10 Beloved Disney Characters Who Had Serious Mental Health Issues

If you're talking to a tree and inanimate objects on a regular basis, there's probably a deeper, underlying problem.

by Baz Greenland
"Hello, I talk to a tree".
"My pet crow is my only friend and I want to kill everyone".
"I'm going to kill my brother and take over his kingdom."
If you heard these kind of comments from anyone in real life the chances are you"d call the police or arrange for them to be carted off to the nearest psychiatric hospital. Yet in the wonderful world of Disney, we encounter this all the time and don"t bat an eyelid. We"ll happily observe clear bouts of insanity and psychopathy just because it's a part of our childhood. Who are we to question a woman that shacks up with seven strangers and communicates with birds, deers and rabbits like they"re her only friends? The sad truth is, if you pick apart our favourite Disney movies you would discover a world wrought with insanity. Villains so deranged, Hannibal Lecter and Ernest Blodfeld would pale before them. Princesses that have clearly gone so far off the deep end that they'll need some fairly strong medication and years of therapy just to adjust back to real life. And just what is it with the relationships between humans and animal / inanimate objects in these films anyway? So today, allow us at Whatculture to destroy your childhood. Let us tear down those walls of denial as we shed light on many beloved Disney characters that are clearly insane. We"ve picked ten because, well, they're the strongest contenders of the bunch. But really you should be asking yourselves which beloved Disney characters are sane? We're sure you'll find yourself with a much shorter list than you expected. *Disclaimer, before you start asking about Disney owned-franchises like Marvel and Lucasfilm, we're going "Classic" Disney with this article. Otherwise we're sure we could fill up the list with 10 characters from those franchises alone! Click 'Next' to go to number 10...

10. Scar - The Lion King

Disorders: Antisocial personality disorder. Narcissistic personality disorder Scar's aggression towards his brother Mufasa goes far deeper than simple sibling rivalry; it stems from the deep rooted symptoms of his antisocial personality disorder, traits which can explain many of his 'despicable' actions. Scar has utter disregard and violation of the rights of others, he doesn't think twice about luring Simba into a trap that will kill him or throwing his brother off the cliff to his death. Added to that we have Scar's deep-seated narcissism; he is fiercely devoted to his own thirst for power. He might be aware of the destructive force of his power struggles on those around him but it doesn"t matter to him. As for his tyrannical leadership of the hyena population; Scar is arrogant and demanding and he expects everyone to follow his every whim, something that becomes apparent when he replaces his dead brother as king of the pride. In The Lion King, Scar simply didn't care about the wide-spread damage caused to the pride lands; if anything he was proud of the death and devastation, although a distorted view of action and consequence meant he didn't have the foresight to see that this would lead to a lack of food supply. A king, Scar most definitely doesn"t not make.

9. Captain Hook - Peter Pan

Disorder: Post-traumatic stress disorder. Poor Captain Hook; most of his issues can stem back to the horrific incident that occurred where Peter Pan chopped off his hand and fed it to a crocodile. In fact, given those tragic events, is it any wonder that he continues to lash out at Peter and his own crew in a desperate effort to maintain some measure of control? What's even worse is that this crocodile continues to hunt poor Hook. With the alarm clock in its belly, its presence is always accompanied by a tick-toking, sending the captain into blind panic. It's a perpetual state of terror, fuelling his PTSD as he relieves that terrible event. It isn't just the crocodile that causes him to break; any ticking clock will inflict the trauma. It's this disorder that prevents him from breaking the vicious cycle he has found himself in; hunting Peter Pan, desperate to exact revenge. He should be doing what any good pirate captain would do and set sail across the sea in search of plunder. His trauma reaches breaking point at the end of Peter Pan, where he loses his boat and is chased by the vicious crocodile across the sea. Listen to those screams - this is a man hunted to breaking point.

8. Elsa - Frozen

Disorder: Agoraphobia Elsa's powers can cause a very real threat to the people around her, so much so that you could argue that her paranoia early in the film is fully justified. That being said, the two powerful events in her childhood; almost killing her sister Anna and the death of her parents at sea, are the triggers for a very clear disorder, her agoraphobia. The young princess shuts herself away, refusing even to see her sister in the years leading up to her coronation. That event itself is an obvious sign of distress for Elsa; she spends the ceremony and the celebration afterwards in a state of half-panic. Shutting herself away seems the only solution available to protect Anna and her subjects and as a result, her powers almost destroy her. When Elsa plunges the kingdom of Arendelle into deepest winter, she flees, but as soon as she is isolated from everyone she returns to her old habits, creating the ice palace and shutting herself inside. It is only when Anna shows her that their sibling love is greater than any threat does she finally break the cycle, realising that in gaining acceptance from her people that she doesn't need to hide away any longer.

