BACKGROUND
With Hercules being released within the famed Disney Renaissance Era, it was automatically going to become popular, mostly with those viewers who were children at the time, who see all films within the Disney Renaissance time period as bringing them a feeling of nostalgia. That would make it seem like Hercules was always a big hit.
But that wasn’t really the case. Though the children of the day may have loved it, in actual fact, Hercules was the Disney Renaissance film that did the worst at the box-office, and was not considered to be particularly original or exciting.
I am firmly within the pack of kids that loved it as children, and I believe my family and I watched it at the cinema when it was first released. I love Hercules and I rewatch it often, being able to quote many lines and scenes from it. Hercules sits comfortably within my Top 5 Disney films, mostly because the film involves my second favourite Disney villain, a very close second, I might add, but not quite enough to top my list.
Hercules does not have the universal appeal of other Disney movies, such as Beauty and the Beast (1991) or The Lion King (1994). Disney executives had hoped that Hercules would be as well-received as Aladdin (1992), however, it was not. Still, Hercules remains a firm favourite especially with “90s kids”, who continue to speak fondly of the movie as adults.
PLOT
Hercules begins with an invisible narrator who starts telling the story of Hercules. Five women on a nearby vase suddenly come alive, and ask the narrator if they can take over, to make the story more interesting. These women are the Muses, and they state that many eons ago, the Titans ruled over Earth, creating chaos everywhere. That is until the mighty Zeus trapped the Titans underground, becoming the ruler of Earth instead. We then go to “present day” and head up to Mount Olympus, home of the gods, where we see that Zeus and his wife, Hera, have a son, called Hercules, with all the gods assembling for a party to celebrate the birth. Zeus fashions a flying horse out of clouds as a gift to his son, the horse being called Pegasus. Everything is going well – until Hades, Zeus’ brother and ruler of the Underworld arrives, clearly not wanting to be there, and not willing to marvel at the kid. Hades leaves soon after arriving, having been jeered at and/or ignored by the crowd.
Hades is annoyed at being forced to rule the Underworld, a job that leaves him constantly busy and mostly alone, with only his two minions, Pain and Panic, for company, though those two are completely useless and infuriate Hades most of the time. Hades is told that The Fates are here, the three who control the lives of mortals, cutting their threads at the end of their lives and sending them to the Underworld. Hades convinces the Fates to tell him how his plan to take over Olympus may or may not happen. They eventually tell Hades that in eighteen years, the planets will align and that the time will come to release the Titans and overthrow Zeus. Hades is thrilled, until they tell him the bad news – that if Hercules fights, he will fail. Hades comes up with a plan to bring Hercules to Earth and turn him mortal. Pain and Panic are sent to kidnap the baby and force-feed him a potion to turn him mortal, with him having to drink every last drop. Pain and Panic are disturbed by two mortals, and hide, leaving a crying Hercules and the bottle of potion, which breaks. Unbeknownst to Pain and Panic, there was one last drop in that bottle…Pain and Panic turn into snakes and go to attack Hercules, but as he didn’t drink the whole potion, he retained his god-like strength and easily defeats them. He is taken in by the mortals, Amphitryon and Alcmene.
Some years later, Hercules, now a teenager, finds that he doesn’t fit in with others, with his super-strength generally causing problems for everyone else. This is clear when Hercules tries to join in a game of discus with a group of boys, but as he catches the disc, he bumps into a column, sending the whole marketplace into chaos, with every building destroyed. Amphitryon tries to calm Hercules, but he doesn’t listen, thinking he doesn’t belong here and annoyed that he doesn’t know where he would. Later that day, his adopted parents give him a crest with the symbol of the gods on it, telling Hercules it was around his neck when he was found. Hercules decides to travel to the Temple of Zeus for answers. At the temple, the great statue of Zeus comes alive, and grabs Hercules, announcing that he is Hercules’ father. Hercules is shocked. Zeus tells him how Hercules ended up on Earth, and says that if he wants to rejoin them, he needs to become a “true hero”. Zeus asks Hercules to seek out Philoctetes, the trainer of heroes. He is also reunited with Pegasus.
On a misty island, Hercules finds a goat stuck in bushes and pulls him free. Except, it’s not a goat, but a satyr, half-man, half-goat, and that satyr is Philoctetes, or Phil, who is most annoyed that Hercules has now scared the nymphs away that he was ogling at. Good thing, really, because that’s kind of creepy, Phil! Anyway, Phil tells Hercules that he once trained heroes, including Perseus and Achilles, but that they never achieved greatness so he has retired and will not help Hercules. With some “persuading” from Zeus, Phil reluctantly agrees and they begin training. Some years later, Hercules is ready and Phil tells him they are going to Thebes, as that town is full of troubles and needs a hero. On the way, though, Hercules is distracted by the cry of a “damsel in distress”. They find a woman being harassed by a centaur, the River Guardian, Nessus. Hercules asks Nessus to release the woman, but he refuses, easily pushing Hercules away. Hercules battles Nessus and wins, with the woman free to go, despite her claims that she was handling it. The woman introduces herself as Megara, also known as Meg, and goes on her way, but Hercules is entranced by her. Phil scolds him for being distracted by a “pair of big goo-goo eyes” and they head to Thebes.
Meg walks through the nearby forest and comes across Pain and Panic, in disguise, along with Hades. It turns out Meg sold her soul to Hades and must work for him, helping him in his long-awaited uprising. She was meant to persuade the River Guardian to join Hades’ side, and did not, angering him. Meg tells Hades it wasn’t her fault, that some guy called Hercules disrupted the plan. Hades is furious, questioning Pain and Panic, as they never told Hades that their initial plan to kill Hercules had failed.
