A Disney Villains Retrospective, Part 16: Cruella de Vil (101 Dalmatians) 

I always forget Cruella is supposed to be the same age as Anita, she looks so much older. Probably bc of her smoking habit

I do love how any kind of girlboss ambitions for Cruella can be shot down by a single sentence: “she wants to kill and skin puppies”

I think what makes Cruella stand out is that she's the msot....down to earth and human of the 'classic' disney villains, or at least of the ones anyone cares about. She's not an evil queen or powerful sorceress, she's JUST a petty selfish asshole who would be otherwise a pure comedy villain were it not for her dark plans for the puppies.

Hah that scene from Twisted with the other villains being legitimately upset by Cruella actually made me laugh.

For some reason, (when i was a kid) I always thought Cruella and Madame Medusa were related. Maybe it WAS the character design, but if Cruella was intended for the part (to be in it and disney rejected sequels)...I see it now.

The fact that even the other famous villains find Cruella off-putting is actually pretty hilarious.

I think Disney Dan put it best; "Disney will never get over the fact that they don't own the rights to 'Wicked'". LOL, but true! =)

Today I learned that Jasper and Horace's last name is actually Badun. I always thought when they called them the "Baduns" in the movie, they were just saying "bad ones" with an accent. I'm sure the pun is intentional, but I thought they were just literally calling them "bad ones" the whole time. I love these videos!

Honestly, Villa DeVil is an incredible name for a mansion!

She is absolutely iconic and IMO the Glenn Close's versions costume design was up there in its own way with the Emma Stone remake. The fake nails glued to her gloves? Amazing

It's not important to the video, but in the Descendants novelization, Cruella is the only villain who is shown to be outright abusive to her kid. She makes Carlos sleep on a mattress on the floor and most of his room is filled with fur coats.

The 90s rewrite of Cruella being Anita's fashion boss was so ingrained that I was convinced Cruella the movie had changed them to be schoolmates, and was thrown off when watching the original recently to realize they were always schoolmates. It made sense to me that they were boss and employee, because Cruella does look decades older, and Anita feels compelled to allow Cruella to walk over her. I did play the Animated Storybook game a lot, so that was probably why the 90s lore erased the original's canon for me.

About Hunter learning to speak dog, he learned how because he was trapped inside that shipping container for several months. Also, I think the one from 101 Dalmatian Street may be one of the cruelest, since we see her skinning machine in action; how it absolutely eviscerated a stuffed toy as a demonstration. And she planned on making the parents watch what happened to their kids before doing to same to them.

it's always good to see someone talk about 101 Dalmatian Street, it's a fairly underrated show. it also has, in my opinion, the best version of Cruella outside the original movie. i'd say it's also worth mentioning how she treats Hunter, from her callous disregard for his wellbeing to her harsh insults to literally throwing him to the dogs (who seem about ready to rip him apart at that point).

Cruella (2021) drives up nuts because of the reasons you said, that's not Cruella. That's a character based off her. I don't care how good or bad the movie actually is, the biggest problem with it is this cash-grabbing attitude from the Iger era of Disney, where anything goes so long as a profit is turned. This can lead to masterpieces, but more often than not (especially late in his term), it's all just IP pasting over original stories that don't need that IP for the plot to work.

Dodie Smith actually got the idea for the story when a friend joked about Dalmatian spots making good fur coats.

Various observations: 1. I LIKED 'Cruella,' but I can understand why some people don't. 2. 'Once Upon a Time''s depiction of Cruella is quite possibly the scariest version of her I've ever seen in my life. The episode in which we learn her backstory (The cleverly- titled "Sympathy for the De Vil") plays out like a particularly well- made modern horror film. Let's just say that it's not just animal blood that she enjoys spilling. 3. Speaking of scary depictions of Cruella, I DO highly recommend the 'Disney Chills' books. They're scary in a 'Goosebumps' sort of way, well- written, handle the villains pretty well most of the time, and are something of a novelty in that they DON'T end happily ever after. In the one involving Cruella, 'Be Careful What You Wish Fur,' the young protagonist Delia's final fate is so disturbing, I'm honestly surprised the author used it in a book aimed at kids.

