Then of course, being Disney, the villains never win and there's always a happily ever after, so the villain usually dies. I've noticed the common trend is for the villain to fall off something, often due to their own clumsiness. I figure this is Disney's cunning ploy so they don't have to deal with whinny adults complaining about the morals of the hero or heroine (or possibly a sidekick) whom the kids are looking up to, actually killing the villain. Also they don't have to deal with the aftermath, you don't actually see them die. You just kind of assume.
Alright, so I'm going to go on with my tribute now. I've listed every one of the villains (at least from the movies that I've seen, or the movies I've seen in the past 10 years).
EVIL QUEEN from Snow White and the Seven Dwarves
"Magic mirror on the wall, who is the fairest one of all?"
MOTIVATION: Vanity/jealousy
CAUSE OF DEATH: Fell from a cliff after lighting struck it
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: She began the falling tradition. And her motivation is just ridiculous. I mean, "I'm not the prettiest woman in the land, so I got to go kill some 14 year old". Sheesh. She had it coming.
LADY TREMAINE from Cinderella
"Then scrub the terrace, sweep the halls and the stairs, clean the chimneys. And of course there's the mending, and the sewing, and the laundry... Oh, yes, and one more thing: see that Lucifer gets his bath."
MOTIVATION: Jealousy
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: OMG dis jerk! Like she doesn't do anything so universally horribly wrong, except for make one person's life miserable. And all because Cinderella was nicer and prettier than her own two daughters. Pfft! I mean, she doesn't even let her go to the ball, and she lets her daughters tear up the dress, and then she freakin' locks her in her room so she can't have her happily ever after, and THEN she breaks the glass slipper just as Cinderella's about to try it on! Like what the heck, lady? Just looking at her smirks all the while during that end scene while Cinderella's locked up, ooh! You just want to punch her! (And that face when she realizes Cinderella was the mystery girl from the ball and follows her upstairs. D8 One of the freakiest villain faces ever!)
QUEEN OF HEARTS from Alice in Wonderland
"Off with her head!"
MOTIVATION: Bad temper/being too spoiled
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: Really, I don't know what to make of this one. She's not even present until the last quarter of the movie. Everyone's scared of her because any little thing could tick her off and she'll behead you. Like she hasn't really got an evil plot going, there's just the impending possibility that Alice may push her the wrong way and get killed. And it's VERY easy to tick her off.
CAPTAIN HOOK from Peter Pan
"I'll get you for this, Pan! If it's the last thing I do!"
MOTIVATION: Revenge
CAUSE OF DEATH: None (at first you assume he's eaten by the crocodile, but then there's a sequel)
SONG: The Elegant Captain Hook
COMMENTARY: Shockingly, the first male villain on my list. At the beginning of Disney, a lot of the villains were female... overtime that's seemed to change. Anyways, Hook. Apparently it's a tradition for the same guy to play Mr. Darling and Captain Hook, so that's what they did here. Hook's not a particularly threatening villain, he's one of the comical villains. Still, he has his moments.
MALEFICENT from Sleeping Beauty
"Off he rides on his noble steed, a valiant figure straight and tall to wake his love with love's first kiss. And prove that true love conquers all!"
MOTIVATION: Revenge
CAUSE OF DEATH: Stabbed by Prince Phillip after she turns into a dragon
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: The same voice as Lady Tremaine. She has the most boss costume out of any of the Disney villains. Her motivation is kind of ridiculous too. I mean, she could have been more lenient about it like "Fine. See if I invite you to MY birthday party!". But no she's all "What? You don't invite me to your party. Fine. I'll just curse your baby to die when she turns sixteen! Muahahaha!". And she gets so stuck on it too. Like you'd think you'd be over a little scorn after sixteen years, but not her. After she succeeds in her plan she goes to extraordinary lengths to keep Phillip from breaking the spell. Like, geez, lady. Way to hold a grudge.
CRUELLA DE VIL from 101 Dalmatians
"No spots! No spots at all! What a horrid little white rat! Ugh!"
