The Disney Princes are the official line-up of male leads who are the love interests of the Disney Princesses. Most of the Princes have been deuteragonists, while others have either been protagonists (in the case of Beast and Aladdin) or tritagonists (in the case of Li Shang). These include the Prince, Prince Charming, Prince Phillip, Prince Eric, Beast, Prince Naveen, and Flynn Rider who are each born of royal heritage, as well as Aladdin, who become royalty by marrying a princess. John Smith and Li Shang are not considered royalty but are both still considered a "prince" because their respective love interests, Pocahontas and Mulan, are official Disney Princesses.

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Members

Official members

The Prince

The Prince is Snow White's love interest in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. While traveling near the Queen's castle, he hears Snow White singing into the "wishing" well ("I'm Wishing"), and approaches her. He starts singing with her, which frightens her, forcing her to run from him and into the castle. He, however, continues singing ("One Song") beneath her balcony, for he has fallen in love with her.

The Prince doesn't appear again until after Snow White has been poisoned by the apple, courtesy of her stepmother, the Queen. The Prince, however, awakens her with a kiss, and they ride off into the sunset in their castle in the sky, to get married and live happily ever after.



Prince Charming

Prince Charming is the love interest of Cinderella from Cinderella. When Cinderella arrives at the ball, Prince Charming instantly falls in love with her and dances only with her for the entire night. However, Cinderella is forced to leave at midnight before the Fairy Godmother's magic wears off and she is discovered. As she flees, one of Cinderella's glass slippers is left on the grand staircase, but she continues running.

Failing to pursue her, Prince Charming declares that whoever fits the shoe will become his bride. After days of searching for the right girl, the Grand Duke comes to Cinderella's house, places the shoe on her foot, and it fits perfectly. Therefore, Prince Charming chooses her as his bride, then they wed and live happily ever after.



Phillip

Disney Prince Prince Phillip Feature film Sleeping Beauty Speaking voice Bill Shirley Singing voice Bill Shirley Source

Prince Phillip is Princess Aurora's love interest from Sleeping Beauty. Prince Phillip was betrothed to the princess at an early age, much to his apparent chagrin. But in order to protect Princess Aurora from Maleficent's curse, she is stowed away by the three good fairies and raised in a secluded forest for 16 years. By chance, Aurora and Phillip meet in the forest and fall deeply in love.

Of course, they do not remember each other from childhood, but they feel as if they have met before ("Once Upon a Dream"). Unfortunately, Aurora's curse is fulfilled on her 16th birthday, and she falls into a deep sleep. However, Phillip defeats Maleficent (with the help of the good fairies), and with a kiss, awakens the princess from her slumber, and they live happily ever after.



Eric

Prince Eric is the human who captured the heart of Ariel in The Little Mermaid. After Ariel saves Eric from drowning, she sings to him, and he is instantly entranced by her beautiful singing voice. Ariel, however, dives back into the sea just as he was coming to consciousness, and the two never meet. Eric then decides that he will only marry the girl who saved him; the owner of the beautiful voice.

But when Ariel returns to shore as a mute human, Eric doesn't realize she is the one who saved him, for she sold her voice to Ursula the Sea Witch in return for legs. Soon, Ursula transforms herself into a beautiful girl named Vanessa and uses Ariel's voice to force Eric to want to marry her. This almost happens, but Ariel manages to crash the wedding, and her voice returns to her.

However, Ariel transforms back into a mermaid, and Vanessa becomes Ursula again, now determined to end both Ariel and Eric's lives. However, Eric manages to impale Ursula with the stern of a sunken ship, and their lives are saved. Ariel soon becomes a true human (courtesy of her father), and finally, Eric and Ariel wed and live happily ever after.



The Beast

(unofficially) is one of the main characters of. At the age of eleven, he was turned into the hideous Beast by an Enchantress because of his attitude - he is arrogant, self-centered, and spoiled. He is given ten years to find someone who loves him and he loves in return. Shortly before his twenty-first birthday, he finds Maurice in his castle and locks him in the dungeon.

Maurice's daughter Belle, comes looking for him and trades her freedom for her father's. Eventually she and the Beast fall in love, but after finding out that her father is sick and near death, he sets her free, which breaks his heart. After a series of events, a lynch mob comes to kill him, led by a rival suitor named Gaston. The Beast is too disheartened from Belle's departure to stop them.