In Thebes, Hercules is laughed off quickly by the residents, who don’t believe him to be a hero. Meg suddenly rushes in, saying two boys are trapped in a gorge and they need saving. This is perfect for Hercules, who lifts the rock trapping the boys, freeing them. Then, there’s a noise; a monster comes out from the gorge and attacks. Hercules, caught off-guard, is eaten by the large snake-like Hydra. When all looks lost, Hercules cuts himself free from the Hydra’s throat. But then, the head grows back, along with two more. After a bad tactic of constantly cutting off the heads, only for more to grow back, Hercules is pinned to the rocky mountain-side. He hits the rock face hard, causing a landslide, which crushes the Hydra. We find that this was all part of Hades’ new plan to kill Hercules. Hercules is seemingly crushed in the hand of the Hydra, but frees himself. Hercules is proclaimed a hero by everyone, soon becoming one of the most famous people in Greece, with his own range of merchandise, huge villa and thousands of fans, defeating even more monsters that Hades throws in his way. He thinks he’s now proven himself a hero and goes back to Zeus at the temple, who tells him he’s on the right track, but not quite there yet.
Hades can’t believe Hercules has beaten everything he’s sent out to him. Hades decides he needs to send Meg to him, to find his weakness, and that if she can do this, then he’ll grant her freedom. Meg convinces Hercules one day to “play hooky” with her, and go out for the day, instead of doing his boring celebrity stuff. He tells Meg he has no weakness. Hercules is soon found by Phil, who orders Hercules to the gym as punishment. On the way there, Phil is hit by a branch and falls off Pegasus. When he awakens, he overhears Meg talking with Hades about Hercules. He realises she’s working for him. Phil goes to the gym to tell Hercules, but he doesn’t believe him, instead getting angry at Phil. Devastated that Hercules is not the hero he thought he was, Phil leaves. Shortly after, Hades arrives. He asks Hercules to give up his strength for 24 hours so he can enact his plan. Hercules refuses, until he sees Meg tied up, Hades using her as leverage. Hercules agrees on one condition: that Meg will be safe from harm. The two shake on it and Hercules’ strength is taken from him. Hades then reveals that it is true that Meg was working for him, crushing Hercules, as predicted. Hades goes off to release the Titans, who then attack Olympus; the Cyclops is sent to Thebes to deal with Hercules, but as Hercules hasn’t his strength anymore, he is overpowered quickly. Meg finds Pegasus, and they look for Phil together. Meg convinces Phil to come back with her to help or else Hercules will die.
Phil gives Hercules a pep talk, which encourages Hercules. He ties rope around the Cyclops feet, putting him off balance and he tumbles off the cliff. With the force of this action, though, a nearby pillar begins to fall. Meg rushes to push Hercules out of the way but is crushed instead. Hercules lifts the pillar off her, having gotten his strength back as the Hades’ deal is broken. Meg is alive, barely, and tells Hercules to stop Hades. He flies over to Olympus, and frees his father from the frozen lava he’d been encased in by the Titans. Hercules trapped all of the Titans within each other, throwing them into the sky, where they explode. Hades is defeated, but as his parting shot, he tells Herc that he got “one swell consolation prize”, and that is Meg’s death. Hercules flies to her side, but is too late; she’s gone. Phil and Hercules are devastated, with Phil telling Hercules there are some things you just can’t change, but Hercules thinks he can. He finds his way into the Underworld and orders Hades to let Meg’s soul go. He can’t do that and leads Hercules to the River of Death, where her soul resides with every other one. Hercules makes a deal with Hades, to take Meg’s place. Hades agrees, and as Hercules goes into the river to retrieve her soul, he shouts that Hercules will be dead before he gets to her. Sure enough, the Fates are ready with his “thread of life” but as they cut, the thread turns golden and cannot be cut through. Hercules comes up out of the river, holding Meg’s soul. Hades is shocked to find that Hercules is now a god, and tries to apologise for his actions, but Hercules doesn’t care and punches him with such force that he ends up in the River of Death.
Hercules returns Meg’s soul to her body and she is revived. A cloud appears to take them up to Olympus, where Hercules is given a hero’s welcome by Zeus, Hera, and all the gods, stating that as he risked his life to save another, he proved himself a true hero and now can come home. Meg is proud of Hercules but knows she must let him go now, and starts to walk away. Hercules sees this and realises that he doesn’t want to be without her. He tells Zeus that he wants to go back to Earth to be with her. Zeus agrees. The two return with Phil and Pegasus, and watch as the gods make a picture of Hercules in the stars, with everyone knowing that’s “Phil’s boy”, thus fulfilling a dream Phil had always had. And they all live happily ever after – though this is Greek mythology, so they probably don’t for long!
CHARACTERS & CAST
Hercules goes on a real “hero’s journey” throughout this movie. He begins the film as the newborn child of Zeus, the most powerful god on Olympus. Despite only just being born, it’s quite clear he was going to be a very spoilt child, praised and fawned over by everyone. But as he is then taken to Earth and becomes a mortal, he gets a more normal upbringing, though because Hercules isn’t “normal”, he ends up being bullied and berated by everyone he comes into contact with, as he is quite clumsy. He just wants to fit in though; it’s not his fault he’s super-strong. Then, as he becomes a hero, Hercules gets taken in by the fame and fortune that comes with his celebrity status, and must figure out for himself how to be a “true hero”, not just a star. Hercules goes through a lot to get that stage, not only physically with monster battles and evil villains, but emotionally and mentally as he has to figure out what he wants from life and how exactly he can go there. He hits many low points, before hitting the highs of finding Meg and finally being reunited with his family.