MOTIVATION: Selfishness/vanity/greed
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: Technically the song "Cruella de Vil" could be counted as her song, it's just that she doesn't sing it and it's talking about how awful she is rather than talking about her evil plan or how great she is or something, like a villain song should. Ha! I love how psycho this villain can be! Especially at the end when she's chasing the truck with the dogs in it. Holy cow! She is dang determined to get that coat!
MADAME MIM from Sword in the Stone
"Sounds like someone's sick. I do hope it's something dreadful."
MOTIVATION: Sadistic
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: Mad Madame Mim
COMMENTARY: One of the few villains who doesn't really have any motivation other than she's just mean. She just enjoys what she does. She's only present for a brief period in the movie and she doesn't exactly have an evil plot (just to outwit Merlin), but she serves her time well.
SHERE KHAN from The Jungle Book
"You should know that everyone runs from Shere Khan."
MOTIVATION: Show-off/control
CAUSE OF DEATH: Unknown
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: Another villain who is not present for like 90% of the movie. He is mentioned throughout the whole thing and the build up to his appearance is pretty well done. He's one of those villains who acts all sophisticated, knowing how much power he has over everyone, but has a monster lurking just underneath that you don't want to unleash.
KAA from The Jungle Book
"Trussssst in me."
MOTIVATION: Hunger
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: Trust in Me
COMMENTARY: It's kinda funny that it's the same voice as Winnie the Pooh. Anyway... All he's trying to do is eat something really. It's just that he happens to really want the hero of our movie in particular and will do anything to get him. And the fact that he's just such a slick talker and not entirely trustworthy makes him villain material.
EDGAR from The Artistocats
"Cats!?"
MOTIVATION: Jealousy/greed
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: I actually kind of feel bad for the guy. He's really not so bad in the beginning. He just does his job without complaining (which he obviously has been doing for years) and works hard at it. Then he finds out he's getting nothing in his mistress's will and everything is going to her cats. Her cats! Like how unfair (and kind of ridiculous) is that? (Although he does technically get everything after the cats die, but still). So there is where I feel bad for him. But then he starts going to extreme lengths to get what he wants which turns him into the villain.
PRINCE JOHN from Robin Hood
"Ahh! Mommy!"
MOTIVATION: Greed/power-hungry
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: As with Cruella, the song "Phony King of England" could count as his song, but he doesn't sing it and it just talks about how lousy he is. Anyways, Prince John is quite a comical villain with his thumb-sucking and all. Just the fact that he holds so much power over the people of Nottingham is what makes him so horrible. And even when he is literally surrounded by money, it's still not enough. He doesn't care how much he hurts other people, he just wants more, more, more.
SHERIFF OF NOTTINGHAM from Robin Hood
"There's something funny going on around here."
MOTIVATION: Under orders/jerk
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: He often hums to himself as he goes down town to collect taxes, but he doesn't really have a song. He's just a jerk, really. He doesn't have anything evil planned, he just follows what Prince John tells him and then does it. And enjoys doing it as well. He's the villain that actually has the final confrontation with the hero of the movie. He's a bit more menacing than Prince John, though I still count him as a comical villain.
MEDUSA from The Rescuers
"You are too soft."
MOTIVATION: Greed
CAUSE OF DEATH: Unknown. Could be eaten by crocodiles
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: She kind of reminds me of Cruella in a way. She's got your typical greed motivation. She wants that giant diamond. OK, fine. But then she kidnaps an orphan to get it for her! What the heck, lady? That's just low. And she's just so horrible to her too: "What makes you think anyone would want to adopt a homely little girl like you?". What even? Just get out!
RATIGAN from The Great Mouse Detective
"Oh I love it when I'm nasty!"
MOTIVATION: Power-hungry/show-off
CAUSE OF DEATH: Falls off Big Ben after it strikes
SONG: Greatest Criminal Mind
COMMENTARY: I love this villain! Like Shere Khan, he acts all sophisticated and classy, but underneath, there's a monster raging. My gosh, when that monster comes out, it one of the freakiest things I've ever seen! The way he's always insisting "I'm not a rat!", but in the end, he just can't control it anymore and the monster is unleashed. Yikes. But his classy side is great too. He's just so deliciously evil and sly. He knows how good he is and isn't afraid to show it. He's literally the Moriarty to Basil's Holmes (since the movie is based off of Sherlock Holmes).
