Cruella de Vil is a fictional character in British author Dodie Smith's 1956 novel '' The Hundred and One Dalmatians''. A pampered and glamorous

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

heiress and fashion designer, she appears in

Walt Disney Productions The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October 1 ...

' 17th animated feature film, '' 101 Dalmatians'' (1961), voiced by

Betty Lou Gerson Betty Lou Gerson (April 20, 1914 – January 12, 1999) was an American actress, predominantly active in radio but also in film and television and as a voice actress. She is best known as the original voice of Cruella de Vil from the Disney anima ...

; in Disney's '' 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure'' (2002), voiced by

Susanne Blakeslee Susanne Ellender Blakeslee is an American voice, stage and musical theatre actress. She is also known as Susan Blakeslee, Suzanne Blakeslee, and Suzanne Blakesley; Among her notable roles are the voices of Wanda, Anti-Wanda, and Mrs. Turner o ...

; in Disney's live-action '' 101 Dalmatians'' (1996) and ''

102 Dalmatians ''102 Dalmatians'' is a 2000 American crime comedy film directed by Kevin Lima and produced by Edward S. Feldman and Walt Disney Pictures. The sequel to the 1996 film '' 101 Dalmatians'', a live-action remake of the 1961 Disney animated film of ...

'' (2000), portrayed by Glenn Close; as well as '' Cruella'' (2021), portrayed by

Emma Stone Emily Jean Stone (born November 6, 1988), known professionally as Emma Stone, is an American actress. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and a Golden Globe Award. In 2017, she ...

; and in many other Disney sequels and spin-offs. In most of her incarnations, Cruella kidnaps the 15 puppies of the main character, Dalmatian Pongo, intending to turn them into

fur coats Fur clothing is clothing made from the preserved skins of mammals. Fur is one of the oldest forms of clothing, and is thought to have been widely used by people for at least 120,000 years. The term 'fur' is often used to refer to a specific ...

along with other Dalmatian puppies she legally bought before. In the live-action Disney film, it is revealed that the reason Cruella chooses to skin puppies is that when short-haired dogs grow older their fur becomes very coarse and does not sell as well in the fur fashion industry as the fine, soft fur of puppies. The character became a pop-culture icon and a famous symbol of dastardly greed, vanity and evil. Disney's Cruella ranked 39th on AFI's list "100 Years...100 Heroes and Villains".

Name

The name Cruella de Vil is a pun of the words ''cruel'' and ''devil'', an allusion that is emphasized by having her

English country house An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these peopl ...

nicknamed 'Hell Hall'. The name 'de Vil' is also a

literary allusion Allusion is a figure of speech, in which an object or circumstance from unrelated context is referred to covertly or indirectly. It is left to the audience to make the direct connection. Where the connection is directly and explicitly stated (as ...

Bram Stoker Abraham Stoker (8 November 1847 – 20 April 1912) was an Irish author who is celebrated for his 1897 Gothic horror novel '' Dracula''. During his lifetime, he was better known as the personal assistant of actor Sir Henry Irving and busi ...

's ''

Dracula ''Dracula'' is a novel by Bram Stoker, published in 1897. As an epistolary novel, the narrative is related through letters, diary entries, and newspaper articles. It has no single protagonist, but opens with solicitor Jonathan Harker taki ...

'' (1897), in which the realty firm Mitchell, Sons & Candy write a letter to Lord Godalming, informing him that the purchaser of a house in

Piccadilly, London Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road that connects central London to Hammersmith, Earl's Court, ...

is "a foreign nobleman, Count De Ville". Count De Ville, however, proves to be an alias for

Count Dracula Count Dracula () is the title character of Bram Stoker's 1897 gothic horror novel ''Dracula''. He is considered to be both the prototypical and the archetypal vampire in subsequent works of fiction. Aspects of the character are believed by some ...

himself. It is also believed that the inspiration for the name began in 1939 when Dodie Smith purchased a new Rolls-Royce 25/30 "

Sedanca de Ville Sedanca may refer to: * Coupe de Ville: A "Sedanca de Ville" — also known as "Coupe de Ville" or "Town Car" — is an automobile with an external or open-topped driver's position and an enclosed compartment for passengers. * Bentley Continental ...

" motorcar in which she and her pet Dalmatian "Pongo" frequently travelled, which also formed the basis of the cartoon imagery of Cruella's own motorcar. In automotive coachbuilding, the term " de Ville" had originally indicated a vehicle with a separate compartment for the driver or chauffeur but by mid-twentieth century simply bespoke ostentatious luxury, as befits the overprivileged Cruella. In some translations of the name, other wordplay is used to similar effect as the name in English. For instance: *In Bulgarian, her name is Круела Де Вил (Kruela De Vil), but some properties use her translated name, Злобара Де Мон (Zlobara De Mon)—"злоба" meaning malice, spite, or malevolence. *In Dutch, the name remains 'De Vil'. By coincidence, the Dutch verb for 'skinning' is ''villen'', and ''vil'' is the conjugation of this verb for the first person singular. *In Finnish, she is known as Julmia Juoninen, a name formed from the words ''julma'' (cruel) and ''juoni'' (plot, scheme). *In French, she is referred as 'Cruella d'Enfer'—literally meaning 'Cruella of Hell' or 'from Hell'. *In Hungarian, her name is Szörny Ella (Ella Monster) in the books and Szörnyella de Frász (Monsterella de Fright) in her Disney appearances. *In Italian, she is called 'Crudelia De Mon'—a pun on ''crudele'' ('cruel') and ''demonio'' ('devil') *In Polish (among other translations), the character is known as 'Cruella De Mon'—a play on the word 'demon'. *In Brazilian Portuguese, Cruella is known as 'Cruela Cruel', which straightforwardly stems from 'cruel'. *In both Spanish and European Portuguese, the name remains 'De Vil', but instead of representing "devil", it represents words for "from vileness" or "from villainy". *In Russian, her name is Стервелла Де Виль (Stervella De Vil), from "стерва" (bitch, as a human character derogative term). *In Ukrainian, her name is Лютелла Де Віль (Lyutella De Vil), a pun on the word "лють" (cruelty). She is also known as Лютелла Де Явол (Lyutella De Yavol), where Де Явол is very similar to the word "диявол" (devil).

''The Hundred and One Dalmatians'' novel

In the original story, Cruella is depicted as a pampered and glamorous

heiress. She was a former schoolmate of Mrs. Dearly (one of the owners of the original Dalmatians), but Mrs. Dearly says they were not friends because Cruella frightened her. As a child, Cruella had one black plait and one white plait, and was eventually expelled for drinking ink. However, she appears to be on friendlier terms with Mrs. Dearly by the beginning of the novel, before Cruella steals the Dearlys Dalmatian puppies, having noted they would make "enchanting fur coats" and that no one had thought of making coats of dog skins before. ''The One Hundred and One Dalmatians'' describes Cruella as the last descendant of a prosperous and notorious family; she appears wealthy, but is in fact heavily in debt. She is married to a furrier, whose first name is never mentioned by anyone, and many characters remark that Cruella only married him for his occupation. When Mrs. Dearly asks Cruella what her married name is, Cruella retorts that, in contrast to the usual patriarchal custom, she has made her husband adopt her surname as his own; however, she and her husband have no children, meaning the line will still die out with her. Cruella is portrayed as the tyrannical figure in the marriage, and her husband as a meek, subservient man who seldom speaks and obeys his wife entirely. He keeps his entire fur collection in the house so Cruella can wear whichever she likes. Her favorite is a white mink

cloak A cloak is a type of loose garment worn over clothing, mostly but not always as outerwear for outdoor wear, serving the same purpose as an overcoat, protecting the wearer from the weather. It may form part of a uniform. Cloaks have been and ...

, which she usually wears with tight satin dresses and jewels. The dresses and jewels are always in contrasting color - for instance, a black dress with ropes of

pearls A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...

, or a red dress with ropes of emeralds. Her jewels are later revealed to be mostly sham, however. Cruella's chauffeur-driven car is black-and-white striped; Mr. Dearly describes it as "a moving

zebra crossing A zebra crossing (British English) or a marked crosswalk (American English) is a pedestrian crossing marked with white stripes (zebra markings). Normally, pedestrians are afforded precedence over vehicular traffic, although the significance of ...

