Disney’s Most Underrated Villains

There are so many characters to love in Disney’s live-action and animated movies. The princesses are iconic, the sidekicks are funny and adorable, and the villains are fantastic. And, I’ll admit it, I think the best characters are the villains. Sure, Tiana is great, but how iconic is Scar singing “Be Prepared” in The Lion King? Or Dr. Facilier singing about his friends on the other side? Disney villains can make a film truly memorable. However, some villains seem forgotten by Disney fans. Most people know villains like Ursula, the Evil Queen, Jafar, Captain Hook, and Scar, but there are so many more that are just as amazing.

Let’s take a look at some of Disney’s most underrated villains.

Madame Medusa

What kind of person befriends and then kidnaps a young orphan girl? Who then tells that girl that no one will ever love her, and that she’ll never get adopted? Finally, what kind of person forces that girl to ride a bucket into a cave to recover a massive diamond, not caring if the girl lives or dies? Well, if you’ve watched The Rescuers, then you know that Madame Medusa is the answer to all those questions.

Madame Medusa was the villain in the 1977 animated film, The Rescuers. Medusa is always stylish in her red dress and heavy makeup (those eyelashes!). She takes no crud from anyone, and Mr. Snoops is her (mostly loyal) underling. The best part about her is that she has two very unexpected sidekicks — her massive alligators, appropriately named Brutus and Nero. She doesn’t seem like the type who would be taken down by two little mice, but with Disney, good usually triumphs over evil.

Professor Ratigan

“Oh Ratigan! Oh Ratigan! The rest fall behind. To Ratigan! To Ratigan! The world’s greatest criminal mind!”

You may already know that I think The Great Mouse Detective is one of Disney’s most underrated movies. So, in line with that, Professor Ratigan is definitely one of Disney’s most underrated villains. Voiced by the incomparable Vincent Price, Ratigan is just as formidable as Moriarty from the Sherlock Holmes novels. Not only is he always impeccably dressed, but he has a giant cat named Felicia who will eat dissenting mice on command!

Add to that, Ratigan wants to kill the Queen, so he can rule all Mousedom. He has no problem kidnapping the only child of a single father and toy maker in order to make his goals a reality. Ratigan is narcissistically evil and is one heck of a villain.

Madam Mim

Who has purple hair, a wicked sense of humor, and can turn into a dragon on command? Madam Mim from The Sword in the Stone, of course! Overall, The Sword in the Stone does not get all the love it should. Merlin is a fun wizard, who also helps Arthur learn the hard way. The movie also has one of those great sidekicks — Archimedes, a no-nonsense owl who somehow manages to put up with Merlin all the time. Add in Madam Mim, and you have an absolutely fantastic film.

Thankfully, it seems that the Madam Mim love may be growing a little more each day. At the 2022 Oogie Boogie Bash in Disney California Adventure at Disneyland Resort, Madam Mim was one of the new character treat trails. Disney fans and Oogie Boogie Guests loved seeing an underrepresented character be brought to the Parks for the exclusive event.

Percival McLeach

One of the best things about McLeach is his pet monitor lizard, Joanna. But it’s not just a great sidekick that helps make a villain memorable. They also need to have some truly dark tendencies. Percival McLeach from The Rescuers Down Under. First, he wants to capture a rare, giant golden eagle — Marahute — and her eggs and sell them to the highest bidder. Then, he tries to kill a young boy named Cody when he tries to protect Marahute and her eggs. McLeach ties Cody up and then hangs him over a crocodile pit as he taunts him by singing.

McLeach is a terrible person with an equally terrible agenda. Luckily, karma comes to get him, and not even Joanna is willing to go down with that ship.

Judge Claude Frollo

Speaking of terrible people, and rounding out the list is Judge Claude Frollo from The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Frollo is a Parisian Justice Minister who claims to be a man of god, but acts like anything but. The archdeacon of Notre Dame has to stop Frollo from killing baby Quasimodo after killing Quasimodo’s mother. Even the name he gives the baby is evil — Quasimodo means “half-formed”. He keeps Quasimodo locked in the bell tower of Notre Dame, convincing him that no one would ever care for him because of how he looked.

In addition to treating Quasimodo poorly, Frollo has also made it his mission to hunt down the gypsies in Paris and put them to death. He zeroes in on the beautiful Esmeralda, who he is attracted to, even though he knows he should not be. Thankfully, Quasimodo has a heart of gold and helps Esmeralda and her friends evade capture.

And there you have it! Some of Disney’s most underrated villains. They are dark, they are evil, and they are what make the Disney movies they are in so fantastic. Everyone has their favorite villain, and maybe one of the characters on this list is yours.

What Disney villains do you think are underrated?