URSULA from The Little Mermaid
"I can't stand it, it's too easy! The child is in love with a human! And not just any human. A prince!"
MOTIVATION: Power-hungry
CAUSE OF DEATH: Impaled by a uprooted sunken ship steered by Prince Eric after she has transformed herself into a giant
SONG: Poor Unfortunate Souls
COMMENTARY: I really like her design. An overweight half human, half octopus? Only Disney would come up with that. She follows in Maleficent's footsteps of turning herself into a giant monster and then getting run through. She's got a pretty great song that has everything a villain song should. Starting out calm and like "hey listen up, this is what I'm about", but then gradually it becomes more crazy and charismatic, and of course ending with the evil laugh.
GASTON from Beauty and the Beast
"If I didn't know better, I'd think you had feelings for this monster."
MOTIVATION: Selfishness
CAUSE OF DEATH: Falls off the the roof of the Beast's castle after losing his balance after he stabs the Beast
SONG: Gaston
COMMENTARY: A literal backstabber. And his song just cracks me up, it's totally underrated. Actually, at the beginning of the movie, he's not really a villain, per say, he's just kind of a jerk who's totally full of himself. But then when he doesn't get his way (probably for the first time in his life "no one says no to Gaston!"), he starts to go to extreme measures to get what he wants. First it's just a little blackmail, but then when he realizes that Belle is in love with the Beast, he rallies up a mob to go and kill him. Yeah. Like that will win you her affections. He just can't comprehend someone not fawning over him. It never crosses his mind that Belle would say no to his proposal. I mean, how completely despicable is it to have a wedding set up right outside her house already before he's even proposed? Whatever. He's a jerk-turned-psycho.
JAFAR from Aladdin
"How many times do I have to kill you, boy!?"
MOTIVATION: Power-hungry
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: Prince Ali (reprise)
COMMENTARY: Total kiss-up. Just the way he talks to the sultan. Pfft! I see right through you, you little bugger! And what a creep too! I mean, at first it's his plan to marry Jasmine so he can take the throne. OK, fine. But then after he steals the lamp and takes the throne that way, he still offers to marry Jasmine and is all creepy about it. How many people wanted to puke when Jasmine kissed him while trying to distract him? *raises hand* I did. You know, when I was little, I never really thought he looked human.
SCAR from The Lion King
"Long live the king."
MOTIVATION: Power-hungry
CAUSE OF DEATH: Eaten by hyenas
SONG: Be Prepared
COMMENTARY: He's got such a sophisticated voice with that British accent and everything. He's got such a dry sense of humor too. OK, I have to share something with you in regards to ridiculous liberals. Someone was defending Scar saying that what he was doing was right because Mufasa had banished all the hyenas from the Pride Lands. Apparently that's racist. Really, person? This is a cartoon. And if you watch the movie, the hyenas AND Scar are clearly not the good guys. Scar was only using the hyenas because he knew they were angry against Mufasa, whom he wanted to overthrow/kill, so he knew they would help him in his cause especially if he promised them a lifetime of food as reward.
GOVERNOR RATCLIFFE from Pocahontas
"Dig up Virginia, boys!"
MOTIVATION: Greed
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: Mine Mine Mine
COMMENTARY: Obviously greed is his motivation. Just look at the title of his song! (Excluding Ratcliffe) you could say that there isn't really a bad guy and that the main villain is the misunderstanding between the two cultures and how they clash (as demonstrated by the song "Savages"). But obviously most people will not go for that because white men are always the bad guy in these types of movies. And Ratcliffe is here and he's obviously the villain. Yes, he does accidentally shoot John Smith there at the end, but he was trying to shoot Powhatan who had declared peace, so he's not entirely off the hook.
FROLLO from The Hunchback of Notre Dame
"Remember, Quasimodo, this is your sanctuary."
