10 Crazy Facts About Cartoon Characters That Will Mess You Up

A lot of us grew up watching these animated movies a hundred times. Some of us even remember every line by heart, so nothing can surprise us about these cartoons anymore, right? Well, it turns out that there are some unexpected facts about cartoon characters that not a lot of us know about.
Aside from the background stories we see on screen, these characters also have interesting stories to share about their creation as well. So let's uncover these fascinating facts about cartoon characters and learn more about them!

1. Scar from The Lion King was supposed to be a baboon

Source: Disney

The first draft of The Lion King is very different from what we know today. Instead of family dramas, the film centered around the fight between lions and baboons. The antagonist Scar wasn’t a lion but a baboon, and Rafiki was a cheetah. Simba also didn’t run away from the kingdom but became a “lazy, slovenly, horrible character” due to manipulations from Scar so he could be easily overthrown by his uncle after he grew.

2. Shrek was originally red-nosed, had no teeth, and lived in a dump

Source: DreamWorks Animation

Shrek looked very different in his original drafts. Before he became the ogre that we all knew and loved, prototype Shrek had a red nose, no teeth, wore sandals, and looked much goofier. In the book that the movie was based on, he was even able to breathe fire!
He didn’t start out with a lovely house in the middle of the swamp right away either. The original had him living in a dump near a village, but this idea was scraped off because it didn’t work with the image of a lonely and misunderstood character.

3. Diego was supposed to be dead at the end of Ice Age

Source: 20th Century Fox

In the first version of the movie, Diego wasn’t able to survive the injuries that he got from the fight with other saber-toothed tigers. However, Diego’s death was too tragic and it made the children that watched it cry. The creators changed his fate after that, not only keeping him alive but also turning him into an essential role in the next parts of the franchise.

4. A character from Little Women was the inspiration for Belle

Source: Disney

The creators of Beauty and the Beast were inspired by the 1933 first movie adaptation of Little Women, so they decided to base Belle’s characteristics and her independence partly on Jo March. Jo was the smartest one among her sisters. Similar to Belle, she loved reading and writing and didn’t like the idea of marriage.

5. The Beast became one because he didn’t love a fairy

Source: Disney

Speaking of facts about cartoon characters in Beauty and the Beast, The Beast didn’t become a monster because he was arrogant in the original version. In the book, the prince’s father passed away when his son was still young. The kingdom was ruled by his mother, who left the prince in the care of an evil fairy. The fairy loved the prince but got rejected. She didn’t take no for an answer and turned the prince into a beast to get back at him.

6. Jackie Chan was the voice of the Chinese version of Beauty and the Beast

Source: Disney

The Chinese version of Beauty and the Beast had Jackie Chan doing the voice acting for the Beast. To make sure he could do the musical numbers in the movie, he received music education at an opera school. Jackie was able to sing some of the songs, including the most famous one, “Beauty and the Beast” by Celine Dion and Peabo Bryson in the original version.

7. The fairies from Sleeping Beauty are based on elderly women

Source: Disney

The three fairies from Sleeping Beauty were inspired by elderly women in real life. The creators of the movie observed elderly ladies at wedding receptions and in grocery stores and they noticed that they all have some common key features in their behavior. They walked fast and wore hats no matter where they went. Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather in the movie also acted like this.

8. Rapunzel’s hair was designed based on art pieces

Source: Disney

The animators of Rapunzel wanted to create an effect that looked like oil paintings for their movie, and they know that they can achieve that through her hair. Rapunzel’s hair plays a key role in the story and it’s very important. It needs to be gorgeous, so they used Jean-Honore Fragonard’s paintings as a reference to create the hairstyle.

9. Elsa was based on Amy Winehouse

Source: Disney

In the first draft, many of Elsa’s features were based on the British singer Amy Winehouse, like her dark hair and big eyes. She also had a deep, soulful voice and dramatic mood swings. Her design was later changed, but the inspiration was still there in her big eyes and dramatic look.

10. The famous spaghetti moment and the kiss between Lady and the Tramp almost didn’t happen

Source: Disney

The spaghetti kiss is one of the most iconic movie moments in the movie industry, but it almost didn’t happen! Walt Disney didn’t dogs could have this kind of behavior and believed that animals sharing food couldn’t look elegant. Thankfully, Franklin Thomas’s draft of the scene was able to change his mind.
Those are some interesting facts about cartoon characters that you might not know before. Speaking of surprising backgrounds, there are many shows with original titles that are completely different from what we know today. Can you imagine that Star Wars is almost called The Adventures of Starkiller?