The team at Disney knew that although Hercules needed to be this strong superhero character, with all the charisma and brawn that goes with it, he also had to have a softer, emotional side to come full circle with his journey. They knew the best way to show this would be in his scenes with Meg, who he instantly falls for her and still forgives despite her ultimate betrayal of having seemingly used him to help Hades achieve global domination…Andreas Deja, the animator known for animating Disney villains such as Scar and Gaston, got to have the opportunity to be the Supervising Animator for a hero this time with his work on Hercules. Deja found Tate Donovan’s lively energy and strong vocal performance a big help in designing this naïve, innocent, yet charming, brave character[1]. Tate Donovan voices adult Hercules. Donovan has appeared on both television and film, with roles such as Rob Anders in Argo (2012) and Jimmy Cooper in The O.C (2003-07). Donovan has continued to voice Hercules for other Disney projects throughout his career. Josh Keaton voices young Hercules. Keaton has since had numerous voice-acting roles in film, television and video games.
To help Hercules on his journey to becoming a hero, he relies heavily on the trainer of heroes, Phil. Phil is impatient, difficult to get along with, blunt and grumpy at times. At least that’s how he appears when he first meets Hercules. But as the movie goes on, we see a friendship form between Phil and Hercules, with Phil telling Hercules that he’s got something special that he hasn’t seen before in any of the other men he’d trained, thinking that he can actually be great and “go the distance”. It’s especially touching when Phil returns to help Hercules defeat the Cyclops, as he tells Hercules he’s not going to give up on him, despite them having just had an argument over Meg. Phil gets Hercules to believe in himself again, giving him the boost he needed at that point. Phil is also the most comedic character, with many of his lines being the funniest, and most quotable, in the movie.
Supervising Animator for Phil was Eric Goldberg, known for his work on the Genie in Aladdin (1992). Goldberg was inspired by Danny DeVito’s own features when designing Phil. Danny DeVito was one of the first choices that Disney had for the character; I couldn’t imagine anyone else being a better fit for Phil. DeVito has had an incredible acting career spanning multiple decades. Some of DeVito’s best roles are: Louie De Palma in Taxi (1978-83), for which he won a Golden Globe and an Emmy; Mr. Wormwood in Matilda (1996); the Lorax in The Lorax (2012); and most recently, as Eddie in Jumanji: The Next Level (2019) and the Ringmaster in Dumbo (2019). Plus, DeVito has starred in the series It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (2005-present) since 2006. If you’re not sure what that show is because you’re British and it hasn’t aired over here, it’s that show created by Rob McElhenney, the “other guy” who co-owns Wrexham F.C. with Ryan Reynolds.
Meg, or Megara, is Hercules’ love interest, but she’s not the average cute, sweet, devoted romantic interest. Meg is incredibly strong-minded, brave and quite sarcastic. She is not bothered by Hercules at all when she first meets him, saying she may be a damsel in distress but that she can handle it – and I believe she could’ve done. Meg is sassy and feisty, and a fan-favourite amongst Disney film-watchers. The other added complexity to Meg is that this is the first time in a Disney movie that we’ve had the love interest actually working for the villain, which makes her even more fascinating to watch, as she fights against what she wants to do and what she has to do. I don’t think Meg wants to be deceptive and it’s clear when her betrayal is revealed by Hades that she feels incredibly guilty and wants to help resolve the mess she helped make. When Meg throws herself in front of the pillar to protect Hercules, that shows Meg’s love for Hercules and symbolises the end of her working relationship with Hades, no matter what that means for her.
Supervising Animator for Meg, Ken Duncan stated that, to fit in with the overall style of the movie and the Greek art that features heavily within scenes, Meg was designed to look like a column, in terms of her body shape and the vertical stripes of her purple dress, with her head made to be a vase shape, with a flowing, curled look to her hair[2]. It’s also impossible not to notice that Meg has a very small waist and quite a sexy walk; I’m not sure those are character features that Disney would be able to use nowadays! Susan Egan voices Megara. Egan originated the role of Belle in the Broadway musical of Beauty and the Beast in 1994, having also starred in other stage productions such as The Sound of Music in 1996 as Maria, and as Sally Bowles in productions of Cabaret from the late-1990s to mid-2000s. Egan also continued to do voice acting, such as various voices in the Cartoon Network series Steven Universe (2014-19), and Lin in the English dub of Spirited Away (2002). Susan Egan also frequently reprises her role of Megara for Disney.
Arguably, there are only really four main characters, those that the plot revolves around, so that leaves the best one until last: Hades, one of the most popular villains in the Disney Villains franchise. This is likely due to the fact that Hades is a completely unique take on any other Disney villain, because he sounds like a fast-talking car salesman, a total schmoozer, which makes him charismatic and charming, yet he is also menacing and evil in the movie. As Nik Ranieri, the Supervising Animator for Hades, stated, Hades has an appealing evil which draws people in, making him more dangerous, but also more attractive to those he interacts with. In the first few minutes of the movie, we see Hades charming the Fates into telling him how to enact his great plan to overthrow Zeus, and he also has a way with Meg, because, although she doesn’t want to work with him and only sold her soul to save her boyfriend’s life, you can see that she gets taken in by Hades easily. Hades is also incredibly funny at times, with James Woods, the voice actor for Hades, wanting to make the Disney team laugh at his performances, saying the funnier, the better. Hades’ mood shifts frequently in the movie, where his face and hair are generally blue, for when he’s cool and calm, but changes rapidly to be red hot whenever he’s angry, which isn’t too infrequently, especially if Pain and Panic are around[3]!