". Cruella boasts that it has the loudest horn in

, which she insists on sounding for the Dearly couple. When Cruella has guests for dinner, all of her food is strangely-colored and tastes strongly of

pepper Pepper or peppers may refer to: Food and spice * Piperaceae or the pepper family, a large family of flowering plant ** Black pepper * ''Capsicum'' or pepper, a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family Solanaceae ** Bell pepper ** Chili ...

. When Mr. Dearly comments she might find her mink cloak too warm for a mild autumn evening, Cruella laughs that she never finds anything too warm; she constantly stokes a roaring fire and complains of being cold despite the unbearable heat. The flat is portrayed as a luxurious version of Hell, with all the rooms being made of marble and colored garishly in green, red or black. Her guests also meet her abused white

Persian cat The Persian cat (), also known as the Persian longhair, is a long-haired breed of cat characterized by a round face and short muzzle. The first documented ancestors of Persian cats were imported into Italy from Persia around 1620. Widely rec ...

, whom Cruella freely admits she would have killed if the cat wasn't worth so much money. Cruella happens to be in the house when the puppies are born, as Mrs. Dearly reluctantly invited the de Vil's to a dinner party along with her other guests. When the puppies arrive, the other guests leave politely, but Cruella barges in to the broom cupboard to see the puppies. Revolted by the spotless skins of the newborns, she offers to have them drowned at once; this is her way of getting rid of animals she views as worthless, as she has drowned dozens of her own cat's kittens. The Dearlys assure her the spots will come later, but refuse to sell the puppies. Upon a second visit to the house, Cruella picks up the mature puppies and treats them like clothing to be worn. A third visit occurs when the Dearlys are out, and Cruella, having bought up all the other Dalmatian puppies she could find in the area, keeps the Nannies talking while hired thieves steal the puppies for her. However, her plan backfires when the Dearlys start advertising for the missing puppies and the publicity makes selling Dalmatian coats too risky. Cruella demands the Baduns, caretakers of her old estate of Hell Hall, kill the puppies at once, but the dogs escape after she leaves. Cruella pursues them, but her love of fire causes her to stop and applaud the spectacle of a bakery burning to the ground, buying the dogs more time. When the Dalmatians return to London, they and the Persian cat enact vengeance on Cruella by destroying all of Mr. de Vil's fur stock. Most of the furs were not yet paid off, and the de Vils flee England to get away from their debts, supposedly going in for plastic

raincoat A raincoat is a waterproof or water-resistant garment worn on the upper body to shield the wearer from rain. The term rain jacket is sometimes used to refer to raincoats with long sleeves that are waist-length. A rain jacket may be combined with ...

s instead of fur. Cruella's black side of her hair goes white, and the white side goes an off-greenish shade, from the shock.

''The Starlight Barking'' novel

In Smith's 1967 sequel, ''The Starlight Barking'', Cruella and her husband return to England and start a business selling metallic plastics. Cruella, while still obsessed with heat and pepper, has lost her obsession with fur, replacing all her coats, sheets, cloaks etc. with metallic plastic versions that are as impenetrable as armor. She has dyed her hair to its normal black and white state. When Sirius puts all the humans to sleep, the dogs and cats believe Cruella is responsible and decide to kill her once and for all, until they find she is asleep like everyone else and no longer a threat to them due to having lost interest in fur. It is noted that she is the only one of the sleepers who does not look peaceful (even her husband snores away happily) but instead is grim and unhappy even in sleep. She has repainted her house and removed the marble (artificial marble, according to the White Cat), so the walls now resemble angular psychedelic paintings, many of them portraits of herself.

Animated adaptations

''One Hundred and One Dalmatians'' (1961 film)

Disney's animated version of Cruella first appeared in 1961's ''One Hundred and One Dalmatians'', in which she is voiced by

and animated by Marc Davis who together crafted her into an iconic and memorable character. Cruella is one of the few characters to be completely controlled by a single animator, and Davis claimed that Betty Lou Gerson's vocal performance was his greatest inspiration when it came to the character. Disney based its version of Cruella on the personality and mannerisms of

Tallulah Bankhead Tallulah Brockman Bankhead (January 31, 1902 – December 12, 1968) was an American actress. Primarily an actress of the stage, Bankhead also appeared in several prominent films including an award-winning performance in Alfred Hitchcock's '' L ...

, and her long, lanky physical design came from

Mary Wickes Mary Wickes (born Mary Isabella Wickenhauser; June 13, 1910 – October 22, 1995) was an American actress. She often played supporting roles as prim, professional women, secretaries, nurses, nuns, therapists, teachers and housekeepers, who made ...

, who served as her live-action model. The cool detachment of the original character was replaced by a crazed mania, in which Cruella only barely clung to a sheen of glamour. For unexplained reasons, Cruella's cat and husband were omitted from the Disney version. Cruella drives a very distinctive automobile, colored red and black, which strongly resembles a

Mercedes-Benz 500K The Mercedes-Benz 500K (W29) is a grand touring car built by Mercedes-Benz between 1934 and 1936. First exhibited at the 1934 Berlin Motor Show, it carried the factory designation W29. Distinguished from the 500 sedan by the "K" for ''Kompress ...

Cabriolet. In 2002, ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'' ranked Disney's Cruella as the thirteenth wealthiest fiction character, citing the single 65-year-old has a net worth of $875 million, obtained through inheritance. She was also listed as the 39th greatest villain in American cinema in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Heroes and Villains. Moreover, in Ultimate Disney's Top 30 Disney Villains Countdown, Cruella ranked #6. In the film, Cruella is wealthy, rude and spoiled. She makes fun of Anita Radcliffe and her husband Roger for making a living from songwriting. Cruella desires to make a fur coat from the Radcliffes' Dalmatians, but does not tell the Radcliffes this, simply demanding to know when the puppies arrive. Upon the night of the puppies' birth, Cruella is at first dismayed to find their coats completely spotless, but cheers up when Anita tells her that the spots will appear in a few weeks. Cruella makes an offer to buy the puppies, all the while mocking Roger for his songwriting career and splattering Roger and Pongo with ink from her pen. When Roger finally stands up to her and tells her the puppies are not for sale, she furiously ends her friendship with Anita and storms out, vowing vengeance. Cruella hires two thieves named Jasper and Horace Badun to steal the puppies, which they do. Both Roger and the police immediately suspect her, but the latter fail to find anything despite still investigating. However, fearing the ongoing investigation, Cruella goes to her ancestral home in Suffolk where the puppies are being kept, and angrily demands that her henchmen kill and skin the puppies for her that very night, exploding a bottle of wine in the fireplace to drive home her point. The next morning, Cruella learns that the puppies have escaped the house in the night, being rescued by Pongo and Perdita. She and her henchmen set off in pursuit, and she berates Jasper and Horace for reckless driving, despite her obviously worse driving skills. The next day, on Christmas Eve, Cruella, Jasper, and Horace track the Dalmatians to Dinsford. While driving her car across town, she sees a long procession of black puppies walking past her into a van. Realizing at the last second that the puppies are the Dalmatians in disguise, she furiously pursues the van in her car and tries to ram the van over a cliff. Jasper attempts the same thing, but Horace panics and causes their truck to swerve and crash into Cruella instead. Cruella throws a tantrum among the wreckage of the two vehicles as the van gets away. The film features a song, written by Mel Leven, using her name as the title, sung by the Dalmatians' owner Roger ( Bill Lee), who holds the woman in contempt. The lyric begins with: "Cruella de Vil, Cruella de Vil. If she doesn't scare you, no

evil Evil, in a general sense, is defined as the opposite or absence of good. It can be an extremely broad concept, although in everyday usage it is often more narrowly used to talk about profound wickedness and against common good. It is general ...

thing will...", possibly foreshadowing the deranged, glowing-red-eyed face Cruella assumes while chasing the van.