Gaston eventually finds and attacks him. The Beast is still too miserable to fight back and allows Gaston to continue his assault. But when Belle shows up to stop Gaston, the Beast gets up and fights back, eventually griping Gaston by the throat over a ledge until the hunter pathetically pleads for his life. The Beast, realizing that he would be no better than Gaston, pulls the hunter back and quietly says, "Get out." Belle then runs to the balcony, and the Beast goes to her.

Unfortunately, Gaston refuses to admit defeat and fatally stabs the Beast in the side. In the process, Gaston loses his balance and falls from the castle roof to his death. Belle pulls the Beast back up on the balcony, but he succumbs to his injuries. Belle's love for him breaks the spell, and he is revived and turned back into his human form and lives happily with Belle.



Aladdin

Aladdin is the protagonist of Aladdin. He falls in love with Princess Jasmine, and they are married, thus making him a prince by marriage. Before marrying Jasmine, he was a street rat - an orphaned thief. He became a prince temporarily, as "Prince Ali Ababwa", due to a wish made to Genie to gain the love of Princess Jasmine. After a romantic carpet ride, he and Jasmine are to announce their love to the kingdom in the morning but feels guilty for lying to the kingdom. He goes to tell Jasmine the truth but by then, the city is under attack by Jafar who has stolen the lamp. Aladdin, Abu, and Carpet are banished to the ends of the earth leaving Jafar in control.

He returns with Abu and Carpet to battle Jafar. The sorcerer transforms Abu into a toy, destroys Carpet, and imprisons Jasmine. Soon enough Jafar transforms into a giant snake and begins crushing Aladdin in his coils. Aladdin quickly thinks up a plan tricking Jafar into using his third wish to become a Genie. This gets Jafar and his sidekick Iago, trapped in their own lamp and banished to the Cave of Wonders. After Jafar is defeated and Aladdin has Genie freed, the Sultan decrees that the Princess may "marry whoever she deems worthy", allowing them to live happily ever after.



John Smith

Disney Prince Prince John Smith Feature film Pocahontas Speaking voice Mel Gibson Singing voice Mel Gibson Source

Captain John Smith is Pocahontas's love interest from Pocahontas. A handsome, well respected, and adventurous explorer, he is chosen to be captain of the settlers in the New World. There, he is quickly impressed by the land and is ready to explore and conquer it. Unbeknownst to him, Pocahontas has been following him. He stops to wash his face at a river but notices a reflection. Hiding behind a rock, he readies his gun, but when he jumps upon the person, he discovers the beautiful woman.

The two talk for some time, telling each other their different names for things and different lifestyles. John unintentionally insults her, though, by talking about how his people have improved the lives of savages everywhere, with things like decent roads and houses. He tries to apologize and Pocahontas responds by showing him the beauty of nature. As the film progresses, John falls deeper in love with Pocahontas and grows to respect her people and lifestyle as well.

Over a series of events, Kocoum, Pocahontas' fiancé, is killed after attacking John for kissing Pocahontas and John is sentenced to be executed by the Powhatans. Pocahontas saves him from this fate, though he is still shot by Governor Ratcliffe, who is outraged by the alliances the settlers have made with the Powhatans. Ratcliffe is chained and sent back to England to await punishment for his crime as Pocahontas and John share a tearful goodbye, promising to always be there for one another in the future as he returns home to seek the medical attention he needs.



Li Shang

Captain Li Shang is Mulan's love-interest from Mulan. He's a Chinese army captain. During his appointment in the first movie, is a highly capable leader with a dedication to his cause to match, albeit at times being too "by-the-book" and putting his duty above his feelings, in contrast to Mulan. He is often called a 'Pretty Boy' due to his dashing good looks and strong physique. He is reserved and thoughtful, a more logical and calming influence to Mulan's adventurous personality.

Shortly after his initial introduction in Mulan, Shang is appointed as an army captain, by his father, General Li. Later through the film, he becomes friends with 'Ping' who is Fa Mulan disguised as a man), after his life is saved by him/her. Shortly after, however, he finds out that Ping is actually a woman disguised as a soldier, which is forbidden by Imperial Law and punishable by death. After sparing her life, and later helping her save the Empire, they become love interests to each other by the end of the film.



Naveen

Prince Naveen is the laid-back prince from Disney's 2009 animated feature, The Princess and the Frog. After being cut off by his parents, the rulers of the fictional land of Maldonia, he travels to New Orleans. True to his playboy reputation, he woos all the girls in the city. However, he is only after one – Charlotte La Bouff, daughter of the richest Sugar Baron in New Orleans, in order to get the money he would need to continue living his carefree life. After being conned by Dr. Facilier, a voodoo man, he is transformed into a frog, while his servant Lawrence assumes his form.

