new material completely after firing most of their staff. They insisted new issues would be a mix of first runs and reprints. Which was true...at a 20-80 split. And only [[DownerEnding for a few more months.]]

* The July 2020 issue of ''Empire Magazine'' had a list of "50 Greatest Movie Heroes" which included ''Film/BlackPanther'', ending the entry with "long may he reign." Three months later, ''Empire'' was doing a massive tribute issue following the shocking passing of ''Creator/ChadwickBoseman''.

* In February 1970, the rock music magazine ''Circus'' had a [[https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49474102216_b54cd61b0f_o.jpg front cover]] showing photos of numerous musicians along with the headline "These People Are Approaching 30 - Will They Survive the 70's?". Among the faces shown: [[Music/TheDoors Jim Morrison]], Music/JanisJoplin, and Music/JimiHendrix. Joplin and Hendrix wouldn't even survive ''that year'', while Morrison would be dead before '71 was half over.

* In February 1970, the rock music magazine ''Circus'' had a [[https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49474102216_b54cd61b0f_o.jpg front cover]] showing photos of numerous musicians along with the headline "These People Are Approaching 30 - Will They Survive the 70's?". Among the faces shown: [[Music/TheDoors Jim Morrison]], Music/JanisJoplin, and Music/JimiHendrix. Joplin and Hendrix wouldn't even survive ''that year'', while Morrison would be dead before 1971 was half over.

* In February 1970, the rock music magazine ''Circus'' had a front cover showing photos of numerous star musicians along with the headline "These People Are Approaching 30 - Will They Survive the 70's?". Among the faces shown: [[Music/TheDoors Jim Morrison]], Music/JanisJoplin, and Music/JimiHendrix. Joplin and Hendrix wouldn't even survive ''that year'', while Morrison would be dead before 1971 was half over.

* The last 2021 issue of ''People'' Magazine, released on December 30th, had a cover story celebrating the 100th birthday of Creator/BettyWhite, who would be celebrating it on January 17th, 2022. White died on New Year's Eve, 2021 at the age of 99.

Note that if the event in question is something inevitable, such as people dying, that's not necessarily this. We all have to go at some point. It would only be this trope if the death was somehow similar to how they died onscreen. It is possible that the actor portraying a sympathetic character turns out to be a heinous person, but that is not enough to deem all of their scenes as harsher in hindsight; the moment in the work must be somehow related to their heinous actions then felt worse because of the scandal.

* The now-defunct Ride/BuschGardens roller coaster Python initially had the {{tagline}} "I challenged the Python and lived!" Mere weeks after the ride opened, a 39-year-old heart patient died after riding it. Needless to say, the tagline was subsequently retired.

* The July 2020 issue of ''Empire Magazine'' had a list of "50 Greatest Movie Heroes" which included ''Film/BlackPanther'', ending the entry with "long may he reign." Three months later, ''Empire'' was doing a massive tribute issue following the shocking passing of ''Creator/ChadwickBoesman''.

[[caption-width-right:350:1992: FunnyBackgroundEvent.\\
2001: [[UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror Tasteless joke]].]]

[[caption-width-right:350:1992: FunnyBackgroundEvent\\
2001: [[UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror Harsher in Hindsight]]]]

'''''Note:''''' ''Examples can only be added once the event that makes it harsher has ended. In particular, anything related to a widespread disease, basic hygiene, hoarding of any kind, or something similar to social distancing doesn't inherently mean that there's a connection to the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic. Please don't add examples of this nature.''

* Nintendo Power's Player Pulse section in volume 72 (May 1995) featured a list of "Top 10 Crime Games". #10 was "Super Bomber Man 3: The World Trade Center". Let that sink in for a moment...

** While reviewing ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'', the guys joke that Jar-Jar Binks must have been elected into office because he had a reality show and said stupid things that voters thought were hilarious. The guys are obviously alluding to UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump, who was campaigning for the United States presidency at the time but not yet taken very seriously. Fast forward 11 months, and Trump was, in fact, elected to office.

[[caption-width-right:350:1992: FunnyBackgroundEvent.\\
2001: [[UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror Harsher in Hindsight]].]]