Bestowed with superhuman strength, a young mortal named Hercules sets out to prove himself a hero in the eyes of his father, the great god Zeus. Along with his friends Pegasus, a flying horse, and Phil, a personal trainer, Hercules is tricked by the hilarious, hotheaded villain Hades, who's plotting to take over Mount Olympus!
Acting
James Woods improvised half his lines; Hades became the blueprint for charismatic villains.
Score
Gospel choir narrating Greek myth should not work this well. It absolutely does.
Production
Gerald Scarfe's angular character designs look like nothing else in the Disney canon.
Director
John Musker
Tate Donovan
Hercules (voice)
Josh Keaton
Young Hercules (voice)
Roger Bart
Young Hercules (singing voice)
Danny DeVito
Philoctetes (voice)
James Woods
Hades (voice)
Susan Egan
Meg (voice)
Bobcat Goldthwait
Pain (voice)
Matt Frewer
Panic (voice)
Rip Torn
Zeus (voice)
Samantha Eggar
Hera (voice)
Barbara Barrie
Alcmene (voice)
Hal Holbrook
Amphitryon (voice)
Paul Shaffer
Hermes (voice)
Amanda Plummer
Clotho (voice)
Carole Shelley
Lachesis (voice)
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The 'Zero to Hero' sequence was inspired by 1920s Art Deco and 1930s Hollywood glamour, not actual ancient Greece. The anachronism is the point.
Susan Egan originated Belle on Broadway before voicing Meg, making her the only performer to play both a Disney Renaissance princess AND the sassy deconstruction of one.
US