From there he goes on to accidentally turn Charlotte's best friend, Tiana, into a frog (due to him mistaking her for a princess and asking for a kiss) and gets them both chased into a swamp. Though Naveen initially looks down on Tiana because of her uptight attitude and occupation as a waitress and she finds him annoying because of his laziness, they both eventually fall in love and Naveen tries to propose to her. But Dr. Facilier's shadows capture him before he gets the chance. After Tiana defeats Dr. Facilier, he kisses Charlotte (who is a princess for a day) to become human again.

But it is too late―Charlotte isn't a princess anymore. Still, he and Tiana get married as frogs. Once they kiss, they become human again because marrying a prince made Tiana a princess. They both go on to live a happy life co-owning Tiana’s restaurant.



Eugene

Disney Prince Prince Eugene Feature film Tangled Speaking voice Zachary Levi Singing voice Zachary Levi Source

Eugene Fitzherbert, who goes by Flynn Rider out of embarrassment of his birth name, is a famous thief known for his charm and good looks. He is 25 years old. After stealing the lost princess's crown, he takes shelter in a secluded tower in the woods, where he is captured and knocked out (three times) by Rapunzel. She convinces him to escort her to the Kingdom to watch the annual Floating Lantern ceremony, and if he does so and returns her home safely, then she'll return his satchel to him that she has hidden under the steps of the stairs, which contains the lost princess' crown.

Although at first Flynn finds her to be a nuisance, he soon starts to fall in love with Rapunzel. After a romantic evening under the light of thousands of glittering lanterns, Flynn, who has been given back his satchel by Rapunzel, decides to give up his dreams of riches to be with Rapunzel and attempts to give the crown to the Stabbington Brothers. However, they reveal that they know about Rapunzel's magic hair, and express their desire to use her for money. Flynn is then knocked unconscious and tied to a boat, which is set to sail toward the Kingdom.

When Rapunzel sees his silhouette steering the boat away from her, she is tricked into believing Flynn abandoned her, and returns with her mother to the tower. After being thrown in jail and sentenced to death, the Pub Thugs and Maximus help Flynn escape, and he and Maximus rush to save Rapunzel. In the end, however, they come to save each other, with Flynn cutting Rapunzel's hair to free her from Mother Gothel and Rapunzel healing his wound with a magic tear. Flynn and Rapunzel return to the Kingdom where Rapunzel is reunited with her family after she discovers herself to be the long-lost princess. Flynn gives up his former thieving ways, is pardoned for his past crimes and goes back to using his birth name while living happily ever after with Rapunzel.

In Tangled: The Series, the animated series taking place after the events of the movie, Eugene discovers he is the long-lost prince of the Dark Kingdom, therefore he is a prince by birthright. Eugene and Rapunzel later get married in the short film, Tangled Ever After.



Unofficial Princes

The Unofficial princes of Disney are heroes/princes that are not part of the official line-up but are often marketed with the franchise and/or their female counterparts. The unofficial Disney princes are as follows:

Disney Heroes

Somewhat related to the Disney Princes is a discontinued line of action figures sold at Disney Store locations, Disney Heroes. It featured different Disney characters with stylized appearances, some of which are quite different from their appearances in their respective films. In addition to the heroes Peter Pan, Hercules, and Prince Phillip, the collection also offered the villains Maleficent (in her Dragon form) and Captain Hook.

Disney Live-Action Remakes

Trivia

Seven of the Disney Princes are born into royalty (The Prince, Charming, Phillip, Beast, Eric, Naveen and Flynn/Eugene), one become royalty through marriage (Aladdin) and two aren't royal by either blood or marriage (John Smith and Li Shang). The Prince, Phillip, Eric and Eugene are the only four to be princes both by birth and marriage. However, Eugene is the only Disney Prince to have been born into royalty, but grew up a commoner before finding out his heritage. Shang is also the only "prince" who isn't royal by blood or through marriage―he and Mulan are the only non-royal couple in the Disney Princess franchise.