''101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure''

Cruella returns in ''101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure'', once again as the main antagonist, where she is now voiced by

. The film picks up where the previous film left off, establishing that Cruella was arrested and exposed as the mastermind behind the theft of Pongo and Perdita's 15 puppies, but was not sent to prison for her crimes. She is instead placed under a restraining order forbidding her from any contact with the Radcliffes or their dogs, and on

probation Probation in criminal law is a period of supervision over an offender, ordered by the court often in lieu of incarceration. In some jurisdictions, the term ''probation'' applies only to community sentences (alternatives to incarceration), such ...

which prohibits her from purchasing any more furs. Her fancy car, after being wrecked in the first film, is reduced to a shoddily fixed mess, which falls apart when she tries to drive it. Cruella initially enlists the help of a painter named Lars, to cure her of her obsession for fur coats. For a while, he paints beautiful spotted paintings for her, soothing her mania, but eventually starts to regress, demanding he make paintings out of puppy skins and rehiring Jasper and Horace to steal the puppies again accordingly. When Lars, an animal lover, refuses to harm the puppies, Cruella reverts to her original plan to kill the dogs for a coat, eventually going completely insane once the puppies escape again. After an extended chase, she winds up stranded in the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

, where she is arrested and imprisoned in an

insane asylum The lunatic asylum (or insane asylum) was an early precursor of the modern psychiatric hospital. The fall of the lunatic asylum and its eventual replacement by modern psychiatric hospitals explains the rise of organized, institutional psychiatry ...

. Jasper and Horace, after this second debacle, renounce her completely and go legitimate, starting a shop together.

''101 Dalmatians: The Series''

Cruella is the main antagonist of the ''101 Dalmatians'' animated series, voiced by

April Winchell April Terri Winchell (born January 4, 1960) is an American actress, writer, and radio host. She is prehaps best known as the second and current voice of Clarabelle Cow, having voiced the character since 1996. Early life Winchell was born in 1 ...

in the majority of the episodes, and Tress MacNeille in the episodes "Fungus Among Us" and "Close But No Cigar". This Cruella is based on Glenn Close's portrayal from the live-action film, but with Marc Davis's design from the animated film. She does not wear fur, usually does not smoke (although in the episodes "Smoke Detectors" and "Hail to the Chief" she did) and is totally sane, yet still temperamental and impatient. Her villainous plot in the show was to steal the Dearlys' farm from them, using the puppies as a

ransom Ransom is the practice of holding a prisoner or item to extort money or property to secure their release, or the sum of money involved in such a practice. When ransom means "payment", the word comes via Old French ''rançon'' from Latin ''re ...

. Her mother Malevola de Vil demands she do this, and Cruella also was denied the farm by old Widow Smedly the first time she tried to buy it, incensing her and beginning her obsession. Cruella is an archetypal corporate villain who will seize on any scheme to make money, and Jasper and Horace are her oft-fired company employees, in this version. Cruella's schemes involve such things as drilling oil from the swamp near Dearly farm (thereby polluting it), buying Kanine Krunchies and replacing the nutritious ingredients with sawdust and chalk, or sending Jasper and Horace to drive out the owners of Mom and Pop's Grocery Store so she can buy it herself. In the

Christmas Special Christmas themes have long been an inspiration to artists and writers. A prominent aspect of Christian media, the topic first appeared in in literature and Christmas music. Filmmakers have picked up on this wealth of material, with both adaptatio ...

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

Cruella", it is revealed that, as a child, Cruella had wanted nothing more in life than a Dalmatian puppy. Her parents however never celebrated holidays or birthdays with her and always left her in the care of foreign nannies while they went on vacations, sending her nothing but clothes as gifts. She had a single white streak in her hair as a child. She finally snapped and turned evil in her teens, when her parents led her to believe they would be home for Christmas with her dream puppy, and then sent cardboard cutouts of themselves and a puppy instead. Her hair also turned half-white at this time. In the series finale, she uses an inflatable bodysuit to disguise herself as a shapely blonde surfer clad in a

bikini A bikini is a two-piece swimsuit primarily worn by women that features two triangles of fabric on top that cover the breasts, and two triangles of fabric on the bottom: the front covering the pelvis but exposing the navel, and the back coverin ...

. She plans to seduce Roger, to prompt Anita to divorce him so she (Cruella) can buy the farm. When Anita goes swimming, Cruella asks Roger to go swimming with her and then tries to kiss him. Her inflatable suit is popped by the puppies' chicken friend, turning Cruella into the shape of a surfboard.

''101 Dalmatian Street'' series

Cruella makes an appearance in the series ''101 Dalmatian Street'' and is voiced by

Michelle Gomez Michelle Gomez (born 23 November 1966) is a Scottish actress. She gained recognition for her roles in the comedy series ''The Book Group'' (2002–2003), ''Green Wing'' (2004–2007), and '' Bad Education'' (2012–2013). She went on to appear ...

. Acting as an alternate continuation, the series takes place sixty years after the events of the original 1961 film (2021). Cruella's great-nephew, Hunter de Vil, plans to capture the family of Doug and Delilah, descendants of Pongo and Perdita that currently live in

Camden Town Camden Town (), often shortened to Camden, is a district of northwest London, England, north of Charing Cross. Historically in Middlesex, it is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Camden, and identified in the London Plan as ...

, and bring them to his great-aunt, now in Switzerland. However, Hunter is unaware that she intends to kill the Dalmatian family to make the fur coat. When he finds out, he turns on her and causes her to be injured by a machine. She later is arrested for her crimes. In this adaptation, Cruella is in either her late 80s or early 90s. She has lost her hair, but not her mobility or her vanity. She hides her aging with a special spray.

Other Disney animations

Susanne Blakeslee also voiced Cruella in ''

Disney's House of Mouse ''Disney's House of Mouse'' (or simply ''House of Mouse'') is an American animated television series produced by Walt Disney Television Animation that originally aired for three seasons on ABC and Toon Disney from January 13, 2001, to its finale ...

'', which featured a running gag in which she inspects dogs from other Disney films with a measuring ruler. She also appeared in '' Mickey's House of Villains'' as one of the main villains who helps Jafar take over the House of Mouse for Halloween night. Cruella also appears in ''Disney's Christmas Favorites'' during the segment "Santa Cruella". In ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, ...

'' short '' Welcome to the Club'', Cruella appears along with other Disney Villains trying to convince

Lisa Simpson Lisa Marie Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series ''The Simpsons''. She is the middle child and most accomplished of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa was born as a character in '' The Tracey Ullman ...

how fun it is to be a villain.

Live-action adaptations

''101 Dalmatians'' (1996 film)

Glenn Close portrays Cruella de Vil in the 1996 film '' 101 Dalmatians'' and its 2000 sequel ''

''. The film reinvents Cruella as the vindictive, snobbish and very glamorous magnate of an

haute couture ''Haute couture'' (; ; French for 'high sewing', 'high dressmaking') is the creation of exclusive custom-fitted high-end fashion design that is constructed by hand from start-to-finish. Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, Paris became th ...

fashion house, "House of De Vil", which specializes in fur couture. The character of Anita (played by

Joely Richardson Joely Kim Richardson (born 9 January 1965) is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Julia McNamara in the FX drama series ''Nip/Tuck'' (2003–10) and Katherine Parr in the Showtime series ''The Tudors'' (2010). She has also appea ...

) is a couturière and employee of De Vil. Unlike the animated film, the live-action version provides another reason as to why Cruella wants to make the puppies into coats at a young age: their fur wouldn't be as soft and as fine as when they fully grow up. At the start of the film, it is revealed that Cruella has secretly had her henchmen slaughter a white

Siberian tiger The Siberian tiger or Amur tiger is a population of the tiger subspecies '' Panthera tigris tigris'' native to the Russian Far East, Northeast China and possibly North Korea. It once ranged throughout the Korean Peninsula, but currently inh ...

