Though I have never been a fan of the new trend of taking childhood movies, shows, stories, and experiences and saddling them with edgy theories that explain aspects of the plot, I love me some good twisted Princess fan art. There is just something so fascinating about seeing the villainous side of some of our most beloved and cherished characters. The gritty reimaginings that flood the internet have simply never been my cup of tea. And that is fine, there are enough flavors in the world that everyone can find a cup that suits their fancy.
But these beautiful select pieces of fan art created by Jeffrey Thomas, Travis Flannigan, and Kasami Sensei do not attempt to claim that the entire story was a dream or a delusion had by a corrupt princess struggling with the reality of their situations. No, these talented artists (whose credit is under the appropriate image and I highly suggest that you check out their other pieces) simply took the characters that we know, love, and grew up with and simply explored another side of them. A darker side. A side that Disney might have preferred to be left hidden. Note that some of these images do veer on the more intense side so viewer discretion is advised. No princesses were harmed in the making of this article.
So sit back, relax, and enjoy these beautiful fan-crafted images that explore a darker, twisted, and villainous side of thirty of the most beloved classic and modern Disney characters.
28 Can’t Bear The Consequences
Let’s explore a reality where Merida did not save her mother before the bear transformation became a permanent thing. The Queen obviously could not remain at the castle as her husband has an intense aversion to bears and would make quick work of that. So she would, most likely, be condemned to the woods. Merida would follow her as courtly life never appealed to her and the guilt she would feel over her mother’s life-sentence would compel her to dedicate her life to royal protection duty.
27 Goat Got Your Tongue
Frollo went a step too far with the way that he treated Esmeralda and she has had enough. With her faithful goat at her side, she has been unleashed upon the world with one goal in mind: revenge.
There is no fury like a woman scorned, and all that.
And to think, I was afraid of watching the original film due to its scary themes and intense visuals. I do not know if I would be able to stomach this darker take on the classic tale if it was to be brought to the big screen.
26 The Lost Princess
Mother said that Rapunzel did not have what it takes to handle herself out there in the big, bad, cold, and unforgiving world. So Rapunzel had no choice but to prove herself. When an unknown thief sought asylum in her tower, the lost princess made quick work of him. There were no happily ever afters nor fairy tale adventures to be had in this version of the tale. But do not worry, Rapunzel was still able to escape her tower. After all, Gothel was nothing more than a road block in her quest for freedom.
25 Silent Night
Snow White did not want to spend the rest of her life hiding out in the forest, waiting for the Evil Queen to come and find her. Snow White had dreams, goals, and ambitions that could not take the back seat to her step-mother’s revenge plots. So our little Snow White hatched a plan, but she needed help. Working in the mines for decades had an adverse effect on the dwarves that housed her and after a while, they were consumed entirely by the entity that resided within the mines. Snow unleashed her minions upon the castle and took her freedom by force.
24 A Frozen Heart
When I was watching Frozen for the first time, I was convinced that Anna was going to be the film’s main villain. I thought that the trolls referring to the concept of the ‘frozen heart’ as well as the ‘beware the frozen heart’ line in the opening song was foreshadowing. I thought that the blast was going to metaphorically freeze her heart and corrupt her soul rather than simply turn her into an ice cube and that the sequel would be centred around saving the world from a sinister Anna.
23 Mickey’s Last Stand
When I was a small child, I was spooked by the original cast of Disney cartoon characters. Mickey, Minnie, Pete, Donald, and Goofy all scared the living bejeezus out of me and the mere mention of “Steamboat Willie” would send me sprinting to my room so that I could hide under my bed.
This poster, though beautiful, is not helping me overcome this childhood fear in the slightest.
I pray that I do not have nightmares tonight as I have finally begun to stick to a normal sleeping schedule.
22 Princess Play Time
I am the child of two young and traditionally cool parents. I am talking head to toe tattoos, piercings, 90s grunge punk, stay up all night partying at a rock concert type cool. Gosh, I must be such a disappointment. These parents loved the retail store Spencer’s and would often take me inside in order to check out the inventory. These stores always had numerous Chucky dolls strewn about and I was not a fan of that. I am talking nightmares for life.
21 We’re All Mad Here
Now, I am usually not a fan of twisted Alice recreations as they always seem to focus on the psychedelic aspects of the series or force Alice to appear a bit more mature than a small child should. I mean, the original story is literally about maths. I don’t get why everyone is so set on seeing it as pertaining to certain substances. But this is the kind of reimagining that I can get behind. In this version, Alice was unable to leave Wonderland before succumbing to madness. And now she is the new Queen.
20 Beauty Untamed
It turns out that the Beast’s count was off and his deadline was coming far sooner than expected. He made the transformation to full beast mode before Belle was able to save him. But that did not stop her from falling in love with him. Don’t ask, she has issues. Belle abandoned her human life and dedicated the rest of her time on this Earth to caring for and protecting her beast from the uncaring and cruel outside world. She never did get that library in the end.
