History Main / VehicleVanish

* In ''VideoGame/{{Halo 2}}'', the frigate ''In Amber Clad'' sneaks out of New Mombassa by hugging the Covenant carrier to be drawn along as it makes its slipstream jump to Delta Halo. It's later shown from another perspective in ''VideoGame/Halo3ODST''.

* Similar to the above, Thane the Drell assassin from ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' manages to do this when two bystanders cross between him and the camera. One of them even looks back, as if wondering where he went.

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[[quoteright:350:[[WebVideo/WaldoTheMovie https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/waldo_vanish_brighter.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Literature/WheresWally Not here anymore.]]

* ''Series/PersonOfInterest''. Inverted in "Relevance" for the introduction of series regular Sameen Shaw. We see a coffee stand in Berlin, a large vehicle then passes across the screen and Sameen is now standing next to it, waiting for a takeaway coffee.
* In the ''Series/MidnightCaller'' episode "The Added Starter," a hitman prepares to shoot a woman who is checking the mail when a truck drives between them. By the time it's gone, she's already vanished into an apartment.
* ''Series/ThePunisher2017''. Deliberately invoked in "Two Dead Men", when Frank Castle waits until a truck passes between himself and where he thinks Micro is watching him from the roof opposite. After the usual VehicleVanish shot, we're then shown Frank running like hell up the stairs for the roof (turns out Micro is actually watching Frank from the roof of the cafe he was just in, so he saw the whole thing).
* ''Series/ColdCase'': In "Sherry Darlin'", Lily is meeting with a suspect at Berks elevated rapid transit station. At a tense moment, a train passes between Lily and James and, when it has passed, James is gone.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Halo 2}}'', the frigate ''In Amber Clad'' sneaks out of New Mombassa by hugging the Covenant carrier to be drawn along as it makes its slipstream jump to Delta Halo. It's later shown from another perspective in ''VideoGame/Halo3ODST''.

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
* Somehow, Jiyu's comic relief friends do this with a train to get her away from her DarkMagicalGirl Counterpart (after being beaten soundly) in the second episode of ''Anime/JubeiChan'' season 2.

* A subtle variant occurs early in ''Manga/AhMyGoddess: TheMovie'', where Morgan has her back to the camera and is looking at some posters, passing students block the camera's view of that student, and Morgan is gone. This varies in that Morgan isn't actually trying to hide or shake pursuit, and hasn't even been properly introduced yet as a character.

* Part I of ''Anime/FateStayNightHeavensFeel'' has Illya watching Shirou from the other side of the street. When he's briefly distracted by an emergency vehicle, she vanishes.
** Hilariously deconstructed [[https://youtu.be/4870inhSwgY here.]]
* ''Anime/SailorMoon'' features a hilarious [[InvertedTrope inversion]] of this trope. In one episode, Mamoru is standing by himself on a street corner. A large truck passes by the screen, and suddenly Usagi is right next to him. He doesn't even notice she's there until she greets him, which startles the hell out of him.

[[folder:Film]]
* Inverted during the highway chase in ''Film/TheMatrixReloaded''. At one point, a civilian driving near the heroes briefly passes behind a barricade, and when he returns, he's been taken over by an agent.
* The Trainman disappears behind a train this way near the beginning of ''Film/TheMatrixRevolutions''. {{Justified}}, as he's a computer program that runs the virtual train station, giving him nigh-omnipotence.
* Subverted in ''Film/NationalTreasure'' (1:19:52). [[https://streamable.com/uv4xw Nicholas Cage is being tailed by the villains.]] A bus passes in front of him... and when it's finally passed, we and the villains both see him high-tailing it.
** Played straight earlier when Riley is waiting for a kid he's been bribing to write down specific letters from a museum display. [[BigBad Ian]] is in the museum as well and sees the kid writing down individual letters, which he knows are for a clue. In the meantime, Riley saw what he was writing (now in full) inscribed on the [[spoiler: Liberty Bell]] in an ad on the side of a bus. By the time Ian and the kid run outside, the bus has passed and Riley is gone.
* In ''Film/SpiderMan3'', Peter leaves a confrontation with Harry in a diner, then once he's across the street, glances back; Harry gives him a sinister smile, then a truck passes and Harry is gone from the diner. How he achieved this is unclear, as there's nothing in his goblin powers that suggest super speed. Perhaps he just ducked under the table?
** Made even funnier by the guy behind him turning around with a look of annoyed confusion, like "What was that guy in such a hurry for?"

