Disney has always had a certain level of skill when it comes to the old adage of good versus evil. For decades, many generations of audiences have seen brave heroes and beautiful princesses conquering over the forces of wicked witches and vicious monsters as true love triumphs in the end. That’s all very well and good, but it also masks the fact that many of Disney’s classic heroes have murder on their resume.
While it’s only natural for good to win out over evil, what’s surprising to realize after a few rewatchings is how many times Disney heroes have killed their respective villains. It might not happen on screen and it might be over in a flash, but there’s no getting away from it regardless.
Tramp (Lady And The Tramp)
While some might be quick to call Si and Am the villains of this Walt Disney production, true fans remember that it was the rabid rat that became the film’s true antagonist. Granted, there isn’t much in the way of dramatic conflict between a rat and the dogs to warrant much of an emotional response, but Tramp does end up killing it before it can get to the baby.
On one hand, this is a detail that often falls by the wayside. Dogs kill small animals all the time, some are even bred for that exact purpose, so some might think nothing of it to see Tramp take the creature out. Still, he was one of the first to walk away with blood on his paws.
Tarzan (Tarzan)
Vengeance is a powerful storytelling motive, and Tarzan definitely got his in the end against the leopard that killed his parents. While casual fans might identify Clayton as the film’s primary antagonist, it was Sabor that triggered the events that had Tarzan being raised by the apes.
The fight with Sabor was sort of Tarzan’s rite of passage in the jungle. It was the moment where he showed he was able to defend himself, and by extent kill if need be. But through a creative symbolic transition, it rid the jungle of one predator and welcomed in another in the form of Clayton.
Captain Jack (Pirates Of The Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl)
While it was technically the combined efforts of Will breaking the curse of the Aztec gold, Captain Jack did finally get to use his last shot against his mutinous first mate, Barbossa. Pirates of the Caribbean was Disney’s first PG-13 film, and they were sure to earn it well in more ways than one.
A satisfying end to a well-choreographed epic fight scene, Barbossa’s death hits him like a ton of bricks as the curse is lifted the moment Jack fires his shot. While his demise is only temporary, the words “I feel… cold” are still a very grim and haunting sentiment.
Prince Philip (Sleeping Beauty)
Knights and princes have been fighting dragons since the first fairytales were put to paper, so it stands to reason that Disney would be no different. That being said, Prince Phillip slaying Maleficent isn’t just traditional medieval imagery, as viewers are treated to a splash of gore as well.
Inspired by tapestries and stained glass of the middle ages, Sleeping Beauty truly did its best to maintain the traditional medieval fantasy elements, including some of the more graphic ones. The image of Philip and the fairies doing battle with Maleficent’s draconic form is so rich and vibrant it could be the cover for a Dungeon Master’s screen as Philip’s sword plunges into the dragon’s bleeding heart.
Milo Thatch (Atlantis)
There are plenty of agonizing villain deaths in Disney movies, but being turned into a shard of crystal has to rank pretty high for most. While Milo Thatch isn’t exactly the most physically strong, he was able to inflict the fatal wound on Rourke before he shattered into pieces under a propeller blade.
Rourke might have had the upper hand in terms of weapons, gear, and brute strength, but Milo better understood the environment and the forces with which they were contending. It might have been a stroke of luck or simply his quick thinking, but it still resulted in a very ghastly demise.
The Beast (Beauty And The Beast)
Of the villains that had it coming to them, Gaston is easily one of the best examples in the bunch. Though it was gravity that did most of the work for the hunter’s demise, Beast did swat him off his back as Belle tried to pull him to safety. In a way, the final blow was from him.
The duel on the rooftops between the Beast and Gaston was shaping up to be a pretty physical brawl, which the Beast would have won in an instant if Belle hadn’t softened his heart. While his act of mercy proved temporarily fatal, the Disney trope of love conquering evil still pulled through in the end.
Jim Hawkins (Treasure Planet)
Treasure Planet was definitely no stranger to showing death on screen, but the way Mr. Scroop gets offed is downright unsettling. After grappling with the spider-crab-like alien, Jim Hawkins binds him in a jolly roger and sends him careening towards the atmosphere after the ship’s gravity is disabled, undoubtedly sending him to a long and painful demise.
Assuming that the planet’s oxygen levels are similar to Earth’s, it could be implied that Scroop eventually suffocated as the atmosphere grew thinner and thinner as he drifted into the recesses of space. Sometimes the implied outcomes are the scariest ones.
Mowgli (The Jungle Book)
While Shere Khan met a more comical fate in the original animated classic, the reimagined, Disney live-action remake didn’t shy away from a more realistic approach to what happens when fur meets flames. Giving new meaning to the phrase “Tyger, Tyger, burning bright” the live-action adaptation saw Mowgli send his striped foe to a fiery doom.
While it’s easy to root for the film’s young protagonist, it’s also easy to forget that Shere Khan’s warning about the dangers of man in the jungle did eventually come to pass. While the man-cub did rid the jungle of its deadliest predator and the elephants did extinguish the fires at the end, Mowgli still caused destruction and death with his torch.
Mulan (Mulan)
A running joke amongst the Disney fandom is the fact that Mulan is the only Disney princess with a massive body count, but it’s funny because it’s true. Along with causing a massive avalanche that swallowed up nearly the entirety of the Hun army, she also sent Shan-Yu to an explosive death at the emperor’s palace.
Although it’s more than likely not the warrior’s death the Hun was probably expecting, Shan-Yu went out in a literal blaze of glory as Mulan and her pal Mushu sent a massive firework that blew him into the rest of the pyrotechnic display. Aesthetically pleasing, but undoubtedly a horrible way to go.
Tiana (The Princess And The Frog)
It can also be said that Dr. Facilier’s frequent dealings with his Friends on the Other Side were what truly led to his downfall, but it was Tiana smashing his talisman that severed his ties to the mortal plane. It didn’t take much to evoke the wrath of the voodoo spirits, but the Shadowman was still met with some ghastly consequences.
Making deals with the spirit world is rarely a good idea, a lesson Facilier soon learns first hand. And while it’s not as dramatic as plunging a sword into a dragon’s heart, it’s still an impressive feat to be performed by a talking frog.