19 All Is Lost At Midnight
It turns out that the fairy godmother’s spell came with a catch. All of the items that were transformed, as well as Ella herself, would turn into common farm objects at the stroke of midnight. But Ella retained her sentience and, after getting used to her new body, she spent the rest of her immortal life stalking her step-family and making their lives living nightmares. There is nothing scarier than a sentient scarecrow that has made you its target for revenge. Nothing.
18 Briar Rose’s Revenge
In this version of the classic tale, Prince Phillip was stopped before he was able to save the princess from the evil fairy’s spell. But that did not stop Aurora from hunting down and finding the woman who cursed her to an eternal slumber.
With her true love lost, Aurora had nothing to do but find Maleficent and make her pay.
The good fairies cast a spell over her sleeping frame which allowed her to act out the revenge fantasies that played on a continuous loop within her mind. Once Maleficent is defeated, she will finally be able to rest.
17 Do You Wanna Build A Snowman?
You’ve heard the legends, I am sure. But I am here to tell you the true story of the princesses of Arendelle. The two sisters both possessed dark magic that would overtake them while they slept. The servants’ numbers began to dwindle and the remaining few did everything they could to protect themselves from the girls’ nightly reign. The king and queen were not taken by a large wave but rather by their daughters’ hands. Elsa and Anna’s hearts had been frozen solid from the start.
16 Into The Woods
The title “Evil Queen” is a bit of a misnomer. It turns out that this poor woman was only trying to protect us from the princess that haunted the palace walls. Having her heart as proof of her vanquish was the only way that she could be assured that the darkness had been dealt with. But the exiled princess lived in the woods, in wait, praying that her former stepmother would fancy a little stroll so that she could end her and claim her true place on the throne.
15 A Princess In Villain’s Clothing
In a positive twist, instead of focusing on a darker reimagining, this image submitted by an anonymous artist simply shows the classic princesses in their villains’ costumes. I am not sure which princess pulls off their villainous counterpart’s costume best. Is it Belle? The gloves are reminiscent of the gloves that she wore during her ball dance with the beast. Or is it Aurora? She truly does pull off that elaborate headpiece. Although, Pocahontas does look exceptionally dapper in that posh English outfit.
14 The Mermaid From the Lagoon
Maybe I have the maturity of a small child, but I cannot keep myself from bursting into a huge fit of laughter every single time that I look at this image. I mean, look at it. Look at her gills. Look at her face. Imagine if she looked exactly like this (but with legs) while trying to woo Prince Eric. I wonder how the rest of the people who lived within the palace would react to Eric being utterly smitten with a literal lagoon monster.
13 Lights Out, Tink
I much prefer this version of Tinker Bell. Maybe I am an odd human being but I never truly vibed with the bitter and aggressive version of Tinker Bell from the original film nor did I connect with the revitalized fun, child-friendly, and soft Tinker Bell from the modern day series. I never understood how she went from this bitter creature to this lively fairy fun factory, but I am not the target demographic so my opinion does not matter. However, the above image of Tinker Bell is a version that I truly can get behind.
12 Darling, All Is Lost
What if Wendy was truly converted to the pirate lifestyle and abandoned the world that she left behind for good? What if she left Peter Pan and the rest of the lost boys behind and joined the ranks of their mortal enemies?
Would they be able to go toe to toe with the girl who mothered them?
Would they be able to strike down the girl that read them to bed every night? Has Captain Hook finally found Peter Pan’s weak spot?
11 The Glitch
What if Vanellope was not joking when she sentenced all those in the Candy kingdom who had wronged her during her life? What if those sentences were serious? What if the years of mistreatment corrupted her heart and she used her newfound power to seek revenge on literally everyone around her, regardless of if they scorned her or not? She could use her glitch to her advantage. No one would be able to catch her. No one would be able to stop her.
10 Jane Of The Jungle
Jane never fit in with a posh Victorian society so the idea of leaving all of that to join Tarzan in the jungle was nothing if not appealing. She was ready to leave everything behind in order to commit herself fully to a life amongst the gorillas. That is, until Tarzan fell into a local cheetah’s bad graces and did not make it out in time to make nice with the beast. Jane made quick work of the creature but it was too late to save her husband.
9 Who Could Love A Beast?
The Beast misinterpreted the Enchantress’ spell. He was not going to turn into a beast permanently when the last petal fell from the enchanted rose. Instead, he would breathe his last breath.
Belle did everything she could to save the man that she fell in love with but it was too late.
But she had heard whispers that Gaston had survived his fall (which was confirmed by the enchanted mirror the beast left her). And she dedicated the rest of her life to seeking revenge on the man who took everything from her.
