14 Times The Original Stories Behind Disney Films Were Disturbingly Dark

Pretty much everyone remembers growing up on Disney movies. We all have our favorites that we can recite line by line. The stories are so heartwarming and family friendly...or so we thought.

Prepare to be shook to your very core because some of the stories that Disney movies are based on are more dark and twisted than every villain combined.

1. The Little Mermaid never ended up with the prince.

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Although the Little Mermaid is the one who saves the prince from drowning, he believes it was another princess and marries her instead.

The Little Mermaid then dissolves into sea foam and must wait 300 years before getting the chance to redeem herself.

2. The Lion King is based on Shakespeare's Hamlet, which is all kinds of dark.

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Like, literally everyone dies at the end of Hamlet. It's incredibly bloody and dark. Probably wise for Disney to change up the story.

3. Cinderella's stepsisters cut off parts of their feet to fit into the glass slipper.

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The original story of Cinderella was way bloodier. In order to try and prove to the Prince that the slipper belongs to her, one sister cuts off her big toe. The other cuts off her heel.

It's fine. Just walk it off. 

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If this had worked, the Prince would have totally been swept off of his own, non-bloody feet. But really, what lesson was the original story trying to convey? If you really want to snag a guy, mutilate your body 'til it works?

4. The Evil Queen ate the liver and lungs of a boar believing they were Snow White's.

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When the Huntsman is unable to kill Snow White for the Queen, he brings her back a boar's liver and lungs as "proof" that he killed her. The Queen then eats the organs. Yum.

5. The Evil Queen then suffers a very painful death. 

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In the Grimm Brothers' version of the classic tale, the Evil Queen is given a pair of hot iron shoes at Snow White's wedding to the Prince. She is then forced to dance in the shoes until she dies. Ouch!

6. Rapunzel's prince blinds himself.

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The prince climbs up Rapunzel's chopped locks to find Gothel, who tells him he will never see the long-haired beauty again, he leaps from the tower, landing in some thorns.

Eventually, he is reunited with his love, Rapunzel, whose tears cure his sight. Awww?

7. Elsa wasn't willing to "Let It Go."

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According to Hans Christian Andersen's original tale, the Snow Queen takes a young boy hostage and gives him amnesia with a cursed kiss. She then forces him to do puzzles until he is freed by his sister.

8. Mulan takes her own life in the end. 

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After China is defeated, the Kahn (Emperor) allows Mulan to live but she has to live under his roof as his concubine. Mulan decides to commit suicide instead. Not the most family friendly ending.

9. The Beast was super dramatic and almost died of sadness.

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Beauty's stepsisters tried to keep her from returning to the Beast because they were jealous and wanted him to eat her. So nice.

When Beauty eventually went back to her man, he was pulling a Padme and dying from his feelings.

The Beast needed to seriously chillax. 

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He also proposed to Beauty on a daily basis, and he would just not take a hint. Dude, she's just not that into you.

10. Sleeping Beauty gets pregnant...whilst asleep.

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In Giambattista Basile's version, the King actually impregnates Aurora while she sleeps, and instead of being woken by her true love's kiss, Aurora is actually roused when one of the twins she gives birth to sucks the splinter from her pricked finger. Yikes.

11. Pocahontas was captured by the English, and she died at the age of 21.  

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The film is actually based on the true story of Pocahontas, who married a man named John Rolfe after she was kidnapped. She died while on a ship heading back to Virginia from England.

12. Quasimodo and Esmeralda rot away in a tomb together. 

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In the original Hunchback of Notre Dame, Esmeralda is accused of attempting to murder Phoebus, and she is sentenced to hang. Quasimodo seeks out Esmeralda's dead body and stays with her until he himself dies. Also, there are no wisecracking gargoyles. The horror!

13. Pinocchio murders Jiminy Cricket.

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The puppet ends up running away as soon as he is able to walk. When he does return home, the talking cricket tells Pinocchio to come back home, and the puppet is not having it, so he kills the insect by throwing a hammer.

14. Mowgli was a killer.  

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In the original The Jungle Book, Mowgli sends his animal family to trample some villagers and their village to the ground when he learns that they captured his biological parents.

My childhood has now been ruined.

SHARE if you much prefer the super happy Disney versions of these films.