7. Everyone In The Hundred Acre Wood - Winnie The Pooh

Disorders: Schizophrenia. Impulsive and obsessive fixations. General anxiety disorder. Obsessive compulsive disorder. Depressive disorder. Attention defecit disorder How anyone functions in the Hundred Acre Wood is frankly a miracle; particularly since the Canadian Medical Association opened our eyes with an article in 2000 that confirmed just how sick our beloved characters are. Perhaps there is an unhealthy mix of co-dependency and denial. Perhaps these characters don"t even exist; the obvious answer is that Christopher Robin is a schizophrenic and they all exist as delusions in his mind. But if we put that disturbing though to bed for a second, let"s look at each character in turn... Winnie The Pooh: Impulsive and Obsessive Fixations - he climbs a tree to raid a bee hive just to fed his obsession for honey, regardless of the consequences. Piglet: General anxiety disorder - he lives in constant stress, worried over the slightest every day activity that the average person wouldn't find stressful. Rabbit: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - his house has to be clean, clean, clean! He inflicts this military dictator-ism on his 'friends', their feeling be damned! Eeyore: Depressive Disorder - The most blindly obvious issue of the all, he lives his life in constant pessimism, unable to appreciate even the smallest things in life. Tigger: Attention Deficit Disorder - Seriously, he can't sit still. He bounces through his friend's lives like a tornado, causing chaos wherever he goes!

6. Jafar - Aladdin

Disorder: Sociopathy The majority of Disney villains are sociopaths. Antisocial, lacking any sense of moral responsibility or social conscience and whose behaviour often dovetails into criminal activities, they will none the less be charming and manipulative in order to achieve their goals. Of all the villains, Jafar is absolutely the top of the food chain when it comes to all these traits. In his guise as the Royal Vizier of Agrabah, Jafar is perfectly suited to carry out his amoral schemes. He pretends to bow and whimper to the sultan and he has no qualms about sending innocents to their death in pursuit of the lamp within the Cave of Wonders. Jafar manipulates Aladdin in the guise of the old man, once he learns that the titular hero is the one who can retrieve the lamp, all the while lying to Jasmine but telling her he had already executed him. When his true colours are revealed, Jafar becomes the monster we all suspected, imprisoning the Sultan and his daughter, taking the lamp and making each wish more greater than the last in pursuit of power. He views himself superior the genie, a gloated assumption that becomes his downfall when he becomes trapped within the lamp. This sociopath will stop at nothing to get what he wants; his plotting and scheming are more dangerous than an openly aggressive villain.

5. Pocahontas - Pocahontas

Disorder: Schizophrenia Anyone who regularly chats to a tree for advice is clearly facing some serious mental health issues, but for Pocahontas, a conversation with Grandmother Willow is far from the end of her delusions. This native American princess also happens to shamanic powers, can communicate with animals and spirits, speak in unknown languages and has prophetic dreams. The sad truth is poor Pochaontas is a schizophrenic. Wandering off from her tribe, she spends her days playing out her delusions in the wilderness of rural Virginia and the shock announcement that she is to be married to one of her father's warriors only increased the intensity of them. Is it any surprise that 'Grandmother Willow' convinces her to follow her 'own path'? The arrival of John Smith and the settlers only confounds the issue further. Facing strangers from another land, people who are utterly different to Pocahontas and her tribe, only makes her situation worse. The line between reality and delusion is clearly blurred. As for John Smith, is he suffering from delusions or is it something much more insidious? Listening to her 'colours on the wind' song and having an awkward introduction to Grandmother Willow, perhaps he simply plays along just to satisfy his lust for this native American princess, all so he can claim her as his wife and take her back to England as his exotic bride. Pocahontas isn't such a sweet love story now, is it?

4. Cruella De Vil - 101 Dalmatians

Disorder: Psychopathy To be the top of the food chain, to reach the pinnacle of your career, to have success over others, you have to be the best of the best and sometimes a psychopathic personality is a great advantage as you quickly climb the ladder. After all, how do you beat your competition if you have any empathy for them? How do you stand out for promotion if you are not bold and uninhibited in equal measure? Think about that when you talk to your boss on Monday Cruella is absolutely a psychopath. She lusts for power, wealth and luxury and does not let the feelings of others, not even high-school friend Anita, get in her way. She has no empathy, no consideration; she wants and she takes. The fact that she's willing to skin 99 puppies just to have a new Dalmatian coat...well you know what they say about the trend between killing animals and people; animals are just the first steps towards something much darker. Cruella is also cruel (she mocks Roger's music career in front of him and Anita) and prone to outburst of violence (she is downright demented when she chases are the truck containing the puppies, ramming them off the road). It's these traits that transferred so wonderfully to the live action version of 101 Dalmatians. Glenn Close's Cruella is the head of a fashion house and has used her psychopathic traits in her rise to power.