The Beast and Aladdin are the only Disney Princes to be protagonists rather than deuteragonists or tritagonists in their respective films. The Prince and Prince Charming are also the only Disney Princes to be considered minor characters, as neither of them have very much screen time in their debut films. In the Beast's case, he and Belle are the co-protagonists of the story (the first in a Disney fairy tale). In Aladdin's case, he's the protagonist and Jasmine's the deuteragonist, making him currently the only Disney Prince to have a more significant role than the Princess. The Prince has the smallest amount of screen time out of all the Disney Princes―he was originally going to be the deuteragonist, but he ended up being the hardest character to animate, so his screen time was greatly reduced.

Aladdin, Li Shang and Eugene are the only Disney Princes to get married in a sequel to their respective films, whereas Prince Charming is the only Disney Prince who got married twice, due to Lady Tremaine altering the events of his marriage to Cinderella. Eugene is the first and only Disney Prince to get married in a short film. The Prince, Phillip, and Beast are never actually seen getting married on-screen (but are assumed to get married off-screen).

The Beast, Aladdin and Eugene are the only Disney Princes to go by additional names besides their birth names―Aladdin and Eugene both go by aliases, while many claim that the real name of Beast is "Adam."

Brave and Moana are the only Disney Princess films to not have an official Disney Prince, making the line-up short of two members; while Merida's younger triplet brothers are technically princes, they aren't members of the franchise, most likely due to their young age and the fact they are not love interests of Disney Princesses. However, it should be noted that Young MacGuffin was originally intended to be Merida's "Prince" before it was ultimately decided she would remain single in the final cut. A deleted scene even shows her taking an interest in him, but lamenting her inability to understand his brogue.

and are the only Disney Princess films to not have an official Disney Prince, making the line-up short of two members; while Merida's younger triplet brothers are technically princes, they aren't members of the franchise, most likely due to their young age and the fact they are not love interests of Disney Princesses. Naveen is the only Prince shown to have a sibling (he's shown to have a younger brother), while Princes Charming and Phillip are the only ones confirmed to be only children.

Aladdin is the only playable Disney Prince in the Disney Infinity games.

games. Some of the Disney Princes have appeared in the ABC series Once Upon a Time , with the series centering on Emma Swan, the daughter of the Prince and Snow White who has to break a curse. The ABC Studios is owned by Disney and therefore, they have rights to the Princes that got adapted. The Prince, the Enchanted Forest Prince Charming, Phillip, Eric, Aladdin, the Magical Forest Prince Charming and Naveen appeared. The Beast and Flynn Rider do not directly appear, but are represented by other characters (Rumplestiltskin and the Prince respectively). John Smith and Li Shang are not featured.

, with the series centering on Emma Swan, the daughter of the Prince and Snow White who has to break a curse. The ABC Studios is owned by Disney and therefore, they have rights to the Princes that got adapted. The Prince, the Enchanted Forest Prince Charming, Phillip, Eric, Aladdin, the Magical Forest Prince Charming and Naveen appeared. The Beast and Flynn Rider do not directly appear, but are represented by other characters (Rumplestiltskin and the Prince respectively). John Smith and Li Shang are not featured. Except for Naveen (and John Rolfe, if one were to consider him a Disney Prince), all the official Disney Princes have either blue or brown eyes. Naveen has amber eyes while John Rolfe has green eyes. The Prince, Prince Eric, Beast and John Smith all have blue eyes. Prince Charming, Prince Phillip, Aladdin, Li Shang and Flynn Rider all have brown eyes.

Beast is the only Disney Prince with reddish hair (his hair is auburn) while John Smith is the only Disney Prince with blond hair. All the other Disney Princes have either black or brown hair. The Prince, Prince Phillip, Naveen and Flynn Rider all have brown hair (with Naveen's hair being the darkest shade of brown). Prince Charming, Prince Eric, Aladdin and Li Shang all have black hair.

While Flynn Rider's not the first Disney Hero to have facial hair (Phoebus from The Hunchback of Notre Dame ), he's the first among the Disney Princes to have facial hair.

), he's the first among the Disney Princes to have facial hair. Flynn Rider is the only Disney Prince to be a long-lost prince after the discovery was made in the Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure season finale, "Destinies Collide".

season finale, "Destinies Collide". Aladdin and Flynn Rider/Eugene are the two Disney Princes who were thought to be orphans, until they (and the audience) later found out that their fathers were still alive. The difference is that Aladdin found out in the second sequel, Aladdin and the King of Thieves , while Flynn/Eugene found out in the Season Two finale of the animated series Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure .

Naveen is the only Disney Prince to have both of his parents alive and present in his film.

Gaston and Hans are the only two Disney Princes that were the antagonists, meaning they are part of Disney Villains franchise.

See also

References



