They’ve come in many guises over the years, from the monarchical to the Machiavellian, monsters to muscle men, sorcerers, schemers and step-parents. And they have shown levels of genius, incompetence and everything in between in their efforts to thwart our heroes. But they are always without fail ambitious, self-serving and strangely compelling.

In a world of promoting good virtues to children, good must always triumph over evil. And so, Disney villains can’t be left to return and cause havoc another day (unless it’s in an inconsequential direct-to-video sequel) and so usually meet their maker in one of a variety of inventive and sometimes gruesome ways.

If the Disney Princess is the most merchandisable element of the Disney canon, then the villains are a close second and inspire even more fervour among adult fans, perhaps because they’re usually more flawed and interesting than the heroes and especially when so many are (intentionally or not) queer-coded, fabulously designed and played with gusto by talented voice actors giving it their all. 

For this edition of Ranked, we at The Film Magazine have taken every significant villain to be found in Disney animation and ordered them in terms of wickedness, memorability and the threat they represent to our heroes and heroines. So practice your diabolical laughter, rehearse your evil monologue, dust off your best purple attire and enjoy Animated Disney Villains Ranked. 

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36. King Candy – Wreck-It Ralph (2012)

The ruler of arcade racing video game Sugar Rush who is actually Turbo, the resentful title character of a long-disconnected game.

Alan Tudyk has been Disney’s good luck charm in recent years and delivers a manic performance here as a mascot-gone-wrong, but the vocals have to do most of the work to enliven a baddie who’s just not interesting enough to match the heroes.

Demise by: Destroyed by the collapse of Diet Cola Mountain with the addition of Mentos.

35. Prince Hans – Frozen (2013)

A seemingly classic Prince Charming who is actually conspiring to eliminate both heirs to the Arendelle throne and claim it for himself.

Hans is a duplicitous, generic British-accented baddie revealed in the film’s final act, who gets some bonus evil points for taking advantage of Princess Anna’s emotions the way he does, purely to advance himself.

Demise by: Survives but is arrested and banished for his treachery.

Recommended for you: Best Animated Feature Oscar Winners Ranked

34. Alameda Slim – Home on the Range (2004)

An evil cattle rustler and conman who plans to cheat every rancher he can find out of their land.

Randy Quaid’s growling delivery and the character’s hilariously unconvincing Inspector Clouseau-level disguises aside, what makes Alameda Slim stand out is that he’s a rare villain who uses a combination of theft, foreclosure and cow-hypnotising yodelling to get what he wants.

Demise by: Survives, but his schemes and true identity as a rustler are exposed and the reward for his arrest is claimed.

33. Dr Jumba Jookiba – Lilo & Stitch (2002)

An alien mad scientist on the hunt for his dangerous but cute creation on Earth on the orders of the council who imprisoned him for his work.

Dr Jumba is probably the only character who never underestimates the cute blue title character because he was the one who genetically engineered “Experiment 626” and is fully aware of his destructive capabilities. He finds himself lower down this list for being bumbling and for having a late change of heart, eventually helping to protect Stitch when the council’s military arrives to complete his mission with extreme prejudice.

Demise by: Survives to live a fairly happy exile alongside Stitch on Earth.

Incredibles 2
Directed By: Brad Bird 

Incredibles 2 was the latest release from the animation powerhouse Pixar, which brought us a sequel that was fourteen years in the making. Incredibles 2 begins in exactly the same spot that we left the Parr family in fourteen years ago. While we still get the traditional superhero story, it also delves in to the family dynamic that made the first film so relatable. The story is fuelled by the fact that super heroism has been made illegal and Elastigirl has been chosen by a millionaire mogul to help the general public to become more accepting of the ‘supers’ and their special abilities. As a result of this, Mr Incredible has to adapt to domestic life just at the point when Violet is struggling with being a teenage girl, Jack-Jack is discovering his powers and Dash is being his usual self. With some help from Edna, watching the transformation from Superhero to stay at home Dad is hilarious. It is undoubtedly Jack-Jack who steals the show, every scene he’s in is incredibly entertaining. As always, Pixar knocks it out of the park with its animation, the aesthetics and the technical aspects are just what you would expect from the masters of the medium. Above all, this film is nostalgic – as mentioned, fourteen years has passed since the first film, so getting to see and fall in love with the characters all over again is (no pun intended) incredible.