3. Snow White's Step Mother / Evil Queen - Snow White And The Seven Dwarves

Disorders: Narcissistic personality disorder, delusions and paranoia The Evil Queen might be one of the most mentally disturbed characters in all of Disney lore. Like Scar in The Lion King, her narccistic personality means she is utterly devoted to her thirst for power, putting herself above all others, even to the extent that we never see her govern her own kingdom. The queen is obsessed with beauty and her passion to be the "fairest of all" is what leads her to plan the murder of her step daughter without any remorse. However, Scar has nothing on the unravelling mental state of this woman. She suffers intense delusions, starting into a mirror day after day, believing it speaks to her, reaffirming her belief that she is the most beautiful person in her kingdom. Intense paranoia also has its grip on the queen; she forces Snow White to become a bedraggled servant just to maintain her status and cannot shut out her doubts when her step daughter encounters the prince. On the grip of madness she orders the huntsmen to cut out Snow's heart and when that is revealed to have failed she take matters into her own hands, transforming into the witch just to get close enough to Snow to poison her. It is this madness that sends her over the edge...literally...as she dies screaming and haggard over the cliff. It makes Meg Ryan"s pouty lips or Jackie Stallone"s meting face seem absolutely normal compared to the obsession with beauty this queen has!

2. Maleficent - Sleeping Beauty

Disorder: Borderline personality disorder The greatest Disney Villain of all time, Maleficent is the embodiment of pure evil; seeking to destroy anything and anyone who stands before her. She inflicts a curse of King Stefan's kingdom by tricking his daughter into touching a spindle and sending everyone to sleep. She torments a captured Prince Philip with visions of a horrific future. Oh, and she turns into a badass fire breathing dragon. But is she a vindictive, foul-tempered, violent sadist because she is evil, or is it something more? Perhaps the real truth is that she acts the way she does because she is mentally unstable; the sad reality is that Maleficent has borderline personality disorder. Let's take a look at some of the symptoms of this illness... Intense fears of abandonment; perhaps the events of Sleeping Beauty would have been averted had Maleficent simply been invited to Aurora's christening. Intense anger at perceived criticism or hurtfulness; again, most people would voice their opinions or simply stay away; Maleficent inflicts a curse on Princes Aurora and the entire kingdom. Obsessive personality and violent mood swings; Maleficent doesn't give up simply because Aurora is hidden away from sixteen years. She is relentless in her pursuit of the princess, striking out violently at anyone that angers her, particularly her goons and she's a real dragon when she gets really angry. Perhaps if Flora, Fauna and Merryweather actually dealt with the issues at hand rather than devoting their time to opposing poor, unstable Maleficent, things may have turned out very differently.

1. Ariel - The Little Mermaid

Disorders: kleptomania. Body dysmorphic disorder Snow White might shack up with seven complete strangers and sing to woodland creatures, a disturbing trait she shares with Princess Aurora. But neither have anything on Ariel, a sea-born kleptomaniac who has some serious issues with her body image and a complete lack of personal identity. Rather than live the life of a princess in the royal court of King Trident, Ariel spends her time stealing treasures from the ship wrecks of poor men and women lost at sea. We're sure they didn't imagine their prized treasures would be hoarded up in a sea cave by a mentally unstable half girl, half fish. But thieving from the dead is the least of Ariel's issues. Her body dysmorphic disorder means she believes her body is defective and needs to be 'fixed' in order for her to be whole again. It's for this reason she becomes fixated of humans, and Eric in particular, She goes as far as to indulge black magic to fix herself, ridding herself of her tail fin in favour of legs. She's a human trapped in a mermaid's body and she goes to extreme measures to correct herself. Let's hope someone picks up on her identity issues and kleptomania now that she is married to Eric, otherwise she'll find herself not belonging anywhere. There you have it. Childhood films destroyed with the harsh reality of our beloved character's fragile mental states. That's not to say these disorders are any laughing matter; they are serious mental health issues. But for these heroines and villains, it's clear to see that there is an explanation to some of their more extreme personality traits.
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A writer for Whatculture since May 2013, I also write for TheRichest.com and am the TV editor and writer for Thedigitalfix.com . I wrote two plays for the Greater Manchester Horror Fringe in 2013, the first an adaption of Simon Clark's 'Swallowing A Dirty Seed' and my own original sci-fi horror play 'Centurion', which had an 8/10* review from Starburst magazine! (http://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/eventsupcoming-genre-events/6960-event-review-centurion) I also wrote an episode for online comedy series Supermarket Matters in 2012. I aim to achieve my goal for writing for television (and get my novels published) but in the meantime I'll continue to write about those TV shows I love! Follow me on Twitter @BazGreenland and like my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/BazGreenlandWriter