“When I saw her for the first time and realized how much she looked like me I was really blown away.”
Disney has created a magical world of princesses and other beloved animated characters — but it turns out that some of these characters are not so fictional at all. In fact, many Disney and Pixar characters are actually based on the appearance and mannerisms of real-life people, including celebrities.
Stars like Cher and Tom Cruise have inspired some of Disney’s most well-known characters, according to animators who worked on the films. While these celebs didn’t receive any credit for their influence, it’s clear they all made a lasting impact on these iconic movies.
Find out which stars inspired animated characters…
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Harry Styles
In Pixar’s 2015 film Inside Out, Riley’s imaginary boyfriend was based on Harry Styles. According to director Pete Docter, the floppy haired character was designed with the singer in mind, who was then a part of One Direction.
“[My daughter is] very much a One Direction fan,” Pete told Digital Spy. “We were looking at the hairstyle and the tight-fitting jeans that are a little bit saggy around the middle.”
Producer Jonas Rivera added, “He’s the greatest hits of what an imaginary boyfriend would look like. We asked a lot of people!”
Cher
When it came to designing Mother Gothel’s appearance in Tangled, she was inspired by Cher. Director Byron Howard explained that it was Cher’s “exotic” and “gothic” looks that really played into the design — as well as some features from Gothel’s voice actress Donna Murphy.
“Maybe it’s because Cher is very exotic and Gothic looking, and definitely she was one of the people we looked at visually, as far as what gives you a striking character. But also Donna Murphy, who is her voice in the English version, also really heavily influenced what Gothel looked like,” Byron told IndieLondon.
Cher later told ET Canada that she was surprised to discover her striking similarities to the character and noted that she’d be willing to play Mother Gothel in the live action film.
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Alyssa Milano
Alyssa Milano was the inspiration behind Ariel in the 1989 animated version of The Little Mermaid. The actress says she didn’t know it at the time and it wasn’t until well after the film premiered that she was told the character was based on photos of her. She found out after she was asked to host a behind the scenes special about the movie.
“I didn’t know that when it was going on, but they asked me to host the making of The Little Mermaid and it came out there that the drawing and likeness of The Little Mermaid was based on pictures of me from when I was younger, which is so cool!” Alyssa said on The Wendy Williams Show.
Tom Cruise
When the animated version of Aladdin was in the works, the character went through quite a few changes. In A Diamond in the Rough: The Making of Aladdin, the team behind the film explained that at first they didn’t want Aladdin to be a tall, strapping hero. Instead, they wanted him to be a “little guy” — but Walt Disney Studios chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg didn’t think that was the best idea and didn’t believe Aladdin and Jasmine would be together.
“I found the character of Jasmine kinda blows him away. I don’t understand why she goes with him. I understand why he goes with her — that’s easy. She’s wonderful,” Jeffrey said in the documentary.
Director John Musker added that he recalled Jeffrey saying, “Guys, you’ve got Julia Roberts and Michael J. Fox. They don’t fit together. You need Tom Cruise and Julia Roberts. They fit together. You need more Tom Cruise.”
From there on out, the animators used Tom as inspiration for the Aladdin that we have come to know today.
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Michael Jackson
The character of Dr. Facilier in The Princess and the Frog was based on a few very famous celebrities, including Michael Jackson. Animator Bruce W. Smith explained that he looked to Michael as well as Usher to draw inspiration for how Dr. Facilier acted and moved across the screen.
“As I began drawing him out, I realized he had to be very thin, and I had to be able to move him across the screen. I thought about guys like Michael Jackson and Usher and the types of moves they’d have as they would sort of scurry across the screen,” he said during a panel discussion.
Robin Williams
The role of the Genie in Aladdin was written for Robin Williams — before he even knew about the film. Directors Ron Clements and John Musker said they took a risk and created the part for him but then had to convince him to sign on. In order to do so, they had Eric Goldberg animate one of Robin’s old comedy albums to show him how he’d be a perfect fit.
“John Musker and I wrote the original script with the specific idea that Robin would voice the genie and that he would be a visual as well as vocal shape-shifter. Robin would be encouraged to improvise to his heart’s content,” Ron wrote for Variety.
Paul McCartney
Back in 1967, the vultures in The Jungle Book were originally inspired by Paul McCartney and the rest of the Beatles. The group was actually supposed to voice the characters and perform a song in the film but the idea was eventually turned down. From there, the musical direction of the vultures was switched up to become more of a barbershop quartet.
When the live action film was made decades later, director Jon Favreau tried to get Paul and Ringo Starr to appear in the flick but it didn’t work out once again.
“We don’t have the Beatle-vultures,” he shared with The Radio Times. “I did talk about trying to get Paul and Ringo into the film, because they wanted the Beatles for the original, but I couldn’t get them. We came to the idea too late. Maybe if there’s a sequel…”
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Danny DeVito
Danny DeVito not only voiced Phil in Hercules but he was also a major inspiration for the character. According to the official Disney fan club, D23, animator Eric Goldberg drew inspiration for his drawings from video captured of Danny in the vocal booth. His facial expressions and the shape of his mouth ended up playing a big role in how Phil appeared in the film.
Anika Noni Rose
In The Princess and the Frog, Anika Noni Rose voiced Tiana — a character that was heavily inspired by her. Animator Mark Henn reportedly taped a video reference of Anika and gave Tiana some of her distinct characteristics like her dimples and the fact that she is left-handed.
“I said I wanted it to look like she ate and wasn’t skinny, and she has a full mouth and a little round nose and curly hair and these are all things that made her look distinctly herself. I didn’t want Tiana to resemble a cookie-cutter princess who had been colored in brown. When I saw her for the first time and realized how much she looked like me I was really blown away,” Anika said.
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Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn was initially an inspiration for Aurora from Sleeping Beauty. According to Disney animator Ron Dias, artist Tom Oreb had Audrey in mind while creating early sketches of the character. Over time, drawings of Aurora shifted so that she better blended in with the background animation.
“Originally, Sleeping Beauty looked a lot like Audrey Hepburn; she was softer, rounder, more like the ‘designy’ Disney girl. Back at the drawing board, Eyvind [Earle] redesigned her,” he told Arts and Living Mag. “She became very angular, moving with more fluidity and elegance, but her design had a harder line. The edges of her dress became squarer, pointed even, and the back of her head came almost to a point rather than round and cuddly like the other Disney girls. It had to be done to complement the background.”
Audrey was also reportedly an inspiration for Belle from Beauty and the Beast.
Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong was the inspiration behind two animated Disney characters — Scat Cat from The Aristocats and Louis from The Princess and the Frog. Scat Cat was actually originally named Satchmo Cat, after one of Louis’ nicknames. He was even asked to voice Scat Cat but was reportedly unable to due to a health issue.
Rita Hayworth
Jessica Rabbit from Who Framed Roger Rabbit was based on several Old Hollywood actresses including Rita Hayworth. Animator Richard Williams says he was tasked with making Jessica a total femme fatale and looked towards women like Rita and Veronica Lake.
“’It’s the ultimate male fantasy, drawn by a cartoonist,” he told The New York Times. “’I tried to make her like Rita Hayworth; we took her hair from Veronica Lake, and [director Robert] Zemeckis kept saying, ‘What about the look Lauren Bacall had?’”
