The Lion King (1994)
Scar (voiced by Jeremy Irons) in Disney’s 1994 animated feature THE LION KING is one in a long line of queer-coded villains in Disney films.
THE LION KING
1994. USA.
Directors: Roger Allers & Rob Minkoff
Screenplay: Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts & Linda Woolverton
Starring: Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Matthew Broderick, James Earl Jones, Jeremy Irons, Moira Kelly, Niketa Calame, Ernie Sabella, Nathan Lane, Robert Guillaume, Rowan Atkinson, Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin, Jim Cummings & Madge Sinclair
Queer-coded villains are nothing new. They really started to gain prominence in Hollywood films in the late 1930s when the USA hit a period of conservatism that forced a lot of silver-screen characters into the closet – occasionally allowing them to be more open, but generally as villains in film noir and horror.
Though indisputably a negative portrayal of queerness, the conversation around them has been shifting over the years. While we don’t necessarily want more of this type of character (though more nuanced portrayals are welcome), queer people have found power in reclaiming them. It’s not hard to see why either, as quite often they’re the most interesting characters in the films – and sometimes even get the best lines of dialogue.
Disney villains can be quite camp. Scar is no exception. He’s limp-wristed, overly dramatic, and in his musical number he flips his hair around as though he’s in a 90s shampoo commercial.
Interestingly, some of Scar’s qualities can be attributed to gay animator Andreas Deja – who helped create another queer-coded villain (Jafar) and aided in bringing some of Disney’s memorable muscle-men to the screen (Gaston, Hercules & King Triton etc.). In past interviews Deja has spoken about bringing queer elements to the characters he has worked on, and also how he has put aspects of himself into them as well.
When speaking with artist/writer Mike Thomas-Faria, Deja noted that while the work of animation is done by a team, sometimes "you do become the main actor and are responsible for the gestures and how the character moves."
It’s interesting that Scar’s camp qualities were removed in Disney’s 2019 remake. Some audiences even complained he wasn’t as interesting, or as fun, because of this. It shows that Disney is listening to the conversation, but what do you think? Do we need to fully cut out queer villains, or do we just need an addition of positive queer representation for balance?
THE LION KING, and its remake, are currently streaming on Disney+