John Lithgow was originally cast for the role of Hades, even recording lines for a period of around nine months, before being replaced by James Woods, who changed the whole demeanour of Hades with his fast ad-libbing. Apparently, Jack Nicholson was also approached for the role[4]. But it went to James Woods, who has starred in movies such as Once Upon a Time in America (1984) as Max Bercovicz, alongside Robert De Niro; and as D.J. in the made-for-television film Promise (1986), for which Woods won an Emmy. Woods has also voiced other characters, like the Falcon in Stuart Little 2 (2002), who is the only good part of that film in my opinion, and Dr. Benedict in Recess: School’s Out (2001). Woods also has reprised his role of Hades for Disney numerous times as he loves the character.
For the minor characters, let’s start with Hades’ sidekicks: Pain and Panic. Both are small creatures who look a bit like devils, with Pain being the stouter pink one, always getting himself into scrapes with his clumsiness, and Panic, being the thin, green, anxious one, hence their names. They are the worst henchmen of any Disney villain, not having a clue what they are doing most of the time, and so scared of their boss that they’d rather keep their failures a secret from him and hope he never finds out. Except Hades always does find out so all they end up doing is delaying his wrath! At times, you feel a bit sorry for them as they are abused by Hades frequently, and only get a small bit of praise here and there; they try, but they’re just not good enough for him! Bobcat Goldthwait and Matt Frewer voice Pain and Panic respectively. Goldthwait was a stand-up comedian at the beginning of his career, before moving into acting with roles such as Zed in Police Academy 2, 3 and 4 (1985-87). Frewer became his career in films, such as Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989) as Russell Thompson, Sr. and went into further voice acting.
For the gods on Olympus, there are too many to mention here, but it’s worth mentioning that the animators made the effort to represent many of them, introducing a few to the audience who may not be familiar with Greek mythology. Hermes, the messenger to the gods, is the most prominent of the “background” gods. He is voiced by Paul Schaffer, who is probably most remembered as the band leader and sidekick on the entire runs of Late Night with David Letterman (1982-93) and Late Show with David Letterman (1993-2015). The design for Hermes included Shaffer’s rounded sunglasses, and even had the character play the piano for the final musical number in the film.
The most important of the gods are Zeus and Hera. Hera is the goddess of marriage and mother to Hercules. She is calm and gentle, with a voice to match. Apart from the beginning of the movie, and a brief glimpse at the end, Hera is not a major character in Hercules, with Zeus taking much of the parental spotlight, as would only be fitting for Zeus! Hera is voiced by actress Samantha Eggar, who starred in movies such as Doctor Dolittle (1967) as Emma Fairfax, alongside Rex Harrison, and The Collector (1965) as Miranda Grey where she was nominated for Best Actress at the Academy Awards, winning the award at the Golden Globes in 1966 and at the Cannes Film Festival in 1965. Eggar reprised her role of Hera in some of the Hercules spin-offs.
Rip Torn voices the loud, cocky ruler of the gods, Zeus. His booming voice fits the god well, and manages to make the character likeable, despite Zeus’ arrogance and clear disrespect for Hades at the start of the film. Rip Torn sadly passed away in July 2019 at the age of 88, but starred in numerous movies over a career of more than 60 years. Such roles included Marsh Turner in Cross Creek (1983) where he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor; Zed in Men in Black (1997) and Men in Black II (2002); and as Patches O’Houlihan in DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story (2004).
Finally, a few other interesting voice actors in Hercules are Frank Welker, who “voiced” Abu and Rajah in Aladdin (1992), as Pegasus; Jim Cummings, the current Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, as Nessus, the River Guardian; and Wayne Knight, Tantor in Tarzan (1999) and Al in Toy Story 2 (1999), as well as Dennis Nedry in Jurassic Park (1993), as Demetrius, the man struggling with his pottery in the marketplace.
PRODUCTION
Though Hercules is loosely based on Greek mythology, much of the story for the Disney animated movie came from taking pieces of the Hercules myths and putting them together. This is because much of Greek mythology is not child-friendly, and is quite violent and inappropriate in places. The name, Hercules, is not even the Greek name for the mythological figure; it is the Roman name. The Greek name is Heracles, however, Hercules has been more popularly used in Western culture for the same figure for centuries, so that is likely why Disney chose to use the name Hercules for their movie title.
Other changes between myth and screen are that Alcmene is Hercules’ adopted mother, but in the myth, she is actually Hercules’ real mother as Zeus seduced the mortal whilst disguised as Amphitryon, her husband. Another is that Nessus would have had a larger role in the film as he did in the myth. In the mythology, Hercules shot Nessus with a poisoned arrow, as the creature was harassing his wife. Nessus then tricked Hercules’ wife into getting Hercules to put on a poisoned tunic, which killed him. Zeus made Hercules a god to save his life. Another darker side to the myth is that Meg, along with their children, was killed by Hercules after being driven mad by Hera, who taunted him for years as she was jealous of Zeus’ affair with a mortal which resulted in the birth of Hercules and wanted him dead. He was then sent out on his labours to make amends for the murder of his wife and children. If he succeeded, he’d become a god. Greek mythology is dark. I think it’s plain to see why Disney amended some of these storylines for their family-friendly film!
Though the labours do not exactly feature in Hercules, many of the monsters that Hercules had to battle in the myth do appear in the montage of battles during the song “Zero to Hero”, including the Nemean Lion, which should’ve been his first challenge, with the Hydra being his second. In the movie, the Hydra is the first one. Some other lighter differences between the myth and the movie include the fact that Pegasus was not Hercules’ horse, but actually belonged to Bellerophon, and a centaur named Chiron was the trainer of heroes in Greek myth and unlike Phil as a trainer, Chiron was wise, patient and caring[5].