* Used extensively in ''Film/{{Entrapment}}'', with trains, cars, and crowds.

* Charles Bronson's character in ''Film/OnceUponATimeInTheWest'' makes his first appearance this way.
* The kid in ''Film/CopAndAHalf'' disappears this way.

* At the end of ''Film/{{Wanted}}'', Wesley Gibson is seen, battered and bleeding, checking the ATM to see if he still has a fuckload of money sitting in the bank for him, his account is pretty much empty, and Wesley collapses in front of the machine. A truck passes by, and suddenly...
* Creator/ChowYunFat does this a lot in ''Film/TheReplacementKillers''. [[spoiler:Including at the very end, having saved both Meg and his own family.]]

* Creator/ClintEastwood in TheWestern ''Film/PaleRider'' does this with a train, one of several StealthHiBye scenes that suggest he's a supernatural figure. However the train is moving slowly so there's plenty of time for him to have simply ridden away, [[MaybeMagicMaybeMundane leaving the whole question ambiguous]].
* Like so many other tropes, ''Film/NineteenFortyOne1979'' takes this to the extreme with three Vehicle Vanishes in a row, one of which we see from behind the vehicle, demonstrating how the trick works.
* ''Film/{{Superman}}''. This happens from the point of view of the cop following Otis. He sees Otis on the other side of the rails, and after the subway passes by Otis has disappeared.

* Spider-Man gets to do the Creator/BusterKeaton example in ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan2''.
* In ''Film/{{Unknown 2006}}'', two cops observe the principle kidnapper leaving a gas station. Then the view is blocked by a truck upon which the kidnapper is gone.
* Inverted for Cleve's first appearance in ''Film/BestSeller''. The cop protagonist is chasing a criminal when he's stopped by a passing train. As the train passes, Cleve is revealed calmly watching events.
* ''Film/CarryOnCamping'' had Mr and Mrs Potter going away to the campsite for their holiday, and disappear behind a moving car near their house. Then the audience sees them following the car on their twin bicycle.
* In ''Film/CKDezerterzy'', the protagonists pull this off to dodge the gendarme chasing them - getting on a passing tram and ducking out of sight inside.
* The Winter Soldier[=/=][[spoiler:Bucky Barnes]] pulls one of these (using a bus) in the trailer for ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar''.
* ''Film/TheBourneIdentity''
** This is the first sign that Bourne is more than he seems. When he's leaving the boat that found him, he vanishes behind a very small car passing between him and the camera. You can clearly see him running ducked behind the car for a few frames before the transition.
** JustifiedTrope during the car chase in Paris. A police motorcyclist is pursuing Bourne's car by driving along a parallel street. A large van obscures the car for a moment, only for it to vanish. The policeman is craning his neck to see where Bourne went [[LemmingCops when he collides with another vehicle]]. The next shot reveals that Bourne had turned down a side street.
* ''Film/ANightmareOnElmStreet3DreamWarriors'': The first time Dr Gordon sees Sister Mary Helen she vanishes when a group of people walk in front of her and block his view. [[spoiler:At the end of the film, he learns she is a ghost.]]
* ''Film/CasinoRoyale2006''. Vesper Lynn's happy mood is brought to a halt when she catches the eyepatched villain watching her as they sail into Venice. He disappears when a barge carrying cargo moves between them, but [[WeAreEverywhere she gets the message]].

* Played with in ''Film/TheArtOfWar'' when Shaw escapes from a group of assassins by lying flat in the road, seemingly to [[LookBothWays avoid being hit by an oncoming truck]]. When it passes he's nowhere to be seen, until it's revealed he escaped by [[UndersideRide grabbing on to the undercarriage]].

