History Main / MonsterDelay

* Averted in ''Film/ClashOfTheTitans1981'', as the Kraken shows up in one of the first scenes before reappearing during the climax, but played straight in the remake ''Film/ClashOfTheTitans2010'', in which the Kraken does not show up until Perseus battles him in order to save Princess Andromeda towards the end.

* ''Film/{{Cloverfield}}''. Very closely related to each of the Franchise/{{Godzilla}} franchise examples mentioned below in that you don't get to see the entire thing until nearly half the movie has gone by. Not only is its appearance rather hard to explain without seeing the movie, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking it's quite ugly too]]. For all films, the entire strategy behind their marketing campaigns was to avoid showing the monsters so that audiences would go see the movies to find out what they looked like for themselves.

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* In ''Film/{{Alien}}'', even the Ovomorphs don't ever show up until about a quarter of the way on through the film's runtime, which is also when the face-hugger impregnates Kane, and after that, quite a bit of more time passes until the infamous ChestBurster sequence, and after that happens, yet more time passes until the Chestburster grows up to be "Big Chap" aka "Kane's Son" the Xenomorph Drone, and finally, only one out of three jumpscares seen throughout the whole entire film has ''anything'' to do with him at all along with the fact that the audience also doesn't ever even get to have any exceptionally great looks at the entire creature at all right on up until the film's famous PostClimaxConfrontation between him and Ellen Ripley, very much easily making this film's example of this trope a major exaggeration.

* ''Film/{{Cloverfield}}''. Very closely related to the Franchise/{{Godzilla}} example, you don't get to see the entire thing until nearly half the movie has gone by. Not only is its appearance rather hard to explain without seeing the movie, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking it's quite ugly too]]. For both films, the entire strategy behind their marketing campaigns was to avoid showing the monsters so that audiences would go see the movies to find out what they looked like for themselves.

* ''WesternAnimation/PoohsGrandAdventure'': Played with, as the unseen Skullasaurus chases the characters throughout the story as the roars of the monster cause the characters to flee in a panic. Ultimately, when it appears that the Skullasaurus is going to appear to give a final scare it's averted as the suspected shadow of the monster is revealed to be Christopher Robin. Furthermore, [[spoiler: the Skullasaurus isn't real and is instead a product of the character's fears, which means that the monster is never revealed at all.]]

* ''Film/{{Alien}}'', with the added bonus of including only three [[JumpScare jump scares]] in the entire film... and only one of them has anything to do with the eponymous xenomorph. The film also plays with this by having the alien [[MetamorphosisMonster repeatedly changing forms]] so the delay occurs multiple times.

The larger and badder the monster, the longer it will take for them to become visible. If it's ''badder'' than bad, [[UltimateEvil the monster may not be shown at all]].

[[quoteright:350:[[VideoGame/AmnesiaTheDarkDescent https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/amnesia_9410.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation Woah-- what was that thing]] ''[[NothingIsScarier I just glimpsed running down a hallway?]]'']]

* Throughout most of ''VideoGame/Earthbound1994'', you are told about [[BigBad Giygas]] and that your goal is to defeat him, but you're not given much of a clue besides "He's evil, go beat him." Given the overall quirkiness and saccharine nature of the game, players might be caught off guard when they discover that Giygas is actually an EldritchAbomination and nothing about him is amusing in the slightest.

** The ''[[MixAndMatchCritters Indominus rex]]'' is briefly seen as a hatchling at the beginning of ''Film/JurassicWorld'' and can be faintly seen slinking behind foliage when Simon Masrani comes to inspect the new attraction, but it doesn't make a full onscreen appearance until it is ready to break out, and even then doesn't appear in full view until the first attempt at recapture. [[spoiler:Taken UpToEleven with the ''Tyrannosaurus'' (the very same animal from the first film, as it happens), whom Zach and Grey only faintly see past a bunch of other tourists at one point but who doesn't make a full onscreen appearance until the last quarter-hour, when Claire lures it out to fight ''Indominus'']].
* ''Film/KingKong1933''. Justified in that the main characters have to travel for a long time in order to see the monster. This is taken UpToEleven with the [[Film/KingKong2005 2005 remake]], which takes more than an hour before the big gorilla appears and even longer before he's fully revealed.

This law emerges from [[ObscuredSpecialEffects the cost of special effects]] and the desire to [[NothingIsScarier keep the audience in suspense]] [[JustHereForGodzilla until the "good stuff" appears]]. It has become a standard feature of monster movies.

* Done in ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil2'' in regards to [[BigBad William Birkin]], especially in the A scenario. The game shows what he looked like as a human readily enough, but you only ever see glimpses of him, usually his [[EyesDoNotBelongThere mutated]] [[WolverineClaws arm]], after he injected himself with the G-virus, until you fight him properly.

* ''Film/TheAbominableSnowman'' fittingly uses this to preserve the sense of the unknown around the [[BigfootSasquatchAndYeti title characters]], as well as to cover up any deficiencies in its 1950s special effects. We see the occasional footprint, and at one point even a shaggy arm reaching through a tent flap, but it's not until the climax of the movie that we get [[WhamShot a full shot]] of the creatures, and even then, they're [[ObscuredSpecialEffects barely more than silhouettes]] in a dark cave.