Another thing to mention is that Hades is the villain in Disney’s Hercules, as he is portrayed in many other screen adaptations of Greek myths. This is likely due to the fact that Hades is depicted as the embodiment of the devil, since in a Christian context, the Underworld is perceived as Hell, with Hades, therefore being the devil, an evil that we do not want to encounter. Another issue is that the most well-known myth featuring Hades is the one where he kidnaps Persephone and takes her to the Underworld, but even in that myth, it has been interpreted incorrectly in places as Hades asked Zeus’ permission, Persephone’s father, and just did not ask for the mother’s permission, Demeter. Persephone also voluntarily ate the pomegranate that confined her to the Underworld. Seeing Demeter’s distress at being separated from her daughter, Hades even allowed Persephone to return to Earth for half the year. Generally, in Greek mythology, Hades is not the villain, with Hera being the actual one who causes the most problems to Hercules. Hades even helps Hercules with his twelfth labour, where he must retrieve Cerberus from the Underworld[6].
The Disney version of Hercules stemmed from an original pitch to make an animated feature based on Homer’s The Odyssey, however, soon it was considered that it was too long a story to adapt, so an idea based around Hercules was pitched. Ron Clements and John Musker, who had already directed The Little Mermaid (1989) and Aladdin (1992), were approached to direct Hercules by then-Chairman of Walt Disney Studios Jeffrey Katzenberg. Clements and Musker were reluctant to direct Hercules, until Katzenberg agreed that he would greenlight their “passion project” of a space version of Treasure Island, which would become Treasure Planet (2002), if they directed Hercules first, so they said they would. Since Clements and Musker liked working on comedy, they decided to make Hercules into a funny superhero story, wanting to infuse a contemporary feel to the myth. Hercules was the first Disney animated feature to be based on mythology instead of a folk story or fairy tale[7].
For the artistic look of Hercules, Clements and Musker approached British cartoonist and illustrator Gerald Scarfe, who they had been longtime fans of, to be the Production Designer for the movie. Scarfe had produced graphics for the rock band Pink Floyd previously, as well as creating the opening titles for the British sitcoms Yes Minister (1980-84) and Yes, Prime Minister (1986-88). The directors felt that Scarfe’s style would work well in conjunction with the Grecian art style that would be needed to match the time and geographical setting of the story. The team, including Scarfe, went to Greece and Turkey to research classic Greek mythology, architecture and art to incorporate within the art style of Hercules. The movie includes many references to Greek art in the movie, such as murals, mosaics, vases, and sculptures, even the famous Venus de Milo, which Hercules breaks the arms off by skimming a stone across the pond it sits in front of.
At this point in Disney Animation history, computer-generated imagery was being used for scenes that would be difficult to animate by hand. In the case of Hercules, the key CGI scene in the movie is the battle sequence with Hercules and the Hydra. The Hydra was designed to look like a snake with two huge forearms. As the Hydra continues to grow extra heads throughout this sequence, it would’ve been difficult to achieve this with hand-drawn animation and would’ve been a continuity nightmare. Using the computer software meant that the Hydra could be animated correctly and then be controlled to achieve the necessary threat that was required in the scene.
There are a few “Easter eggs” in Hercules that are fun to spot, which include both Disney and pop culture references. Some of these include: the “Air Herc” shoes, which are an obvious reference to the Nike Air footwear; the Scar skin that Hercules wears as he is posing for his vase portrait – this is not only a reference to The Lion King, but also to animator Andreas Deja, who animated Scar as well as Hercules, and it refers to the first labour of Hercules which was to slay the Nemean Lion; and the two directors, Clements and Musker like to make a brief animated cameo in all of their movies; in this case, the two appear as the two Grecians stoneworkers building a gateway, as teenage Hercules barrels on through to the marketplace with the cart.
MUSIC
The soundtrack for Hercules is not the best of those within the Disney Renaissance period, despite legendary Disney composer Alan Menken being involved. Menken had written music for pretty much every other Disney movie within the Disney Renaissance era up until this point, except for The Lion King (1994) and The Rescuers Down Under (1990). After Hercules, Alan Menken would not work on another Disney picture until 2004’s Home on the Range. Lyricist David Zippel joined Menken to work on the soundtrack. Zippel had contributed lyrics to the soundtrack of The Swan Princess (1994) before working on Hercules, and would then go on to work on the soundtrack for Mulan (1998) afterwards. The styles of music used for the Hercules soundtrack were very different for Disney, as it was not a typical Broadway style, and also unexpected for a Greek story. The soundtrack combines gospel and R&B alongside the classical, heroic themes that are expected from Disney music. It was said that gospel would be a good choice for its storytelling qualities, songs about hope, and for its entertainment factor[8].
The soundtrack goes straight in with the gospel singing, as after a brief, dull introduction by Charlton Heston, known for his roles in epic movies such as The Ten Commandments (1956) and Ben-Hur (1958) amongst plenty others, the Muses interrupt and give the audience some backstory into what we are about to see, with the group continuing to return throughout the story. It’s been pointed out numerous times that in Greek mythology, there were actually nine Muses, but in Hercules, there are only five. This could be because too many characters, and singers, would’ve made the movie busy and complicated, potentially becoming a distraction, but could also be because British pop group The Spice Girls, which had five members, were initially approached to be the Muses, bur declined due to scheduling conflicts[9]. Now that would’ve made Hercules very different! So instead, a group consisting of singers Lillias White, LaChanze, Roz Ryan, Cheryl Freeman and Vanéese Y. Thomas became the Muses.