its unfortunate that the live action remakes are so scared to make them bad, they only make them "bad"

There was a book I never hear anyone mention and I’m starting to feel like I’m the only one who read it. It was like all the Disney villains backstories from when they were kids and it had Cruella in there showing her as a child with a hunter for a father and a fashionista mother. It was called Disney Villains Top Secret or something

It's kinda interesting how Disney has been trying to make the dalmatians more antagonistic in some live action media: first once upon a time with Cruellas mother scaring her with dalmatians, and Cruella 2021 with the baroness's dalmatians killing her mother

Brilliant episode, I realized in her animation appearance her voice always had that upper class tone, she’s a wonderful villain cause she has certain aspects that people could relate to, we might have that fashionable friend or know somebody who’s a bit malicious in terms of business. I’m ready for Shere Khan’s episode cause I’d like to hear your opinion on The 2016 remake’s take on him

Fun fact a friend of mine has pointed out: What makes the Once Upon a Time interpretation interesting is the fact that the show has put an emphasis on, evil isn’t born, it’s made. Cruella is an exception to this rule.

definitely one of the scariest of the Disney villains, especially toward Dalmatians. Her original appearance was iconic as well as Glenn Close's portrayal of Cruella in the live action 101 Dalmatians and 102 Dalmatians, also 101 Dalmatians the series version of Cruella did come off as pretty comical thanks to April Winchell's voice acting of her. Also, the Disney Chills novel featuring Cruella haunting her own coat was creepy.

I will give credit to Emma Stone because she did a surprising good job as her role as "Cruella DeVil", and before she was the famous fashion designer/dognapper she was the recognizable voice role of "Eep Crood" who is the main protagonist in the DreamWorks Animation Franchise "The Croods".

You're so right about the live action movie, and seeing it embraced by younger people on social media as this "yass kween" masterpiece of empowerment, to the point of seeking out people criticizing it to attack them, has been disappointing. To put it mildly. Maybe if they HAD emulated The Joker and made it clear that you weren't supposed to sympathize with her slide into villainy, it wouldn't have been such an embarrassment. EDIT: 37:31 - I will not stand for this sphynx cat slander! They are giant snuggle machines that only LOOK mean!

The only way I can reconcile the movie "Cruella" is as a film commissioned BY Cruella herself to try to sanitize her own image- that is, it may include snippets of truth such as her vendetta against the Baroness, but would generally be a rewrite of her story meant to portray her in the best possible light. One of the things I appreciated in her portrayal in Once Upon a Time is that she was one of the few villains to NOT get a redemption or a truly sympathetic backstory- in fact, they even gave us a fake-out where she seemed to have a horrible backstory but in reality had been murderous all along, and delighted in it. This is far more in line with how villainous she'd have to be to happily want to poach puppies.

''George Costanza dog isn't real, he can't hurt you'' George Costanza dog: 15:05

Memo to myself: Go rewatch 101 Dalmatians, the animated series. I remember I enjoyed it a lot as a kid and the few scenes I saw on this video brought a smile on my face.

41:42- The Glenn Close version of Cruella did in fact meet with guests at the American theme parks (at least at Disney's MGM Studios). I have a tape of some cable preview event that Time Warner Cable of Orlando did at MGM Studios that featured an appearance of that version of Cruella. I need to totally upload that one day. 45:31- Joe Exotic?

I like that the series gets its due, as it tends to get a lot of hate. Does it have its problems continuity wise? Sure. But it could be hilarious too, like Cruella opening her own Disney World parody theme park (Cruella World - word play again) as a front for an oil drilling scheme that had attractions like The Country Underwear Jamboree. Its not too different from what would be done with Hook in the Neverland Pirates show years later in that it just clearly has fun putting the villain in unusual or contemporary situations just to see what hilarity will ensue. Also, Ivy's design looks like an early prototype of Penny Proud only "evil" (notice how her pigtails turn to horns whenever she's doing something evil or blackmailing her aunt).

