Anyone who’s watched an animated film byDisneyin the last 10 years might have noticed that newer Disney films are a little different from the ones we grew up with. The Disney Renaissance of the ’90s defined a generation and for the most part followed a pretty simple formula: naive protagonist encounters conniving villain. It worked wonders for revitalizing Disney’s animation team and the classic villains of that era are among the most iconic characters in Disney’s catalog. But the ranks of those villains haven’t seen a new edition in quite some time. While Hans (Santino Fontana) fromFrozenor Ernesto De La Cruz (Benjamin Bratt) fromCocoare certainly villains in their own right, they don’t get the Renaissance villain treatment and are some of the only recent examples of truly villainous characters in recent Disney animated films. But with Disney still producing multiple animated features each year, one begins to wonder, where have all the villains gone?
This answer is simultaneously simple and complicated. The villains no longer exist in all their malevolent, over-the-top glory but the heart of what they add to the story is still there. That of course being conflict. In these newer films, the focus has shifted from one major villainous force that must be defeated and instead shifted to more conceptual interpersonal conflicts like betrayal or misunderstanding that must be overcome through communication.
Ultimately, Disney has stepped away from cartoon-type villains that are exaggeratedly evil and have honed in on more human conflicts. Rather than one character being an incarnation of all things evil, conflict stems more from interpersonal conflict and differences in values. Gone are the Jafar’s with their oh-so-obviously evil appearances and instead we’re left with Abuela fromEncantowhose cruelties are less obvious but more personal. To illustrate this point we will look at four recent Disney films that have taken a different approach to their villains and how this demonstrates a change in Disney’s storytelling ethos.
Frozen 2departed from its predecessor by stepping away from including a villain. While Hans inFrozenwas far from reaching the heights of Disney’s greatest villains, he at least still fit into that storytelling mode allowing for that kind of hero vs. villain confrontation that often makes up the climax of these stories. Instead,Frozen 2made the conflict less tied to specific people in the narrative than larger thematic issues. If there are any villains in this story it would be things like imperialism.
The conflict between Arendale and the Northuldra is basically concluded; we only really see the aftermath. We see the strain and effect that the imperialistic actions Arendale made in the past have affected the Northuldra in the present, but there is no one person they can really point to blame, since Anna and Elsa’s grandfather has passed away. As opposed to a film likePocahontaswhere the imperialist conflict and obstructing the lives of indigenous peoples was plainly the main conflict of the narrative, this film grapples more with the aftermath. InFrozen 2, rather than a villain fight, the conflict is resolved through reparative actions. Destroying the dam that began the whole conflict and Elsa using the magic inherited from the Northuldra to save Arendale showcase a theme of working to right the wrongs of the past. Imperialism is not just Governor John Ratcliffe pillaging native lands for his own gains, it’s also the long-lasting legacy he leaves behind.Frozen 2makes it clear that the impacts of one villainous person do not cease to exist upon his death. It is only through others taking action that those wrongs can finally be addressed and repaired.
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Lucacertainly has a villain in Ercole Visconti (Saverio Raimondo), the bane of Portorosso and all of its citizens. But Ercole is a nuisance more than anything. Unlike Gaston inBeauty and the Beast, Ercole’s self-aggrandizing nature is not coddled by the townsfolk. He’s a source of conflict in the story but unlike Gaston, pushing him off a cliff wouldn’t really solve the basis of the problem. The overarching conflict is one of xenophobia: Portorosso’s against the merfolk and Luca’s parent’s against the outside world. This is resolved not just through beating Ercole at the race, thus “defeating” the classic villain type but instead through the town’s act of acceptance.
When Luca and Alberto help Guilia and the town crowns them the winner of the Portorosso cup, that is where the real resolution lies. Not in the defeat of xenophobia but the embrace of acceptance.Lucais not a story about xenophobia being proved wrong and Ercole getting his comeuppance (though he does). It’s about those people who are discriminated against learning to find support and pride in themselves, making the conflict much more internal than external. While the Beast cannot accept himself as he is inBeauty in the Beast,Luca can. And so instead of having to adapt and overcome his differences as the Beast does, Luca gets to find acceptance not only from himself but from others.