The Muses begin the movie with three separate songs that appear in quick succession, being called “The Gospel Truth I, II and III”. The first details the backstory to the gods and Zeus; the second describes Hades; and the third explains why Hercules is stuck on Earth after being turned mortal. Though these songs are good for narrative purposes, they don’t exactly standout and are not particularly interesting. The Muses really get their chance to perform with the songs “Zero to Hero”, which is performed once Hercules has defeated the Hydra and becomes a celebrity, and “A Star Is Born”, which plays for the ending of the movie and goes into the End Credits. These are big numbers with soaring high notes, and feature amazing vocal performances and harmonisation; these are the points where the singers really get to show what they’re made of, and I really like these songs, with “Zero to Hero” being a particular favourite of many Hercules fans. Singer Tawatha Agee is also featured on “Zero to Hero”.
For Hercules himself, he gets a hero song called “Go the Distance”, as Hercules tries to figure out where he belongs, plus its reprise which features just a few minutes later after he has spoken to Zeus. These two songs are actually sung by Roger Bart, who was not the voice actor for teenage Hercules. Roger Bart is both an actor and singer, who performed the role of Carmen Ghia in the original stage production of The Producers as well as its 2005 movie adaptation. Bart was also cast as Hades for the musical version of Hercules. On screen, Roger Bart has featured in various films and television series such as The Stepford Wives (2004), Trumbo (2015) and most recently, Good Trouble (2019-present) as Judge Wilson. “Go the Distance” was nominated for both the Academy Award and the Golden Globe for Best Original Song, but lost to “My Heart Will Go On” from Titanic (1997). Still, the song is frequently used within Disney projects, such as within fireworks shows like Happily Ever After and the now-cancelled Harmonious show at Walt Disney World. Michael Bolton also recorded a pop version of “Go the Distance” for the End Credits, and it was released as a single. Ricky Martin recorded a Spanish-language version called “No Importa La Distancia” for the Spanish version of Hercules.
One of the last two songs in the soundtrack is “One Last Hope”, half-sung, half-spoken by Danny DeVito as Phil. This is played during the training montage where Hercules is preparing to become a hero with the help of Phil. It’s a funny song, and the sequence features a lot of physical comedy, mostly at Phil’s expense! The final song to mention is the regular Disney love ballad “I Won’t Say (I’m in Love)” performed by Susan Egan as Meg, with backing vocals provided by the Muses. This is not a typical love ballad for Disney as instead of this being sung between the two main characters, like “A Whole New World”, “Can You Feel the Love Tonight?” or “If I Never Knew You”, Meg sings alone, as she debates whether or not she should be falling for Hercules, so that means you too can sing it alone and not feel awkward waiting around for some other character to sing their lines! The style of the song is also different as it mixes doo-wop music with a pop/R&B ballad. Belinda Carlisle, singer of “Heaven Is a Place on Earth”, performs a pop-rock version of the song for the film’s soundtrack. Her version has also featured on other Disney compilation albums.
That’s all the songs covered, but there are a few tracks within Alan Menken’s score that are worth a mention. One of those is called “Meg’s Garden” and plays just before “I Won’t Say (I’m in Love)” as Meg and Hercules walk around a garden and talk. It’s a nice, romantic piece that feels calming to listen to. Then, there is “Cutting the Thread”, which includes most of the sequence where Hercules frees Zeus, they defeat the Titans, and Meg’s “thread” is cut. The first part of the piece is heroic and fitting for a final battle, but then becomes sombre and tense as Hercules races back to see Meg before she dies. But my favourite piece within the score is “A True Hero”, which is pieced together alongside “A Star Is Born”. This track follows Hercules as he swims through the River of Death to get to Meg’s soul; we think he’s going to die but then his thread won’t cut as he has proved himself a hero. It’s a fitting end to Hercules’ whole journey to becoming a “true hero”; it’s triumphant. Though I enjoy most tracks on the Hercules soundtrack, it is not my favourite of the music from the Disney Renaissance Era, as it doesn’t hit me emotionally like many others do. I wonder if that is because I’m such a big fan of Broadway musicals that perhaps the styles used in Hercules’ soundtrack just don’t suit my tastes as well.
RECEPTION
As well as the usual marketing tie-ins, such as Happy Meal toys for McDonald’s, Hercules was also marketed with a five-month promotional travelling tour of the USA, a tool used for other movies such as Pocahontas (1995), where guests were introduced to some of the characters and story of the film. The tour began in February 1997, with the movie first being released on 13th June 1997, with a wider general release from 27th June. Hercules had its premiere over the weekend of 13th-15th June 1997 at Times Square in New York City, where the Disneyland Main Street Electrical Parade even made an appearance alongside Hercules-themed floats, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the original parade.
Sadly, Hercules only made $250 million worldwide during its initial release, becoming the lowest-grossing film of any Disney Renaissance film and making much less at the box-office than had been expected. Competition at the box-office was blamed for Hercules’ lacklustre performance, with other family-friendly movies such as Men in Black (1997) and Batman & Robin (1997) being released at a similar time. It was also thought Hercules did not have as wide an appeal as other Disney movies such as Beauty and the Beast (1991), which had appealed to adults without children. The general consensus was that the film was fun and entertaining enough, with James Woods’ performance as Hades being highlighted by critics, but that it did not live up to the reputations of other Disney films that had come before it. Hercules was not considered to be visually exciting or appealing, with Scarfe’s animation style being criticised, as well as their use of CG. I will admit that the Hydra does not fit seamlessly with the 2D animation, and it is glaringly obvious that two different animation styles have been used in that scene. The music was not generally liked either, with the soundtrack doing little to impress. Hercules was meant to have an open-air premiere at the Pnyx in Athens, but the Greek government declined as the film was panned by the Greek public and media, who said that this was yet another example of their history and culture being distorted for entertainment.
