FILM 2053: HERCULES (1997)

TRIVIA: The role of Hades is one of James Woods' all-time favorite characters. So much so, any time Disney needs him to reprise the character for any cartoon show and video game, such as Hercules: The Series or Kingdom Hearts, he has agreed to do so. When this film was about to go over-budget, he offered to refund his salary and finish the film for free. Disney decided against this, and finished the film anyway.

Hades was scripted as a slow, menacing character until James Woods took the role and impressed the crew with his rapid-fire style. Even after the script was rewritten, Woods ad-libbed many lines.

When Phil and Hercules first enter Phil's hut, Hercules bangs his head on what Phil tells him is the mast of the Argo. In Greek mythology, Jason, the captain of the Argo, was killed when the mast hit his head. In the myths, Hercules was one of the heroes/sailors on the Argo.

While the movie is about Greek myths, Hercules is actually the protagonist's Roman name. Heracles is his Greek name.

In Greek mythology, there were nine Muses. The five shown here are: Calliope (epic poetry), Clio (history), Melpomene (tragedy), Terpsichore (dance), and Thalia (comedy).

Phil cleans himself up using a lion's skin. The skin once belonged to Scar from The Lion King (1994).

During the song "Zero to Hero" the muses talk about Hercules doing things like endorsing products and making personal appearances for money. It may seem anachronistic to the point of being silly on purpose, but even back in ancient Greece and Rome, famous athletes pretty much did all those things and were paid very well for them.

The Spice Girls were originally approached to portray the Muses following an invitation to sing one of the songs, but declined the offer due to scheduling conflicts.

When Hercules and Phil first meet, Phil says "Two words: I am retired," much to the confusion of Hercules. However, in Greek, "I am retired" translates as "Eímai syntaxioúchos", which is actually only two words.

Jack Nicholson, Willem Dafoe, and David Bowie were all considered for the voice of Hades. John Lithgow was originally cast as Hades and recorded all of the dialogue, but was ultimately replaced with James Woods in the final film.

When Hermes delivers the floral arrangement to Zeus and Hera, it is a direct parody of the logo for the floral delivery company FTD Florists, who uses Mercury, the Roman name for Hermes.

In mythology, Heracles (the Greek name of Hercules) is the son of Zeus. Zeus is the brother of Poseidon. Poseidon has a son named Triton. In The Little Mermaid (1989) one of Triton's children is Ariel, making the two Disney heroes first cousins once removed.

At the end of the song "I Won't Say (I'm in Love)," the muses can be heard singing the tune to "Kiss the Girl" from The Little Mermaid (1989).

In the version for Latin America, the voice of Hercules is played by Ricky Martin and Megara is voiced by singer Tatiana.

WILHELM SCREAM: When the cyclops titan first starts crushing buildings looking for Hercules.

Production designer Gerald Scarfe, who designed nearly all the characters, worked with Pink Floyd multiple times and is best known for his artwork and animations for Pink Floyd: The Wall (1982).

During Hercules' training montage, Phil, Pegasus, and Hercules balance on logs at a beach. This is a reference to a training exercise used by Mr Miyagi and Daniel LaRusso in The Karate Kid (1984).

"Hades' line "...hey, you, get off my cloud', when telling the Sisters of Fate about Zeus, is part of the chorus off The Rolling Stones'' single, "Get off My Cloud" It is also the very first line in Wu-Tang Clan's single, "Method Man".

Zeus is voiced by Rip Torn, who is the husband of Geraldine Page, the voice of Madame Medusa in The Rescuers (1977), another Disney animated film released 20 years prior.

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