Encantolikely represents the most refined version of this new source of conflict that we’ve seen from Disney so far. Not only are there no villains inEncanto,there’s not even a character present that could be labeled villainous at all. Instead, what we get is a much more complicated tapestry of conflict. Casita is falling apart and for the majority of the film the protagonist, Mirabel (Stephanie Beatriz), her family, and the audience are led to believe this is somehow her fault. But it’s revealed that even that is an oversimplification of the issue. Casita is falling apart because of the influence of trauma. Namely, generational trauma that has resulted in strain in the family is under due to the expectations placed upon them by Abuela Alma (María Cecilia Botero). The trauma of losing her husband and having to support her town and family alone caused her to not only put undue stress on herself but inadvertently her whole family as well. Her influence on her family and the resulting crumbling of Casita stems from no place of malice but instead how blinded she is by what she believes to be the proper way of doing things.
Abuela unintentionally pushed out imperfections in the family, like Bruno and Mirabel. While this does not absolve her of wrongdoing, it makes it extremely difficult to label her something as trite as a “villain.” The conflict inEncantois resolved through communication and healing. It shows a steep departure in Disney’s typical approach by resisting any urge to point fingers and call anyone evil. People do wrong, of course. Isabella is needlessly cruel to Mirabel at times and Abuela is still largely responsible for the rupture in her family, but that does not make either of them beyond redemption. Instead,Encantoshows that with the proper support and communication, they can learn to see the errors in their ways and become stronger because of it.
If any recent Disney movie could be argued to have a villain it is certainlyCoco.Ernesto De La Cruz is the closest Disney has gotten to one of their classic villains since Dr. Facilier inThe Princess and the Frog. But the climax of the film takes a similar approach to the other new animated films from Disney that makes De La Cruz’s place amongst the villain ranks less strong than his comrades in evil. This is because Ernesto is only half of the conflict. The other half stems from the rift in Miguel’s (Anthony Gonzalez) family. The climax of the film focuses more on the reconciliation of his family than on the epic takedown of the plagiarist Ernesto De La Cruz.
This is certainly a major story beat of its own but the emotional climax of the film hinges on the song “Remember Me” reaching Mamá Coco and Mamá Imalda than on De La Cruz getting his comeuppance. Ultimately, we find inCocothat it is not through the defeat of the villain but the newfound harmony of the family that brings a sense of resolution and peace. It makes the entire conflict feel more tangible and the effects of its resolution more impactful. De La Cruz is a Gaston type, but his fate matters less to the plot than Gaston’s. Gaston must be defeated for Belle and the Beast to be happy. Miguel needs to take on the much more arduous task of reconciling his broken family, something that isn’t guaranteed even if De La Cruz is defeated. By decentralizing the conflict from revolving around one or a handful of characters, films likeCocoare able to tap into complicated interpersonal conflicts that feel even more satisfying to see resolved.
No longer are these simple stories of good triumphing over evil; instead, they are more subdued conflicts wherein reconciliation is the resolution rather than a victory or defeat by any one party. While the absence of villains is certainly noticeable when compared to past Disney films, these newer films are far from lacking in terms of conflict. This pivot away from embodying entire “evil” ideologies through characters and instead allowing the characters to be more grounded and human has allowed for some of the most nuanced conflicts in any Disney film to date.
The approach Disney is taking now is one that encourages empathy both in its characters and its audience. It shows that problems are not black and white and cannot usually be solved by removing one bad person from the situation. Instead, it must be a communal effort based largely on communication. People are not evil just to be evil. They have their own motivations for their actions, even the malicious ones. By allowing room for characters to be wrong, but not necessarily evil, Disney has created a stronger sense of emotional conflict and realism in their films. While those villain songs will be sorely missed, the increased scope of potential for narrative conflict is certainly something that has led to some of the most impactful stories Disney has ever made.