London Zoo London Zoo, also known as ZSL London Zoo or London Zoological Gardens is the world's oldest scientific zoo. It was opened in London on 27 April 1828, and was originally intended to be used as a collection for scientific study. In 1831 or 1832, ...

for its pelt. The suspicions and accusations of the Dearly family force Cruella to step up her plans to make the puppies into a coat, the puppies escaping while her henchmen are preparing to do the work and Cruella being subsequently thrown into a vat of molasses and a pig pen when she tries to track them to a farm. At the end of the film, she and her henchmen are arrested and sent to prison, with the Dearlys able to buy a large house after Roger's latest video game (inspired by the puppies' ordeal) proves a success when he also makes Cruella the villain within the game's storyline. Along with Close's performance, Cruella's costumes (by

Anthony Powell Anthony Dymoke Powell ( ; 21 December 1905 – 28 March 2000) was an English novelist best known for his 12-volume work ''A Dance to the Music of Time'', published between 1951 and 1975. It is on the list of longest novels in English. Powell' ...

and Rosemary Burrows) received appreciative attention, including a spread in ''

Vanity Fair Vanity Fair may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Literature * Vanity Fair, a location in '' The Pilgrim's Progress'' (1678), by John Bunyan * ''Vanity Fair'' (novel), 1848, by William Makepeace Thackeray * ''Vanity Fair'' (magazines), the ...

''. Claws were applied to her

gloves A glove is a garment covering the hand. Gloves usually have separate sheaths or openings for each finger and the thumb. If there is an opening but no (or a short) covering sheath for each finger they are called fingerless gloves. Fingerless glo ...

, while her necklaces were made from teeth, to add to the idea that Cruella enjoyed wearing parts of dead animals. Nails were also projected from the heels to make them especially vicious in appearance. Some of her clothes were made out of

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hog ...

or PVC, and Cruella always wore much

makeup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often voc ...

. She is seen in the film always smoking to give the appearance of a mysterious "villain". This film increased the

physical comedy Physical comedy is a form of comedy focused on manipulation of the body for a humorous effect. It can include slapstick, clowning, mime, physical stunts, or making funny faces. Physical comedy originated as part of the Commedia dell'arte. It ...

of the Disney animated film, even veering into more juvenile humor, such as Cruella falling into a vat of old molasses. Close's performance was universally well-received and her

sex appeal Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing animal or plant produces male or female gametes. Male plants and animals produce smaller mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while females produce larger ones (ova, oft ...

as the character was also credited. Close has commented on how demanding the slapstick physicality of the role was while wearing nail-heeled boots and corsets. Close also insisted that she fall into the molasses herself for genuine acting, as opposed to delegating it to a

stunt double In filmmaking, a double is a person who substitutes FOR another actor such that the person's face is not shown. There are various terms associated with a double based on the specific body part or ability they serve as a double for, such as stunt ...

. The live-action film was not as critically successful as the animated movie, however.

''102 Dalmatians''

In ''

'', while under effect of Dr. Ivan Pavlov's hypnotherapy treatment, Cruella is cured of her fur addiction and released from prison on

parole Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...

, three years after the events of the first film. She insists on being called "Ella" because "Cruella sounds so... cruel". Reformed, she becomes completely devoted to saving animals, and is appalled by even the smallest sight of fur fashion, boarding up all her fur clothing and the drawing of herself in a Dalmatian puppy coat. She quits her characteristic habits, such as wearing fur clothing, long nails, extravagant

hairstyle A hairstyle, hairdo, haircut or coiffure refers to the styling of hair, usually on the human scalp. Sometimes, this could also mean an editing of facial or body hair. The fashioning of hair can be considered an aspect of personal groomi ...

s, and of course,

smoking Smoking is a practice in which a substance is burned and the resulting smoke is typically breathed in to be tasted and absorbed into the bloodstream. Most commonly, the substance used is the dried leaves of the tobacco plant, which have b ...

. This new persona however is not to last for long, since the effects of

Big Ben Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the Great Clock of Westminster, at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, England, and the name is frequently extended to refer also to the clock and the clock tower. The officia ...

's chimes manage to undo the conditioning, reverting Cruella to her former self. Her old habits return, with Cruella redesigning the sketch of the original Dalmatian coat to include a hood specifically so that she can use three new puppies to make the coat on top of the original ninety-nine puppies required; the chosen extra three being the children of Dipstick, one of the Dearlys' original fifteen puppies. Despite her efforts to distract attention from herself by framing the owner of the Second Chance Dog Shelter for her crimes (the only person who stands to benefit if she reverts to her old behavior, as her parole states that her fortune will go to dog shelters in the

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...

area and Second Chance is the only such shelter), her plans are discovered by her parole officer, also Dipstick's owner. Cruella's accomplice this time is French furrier Jean Pierre Le Pelt, who carries out the actual thefts and helps design the coat. He is trapped in one of his own coats when it is sewn shut during a fight in a sweatshop in France, while the stolen puppies lure Cruella into a trap where she is literally baked into a massive

cake Cake is a flour confection made from flour, sugar, and other ingredients, and is usually baked. In their oldest forms, cakes were modifications of bread, but cakes now cover a wide range of preparations that can be simple or elaborate ...

. She is arrested, along with Le Pelt, both being sentenced to life in prison for their actions.

''Cruella''

'' Cruella'', a live-action film that explores De Vil's backstory by Disney, was announced in 2011. Screenwriter

Aline Brosh McKenna Aline Brosh McKenna (born August 2, 1967) is an American screenwriter, producer and director. Her credits include writing '' The Devil Wears Prada'' (2006), ''27 Dresses'' (2008), ''Morning Glory'' (2010), ''We Bought a Zoo'' (2011) and co-cre ...

, best known for writing '' The Devil Wears Prada'', was hired to write the screenplay, with Glenn Close serving as the executive producer, Andrew Gunn and Marc Platt as the producers, and

Alex Timbers Alex Timbers (born August 7, 1978) is an American writer and director and the recipient of Tony, Golden Globe, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, and London Evening Standard Awards, as well as two OBIE and Lucile Lortel Awards. He is the recipie ...

as director, while

Kelly Marcel Kelly Marcel (born 10 January 1974) is a British screenwriter, actress and television producer. She co-wrote the film ''Saving Mr. Banks'' (2013) and wrote the film '' Fifty Shades of Grey'' (2015), and created and served as executive producer o ...

was set to revise the script originally written by McKenna.

was cast in the titular role of Estella "Cruella" de Vil in 2016. Timbers dropped to direct the live-action Cruella de Vil film due to scheduling conflicts in December 2018 and was replaced with

Craig Gillespie Craig Gillespie (born 1 September 1967) is an Australian-American film, television, music video, and commercial director. He is best known for directing the films ''Lars and the Real Girl'' (2007), ''Fright Night'' (2011), ''I, Tonya'' (201 ...

. The following year,

Emma Thompson Dame Emma Thompson (born 15 April 1959) is a British actress. Regarded as one of the best actresses of her generation, she has received numerous accolades throughout her four-decade-long career, including two Academy Awards, two British A ...

joined the film as Baroness von Hellman, while Tony McNamara and Dana Fox were hired to write the recent version of the screenplay. Joel Fry,

Paul Walter Hauser Paul Walter Hauser (born October 15, 1986) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his supporting roles in the films '' Cruella'', ''I, Tonya'', '' Late Night'', ''BlacKkKlansman'', and ''Da 5 Bloods''. In 2019, Hauser had his breakout ...