Isle Of Dogs
Directed By: Wes Anderson

While Wes Anderson is known for his eccentric and whimsical style in all of his films, this is only the second time (following Fantastic Mr. Fox, also nominated for an Oscar in 2010) that we have seen a feature length animation from the director. The story is a simple one: after a case of dog flu breaks out in the Japanese city of Megasaki, the Mayor banishes all dogs to Trash Island. In pursuit of his lost dog Spots, a young boy accepts the help of 5 dogs who live on the island and the film follows their adventure and the obstacles they encounter along the way. Isle Of Dogs has that distinctive Wes Anderson stop motion animation style and a voice acting cast to be envious of (Bryan Cranston, Bill Murray, Jeff Golblum, Greta Gerwig, Scarlett Johanson and Francis McDormand to name a few). The fact that it is an animated film should not make you think that is any less of a Wes Anderson classic, all the characters are deeply developed, the use of a consistent colour theme and very obvious symmetry that are synonymous with the director are still very prominent. Isle Of Dogs, out of the five nominated for best animated feature, is the one to watch if you want something very different out of your animated film viewing – it is quirky and extremely stylised, making it stand out from more traditional hand-drawn animation and computer generated animation that now dominates the genre.

Mirai
Directed By: Mamoru Hosoda

Mirai is a Japanese fantasy adventure animation from the mind of director Mamoru Hosoda and produced by Studio Chizu, the studio that he himself established. Like much of the animation that comes out of Japan, the animation in Mirai takes on a more traditional form which you may recognise from more popular titles from Studio Ghibli. Not only does it take on traditional Japanese visuals, but the story centres around family and the adventures of children with a little bit of the fantastical thrown in, which are prominent themes in many other Japanese animatied features. Mirai follows the story of a young boy who discovers a magical garden that allows him to travel in time to meet family members in different eras, all while being guided by his younger sister from the future. The film is charming, witty and overall it is fun. This is coupled with its stunning depiction of nature and well crafted characters, making it a great choice if you are looking to dip your toe into the world of Japanese animation.

Ralph Breaks The Internet
Directed By: Phil Johnston & Rich Moore

Did you really think we could have a true animation race without a showing from the biggest contender of them all? Disney brought us another sequel this year with Ralph Breaks The Internet, a follow up to the incredibly underrated Wreck It Ralph, released in 2012. The story once again finds the two friends Venelope and Ralph in a dilemma that leads them to taking a trip into the internet, where of course trouble ensues and only their friendship can help them overcome their obstacles. It is, however, not only the story that makes this film, it is the world that Disney has created. The world of the internet is so cleverly crafted, and the fact that our protagonists go in without a clue what the internet is, something that we the viewer have come so accustomed to, makes the situation so much only more engaging and hilarious to watch. With so many relatable and nostalgic easter eggs to enjoy, including a hilarious encounter with every Disney princess there has ever been (voiced by their original voice actors), Ralph Breaks The Internet is any technology/Disney fan’s dream. Is the film fun and enjoyable? Yes. Does it deserve to win? Probably not – the heavy hitters Disney and Pixar are actually the weakest in the pack this year, mainly for the fact that they have brought us exactly what we have come to expect from the two major studios.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Directed by: Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey & Rodney Rothman 

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is the front runner in this year’s race. It seemed to come so out of left field – Marvel associated animations are always good but rarely are they something that everyone raves about as they did with this release. The story follows teenager Miles who becomes the Spider-Man. He then teams up with his counterparts from other dimensions to take on a common enemy that becomes a threat to all their collective realities. The story is compelling, the characters are well rounded and the action is thrilling. However, it is the animation style that sets this film apart from the rest, the animation is something new and exciting, a style that has never been seen before. The visuals are absolutely enchanting, bright, bold and sophisticated. There is very little to criticise about this film – the combination of the visuals, concepts, soundtrack, characters have made it one of the Marvel greats and something that would have made Stan Lee very proud. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is the number one pick for this year’s awards.

So there you have it, the very best of animated feature film in 2018 as voted on by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. Which film do you think will win? Did any great animations get left off the list? Let us know in the comments below!