You know...when you explain Crewel like that...he sounds awfully kinky, and it only gets worse when you figure out that he forces his students to call him "Master." But I swear he's not walking school violation like all that sounds than it sounds and acts professionally around the kids. (I hate to be pedantic, but Crewel teaches alchemy in the Japanese version and "potionology" in the English version, not science.)

Thank you for bringing up 101 Dalmatian Street... those folks behind it did a great job of bring back the monster she was in the first film... and then turning it to 11.

I had the same hesitation about Cruella (2021), but the film won me over. It's definitely not the same character as the original, but I think the best of the Disney live-action remakes are the ones that treat the animated films as lore to be played with rather than as a template they need to follow, and I think Cruella did that well. Great video, as always!

Good job referencing Starkid's "Twisted" musical! It's *so* good, and that line from Cruella is hilarious!

I’ll be honest I wasn’t exactly bothered by the take away in 102 dalmatians, because well it’s true. While everyone is capable of changing, not everyone wants to. Ultimately they have to want to change. If they’re content with how things are, then they won’t change. I feel about the same way about this is when people suggest the idea of Lila from miraculous getting a redemption. She enjoys everything she does too much to even consider it and has been offered redemption several times, but has refused. (Not to mention her constant sexual-harassment to Adrien definitely puts me off of the idea of her getting a redemption…)

The best Disney villian in the silver age of Disney❤🎉

Such a icon. Your Disney Villains videos are so enjoyable and rewatchable. Keep up the good work! ❣️

colin talking about starkid makes me so happy

37:31: Colin: Cuddles, voiced by Rufus Jones. Shulk: tHaT's DuNbAn OvEr ThErE!

"No matter what backstory you try to make, Cruella will always be evil." I don't know if i'm ritting this right, but Philip from The Owl House reminds me about Cruella. Watching episode „Hollow mind" i was expecting an old fashioned villain backstory, but creators just tried to show me how Balos insane, racist, sociopathic, unapologetic and unopportunistic he is. And this always makes me think that if Luz would never know how messed up Balos is, then she could have never crossed paths with him.

I recognized J. Pat O’Malley as the voice of the colonel, cause his voice in that role sounds exactly like Colonel Hathi’s voice in The Jungle Book.

Great video I have to say. Yeah, the 101 Dalmatian Street Cruella was as creepy as can be. Then again she had to be near 100 years old at that point. Also, I know she was in prison on much more serious charges in both the live action and animated versions, but couldn't she have sued Roger for the video game and song respectively for defamation of character or unauthorized use of her likeness?

It's interesting to see that Cruella's mother in at least 3 incarnations has dogs as her minions.

I like the shows version of Cruella's backstory a Christmas Cruella. Especially when it's used as a explanation not a excuse. And also she gets Called out for her past actions and saying that she should consider others and seeing her act that way was kind of terrifying so I don't think this is out of character. I also like the fact that episode wasn't trying to teach her to love Christmas but rather tell her she should be a better person and consider others feelings for once.

I remember this Disney attraction. It was like a improv with a cartoon clip. The clip being 101 Dalmatian tv series and members of the audience were selected to play a role/ add sound effect . My mom took part in that voicing Cruella ( or did the evil laugh)

Out of all the live action remakes, I think 101 Dalmations is the only one I like and that's because it stays so close to the source material.

I wasn't for you to say, "bitches." That got me laughing.

I've watched this quite a few times, and every time Colin says about the Emma Stone Cruella film, 'Estella's mother is killed by a pack of CGI Dalmatians,' I chuckle to myself (the 'bitches' comment always makes me laugh too!)

I recently read that 101 Dalmatian Street became noncanonical. I like the original film, the Glenn Close films and the recent Cruella movie. They were fun to watch.

If I had a nickel for every cocky but conflicted blonde boy named Hunter who was the nephew of the main villain and starred in a modern Disney animated series, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice, right?