Hercules was nominated for Best Animation Film at the Annie Awards, but lost to Warner Bros Cat’s Don’t Dance (1997), which I had never heard of before, but it was directed by Mark Dindal, who would later direct Disney’s The Emperor’s New Groove (2000) and Chicken Little (2005) and had worked as an Effects Animator at Disney in the 1980s. Space Jam (1997) was also nominated in that same category. But Hercules did win Annie Awards for Directing, the Character Animation of Hades, and the Effects Animation. Hercules also won the Best Animation award at the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards and Best Sound Editing – Animated Feature at the Golden Reel Awards.
The movie would make more money for the Disney Company during its subsequent re-releases. For any fans of the original iteration of the British children’s programme Art Attack (1990-2007), hosted by Neil Buchanan, you’ll be pleased to know that he can teach you how to make a Greek Urn on the 2002 UK DVD Release of Hercules; I learnt that this week! I also found that Hades has a small End Credits appearance, just a voice-over where he says that everyone got something except him, but that nobody is listening to him; I had never heard that before this week. I don’t know why it was put in, unless it was to let everyone know that Hades didn’t die in the River of Death after being punched him into it…
LEGACY
After Hercules was released, an animated television series was created, which follows Hercules through his training to be a hero, called Disney’s Hercules: The Animation Series (1998-1999); it ran for two seasons. Many of the voice actors returned, except Danny DeVito so Phil’s voice was provided by Robert Costanzo, who reprised this role on many occasions after the series. Zeus was also voiced by Disney voice actor, Corey Burton. James Woods even won a Daytime Emmy award in 2000 for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program for his vocal performance of Hades; see, people really love Hades! A direct-to-video film was released in 1999, which featured three episodes of the television series with some linking narrative. The majority of the voice cast was involved again, as well as other names such as Brad Garrett, Eric Idle and Jodi Benson. Another direct-to-video sequel, titled Hercules II: The Trojan War, looking at the story of Helen of Troy, was cancelled when John Lasseter came in to Disney as the Chief Creative Officer in 2006; many other direct-to-video sequels were cancelled at the same time. Helen of Troy actually appeared in the animated TV series, being voiced by Jodi Benson.
Another potential screen appearance is the upcoming live-action adaptation of Hercules, which has been in discussion for years but has not progressed much further than that since! Guy Ritchie, director of the live-action Aladdin (2019), is attached to the project, along with producers such as the Russo Brothers, who have worked on the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In December 2022, Ritchie said that he was planning for Hercules to be finished within the year of 2023, but nothing has been filmed yet, with no cast even announced, with only rumours that Ariana Grande and Taron Egerton are in talks to be cast as Meg and Hercules respectively being discussed recently. Danny DeVito is expected to reprise his role of Phil. The Russo Brothers also recently said that they wanted the film to be “inspired by TikTok” and what TikTok audiences want from a modern musical, saying they want Hercules to be “experimental”[10]. I’m not sure what any of that means, but I’m hoping this live-action film never happens, personally.
A new adaptation of Hercules, this time a musical, did actually occur, having its premiere at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park from 31st August to 8th September 2019 during the Public Theater’s Free Shakespeare In the Park event. Additional music for the musical was provided by Alan Menken and David Zippel. Not only was the singing voice of Hercules, Roger Bart, cast as Hades, but James Monroe Iglehart, the originating performer of the Genie in the musical production of Aladdin, was cast as Phil[11]. A revised version of the musical was performed at the Paper Mill Playhouse in New Jersey, with Iglehart returning as Phil, from 16th February to 12th March 2023.
At the Disney Parks, when Hercules was first released in 1997, they had their own wave of promotional activities. My family went to Walt Disney World Resort in Florida for the first time altogether in 1997 and I was told that there was lots of merchandise for Hercules at the hotel we stayed in, the All-Star Sports Resort, and that it was where my sister got a Megara Barbie doll. We also saw the Hercules Victory Parade at Disney’s MGM-Studios, now Disney’s Hollywood Studios, that same year, in October 1997. The Victory Parade ran from June 1997 to 1998, when it was replaced by the Mulan Parade. It featured a Zeus float with the Muses, a Phil animatronic on another, the Cyclops on a bike, Hades on his own float, with Pain and Panic around it, a Hydra float and a final float with Meg and Hercules on top, with Grecian-style cheerleaders in front. Every other park that was open at this time had its own version of this parade. At Disneyland, the Hercules’ Victory Parade began in June 1997 and ended in 1998, being replaced by the Mulan Parade just like Walt Disney World, however, its floats were slightly bigger, and more impressive, including a couple of Titans floats, a huge mosaic Zeus, and a Pegasus puppet. At Tokyo Disneyland, the parade was called Hercules the Hero and only ran from July to October 1997, and again, the float formation and order was slightly different. At Disneyland Paris, it was called Hercules Happening and ran from Summer 1997 to 1998. It was only a five-minute performance, with just two floats, though Hercules and Meg were sat atop a Pegasus statue. Specific end dates for all these parades are unclear.
Hercules and Megara did used to meet guests at the Disney Parks, however, are much rarer finds these days, with them being most prominent around the late-1990s to early 2000s. I definitely remember meeting Meg at MGM Studios once around the 2000s, but I’m not sure about Hercules. It seems that Hercules was spotted at Disney’s Hollywood Studios randomly in 2020, and that Megara was meeting guests alongside Hades, Pain and Panic, at the Rock Your Disney Side 24-Hour Event in May 2014. At the Disneyland After Dark: Sweethearts Nite in February 2020, Meg and Hercules were available to meet, with Hercules also having been seen at the Opa! A Celebration of Greece event in May 2013. Phil has also been available for meet-and-greets at the US Disney Parks but not for many years. It is unclear when or if these characters were spotted at Disneyland Paris, Tokyo Disneyland, Hong Kong Disneyland, or Shanghai Disneyland. These rare characters are more likely to be spotted at Special Events these days, or perhaps just randomly. Sometimes, Meg and Hercules may appear on the end of show riverboat alongside other Disney characters at the end of showings of Fantasmic!