, Mark Strong,

Emily Beecham Emily Beecham (born 12 May 1984) is an American-British actress and singer. She is best known for her role in the Coen Brothers film ''Hail, Caesar!'', the AMC series '' Into the Badlands'', and the title role in the 2017 film ''Daphne''. She st ...

and

Kirby Howell-Baptiste Kirby Howell-Baptiste (born 7 February 1987) is a British actress. She has appeared as a series regular on ''Downward Dog'' (2017), ''Killing Eve'' (2018), '' Why Women Kill'' (2019), and '' The Sandman'' (2022). Her television appearances also ...

joined the cast. The film was simultaneously released to theatres and on

premium video on demand Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos without a traditional video playback device and the constraints of a typical static broadcasting schedule. In the 20th century, broadcasting in the form of ...

through

Disney+ Disney+ is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned and operated by the Media and Entertainment Distribution division of The Walt Disney Company. The service primarily distributes films and television se ...

on May 28, 2021. In the film, Cruella grew up as Estella Miller, the daughter of Catherine, who is expelled from her first school due to her temper, provoking several fights. When Catherine visits a mansion for financial support, she is killed by Dalmatians after Estella accidentally provoked them into chasing her, causing Estella to run to London by hiding in a bin lorry, where she is aided by Horace and Jasper, dyeing her distinctive black-and-white hair to better hide herself. As an adult, she gets a job in a prominent fashion boutique that brings her to the attention of famed designer Baroness von Hellman, but Estella soon realizes that the Baroness was the woman who her mother had visited before her death. Planning to retrieve a necklace of her mother's that the Baroness has claimed as her own, Estella creates the identity of "Cruella" to create a distraction during the party, which begins a longer campaign against the Baroness. During her efforts, Estella learns that the Baroness is in fact her biological mother; she intended to have her baby killed after birth, but her valet John gave the baby to Catherine, who was a maid in the house at the time. With this knowledge, Estella provokes a confrontation with the Baroness and then fakes her own death in a manner that gives the impression that the Baroness killed her; she is then arrested as a result and Estella inherits her entire fortune as Cruella. In a post-credit scene Anita and Roger each receive a dalmatian puppy, Pongo and Perdita respectively, born of the dalmatians owned by the Baronness.

''Once Upon a Time''

Cruella appears in the fourth, fifth and seventh seasons of the TV series '' Once Upon a Time'', where she is portrayed as an adult by

Victoria Smurfit Victoria Smurfit (born 31 March 1974) is an Irish actress. She is known for playing Orla O'Connell in the BBC television series ''Ballykissangel'', Detective Chief Inspector Roisin Connor in the ITV police procedural '' Trial & Retribution'' a ...

, and as a child by Milli Wilkinson, as a

witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of Magic (supernatural), magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In Middle Ages, medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually ...

who possesses the power to control animals. A childhood sociopath, Cruella poisoned her father and two stepfathers. Her mother Madeline (

Anna Galvin Anna Galvin (born 19 October 1969; also credited as Anna Glavan) is an Australian actress. Her roles include Lex Luthor's assistant, Gina, in ''Smallville'', and Lavender Eyes in '' Tin Man''. She also played Maid Marian in the first season of ...

) kept her locked inside the house to prevent her from harming others. As an adult, she met Isaac (the Author) (

Patrick Fischler Patrick S. Fischler (born December 29, 1969) is an American character actor known for his roles as Jimmy Barrett on the drama series ''Mad Men'', Dharma Initiative worker Phil on the drama series '' Lost'' and Detective Kenny No-Gun on the poli ...

), who was posing as a regular journalist; through him, she learned that her world, a perpetual 1920s England, was one of many. Smitten with her, the Author gave her the power to control animals. Cruella used the new power to have her mother's dalmatians kill her, and killed them and made their fur into a coat. In a struggle to prevent the Author from writing another note about her, the vial of magic ink spills on her causing her blonde hair to turn into the iconic black and white. However, the pen had a remnant of ink in it, which the Author used to write down a note that would, from there on, prevent Cruella from taking another life: "Cruella De Vil can no longer take away the life of another". Cruella kept this secret, as intimidation would still work for her needs. She later ended up in the Enchanted Forest, where she became infamous for turning animals into outerwear.

Rumplestiltskin "Rumpelstiltskin" ( ; german: Rumpelstilzchen) is a German fairy tale. It was collected by the Brothers Grimm in the 1812 edition of ''Children's and Household Tales''. The story is about a little imp who spins straw into gold in exchange for ...

(

Robert Carlyle Robert Carlyle (born 14 April 1961) is a Scottish actor. His film work includes '' Trainspotting'' (1996), ''The Full Monty'' (1997), ''The World Is Not Enough'' (1999), ''Angela's Ashes'' (1999), '' The Beach'' (2000), ''28 Weeks Later'' (20 ...

) recruited her, Ursula (

Merrin Dungey Merrin Melissa Dungey (born August 6, 1971) is an American film and television actress, known for her roles on the television series '' The King of Queens'', ''Alias'', '' Malcolm in the Middle'', '' Summerland'', '' Conviction'', '' The Resident ...

) and

Maleficent Maleficent ( or ) is a fictional character who appears as the main antagonist in Walt Disney Productions' 16th animated feature film, ''Sleeping Beauty'' (1959). She is represented as an evil fairy and the self-proclaimed " Mistress of All Evil ...

(

Kristin Bauer van Straten Kristin Bauer van Straten ( Neubauer) is an American film and television actress, notable for her roles as vampire Pamela Swynford De Beaufort on the HBO television series ''True Blood'', Jerry's girlfriend Gillian ("man hands") on ''Seinfeld'' ...

) to acquire the Dark Curse, but he double-crossed them and left them to be killed by the Chernabog. Escaping together, Cruella joined the two in trying to get assistance from

Snow White "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" is a 19th-century German fairy tale that is today known widely across the Western world. The Brothers Grimm published it in 1812 in the first edition of their collection '' Grimms' Fairy Tales'' and numbered as T ...

(

Ginnifer Goodwin Jennifer Michelle "Ginnifer" Goodwin (born May 22, 1978) is an American actress. She is known for her starring role as Margene Heffman in the HBO drama series '' Big Love'' (2006–2011) and Snow White / Mary Margaret Blanchard in the ABC fa ...

) and

Prince Charming Prince Charming is a fairy tale stock character who comes to the rescue of a damsel in distress and must engage in a quest to liberate her from an evil spell. This classification suits most heroes of a number of traditional folk tales, includi ...

(

Josh Dallas Joshua Paul Dallas (born December 18, 1978) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Prince Charming/ David Nolan in the ABC television series '' Once Upon a Time'' and as Ben Stone in the NBC/Netflix sci-fi drama series '' Manife ...

) in preventing the

Evil Queen The Evil Queen, also called the Wicked Queen, is a fictional character and the main antagonist of "Snow White", a German fairy tale recorded by the Brothers Grimm; similar stories exist worldwide. Other versions of the Queen appear in subsequent ...

(

Lana Parrilla Lana Parrilla (born July 15, 1977) is an American actress. She was a regular cast member in the fifth season of the ABC sitcom ''Spin City'' (2000–2001) and in the fourth season of '' 24'' (2005), and starred in ''Boomtown'' (2002–2003), ' ...

) from casting the curse. The Tree of Wisdom they consulted refused to answer due to Snow's pregnancy. Along with Ursula, Cruella was asked by Maleficent to act as a guard while she went through childbirth as a dragon. As a result, Cruella was sucked into a portal with Ursula and the child to the Land Without Magic, due to a spell cast by the Apprentice. She and the Sea Witch steal the egg the baby was in and use the magic to prolong their youth in the magicless world. She later married Mr. Feinberg and lived in a mansion off Long island in New York. In the present day, Cruella's marriage had fallen apart as the FBI was repossessing her husband's belongings. Mr. Gold and Ursula convinced her to join them in finding the Author to get happy endings. Cruella played little importance in the plot, until the Author was released from the book; unable to kill him herself, she pretended to threaten Henry Mills's (

Jared S. Gilmore Jared Scott Gilmore (born May 30, 2000) is an American actor, voice actor and Twitch streamer. He is best known for his role in the series ''Once Upon a Time'' as Henry Mills. Early life Jared Scott Gilmore was born on May 30, 2000, in San Dieg ...

) life to force

Emma Swan Emma Swan is a fictional character in ABC's television series '' Once Upon a Time'' and the protagonist of seasons 1-6. She is portrayed by Jennifer Morrison as an adult, by Abby Ross as a teenager, and by Mckenna Grace as a child. Emma appears ...

(

Jennifer Morrison Jennifer Marie Morrison is an American actress, director, producer, and former child model. She is mainly known for her roles as Dr. Allison Cameron in the medical-drama series ''House'' (2004–2012) and Emma Swan in the ABC adventure-fantasy ...

) and Regina to do so. However, Emma confronted her, not knowing the restriction the Author placed on Cruella, and magically blasted her off a cliff to her death. After her death, Cruella ended up in the

Underworld The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underwo ...