The interesting thing about Hunter being able to speak to dogs is that in descendants wicked world Carlos has that ability and he explains that it's due to his connection to cruella

Dude, Glenn Close's Cruella literally gave me NIGHTMARES as a child!! That original trailer of her just laughing in a flash of lightning after the uncomfortable slow motion flying puppies was the WORST. Even still gives me chills years later. I find it funny she voices the sweet motherly Kala and then becomes so terrifying!! Also the TWST shoutout made my day, super obsessed with that game

As seen I’ve always remembered from the first cartoon series, involve Cruella‘s mother. Where she finally explodes and let her know just how she truly feels about her, and the part I’ve always remembered is when the two big dogs then turn to hurt growl. She just looks at him dead in the eyes and says: “You two can be fixed.” Which is enough to scare the two big dogs away. I just always found that scene hilarious.

Thank you for going into so much detail on the two TV shows. I loved the first one growing up, including their take on Cruella and her family.

Wow, so Roger essentially made the original diss track! 😆

Waiting for a while for this one. Looking forward to it.

Another amazing job! Can't wait for the next one!

Jasper and Horace are my favorite henchmen! Thanks for giving them a fair part of the video.

Cruella is becoming one of my favorite Disney Villains, and I have this retrospective in part to thank for it. Thank you. It’s amazing how enjoyable her character can be. That first clip from the 90’s cartoon is gold.

Happy Anniversary, 101 Dalmatians.

I’m obsessed with Twisted!! So glad to see you mention it here!

Another awesome episode in this retrospective

"Ninety-nine percent"? I see what you did there. I like that the direct-to-video sequel has Curella getting sent to an insane asylum. Just feels right, y'know? I once saw somebody claim that Cruella's becoming obsessed with Lars' painting spots was like having a movie where Gargamel gets over his obsession with Smurfs by dating a woman whose favorite color is blue. If the thing with the evil Dalmatians in "Cruella" wasn't supposed to be the explanation for Cruella's hatred of Dalmatians, what was the point of including it in the first place? I'm confused. Somehow, I can't picture Cruella running a toy company. And on a somewhat unrelated note, I wonder what actor has voiced the most Disney villains...

I am so happy that this episode came out today. These whole series is so, so good. 😭

Can't believe I'm here this early! Super hyped to continue this series

Great video, and I cannot wait for Mad Madam Mim. She may only be in the movie for a few minutes and she may be totally irrelevant to the overall plot, but she’s so wonderfully entertaining that she’s my number one favourite Disney Villain.

Another great video to watch on my way home from work. Keep them coming Colin 😉

Heck yeah this was fun! I just subbed to a channel called SpeekyGeeky and they pointed me in your direction, I think they thought because I liked their nerdy deep dives I would also like your content. And yup, they clearly had my number in that regard. I've got a lot of catching up to do here it seems, lots of cool episodes to watch between both your channels now. Glad they suggested yours, it's easily just as fun as theirs. So yeah, this was an easy sub! I'll have to thank SpeekyGeeky too, it was a great suggestion!

Cruella is personally one of my favorite villains! Great video!

I love these videos you do man. They put me in a good ol' Disney mood.

Sucks 101 Dalmatian Street got cancelled and never got a second season, i enjoyed the return of Cruella and modern contemporary take on the 101 dalmatians, and the London setting and the main 2 characters!

I love this series so much I could list to this stuff for hours

Terrific vid, per usual!

22:01: It's kinda crazy when you think of it. Maleficent and Cruella are major polar opposites in terms of their alignments, and how they are depicted based on their respective source materials. Maleficent: based on a fairy character who cursed Aurora, and is not given a major role in the story outside of that curse. Disney adapted it into a villainess with a name to go with it. Re-adapted for a modernized Live Action film in 2014, based on the general idea that it was the humans who are in the wrong for lack of empathy based on who they invited. Her Live Action depiction, for better or worse, is more like her original fairy tale counterpart, thereby having a better reason to earn that anti-hero status in a reboot. Cruella DeVil: Based on a character in a story from the 20th century, Walt Disney and Dodie Smith embraced their creative collaboration to translate Cruella as an evil person as she was in the book. When re-adapted to a modernized woke film in 2021, Cruella was never like her book counterpart, as Dodie Smith intended Cruella to act like her namesake by being evil from the very start. That's the power of beneficial adaptations; if you cared about the source material, you have to care about the specific details.