MOTIVATION: Lust/prejudice/power-control
CAUSE OF DEATH: Falls off of Notre Dame into molten metal when the gargoyle he's standing on breaks off
SONG: Hellfire
COMMENTARY: Where do I even begin with this guy? He is the most loathsome villain Disney has ever created. I mean he kills an innocent woman, tries to drown her baby, keeps said baby in a bell tower for his whole life (all the while insulting him), burns people alive, lusts over women, offers their freedom for... well him. And all while claiming he's a good christian. This guy is in a Disney movie! D8 His song is seriously one of the best songs ever! It's so intense! I don't know what the heck those red-hooded things are that are like reprimanding him or whatever, but they're awesome! But as for him, just, ugh! He's so awful! But that's what makes him such a good villain.
HADES from Hercules
"Whoa, is my hair out?"
MOTIVATION: Power-hungry
CAUSE OF DEATH: Not entirely sure if he dies since gods are immortal. But he is pushed into the bottom of the Styx.
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: This one is kind of unique in the sense that I'm not entirely sure is he's meant to be a comedic villain or a menacing villain. A lot of the time he's calm and collected and throwing out funny one-liners and/or talking really fast using all his wit. But then the next minute, he just totally flips his lid and quite literally explodes with rage. The over-all movie is kind of all comedic, so maybe he is a menacing villain in a comedic movie? IDK, I think I'm reading too much into it. Did you know... originally he was supposed to be a much darker spookier, more ominous villain, but then when James Woods auditioned, the creators loved his take on it so much that they rewrote a lot of the lines for him. Maybe that's why I can't figure him out.
SHAN YU from Mulan
"Your walls and armies have fallen, and now it's your turn. Bow to me!"
MOTIVATION: Show-off/power-hungry
CAUSE OF DEATH: Explodes after being rocketed into the fireworks tower
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: He has probably one of the most spectacular deaths. But he's one of the most bland villains. He's just the leader of the invading army. He just comes in "Hey, my army's huge and awesome. I'm going to take over your country. Let's see if you can beat me. I doubt it because I'm awesome!". That's basically it. What always freaked me out about him was that his eye colors were reversed. Like the whites of his eyes were black and his irises were yellow.
CLAYTON from Tarzan
"After hunting you, rounding up your little ape friends will be all too easy!"
MOTIVATION: Greed
CAUSE OF DEATH: Falls and hangs after accidentally cutting the vine he was holding while tangled in a forest of vines
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: One of the few villains who have their reveal near the end of the film. You don't really like him all that much with his trigger happy fingers and everything, but you don't really suspect his real intentions until it gets close to the end. He's got a pretty graphic death for a Disney film. Even though you only see the shadow, it's still... wow.
YZMA from The Emperor's New Groove
"What? A llama? He's supposed to be dead!"
MOTIVATION: Power-hungry
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: "Living proof that dinosaurs once roamed the earth." She was going to have a song originally, Eartha Kitt even recorded it, but it was cut after the movie took a different more comedic turn. Totally a humorous villain. But seriously, what about this film isn't humorous?
BOWLER HAT GUY (GOOB) from Meet the Robinsons
"Allow me to shed some light o the subject."
MOTIVATION: Revenge
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: A kind of ridiculous villain. He would not be a threat at all if it weren't for DOR15, his hat. She's the real mastermind. But she needs him to carry out her plans. And since Goob was out for revenge for his ruined life, he was the perfect candidate.
QUEEN NARISSA from Enchanted
"This is a twist to our story! It's the brave little princess coming to the rescue. I guess that makes you the damsel in distress, huh handsome?"
MOTIVATION: Maintaining power
CAUSE OF DEATH: Fell from a tall building after the top she was clinging to broke off and she lost her balance.
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: She's totally spoofing all past Disney villains, at least the stereotypes. She just wants power, she gives the heroine a poison apple, she turns into a dragon, she falls off a tall building, the list goes on.
DR. FACILIER from The Princess and the Frog
"A tip of the hat from Dr. Facilier. How y'all doin'?"
MOTIVATION: Envy/power-hungry
CAUSE OF DEATH: Dragged to Hell (I presume) by his "friends" from the other side.