, a

purgatory Purgatory (, borrowed into English via Anglo-Norman and Old French) is, according to the belief of some Christian denominations (mostly Catholic), an intermediate state after physical death for expiatory purification. The process of purgatory ...

run by the deity

Hades Hades (; grc-gre, ᾍδης, Háidēs; ), in the ancient Greek religion and myth, is the god of the dead and the king of the underworld, with which his name became synonymous. Hades was the eldest son of Cronus and Rhea, although this also ...

. While there, she met David's twin brother James; they quickly struck up a romantic relationship due to their similar personalities. When the heroes arrived with Gold to rescue the recently deceased Killian Jones (

Colin O'Donoghue Colin Arthur O'Donoghue (born 26 January 1981) is an Irish actor and musician, best known for portraying Captain Killian "Hook" Jones on the ABC TV show '' Once Upon a Time''. He appeared in the 2011 horror thriller film '' The Rite'' (2011 ...

), Cruella was among the deceased of whom they came across. In hopes of returning to life, Cruella appealed to Henry, the new Author, to use the quill to bring her back to life. Later, she helped Regina locate the grave of her lost love Daniel, who had since moved on to a better place. Mistaking David for James, Cruella made a move on him, then informed him of the hostility James held toward his brother. Cruella and James then hatched a plan to get out the Underworld by delivering Hades the child of

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is dep ...

and Zelena. James pretended to be David and put a magic-neutralizing bracelet on Emma, while he and Cruella took the baby. They took Emma and Robin to the docks, planning to throw them into the River of Lost Souls, until David and Hook stopped them. David ended up throwing James into the River and Cruella ran off. Once Hades's heart was restarted, and he planned to leave the Underworld with Zelena, Cruella teamed up with the Blind Witch; Hades offered to let them rule the Underworld in his absence and help trap the heroes there. Delighted with the idea of getting to torment souls for eternity, Cruella agreed to the deal. Following the heroes' escape back to Storybrooke, Hook teamed up with the deceased

King Arthur King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as ...

to locate the storybook so they could tell Emma how to defeat Hades. They went to find Cruella at the diner, where she reacted with disdain towards seeing Hook, but she coyly regarded Arthur with keen interest because of his good looks. When questioned about the haunting booth, Cruella admitted she destroyed it for good, since she didn't want anyone moving on if it meant she had to be stuck in the Underworld, too. Hook then pressed her about the book's whereabouts, which Cruella was surprisingly forthcoming about. She knew they would eventually figure out the truth even if she lied, and then told them that she put the book in the River of Souls. Cruella was later dethroned by Arthur who then ruled the Underworld for fifty years as she became a depressed and bitter woman who drank in the local bar with Sir Mordred. In the seventh season, the Wish Realm version of Cruella is an accomplice to Rumplestiltskin.

''Descendants''

Cruella De Vil appears in the 2015

Disney Channel Original Movie Many television films have been produced for Disney Channel, an American family-oriented basic cable channel and former premium television channel since its launch on April 18, 1983. Until October 1997, films were released under the banner na ...

'' Descendants''. She is portrayed by actress

Wendy Raquel Robinson Wendy Raquel Robinson is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as high school principal Regina "Piggy" Grier on The WB comedy sitcom ''The Steve Harvey Show'' (1996–2002), and as sports agent Tasha Mack on The CW/ BET/Paramo ...

. Along with other villains, Cruella has been exiled to the Isle of the Lost, where she has lived for at least twenty years. She has a 14-year-old son, Carlos, whom she abuses and treats like a servant, making him sleep near the bear traps she uses to guard her fur coats.

Other adaptations

Live productions

Cruella appears in ''

The 101 Dalmatians Musical ''The 101 Dalmatians Musical'' is a musical produced by Luis Alvarez, directed by Jerry Zaks, and sponsored by Purina Dog Chow. The music written by former Styx member Dennis DeYoung, who also co-wrote the lyrics with the musical's book author B. ...

'', the stage musical adaptation of the novel. She was portrayed by Rachel York; however, the actress announced on her blog that she had stepped down from the role of Cruella de Vil to pursue other projects. The role was taken over by

Sara Gettelfinger Sara Gettelfinger (born 1977 in Louisville, Kentucky) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Early life and education Gettelfinger was raised in Kentucky and Jeffersonville, Indiana.

. In the 2022 musical adaptation of the novel, Cruella was portrayed by

Kate Fleetwood Kate Fleetwood (born 24 September 1972) is an English actress. She was nominated for a Tony Award for her performance as Lady Macbeth in '' Macbeth'', which first opened at Chichester Festival Theatre and was transferred to the West End and B ...

. Cruella is the only

meetable character A costumed performer or suit performer wears a costume that usually, (but not always) covers the performer's face, typically to represent a non-human character such as a mascot or cartoon character. These range from theme park "walk-around" or "m ...

from the 101 Dalmatians franchise at the

Disney Parks and Resorts Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, Inc., formerly Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Worldwide, Inc. and informally known as Disney Parks, is one of The Walt Disney Company's five major business segments and a subsidiary. It was founded on Apri ...

, and is usually located on

Main Street, U.S.A. Main Street, U.S.A. is the first "themed land" inside the main entrance of the many theme parks operated or licensed by The Walt Disney Company around the world. Main Street, U.S.A. is themed to resemble American small towns during the early 20t ...

Cruella is also one of the

Disney Villains This is a list of Disney villain characters often based on animated fictional characters who have been featured as part of the Disney character line-up. Some of these villain characters have appeared in sequels, video games, comic books, stage pr ...

Mickey fights in

Disney's Hollywood Studios Disney's Hollywood Studios is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, near Orlando. It is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, Experiences and Products division. Based on a concept by M ...

version of ''

Fantasmic! ''Fantasmic!'' is a nighttime show at Disneyland and Disney's Hollywood Studios. The show formerly operated at Tokyo DisneySea. It features fireworks, characters, live actors, water effects, pyrotechnics, lasers, music, audio-animatronics, searc ...

'' Nighttime Show Spectacular in

Walt Disney World The Walt Disney World Resort, also called Walt Disney World or Disney World, is an entertainment resort complex in Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, Florida, United States, near the cities of Orlando and Kissimmee. Opened on October 1, 1971, ...

. In

Disney On Ice Disney on Ice, originally Walt Disney's World on Ice, is a series of touring ice shows produced by Feld Entertainment's Ice Follies And Holiday on Ice, Inc. under agreement with The Walt Disney Company. Aimed primarily at children, the shows f ...

"Celebrations", Cruella was one of the Villains who appears during the Halloween Party.

Audio production

In 1996, the BBC adapted Dodie Smith's Novel into a full-cast musical audio dramatization, starring

Patricia Hodge Patricia Ann Hodge, OBE (born 29 September 1946) is an English actor. She is known on-screen for playing Phyllida Erskine-Brown in '' Rumpole of the Bailey'' (1978–1992), Jemima Shore in ''Jemima Shore Investigates'' (1983), Penny in '' Mira ...

as Cruella. This version is primarily faithful to the source material, but still has some differences from the original. Cruella's husband argues with her more than in the novel, and Cruella's love of heat is at one point attributed to her simply being cold all the time, whereas in the book it is just a characteristic, among many, indicating she may not be fully human. Cruella and her husband do not leave England at the end of the story, and their fate is left unknown. Furthermore, the Dearlys never figure out that Cruella is behind the theft of the dogs. This version, however, is currently the only adapted version which includes Cruella's husband, her love of heat and pepper, her cat, her zebra-striped car, and the fact her hair changes color at the end of the story. In this version, Cruella and the Baduns are given their own song, "It's Their Furs", which they sing together when Cruella orders the brothers to kill the pups. During the song, Cruella dictates the furs are to be labeled "Hers and Hers" instead of "His and Hers", implying that her husband will not get this first batch. It is later revealed that there is still the risk Mr. de Vil will sell Dalmatian furs down the line, prompting the Dalmatians and the White Persian Cat to destroy Mr. de Vil's fur stocks, as in the novel. Amazon Audible later released this production as an

audiobook An audiobook (or a talking book) is a recording of a book or other work being read out loud. A reading of the complete text is described as "unabridged", while readings of shorter versions are abridgements. Spoken audio has been available in sc ...