As far as 101 Dalmatians material goes, I've seen the original Disney animated movie, the live-action remake with Glenn Close, and the 90's animated series. Never saw any of the sequels, spin-offs, reboots, or that live-action Cruella movie (though I did hear about her "tragic backstory" which is just so head-slappingly stupid that I can't believe they actually went there). It's funny how not only is Cruella a constant in all of this material, but so are Jasper and Horace, who came off as hired goons in the original movie but are apparently hired full-time as Cruella's lackeys for some reason. Not that I'm complaining, the two are hilarious together, I just wonder why Cruella bothers with them most of the time. As for Cruella herself... Well, first of all, that name is brilliant. "Cruella de Vil"... It took me an embarrassingly long time to realize the "Devil" part in her name. Second, it's hard to pin down what's so compelling about Cruella, but I think it's her personality; she's vain and fashion-obsessed, but also kind of crazy? Like, for me, the most memorable parts about her is her losing her losing her cool when Roger refuses to sell the puppies, her flipping out on Jasper and Horace not taking their situation seriously, and basically any time she's driving, ESPECIALLY the final chase scene where she just completely loses it in pursuit of the moving truck caring the Dalmatians. Of course there's also her introductory scene, in which she doesn't even bother to hide her unpleasant personality, it's amazing how much Anita is willing to put up with when it comes to Cruella, given that she ruins one of her cupcakes and drops ashes into her tea. Her obsession with fashion is a nice compliment to her vain personality, as if she thinks she can make up for how terrible she is by at least looking fashionable. All that said, I think an underrated aspect of her personality is how petty and spiteful she is. She could EASILY make a Dalmatian-skinned coat without having to resort to stealing the puppies Roger and Anita have, but because they blew her off, she hires Jasper and Horace to take them. This ends up causing more problems for her in the long-run, though, since the police ended up being more persistent about this than she realized, so despite Jasper saying that they'd just barely make half a dozen coats with 99 puppies, she decides to settle for that in order to avoid being caught. I almost want to think that part of the reason she really loses it towards the end of the original movie is because she realizes the Dalmatians are outwitting her (and Jasper and Horace) and wants to get back at them the same way she got back at Roger and Anita, only to crash and burn in the end. With such a personality, it's no wonder Disney kept bringing her back with more Dalmatians material, though I get the feeling Disney also did a lot of 101 Dalmatians stuff because of how marketably cute the puppies are. Still, Cruella makes a really good antagonist, moreso then a generic dog-catcher would (as pointed out by that kid testing Roger's video games in the Glenn Close live-action remake). It's no wonder why she's considered one of Disney's best villains.

Thank you for the new video! 👍

I am new to your channel and I must say that the amount of detail you put into these retrospectives is amazing! What brought me to this video is my love for Cruella De Vil and she will always be my favorite which is why I'm grateful you dedicated a whole video to her 🖤🤍

43:38 loved that game as a kid. The song about the dogs getting dirty and Horace and Jasper's villain song were so catchy

Perfect Timing since The Disney Meet and Greets are up close again!

Love the Disney Chills books! They are very much like Goosebumps

Someone shared this with me and I plan on watching a bunch more of this series! Can't wait for you to get to Madame Medusa

You didn't mention how at the end of Patch London Adventure when the 4 villains were running Jasper picks up Lil Lighting and holds him rather than chuck him back .

32:19 - If Molegula from Psychonauts 2 would be Cruella's mother becouse of her towell dress, Raz's full name could be Razputin "De Vile" Aquato.

the one i am waiting for: MY CRUELLA. thank you

I never watched the Cruella movie. That character is not supposed to be related to, or a baddie. She didn’t need a backstory. She’s just evil and just supposed to be a villain. I never got the whole “revenge” aspect of it. Cruella always gave me the vibe she does things out of greed and narcissism.

I LOVED that storybook game! When I got to the part where the dalmatian puppies had to be covered in soot, I would try to count up to 99, but you didn't have to, and they stop appearing in the truck before you got that high. Maybe I was easily entertained, but it'll always have a special place in my heart.

