You’ll understand if you’ve ever read the original Grimms’ Fairy Tales that Disney is able to retell or recreate old tales so that kids can enjoy them without being traumatized, and their lessons are still very relevant. This is one of the reasons that their classic animated feature films are so timeless, along with their heroic portrayals of male Disney characters. These tales typically revolve around one or more characters who must triumph over an epic-scale challenge, which frequently entails overcoming a personal weakness. Usually, this is accomplished by learning via hardship versus a powerful foe. In the simplest terms possible, that is the hero’s journey.
As we grew up, we had many heroes to select from thanks to those beloved Disney Renaissance movies, but not all of them were ideal role models. Some male Disney characters were more heroic than others, sometimes because their tales permitted more heroic deeds and other times because the traditional heroic qualities simply didn’t play a significant role in their persona.
We’ll go over six of the Disney Renaissance’s animated human heroes to determine which ones displayed more heroic behavior than others. We want to know which male Disney characters, in light of their circumstances, showed the greatest heroism; we want to know which ones showed courage, compassion, and humility; we want to know what or who they saved and why.
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6. Li Shang
Shang is a warrior who is prepared to risk his life to protect China. He is bolder and more unselfish than most other male Disney characters just by virtue of that. That was evident throughout Mulan, particularly when he was down to just a small group of men to lead him in battle against Shan Yu’s horde in the frigid mountains. He showed no fear, nor did he give up. He simply kept on commanding as best he could.
He was not a mindless obeyer. Though reluctantly, he spared Mulan when she was found and later stood up for her against Chi Fu’s obviously misogynistic remarks. Even though he didn’t win the battle against Shan Yu, he was crucial to the outcome.
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5. Hercules
Naturally, the primary character of Hercules will rank close to the top of this list because the entire plot of this demigod is centered around what it means to be a true hero. In the first and second acts of the movie, Herc did a lot of heroic things, but as his father Zeus pointed out, none of them were heroic deeds because none of them called actual sacrifice, real bravery, or—perhaps most importantly—total selflessness. His goal was to reach Mount Olympus as one of the bravest male Disney characters.
Without his superhuman power, he faced the Cyclops at Thebes, and that was his first truly heroic deed because he knew he would not survive the battle. Going into the Underworld to save Meg and risking his life in that horrific maelstrom was his second and most valiant deed. He was obviously not doing this for himself. It was almost entirely for someone else, though. He is one of the greatest Disney heroes because of this and the fact that he defeated Titans and preserved the Olympian gods.
4. Milo Thatch
Take a moment to think about Milo Thatch’s pre-Atlantis persona. He was a modest but talented geographer and linguist, and his fellow museum employees saw him as little more than a bothersome nuisance. He demonstrated a great deal of wisdom and compassion during the Atlantis quest, but nothing nearly as valiant as the traits he displayed after Rourke stole the Heart of Atlantis.
He almost immediately got into one of the Atlantean vehicles and readied himself to face Rourke and his soldiers. He then escaped Kida’s captivity by leading a small battalion via a volcano. It required a lot of bravery, placing Milo among the most heroic male Disney characters. Not Milo, but the kind you’d anticipate from someone like Rourke or anyone else on that trip. However, Milo put his life in danger for the Atlanteans as well, who depended on the crystal’s strength to survive, not just for Kida. He ultimately saved an entire city, and it was immensely selfless.
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3. Aladdin
Unquestionably, Aladdin has always behaved selflessly. When our hero stole bread at the beginning of Aladdin—which is understandable given that it was obviously a matter of survival—he managed to get away from the guards after a protracted chase and dance routine, but not before giving that same bread away to starving children, just before sparing those same kids from a cruel whipping from a haughty noble.
Of course he is imperfect, but he remains one of the most heroic male Disney characters. In an attempt to be closer to Jasmine, he begged the Genie to transform him into a prince, but after losing everything—including the Genie—he was left with no choice but to make do with what he had. A powerful sorcerer faced off against an ordinary human. He took the action to save Jasmine and the rest of Agrabah from that crazy person’s grasp. He has demonstrated that he possesses many of the characteristics of a real hero.
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2. Tarzan
Apart from his apparent ability to skate across whole canopies, Tarzan is just an ordinary, extremely physically fit person. That makes his bravery even more amazing, like the time he defeated Sabor with only his bare hands or the time he defied his adult male gorilla adoptive father, Kerchak. Tarzan is certainly a brave man, as anyone would be after spending a lifetime in the cruel jungle, and one of the most heroic male Disney characters.
Tarzan quickly returned to the forest after his allies Tantor and Terk saved everyone from Clayton’s ship. Tarzan was well aware of the kind of weapons Clayton had available. He didn’t care that he might not have support when he sacrificed his life to save his family. Although Tarzan has a noble and heroic heart, there are still several Disney characters who are more heroic than him.
1. Prince Naveen- Most Heroic Male Disney Characters
In The Princess and the Frog, the frog prince is far from a heroic figure at first, but he eventually demonstrates that, while leading a somewhat hedonistic life, he has a truly noble heart and is one of the best male Disney characters. Even though he was unable to defeat the Shadow Man, he demonstrated his readiness to sacrifice part of his happiness in order to secure Charlotte’s acceptance into Tiana’s restaurant by proposing to her.
Not to be forgotten, he also took a chance on his life as a frog, physically jumping into action to save Tiana from those swamp-dwelling hunters who were hunting for supper. Even if it’s not the most heroic scene in any of Disney’s animated films, it still deserves a spot on this list.