SONG: Friends On the Other Side
COMMENTARY: He easily has one of the freakiest deaths in any Disney movie. He's dragged to Hell for crying out loud (and the trippy music as he screams for mercy does not help). He also has the most boss villain song ever! Now, I'm not exactly Randy Newman's biggest fan (the composer), but this song is great! It embodies everything a villain song should and it's super catchy! As for the villain himself, he's not the most interesting in the world nor does he have an original motivation, but his character is still played out nicely.
MOTHER GOTHEL from Tangled
"Look in that mirror. I see a strong, confident, beautiful young lady... Oh look, you're here too."
MOTIVATION: Vanity/greed
CAUSE OF DEATH: Rapidly ages to dust while simultaneously falls out the tower window
SONG: Mother Knows Best
COMMENTARY: She is just awful. The way she always puts down Rapunzel, but is "just teasing", or how she never listens to or cuts off Rapunzel, or just how vain she is in general. Ugh! And of course the horrible things she does like kidnapping a baby and locking her away in a tower, or constantly manipulating people to her advantage, or stabbing a person! Although her song is pretty good, I really like the reprise. It's so much darker and operatic. The way she dares Rapunzel to give back the satchel. It actually gives me shivers.
STABBINGTON BROTHERS from Tangled
"Now help us up, pretty boy."
MOTIVATION: Greed/revenge
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: Only one of them speaks. I'm not sure if the other's a mute or if he just chooses not to speak or what. They're mostly there to add a little more physical threat to our heroes's adventure besides just the soldiers and the mere thought of Gothel on their tails. But they play a big enough part to actually be considered villains. They're not very bright, since everyone else always seems to outwit them, they just have the brute strength. They play a key role to one of the most heartbreaking moments, in the movie making it look like Flynn supposedly abandoned Rapunzel. Ooh!
KING CANDY/TURBO from Wreck-It Ralph
"Have some candy!"
MOTIVATION: Jealousy/power-hungry/selfishness
CAUSE OF DEATH: Flies into a geyser of boiling cola after he turns into a cybug
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: This is kind of a twisted movie because the protagonist is a bad guy, but only because that's his job, and the antagonist is a hero-turned-villain. King Candy, like Clayton, is one of those villains where you're not really aware that he's a bad guy until the end. I mean, he's not very nice, but he's not exactly a villain until his evil plot begins to unveil. And then that mother of all plot twists when it turns out he's actually Turbo! O8 I did not see that one coming!
UPDATE:
PRINCE HANS from Frozen
"I love crazy!"
MOTIVATION: Power-hungry
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: Love Is An Open Door
COMMENTARY: Another at the end of the movie reveal, but this one was different than the past two. BECAUSE YOU FREAKIN' LOVED HIM THE WHOLE TIME AND HE JUST GOES AND STABS YOU IN THE BACK!!! Yeah, I hate this guy. I mean, once his true colors are revealed, it's pretty cliche as far as villains go. Like, he even says when he's told he won't get away with it "I already have". If he had a mustache, he'd probably be twirling it. Anyways, I hate him so much because of that betrayal. His facade is so good. He plays the nice guy extremely well. But nope. Evil manipulative jerk-face alert! You realize looking back on all the "nice" things he had been doing, it was all for his benefit. And you also realize that the supposed love duet is actually the villain song in disguise because he's just manipulating her the entire time! Gah!
DUKE OF WESELTON from Frozen
"Ah, Arendelle. Our most mysterious trade partner. Open those gates so that I may unlock your secrets and exploit your riches! ...Did I say that out loud?"
MOTIVATION: Fear/greed
CAUSE OF DEATH: None
SONG: None
COMMENTARY: Same voice actor as King Candy. He was mostly serving as a red-herring until Hans's intentions were revealed. He was the one that set off everyone's fear of Elsa like "Sorcery! Monster! AAHHH!!!". Before any of the action really started though, he was already kind of a louse since all he wanted to do was to exploit Arendelle's riches. I loved his crazy dancing and floppy toupee and stuff though XD
Ha Ha! I love your commentaries...
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