Jean Rapsin and Tony Poup? Wow. I was thinking about Bill Nighy and Andy Serkins as Jasper and Horace, but those seem much better.

When re-watching 101Dalmations I began thinking about Cruella and realized that rationally speaking she's not a particularly powerful villain (just a crazy woman with money and a couple thugs) though I don't think little of her as a villain. I suspect that's partially because nobody fights against her. Cruella isn't a villain heroes fight, their only hope is to weather the storm while she throws herself at them again and again.

This man is saying everything I want to hear!

This was an Incredible Video for Cruella De Vil My Eighth Favorite Disney Villain. The Late Betty Lou Gerson (1914-1999) did a Legendary Performance Bringing Cruella De Vil to Life. You were right Glen Close as Cruella De Vil definitely was The Best Part of The Remakes. Emma Stone did a Phenomenal Performance Bringing a Younger Version of The 1961 One Hundred and One Dalmatian Version of Cruella De Vil and paying tribute to Betty Lou Gerson time as Cruella De Vil. Emma Stone Really Recaptured Everything about Betty Lou Gerson’s Cruella De Vil Performance. The Way she speaks her mannerisms and even her humor. I know that a lot of people that people didn’t like that The Live Action Disney Villains are getting a lot of Depth. But I love it because a lot of Villains do have their reasons why they are Evil. At The End of The Day Cruella De Vil is a Human Being and No One is Born Evil and Emma Stone’s Performance really shows that. Estelle Von Hellman/ Cruella De Vil is a Tragic Anti Hero with a Dark Side. Estella’s Dark Side is Everything The Baroness (Her Biological Mother) is but a Thousand Times Worse. Everything I have said about Emma Stone’s Version of Cruella De Vil is Why her Version of The Character Is My All Time Favorite Version of Cruella De Vil.

Love your content

Aw, that ending clip was cool lol

I loved the new movie. Not only with an original plot, but she stays evil. She doesn’t go good like Maleficent, she embraces her mad side. Which made me love her even more

26:11 this killed me. Just didnt expect this reaction at all

The Once Upon A Time Cruella is actually hilarious because she came in this season where her, Maleficent, and Ursula try to get a happy ending by seeking this magical author that wrote all stories into existence or whatever and what Cruella wants more than anything... spoilers if you care IS MURDER you see Cruella and this author had met before where he was swayed by her charm and he broke her out of the attic her mother was keeping her in. Then he gives her the power to control ALL FREAKING ANIMALS like there's a scene where she can put Maleficent to sleep if she's a dragon. Then he finds out uh-oh her mother was keeping her in the attic because she killed her dad and her mom's last couple other husbands and uh-oh she uses her new power to make her mother's dalmatians kill her and then uh-oh kills the dogs and makes a coat. So then the author literally writes that she can't kill. But doesn't take the powers away. Maleficent wants to reunite with her long lost daughter and Ursula wants to regain her voice and reunite with her father so Ariel's story for some reason, but no Cruella just wants to kill again.

The artist Lars became my favourite character immediatly when he concludes that he should paint the puppies instead what Cruella wanted.

I love these videos! I feel I can learn and get a lot of inspiration from the analyses. Also I'm not a Disney mega fan so I get blown away by a lot of the obscure stuff. (Although Horace and Jasper being brother is probably not even obscure 😭)

3:36 Cruella Deville 8:21 Horace and Jasper 9:52 Dirty Dawson 15:06 Lightning 17:48 Mr Skinner 23:32 The Baroness

Wish you'd mentioned more of Once Upon a Time's Cruella. That woman was RUTHLESS. Her origin episode starts by making her seem misunderstood and sympathetic. Turns out no, she's a complete psycho. She uses fake innocence to gain the power to control animals, under the guise of using them to escape from her controlling mother. Instead she uses it to get her mother's Dalmatians to kill her... Like tear her to shred not push her off a cliff.

One thing you didn't mention that in the 101 book there's a 4 adult dog. The dog Prince whom was book-Perditia's love mate. He's the one whom makes up the "1" in 101 so there's 97 puppies in the book that Cruella got only 82 of them (including book-Perdita's puppies) which were brought by Cruella.