Whenever we talk about classic Disney characters, we’re typically talking about the protagonists — the heroes, the most likable characters.
But this time, we’re turning the tables and opening up the conversation to talk about some the less noble characters that, like it or not, made the storylines interesting.
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So let’s get into some amazing facts about these Disney villains!
1. James Woods’ audition for the role of Hades inspired the character’s personality.
Originally, Hades wasn’t supposed to be the fast-talking-car-salesman-type.
James brought that persona with him to his audition , the writers loved it and decided to incorporate it into the script.
2. All of the animation done for Cruella de Vil was drawn by one artist.
Typically, in an animated film or television series, there would be a team of artists. But in 101 Dalmations did things a little differently!
Just one artist named Marc Davis was in charge of animating Cruella de Vil and all of her scenes.
3. Two Disney villains are voiced by the same actor.
Voice actor, Eleanor Audley, played the voices of both Lady Tremaine from Cinderella and Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty , and absolutely none of us knew the entire time.
4. In addition, another voice actor played the role of Captain Hook and George Darling from *Peter Pan*.
It is definitely not entirely uncommon to have actors in a movie do voice work for more than one character!
Sometimes it just works!
5. Scar’s song, “Be Prepared” from *The Lion King* was sung by two singers.
While obviously, none of our untrained ears could tell the difference, Scar’s famous song, “Be Prepared” from The Lion King was actually a duet sung partially by Jeremy Irons and partially by Jim Cummings — made to sound like one person.
6. The creators of *Hercules* originally wanted John Lithgow to play the role of Hades.
But ultimately, as we already know, James Woods won the casting team over with his audition.
John Lithgow, however, went on to play another animated villain: Lord Farquaad, from Shrek .
7. Scar from “The Lion King”, Gaston from “Beauty and the Beast”, and Jafar from “Aladdin” were all animated by the same artist, Andreas Deja.
That same artist also animated Hercules , King Triton from The Little Mermaid , Lilo from Lilo & Stitch , and Roger Rabbit from Who Framed Roger Rabbit .
8. Voicing Ursula from *The Little Mermaid* was a dream come true for voice actor, Pat Carroll.
Prior to landing the role of Ursula, Pat had mainly voiced smaller, nicer, funnier characters and had always wanted to branch out and voice someone a tad more sinister.
So, this gig was a game-changer for her!
9. Oogie Boogie from *Nightmare Before Christmas* wasn’t apart of the original story.
In Tim Burton’s original poem that inspired the film, Nightmare Before Christmas , the character Oogie Boogie did not exist.
He was later added to the movie as an additional character.
10. Patrick Stewart, initially, was intended to play the voice of Jafar from *Aladdin*.
And while he had accepted the role, he ultimately had to turn it down because he was busy filming the iconic, Star Trek .
I think it’s fair to say that everything worked out how it was meant to.
11. Zazu from *The Lion King* jokes that Scar would make a great throw rug, and in “Hercules” he is, in fact, a rug.
In case you missed it, there is a scene in Hercules that shows Scar as a rug in the background.
There are a ton of Disney easter eggs that are in all the movies.
12. Gaston from *Beauty and the Beast* was the first male Disney villain.
Up until Beauty and The Beast , all the villains had been in the realm of evil queens . Which, to be fair, they are all amazing.
But Gaston changed the game, proving that men can also be like that .
13. The woman who voiced the Evil Queen in *Snow White* removed her teeth when speaking as the witch, and put dentures in while speaking as the queen.
The voice actor of the Evil Queen in Snow White , Lucille LaVerne, made her vocal transformation from Evil Witch to Evil Queen by removing and re-inserting her dentures.
So, there you have it! There was a whole lot about Disney villains that we didn’t realize.
Let us know what your favorite Disney villain fun-fact is in the comments below! Or let us know if you have any fun facts!
We would love to hear from you!