** While a talking [[AllJustADream dream]] version of a raptor appears on the plane ride to Isla Sorna in ''Film/JurassicParkIII'', real raptors don't show up until about the midpoint. Uncharacteristically averted with the ''Spinosaurus'' and the ''T. rex'', which come pretty abruptly onto the scene in the frantic first few scenes on the island. The spino, at least, is only given brief glimpses at first until it rises up to roar at the survivors in the airplane after eating Nash.

* ''Film/KingKong1933''. Justified in that the main characters have to travel for a long time in order to see the monster. This is taken UpToEleven with the [[Film/KingKong2005 2005 remake]], which takes more than an hour before the titular ape appears and even longer before he's fully revealed.

* ''Film/{{Howl}}'': The werewolves aren't fully seen beyond brief glimpses of Scar's limbs until Scar gets onboard the train. Even after that, the other werewolves largely remain obscured by shadow until the climax.

** Presumably to differentiate their version of Kong from the then-relatively recent 2005 version, the Franchise/MonsterVerse makes a point of averting this: in ''Film/KongSkullIsland'', he appears in the first few minutes of the movie, and ''Film/GodzillaVsKong'''s ''very first shot'' shows the big ape, completely unobscured, lazing around his jungle home. Godzilla also appears relatively early in that movie, too.

* ''VideoGame/AmnesiaTheDarkDescent runs'' on this trope; the first glimpse of a monster is a silhouette hobbling through the fog. [[spoiler: It doesn't reappear in that area, but the suspense alone stops you from finding out.]] Even if you try to get a decent look at the monster later on, the game forces you to stop to keep it as scary as possible. The mere [[EldritchAbomination grotesqueness of it]] causes you character to lose sanity just by looking at it, ''increasing the likelihood of being found and killed unless you look away.'' Unfortunately, the marketing department didn't get the memo and put said monster [[ContemptibleCover right on the cover]].

** While a talking [[AllJustADream dream]] version of a raptor appears on the plane ride to Isla Sorna in ''Film/JurassicParkIII'', real raptors don't show up until about the midpoint. Uncharacteristically averted with the ''Spinosaurus'' and the ''T. rex'', which come pretty abruptly onto the scene in the frantic first few scenes on the island.

* For most of ''Film/TheFog'', we don't even know for sure what the threat even is, except that it's ''something'' lurking in the FogOfDoom that rolls into town. Even at the film's climax, we only ever see the things in [[ObscuredSpecialEffects shadowy silhouette]].

** ''Film/{{Godzilla|2014}}'' (2014) used this with Godzilla, at least in part. Godzilla didn't fully appear until about halfway through the movie, and he didn't have more than a few seconds of screentime until the final act of the film. [[CriticalDissonance Critics loved this approach]], [[JustHereForGodzilla fans did not]]. The sequel, ''Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters2019'', averts this, and you see Godzilla clearly, right at the very beginning.

* ''VideoGame/MetroidFusion'': ThatOneBoss, Nightmare is first rendered as a shadow running rampant throughout one of the subsections. MissionControl tells Samus to ignore it and fix the crises in the other subsections. Finally, it turns out Nightmare's rampage threatens the entire station, prompting MissionControl to give its creepy backstory and dispatch Samus to destroy it. Its lair seems to be in some kind of junkyard/robot graveyard.

* ''Film/TheHaunting1999'': Hugh Crain's ghost at first appears as an unseen supernatural force that has full control of the house. Until Nell calls for him in the final battle, when Crain makes his appearance as a tall monstrous humanoid spirit.

An alternative trope is SlowTransformation: A major character (often the lead) starts as human but slowly begins changing into a monster, leaving both characters and audience in suspense over what the end result will be, and the final form is only revealed in the climax.

* ''Series/TheWarOfTheWorlds'': At first, we barely see more than vague glimpses of the Martians which are outside of their tripods, but bit by bit more of what they look like is revealed to the viewer.

* In ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'', the monster is visible (as Robert Patrick in police blues) from the beginning, but its superpowers (and stunning visual effects) are trickled in as per MonsterDelay. The powers are hinted at with first encounter, their lethality is realized with the death of the foster parents, and they're fully exploited to the limits in the double-finale.

* In ''Phantom Of The Rue Morgue'' (an adaptation of ''Literature/TheMurdersInTheRueMorgue''), the killer is kept largely hidden for the first half of the movie, only seeing glimpses of him, like his shadow, his hands, his hairy body, figure hidden under a sheet, it is later revealed that the killer is a [[KillerGorilla trained gorilla]] named Sultan who is trained to kill people by hearing ringing bells which were on the bracelets worn by the female victims.

* For most of ''Film/TheFog1980'', we don't even know for sure what the threat even is, except that it's ''something'' lurking in the FogOfDoom that rolls into town. Even at the film's climax, we only ever see the things in [[ObscuredSpecialEffects shadowy silhouette]].