* ''Film/HolmesAndWatson'': In the epilogue, [[spoiler:Moriarty]] is sitting in a saloon in Wyoming when he receives a threatening telegram from Holmes. Looking up, he sees Holmes and Watson sitting at the bar. Watson makes a FingerGun gesture at him, and then a pair of patrons pass between him and the bar. When they pass, Holmes and Watson have vanished.
* ''Film/{{Juncture}}'': On the el platform in Chicago, Anna sees her first victim sitting on the bench on the opposite platform. He stares at her, and then vanishes as a train passes between them. Justified as he is just a hallucination brought on by the tumor in her brain.

* Lampshaded and Averted in ''The Astonishment of LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya'':
-->As though the future was flashing before my eyes, I felt a sudden conviction that when the train had finished going past, Kuyou would no longer be standing on the other side of the line. Somehow she would be standing right behind me instead, reaching out her pale, ghost-like hands...\\
A terrible delusion. The train went past. The red warning lights, relieved of their duty, stopped flashing. And the black figure of Kuyou was standing, as ever, on the other side of the gates.
* Played with in the Literature/{{Discworld}} book ''Literature/{{Night Watch|Discworld}}''. Vimes spots one of the History Monks, who have a habit of disappearing when he tries to get information they don't want him to have, from across the street. A cart blocks his view, but Vimes throws himself to the ground so he can still see the monk's feet under the cart. Once the cart's gone Vimes dashes towards him - and [[DoubleSubversion is almost run down by another cart, distracting him long enough for the monk to vanish for real]].

* Occurs near the end of ''Series/XPlay'''s "Passion of the Christ 2: Judgement Day" parody. Jesus is standing on a sidewalk, a car passes by and he's gone.

* Happens in the third episode of ''Series/WildBoys''. Butler vanishes during a gunfight with Jack, when the gold coach and its escort of troopers passes between them.
* ''Series/MacGyver1985'': In "For Love or Money", Mac and Pete are watching a pair of defectors at the zoo who disappear when a crowd of pedestrians temporarily blocks the view.
* [[MysteriousWatcher The Observer]] of ''Series/{{Fringe}}'' has done this once or twice, in addition to more mundane vanishing.
* In Season 9 of ''Series/{{Smallville}}'', Major Zod realizes that Tess has played him. He looks across the street, and sees Tess raising her coffee cup in a sarcastic salute to him. A truck passes and in that split second, Tess is somehow gone. Unless she somehow jumped onto the side of the truck and rode away with it, one wonders exactly how Tess did this, considering the fact that she has no superpowers.
* ''Series/DoctorWho'': As the Doctor walks away in the minisode "The Great Detective", a hansom cab passes between him and Vestra, Jenny and Strax. When it has gone, he has vanished.
* ''Series/{{Castle}}'': In "Dial M for Mayor", Castle meets with his mysterious informant in a parking garage. A car passes between the two of them, blinding Castle with its headlights. When it has passed, the informant is gone.
* Used as a prank on ''Series/TriggerHappyTV''. One of the cast asks some passersby to take his picture while he stands on a median strip. After a slow moving van passes in front of him, he'd gone (having jumped inside the van) leaving some very confused people holding his camera.
* ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'': Akela Amadour does this at the start of "Eye Spy", vanishing as a train passes through a subway station. She seems to be doing this for the benefit of the camera as there is no one else there to witness it.
* In the ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' episode [[Recap/SupernaturalS02E20WhatIsAndWhatShouldNeverBe "What Is And What Should Never Be" (S02, Ep20)]], Dean sees a woman in white. Dean is almost hit by a car when he crosses the street, and when he looks up the woman has disappeared.
* ''Series/{{CSINY}}'': In "Vacation Getaway", Shane Casey holds a hostage at gunpoint and drags her across the street. A bus passes between Casey and Mac and Stella. When the bus passes, the hostage is there but Casey has vanished.
* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''
** Although involving a person as opposed to a vehicle, there's one in TheTeaser of "Passion". Buffy is dancing with Xander at the Bronze. A man crosses in front of the camera, temporarily blocking the view, and when he's gone by Angelus is standing there, staring coldly at them.
** In "Tough Love", Willow is at the Culture Fair and sees [[BigBad Glory]] attacking Tara. Willow runs through the crowd while trying to remember a protection spell. A Chinese dragon passes between them and Glory vanishes using her SuperSpeed, leaving an [[MindRape insane Tara]] behind.
* Inverted in a episode of ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'', Turk is reading a book in a bench, an ambulance passes and Dr Cox is sitting right next to him.
* ''Series/BandOfBrothers''. When the counterattack at Carentan is routed, an American paratrooper takes aim at a German soldier and fires. He's seen to stagger, then a half-track passes between them. By the time it's gone, the soldier has vanished. Just to ensure the audience knows the German is dead, we see a shot [[FreeWheel of his helmet rolling downhill]].
* ''Series/{{Leverage}}'': Nate and Sophie do this in "The Homecoming Job", disappearing as Hardison drives a truck between them and the guards in the cargo yard. As an added touch, they leave their luggage behind.