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I started early on the Saturday morning with one of my all-time favourites, Wall-E, the film about the little robot that only wanted love in his life. I found myself singing along word-for-word to a musical I’ve never seen (it being Saturday, it would’ve been improper to put on my Sunday clothes) and mesmerised, as always, as Wall-E and Eve danced through space.

Immediately after that I watched Bolt, and I enjoyed it more than I remember. It’s a film that’s often overlooked – following the best-forgotten Chicken Little and preceding the impressive Princess and the Frog – but deserves appreciation, not least for reminding us that there was a time when Miley Cyrus wasn’t just a walking sex metaphor.

I’d watched two Disney films by this point without the joy of a musical, so I got myself a few snacks and tucked into Hercules, and I sang. Oh, did I sing! But as great as the songs are (they really are amazing, and that’s the Gospel truth!), the film really belongs to James Woods’ Hades; the sassy, fiery God of the Underworld and main antagonist, who steals every scene he’s part of.

Next, I felt it might be a good idea to show some love for one of the lesser-known Disney films, The Great Mouse Detective. An unashamed homage to Sherlock Holmes, I enjoyed it – not as much as I enjoyed some of the other films that day – and spent large parts of the movie distracted by the fact that the voice of Scrooge McDuck appeared in the movie. It’s a big thing…

By this point, I needed a break. I took about 20 minutes. ONTO THE NEXT ONE!

It hadn’t been that long since I visited San Fransokyo, but I needed to go again. Big Hero 6 is such a good film, and Baymax is easily one of the best characters Disney has ever brought to life. Hiro’s story of loss and search for revenge pulls at the heartstrings, while his walking pillow and doctor tries his best to heal the pain the young boy is feeling throughout the film. I was very satisfied with this film. I was satisfied with my care.

Another film I hadn’t seen in a while, The Fox and the Hound, was after that, a film that I remembered made me exceptionally sad. It was, and still is, but while it’s a beautiful story of friendship and the difficulty of life, I got distracted by one moment of madness. About halfway through the film, Chief (whose voice is synonymous with Disney) gets hit full force by a train, and falls a comfortable 30 feet into a very shallow and rocky river, but next scene, Chief is nursing a bandaged leg and nothing more. What?! I’m not trying to get a petition started for more death in Disney, but let’s try and be realistic now.

Then it was time for my last film of Saturday, and it only seemed right for it to be my favourite. I was very excited to find out that I had the option of a Sing-A-Long version (I know virtually every word, but still…), an option which I gladly accepted. Then it started. ‘NANTS INGONYAMA BAGITHI BABA’. By the end of the first song, I was holding my Simba soft toy aloft, welcoming the future King of Pride Rock, and it only got better from that moment on. My life peaked that night.

On to Sunday now, and in between getting incredibly stressed and then relieved by the football, I managed to squeeze in another four films.

While I tell you about the first one, I’d like to invite you to relax, let us pull up a chair as I proudly present – Beauty and the Beast. I can’t talk about Beauty and the Beast without addressing my weirdly wishful bro-love for Lumiere, the world’s most suave candlestick holder, a man who, even when magically transformed into a piece of home décor, manages to get all the girls. Except Mrs Potts. No man is good enough for Jessica Fletcher.

My next film of the day was another I hadn’t seen in a while, The Incredibles, and I know I’ve said this a lot, but I forgot just how good this film is. It’s easily one of the best superhero films there is, and the only Pixar film that ever demanded a sequel, although unfortunately it’s getting its sequel after many unnecessary ones *cough Cars 2 cough*. Plus, it’s got Samuel L Jackson in it, pre-Nick Fury days. What’s not to love?

To double figures now, and the beautiful city of Aghrabah in search of a diamond in the rough, and while Aladdin has a lot to celebrate, it only seems right to talk about Genie – the part Robin Williams was born to play – as the film is illuminated by Williams’ effervescence, mania, and beautiful multitude of character.

My final film in my marathon is the geekiest of all the Disney films, and a celebration of video game culture. Wreck-it Ralph combines top quality characters with a new and unique premise, and sprinkles in enough gaming references to earn Nintendo some serious royalties. None of which match Vanellope von Schweetz , the Glitch, the plucky racer (who doesn’t know how to drive) who just wants to be on the roster. It’s impossible not to love her.

And so ends my Bank Holiday weekend. I can’t wait for the next one, I still have so many films to watch.

Written by Greg Forrester