, available for streaming online or through the app.

Video games

Cruella appears as the main antagonist in the ''101 Dalmatians'' franchise video games '' 101 Dalmatians: Escape from DeVil Manor'' (1997) and '' 102 Dalmatians: Puppies to the Rescue'' (2000). Cruella is a playable character to unlock for a limited time in '' Disney Magic Kingdoms''.

Books

''Kingdom Keepers'' series

Cruella first appears in ''Power Play'', the fourth book of the young-adult book series by Ridley Pearson, '' Kingdom Keepers'', as a member of the Overtakers, a group of Disney Villains. She is valuable to them since she knows the ways of the modern world. Cruella works with the Evil Queen to free Maleficent and Chernabog, while making sure the Keepers stay off their trail. Using DHI technology, she and the Queen head for the power facility and shut down the electricity, allowing Maleficent and Chernabog to escape their cells. In the following book ''Shell Game'', she assists the Queen and Maleficent in stealing Walt's original notes on Chernabog from the Archives. She then boards the ''Dream'' for the two-week cruise, along with the rest of the Overtakers. She commands the ''Lion King hyenas, Happy and Howley, having them patrol the ship to keep the Keepers from finding Chernabog. In the seventh book "The Insider", Cruella joins Tia Dalma, the Queen and Judge Doom's group in Toontown; she calls an army of animals to the area with a simple command, only to be knocked out by Amanda's telekinesis. Finn later discovers Cruella had been living in a luxurious decommissioned train compartment and tries strangling her to death. She flees in terror, but has a wrench tossed at her. She is last seen slumped on the ground, bleeding.

''Evil Thing: A Tale of that De Vil Woman''

In the seventh book of the Villains series by

Serena Valentino Serena Valentino is an American comic book writer, author, and storyteller. She created the comic book series '' Gloomcookie'' and '' Nightmares & Fairy Tales''. She also authored the ''Villain'' novels published by Disney Press, which have earned ...

, Cruella De Vil tells her story in the first person starting with her childhood. She describes herself growing up, with her father dying at an early age after gifting her daughter a pair of jade earrings that were said to have been cursed by the Odd Sisters, figures in the fairy tale books Cruella loved to read as a child. Her mother is a self-absorbed socialite, hardly ever seeing her daughter and giving her gifts, which Cruella equates to her mother loving her. The only two people that truly care about her are her governess, Miss Pricket, and her friend Anita who comes from a lower-class family. When they attend school together, Cruella defends Anita from the bullies, and after school intends for Anita and her to travel around the world together. When Cruella puts on her jade earrings, she experiences a surge of power and becomes bossy and mean. She wears them when confronting the school headmistress at Anita's treatment. During the holidays following their first year at school, Cruella decides to have the staff's holiday dinner celebration downstairs, but her mother arrives in horror, and forbids Cruella from going back to school and is determined to find her a husband, as well as banning her from seeing Anita. On Cruella's next birthday, her father's lawyer delivers a female Dalmatian puppy named Perdita, which apparently had been set up by her father prior to his death. After her birthday celebration, she is confronted by her mother about having a puppy, and her mother jokes to Cruella about having the puppy turned into a muff. A horrified Cruella is calmed when Anita arrives from school. At a dinner, Anita reveals she is going to typing school, which leaves Cruella feeling alone. Later, the two fight while Cruella is wearing the earrings, and Perdita urinates on Cruella's fur coat, which leads to her throwing Anita and Perdita out of the house. Cruella eventually marries a man named Jack and confident in their future together, signs over her fortune to her mother. At 25 Jack dies in a fire, supposedly of suicide after seeing the massive amount of debt he had. With just the clothes on her back, Cruella goes to an old mansion called Hell Hall which her father had set aside from her in the case of an emergency. She then goes to meet with Anita, whom she has kept in touch with supposedly for updates on Perdita, and finds herself furious with Anita. She then vows to herself to get back at her, and decides to do so by taking Perdita's coming litter of puppies and turning them into a coat for her mother. When Cruella reveals the plan to her mother, her mother is horrified and demands she return to Hell Hall. Cruella goes ahead with her plan and rounds up not only Perdita's litter, but all the Dalmatian puppies from miles around. Before she can kill them though, the puppies escape. Cruella then descends further into madness, rambling about another grand scheme to get those puppies. The novel ends with a note from

, saying she visited Hell Hall to take down Cruella's story and that she still wears the jade earrings to this day.

''Be Careful What You Wish Fur''

In the fourth volume of the Disney Chills series by Vera Strange, Delia is a girl at a private school who yearns to be the highest influence in fashion at her private school. The House of De Vil is a popular fashion house that all the girls strive to wear. One day, Delia finds a fur coat in an alley and talks herself into taking it. Delia is soon tormented by the unseen phantom of Cruella De Vil, who claims it is her coat.

In popular culture

Cruella de Vil has become one of the most recognizable literary and film villains, and as such as featured prominently in popular culture: *In the ''

Hey Arnold! ''Hey Arnold!'' is an American animated comedy television series created by Craig Bartlett. It originally aired on Nickelodeon from October 7, 1996, to June 8, 2004. The show centers on fourth grader Arnold Shortman, who lives with his grandpar ...

'' episode "Curly's Girl", when Rhonda breaks up with Curly after pretending to be his girlfriend, Helga calls her "Cruella". *In the 1994 film ''

Trading Mom ''Trading Mom'', also known as ''The Mommy Market'', is a 1994 American fantasy comedy film written and directed by Tia Brelis, based on her mother Nancy Brelis' homonymous book. It stars Sissy Spacek, Anna Chlumsky, Aaron Michael Metchik, Maur ...

'' Jeremy Martin strongly disapproves of his older sister's choice for their new mother, a wealthy and fussy French woman, during their first visit to the Mommy Market stating she looks like Cruella de Vil due to her evident liking of cigarettes and her extravagant appearance. *In the 1998 remake of '' The Parent Trap'', Annie James tells her mother that her father is marrying a woman as evil as Cruella de Vil. This could also be considered an inside joke as Cruella de Vil is also the head of a prestigious

fashion house, just like Elizabeth James (played by Natasha Richardson). Furthermore, and coincidentally her sister

played Anita, Cruella's most trusted employee, in the 1996 remake of '' 101 Dalmatians''. *An inflatable representation of the character appeared at the

2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony The opening ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics took place on the evening of Friday 27 July 2012 in the Olympic Stadium, London, during which the Games were formally opened by Queen Elizabeth II. As mandated by the Olympic Charter, the proce ...

alongside other villains,

Lord Voldemort Lord Voldemort ( , in the films) is a sobriquet for Tom Marvolo Riddle, a character and the main antagonist in J. K. Rowling's series of '' Harry Potter'' novels. The character first appeared in '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's S ...

, The Queen of Hearts,

Captain Hook Captain James Hook is a fictional character and the main antagonist of J. M. Barrie's 1904 play ''Peter Pan; or, the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up'' and its various adaptations, in which he is Peter Pan's archenemy. The character is a pirate capta ...

and

Child Catcher The Child Catcher is a fictional character in the 1968 film ''Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'' and in the later stage musical adaptation. The Child Catcher is employed by Baron Bomburst and Baroness Bomburst to snatch and imprison children on the street ...

, to haunt children's dreams – before the arrival of a group of over thirty

Mary Poppins It may refer to: * ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fantasy novels that introduced the character. * Mary Poppins (character), the nanny with magical powers. * ''Mary Poppins'' (film), a 1964 Disney film star ...

who descended with their umbrellas to defeat them – in a segment celebrating

British children's literature British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

. *In '' Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman'', a tabloid once published a story accusing

Lois Lane Lois Lane is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in ''Action Comics'' #1 (June 1938). Lois is an award-winning journalist for ...

of cheating on her husband

Clark Kent Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book '' Action Comics'' #1 ( cover-dated June 1938 and pu ...

with

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book '' Action Comics'' #1 ( cover-dated June 1938 and pu ...

. Lois commented she was under Cruella on the popularity scale. *In the first six seasons of the

History Channel History (formerly The History Channel from January 1, 1995 to February 15, 2008, stylized as HISTORY) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney ...

series '' American Restoration'', Tyler Dale wears his hair dyed half-blonde, emulating Cruella's hairstyle.