** Hilariously deconstructed [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4870inhSwgY here.]]

* A more dramatic example than most, but during the Second World War, the tram that always made rounds in front of the Dutch Theatre in Amsterdam (Hollandse Schouwburg) would unknowingly fulfill this function. People who were to be deported were called and grouped to be collected there, but everytime the tram stopped in front of it, the guards could not oversee them for a very small timeframe. This proved to be enough for some very brave people to 'smuggle' children to safety and hide them in the school that was at the other side of the road.

* ''WebVideo/WaldoTheMovie'': Waldo does this with a bus when his skills at disappearing are being discussed.

* Like so many other tropes, ''Film/NineteenFortyOne'' takes this to the extreme with three Vehicle Vanishes in a row, one of which we see from behind the vehicle, demonstrating how the trick works.

If Bob really wants to show off, he'll do this [[UpToEleven with a single person walking past]], rather than a vehicle.

[[folder:Web Animation]]
* ''WebVideo/WaldoTheMovie'': In the episode "[=WTFuture=]", Future Edd did this trope when the Present Edd pointed to him.

[[folder:Web Original]]
* ''WebVideo/WaldoTheMovie'': Waldo does this with a bus when his skills at disappearing are being discussed.
[[/folder]]

* ''WebAnimation/Eddsworld'': Waldo does this with a bus when his skills at disappearing are being discussed.

* ''WebVideo/WaldoTheMovie'': In the episode WTFuture, Future Edd did this trope when the Present Edd pointed to him.

* ''WebVideo/WaldoTheMovie'': Waldo does this with a bus when his skills at disappearing are being discussed.

[[quoteright:350:[[Anime/FiveCentimetersPerSecond https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vehiclevanish_5cmpersec.jpg]]]]

* Used as a prank on ''Series/TriggerHappyTv''. One of the cast asks some passersby to take his picture while he stands on a median strip. After a slow moving van passes in front of him, he'd gone (having jumped inside the van) leaving some very confused people holding his camera.

* Inverted in the first ''Film/{{Blade}}'' movie, when we see the titular hero latch onto a train as it passes by, [[RealityEnsues and he dislocates his shoulder in the process]].

This may happen when Bob is apparently not looking, and therefore wouldn't know when to duck out of sight; alternatively, Bob may be standing there, grinning and staring at Alice, right before he disappears.

** Hilarious deconstructed [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4870inhSwgY here.]]

* Played with in the Literature/{{Discworld}} book ''Discworld/NightWatch''. Vimes spots one of the History Monks, who have a habit of disappearing when he tries to get information they don't want him to have, from across the street. A cart blocks his view, but Vimes throws himself to the ground so he can still see the monk's feet under the cart. Once the cart's gone Vimes dashes towards him - and [[DoubleSubversion is almost run down by another cart, distracting him long enough for the monk to vanish for real]].

* In ''Tea With The Black Dragon'' by Creator/RAMacAvoy:

* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''. Although involving a person as opposed to a vehicle, there's one in TheTeaser of "Passion". Buffy is dancing with Xander at the Bronze. A man crosses in front of the camera, temporarily blocking the view, and when he's gone by Angelus is standing there, staring coldly at them.

* Similar to the above, Thane the Drell assassin from ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' manages to this when two bystanders cross between him and the camera. One of them even looks back, as if wondering where he went.