The one character from Hercules that you are most likely to see, or even meet, is Hades, as he is a real fan-favourite Disney villain, for obvious reasons. Hades is frequently seen, with and without his sidekicks Pain and Panic, at the Disney Parks’ Halloween events, most likely within the parades or stage shows and at the US Disney Parks, however Hades did recently feature within the Halloween parades at Shanghai Disneyland and Hong Kong Disneyland. In 2014, at the Villains Unleashed event, Hades even got his own stage show to host at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, alongside Meg, Pain, and Panic! Hades can be heard, or seen, during many of the Disney Parks’ nighttime shows, usually whenever there is a scene featuring villains. The most obvious one of these is his frequent appearances during Walt Disney World’s version of Fantasmic! Hades also used to have an interactive game at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, called Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom. Using cards and interactive screens, guests could defeat Hades and the other Disney villains by doing quests around different lands of the Magic Kingdom. I liked watching that game – I’d never play because I can’t fight villains, especially not Hades; I love them too much – so I’m sad it’s gone now; it also gave you something else to do in the park if it was a busy day and queues were too long…It debuted in February 2012 and officially closed in January 2021, though I think once COVID-19 shut the parks, it didn’t reopen with them. There is one book featuring Hades and Megara, following on from the events of the movie, that I did enjoy and would like to mention. It’s called “Go the Distance”, written by Jen Calonita. It’s part of the “A Twisted Tale” series of books based on Disney characters and villains, but can be read as a standalone novel. Some of the other books like this I have read and really did not like, as it changed the characters’ backstories too much and didn’t make sense with the film, in my opinion, but this one was actually really good, probably because it takes place after the film.
Something that would’ve been cool at Walt Disney World that would’ve featured Hades was the discussed attraction Bald Mountain, another addition to the Disney mountains, and log flume attraction considered to take over the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea attraction within that area of Magic Kingdom’s Fantasyland, with plans for a whole Disney Villains area as well. Ride vehicles would have been modelled after the boats that travel down the River Styx, the entrance to the Underworld, in the Hercules film. During this boat ride, guests would interrupt a meeting of the most notorious Disney villains deciding who will lead their take-over of the Magic Kingdom. Once discovered, it would be a race to escape the villains, ending with a massive drop down the side of the mountain. This attraction was never built as Disney Imagineering had plans to build a whole Villains Park as another Walt Disney World theme park[12]. Spoiler alert: that never happened either. *Sigh*.
FINAL THOUGHTS
This just shows that the movie did become more popular after its official release, particularly with those who grew up in the 1990s. It is also thanks to Hercules that one of the most popular Disney Villains, potentially the most popular male Disney Villain, Hades, came to be, and he continues to be a main figure within Disney’s Halloween celebrations. I’d be much sadder about the lack of representation of Disney’s Hercules if it weren’t for the huge following that Hades has gained and the number of appearances he makes at the Disney Parks and within Disney merchandise!
Though Hercules didn’t live up to the success of some of the other Disney Renaissance Era films, the movie has still amassed many fans, with the 25th anniversary of the film being celebrated with various items of merchandise – I bought a statue of Hades and Meg, which sits proudly in my office, as well as a Christmas ornament of Hades towering over baby Hercules’ crib – along with special screenings of the movie, organised by the Official Disney Fan Club D23 in 2022. It’s one of my favourite Disney films, and I will continue to rewatch it and love it for many years to come.
REFERENCES
[1] Credit: Disney, “The Making of Hercules”, from Hercules (1997), 1-Disc DVD (2002).
[2] Credit: Disney, “Hercules Video Art Gallery”, from Hercules (1997), 1-Disc DVD (2002).
[3] Credit: Disney, Movie Surfers: Go Inside Hercules (1997).
[4] Credit: Jim Korkis, Everything I Know I Learned from Disney Animated Feature Films (2015), ‘Hercules’, pp. 103-105.
[5] Credit: Emily Whittingham, ‘Disney’s Hercules: 10 Things That Would Be Different If The Movie Was Mythologically Accurate’, ScreenRant.com, 16th July 2021.
[6] Credit: Carys Lloyd, ‘Disney’s Hercules and the false vilification of Hades’, TheBristorian.co.uk, 13th February (year unknown).
[7] Credit: Disney, “The Making of Hercules”, from Hercules (1997), 1-Disc DVD (2002).
[8] Credit: Disney, “The Making of Hercules”, from Hercules (1997), 1-Disc DVD (2002).
[9] Credit: Jim Korkis, Everything I Know I Learned from Disney Animated Feature Films (2015), ‘Hercules’, pp. 103-105.
[10] Credit: Rachel Sofaer, ‘Disney’s ‘Hercules’ Live-Action Remake: Director, Plot Details, and Everything We Know So Far’, Collider.com, 7th July 2023.
[11] Credit: Greg Evans, ‘’Hercules’ Musical Based On Disney Film Set For Shakespeare In The Park Staging’, Deadline.com, 6th February 2019.
[12] Credit: Jim Korkis, ‘A Friday Visit with Jim Korkis: The Missing Mountains of Walt Disney World’, YourFirstVisit.net, date unknown.
The Disney Purist 