In music

*The

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

song " Let Me Entertain You" features the lyrics "I'll Cruella de Vil You!" *"The Cruel One" by Children 18:3 is a song about 101 Dalmatians, mentioning Cruella de Vil by name in the chorus. *The Deadsy song "Cruella" is written about Cruella de Vil. *Rock band The Replacements recorded a cover of the song "Cruella de Vil" for a compilation of Disney covers. It also appears on their 1997 compilation album, '' All for Nothing / Nothing for All''. *Spanish singer

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U ...

made a cover of song "Cruella de Vil" for the Spanish version of the ''101 Dalmatians'' live-action film. *Separate volumes of ''Disney's Greatest Hits'' include covers of "Cruella de Vil" the from the 1961 film, including one by teen singer and actress

Selena Gomez Selena Marie Gomez ( ; born July 22, 1992) is an American singer, actress and producer. Gomez began her acting career on the children's television series ''Barney & Friends'' (2002–2004). As a teenager, she rose to prominence for starring a ...

, as well as a two covers (one

big-band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

cover) by blues pianist and vocalist

Dr. John Malcolm John Rebennack Jr. (November 20, 1941 – June 6, 2019), better known by his stage name Dr. John, was an American singer and songwriter. His music encompassed New Orleans blues, jazz, funk, and R&B. Active as a session musician from ...

. *Mark Campbell (lead vocalist of

Jack Mack and the Heart Attack Jack Mack and the Heart Attack is an American soul and R&B band that was formed in 1980 in Los Angeles, California. Their debut album, ''Cardiac Party'', was produced by Glenn Frey of The Eagles on Irving Azoff's Full Moon Records/ Warner Bros ...

) sings the funky "Cruella De Vil" in ''

'', and on the 2000 Disney Soundtrack Album. *American singer and performer

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

dressed up as Cruella de Vil for Halloween in 2010. The performer has had many outfits inspired by the villain.Go Black-And-Blonde Like Blondie, Lady Gaga, And Cruella De Vil But Read This First, MTV Style
/ref> *American singer

Melanie Martinez Melanie Adele Martinez (born April 28, 1995) is an American singer and songwriter. Born in Astoria, Queens, and raised in Baldwin, New York, Martinez rose to fame in 2012 after appearing on the American television vocal talent show '' The Voice ...

dyed half of her hair blonde, in the same vein as Cruella. *Late American rapper

XXXTentacion Jahseh Dwayne Ricardo Onfroy (January 23, 1998 – June 18, 2018), known professionally as XXXTentacion, was an American rapper and singer-songwriter. Though a controversial figure due to his widely publicized legal troubles, XXXTentacion ga ...

, inspired by Cruella, dyed half of his hair blonde. *Cruella was briefly mentioned by Zelda, the villainess of '' The Swan Princess: The Mystery of the Enchanted Kingdom'' during her villain song along with the Wicked Witch of the West &

Medusa In Greek mythology, Medusa (; Ancient Greek: Μέδουσα "guardian, protectress"), also called Gorgo, was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, generally described as winged human females with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Those ...

. *" Crudelia" by

Marracash Fabio Bartolo Rizzo, better known by his stage name Marracash (), is an Italian rapper. Starting his career in the rap group Dogo Gang, he debuted as a solo artist rising in fame in the 2010s releasing six studio albums that reached the top ten ...

is a song about a cruel woman, mentioning Cruella de Vil (''Crudelia De Mon'' in Italian) by name. *Chinese idol and member of

NCT Dream NCT Dream () is the third sub-unit of the South Korean boy band NCT, formed by SM Entertainment in 2016. They were initially intended to be the teenaged unit of NCT with an admission-and-graduation system, in which members would leave after rea ...

's Renjun dyed half of his hair platinum blonde, in the same vein as Cruella. *"

Tomboy A tomboy is a term for a girl or a young woman with masculine qualities. It can include wearing androgynous or unfeminine clothing and actively engage in physical sports or other activities and behaviors usually associated with boys or men. W ...

" by South Korean girl group

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is a song inspired by Cruella.

Parodies/Derivations

*In ''

'' episode " Two Dozen and One Greyhounds",

Mr. Burns Charles Montgomery Plantagenet Schicklgruber "Monty" Burns, usually referred to as Mr. Burns, Monty, or C. Montgomery Burns, is a recurring character and the main antagonist of the animated television series ''The Simpsons'', voiced initially by ...

plays the role of Cruella De Vil, stealing

Santa's Little Helper Santa's Little Helper is a fictional dog in the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. He is the pet greyhound of the Simpson family. He was previously voiced by Frank Welker, and is currently voiced by Dan Castellaneta. The dog ...

and the puppies he sired to make them into a

tuxedo Black tie is a semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and American conventions for attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdochically by its principal element ...

. However, unlike Cruella, who has no hesitation in killing the puppies, Burns cannot bear to kill the puppies himself, because they are too cute. Declaring that he will never kill any animal that can perform good tricks again, Burns pays the Simpsons for the puppies, and he trains them to be world-class racing dogs. *Coco LaBouche, the antagonist of the 2000 ''

Rugrats ''Rugrats'' is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó, and Paul Germain for Nickelodeon. The show focuses on a group of toddlers; most prominently— Tommy, Chuckie, Angelica, and twins Phil and Lil, a ...

'' film ''

Rugrats in Paris ''Rugrats in Paris: The Movie'' (Also known as ''The Rugrats Movie 2'') is a 2000 animated comedy film based on the Nickelodeon animated television series ''Rugrats'' and the second film in the series. This film marks the first appearance of Kimi ...

'', shares many characteristics with Cruella. *Cruella de Vil appeared in the '' MAD'' episode "2012 Dalmatians", a mash-up of ''One Hundred and One Dalmatians'' and ''

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

''. *In the '' Jessie'' episode "101 Lizards", Mrs. Chesterfield plays a role similar to Cruella de Vil. *Cruella de Vil appeared in a ''

Robot Chicken ''Robot Chicken'' is an American adult animated stop motion sketch comedy television series, created and executive produced for Adult Swim by Seth Green and Matthew Senreich along with co-head writers Douglas Goldstein and Tom Root. The write ...

'' skit called "101 Dalmatian Reproduction" in the episode "Yogurt in a Bag". In this short, Roger and Anita apologize to her after realizing Dalmatians breed more than rabbits (even siblings) and willingly give the adopted 85 puppies back to Cruella. Cruella notes everyone is the hero of their own story, earning some ire from Roger and Anita. *A parody of Cruella appears in the musical '' Twisted'', a parody of Disney's ''

Aladdin Aladdin ( ; ar, علاء الدين, ', , ATU 561, ‘Aladdin') is a Middle-Eastern folk tale. It is one of the best-known tales associated with ''The Book of One Thousand and One Nights'' (''The Arabian Nights''), despite not being part of ...

'' told from Jafar's point of view. In the title song, various Disney villains including Ursula,

Scar A scar (or scar tissue) is an area of fibrous tissue that replaces normal skin after an injury. Scars result from the biological process of wound repair in the skin, as well as in other organs, and tissues of the body. Thus, scarring is a ...

Gaston Gaston is a masculine given name of French origin and a surname. The name "Gaston" may refer to: People First name *Gaston I, Count of Foix (1287–1315) *Gaston II, Count of Foix (1308–1343) *Gaston III, Count of Foix (1331–1391) * Gaston ...

and

, appear to Jafar and bemoan that they were unfairly portrayed and had good reasons for their actions. Cruella, conversely, states that all she wanted was to make a coat out of puppies, to which the other villains react in disgust.

Notes

References

External links

Cruella de Vil
at the UltimateDisney.com Villains Countdown {{DEFAULTSORT:Vil, Cruella de 101 Dalmatians Villains in animated television series Characters in British novels of the 20th century Disney animated villains Female characters in animated films Female characters in film Female characters in television Fictional business executives Fictional gentry Fictional kidnappers Fictional people from London Fictional socialites Female film villains Female literary villains Literary characters introduced in 1956