Top 10 Animated Movie Characters That Live Action RUINED

Top 10 Animated Movie Characters That Live Action RUINED

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today were counting down our picks for the most regrettable live-action versions of beloved animated movie characters. If youre looking for the Rolodex of rage that is the TV version of this list, just scroll through our catalog, and you should find it!

#10: Alice Kingsleigh

Alice in Wonderland (2010)

The witty, inquisitive, and spirited little girl from the original turns into a Victorian-era maiden, burdened by society in Tim Burtons live-action adaptation. This Alice is much older and disillusioned by the constraints of her reality. That said, its not like she comes alive in the fantastical Wonderland, or rather, Underland. Mia Wasikowskas heroine remains cynical and quite unmoved, for the most part. The chosen one trope is forced upon her, but the character development expected of such a coming of age story is missing. The only way we know the journey has affected her in any way is because were told so. The Alice who returns to the real world is the same as before, just a little more prone to talking back.

#9: The Dalmatians

101 Dalmatians (1996)

Since when has live-action meant mandatory realism? One of the greatest strengths of the original One Hundred and One Dalmatians was the anthropomorphized puppies. Theyre endearing, easy to empathize with, and root for. 1996s live-action is a story well told, but not half as charming as the original. Dont get us wrong. The actual furballs in the movie are certainly adorable and evidently took direction surprisingly well. However, the rush of oxytocin that the animation supplied has no replacement. Admittedly, we imagine CGI animals wouldve been better, but other live-action projects, like Tim Burtons Dumbo prove that it might not always be a good idea. At least we got Glenn Close being an absolute diva as Cruella de Vil, which well take as a win.

#8: The Three Fairies

Maleficent (2014)

Aurora is not the protagonist in the Angelina Jolie-led live-action adaptation of Sleeping Beauty. It is Maleficent who is given a heroic turn in Robert Strombergs film. Perhaps because Maleficents presence is so overpowering, the movie does away with the three good fairies from the original, Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather. They shower baby Aurora with blessings and protect her from the severity of Maleficents curse in the animation. However, their live-action counterparts, Flittle, Knotgrass, and Thistlewit, have little to no presence. As Aurora forges a deep emotional bond with Maleficent, there is little need for anyone else to protect her. So, it makes creative sense to reduce Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather to pointless pixies, but its a pity nonetheless. They were fan-favorites, after all!

#7: Peter Pan

Pan (2015)

Nothing could be worse than one of the most celebrated emblems of boyhood being forced to grow up. The very essence of Peter Pan lies in his carefree, reckless, and free-spirited personality. Joe Wrights prequel to the original story attempts to make a man out of him. Naturally, that goes against everything we know about the character. Hes suddenly best pals with Captain Hook and is happy to take on the responsibility of saving Neverland. How such events could possibly be a backstory for J. M. Barries whimsical and impish Pan we know and love is beyond us.

#6: Mulan

Mulan (2020)

Its worth wondering if the creators of this live-action film watched the same source material as we did. Cartoon Mulan starts as a young woman who risks her life for the sake of her family. Although she stumbles at first, she steadily masters combat skills while disguising herself as a man in the military. However, her cerebral prowess far exceeds her physical strength, making her a competent tactician for the army. On the contrary, live-action Mulan is blessed with superhuman might through her qi. Not only does the film misconstrue the concept of qi, but it also reduces our heroine to an overpowered Mary Sue lacking credibility. Overall, Yifei Lius Mulan is far from relatable, barely faces conflicts, and is frankly quite uninspiring.

#5: Motoko Kusanagi

Ghost in the Shell (2017)

Lets get the elephant in the room out of the way first. Scarlett Johansson as Motoko Kusanagi offers a compelling performance that was approved by the director of the original film, Mamoru Oshii. However, even if we look the other way regarding the whitewashing accusations, director Rupert Sanderss take on Motoko is not the cyberpunk serve he thought it would be. Live-action Motoko steers clear of raising too many questions about consciousness and identity. The film impresses with spectacle instead. This leaves a glaring void where the cult classic originals philosophical examinations should have been. Ultimately, the Major lacks depth and fails to be much more than a killer cyborg.

#4: Simba

The Lion King (2019)

Real lions in a National Geographic documentary show more emotion than the CGI characters of this remake. The heart of the 1994 cartoon lies in Simbas journey from an inexperienced cub with no real understanding of power to the king of the jungle. As he learns to overcome his trauma, viewers are thoroughly invested, hoping to see his fathers image in him. Unfortunately, the photorealism sucks out the immersion and were not nearly convinced enough to care. Even worse is when James Earl Joness fully realized voice as Mufasa meets the complete lack of feeling on the characters face. Even Scar is stripped of his elegantly evil visage. So, even though the remake remains loyal to the classic tale, it lacks flair and profundity.

#3: The Seven Dwarfs

Snow White (2025)

Out of all the gripes fans have with Marc Webbs reinterpretation of the age-old fairytale, one stands out as downright indefensible. The 2025 version of Snow White uses CGI for the seven dwarfs, only one of whom is voiced by an actor with dwarfism. To please critics who called the seven dwarfs backward, such as actor Peter Dinklage, and pacify fans whod never allow the original characters to be tampered with, Disney went with CGI. We dont need to spell it out for anyone to recognize how problematic this is, especially for a film harping on being progressive. In fact, several actors with dwarfism protested the studio's employment of CGI over real actors. To make things worse, the animation was nightmare fuel! Everyone deserved better.

#2: Pooh and Piglet

Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey (2023)

You can tell from the name of this movie alone that its not a pretty little fable. Rhys Frake-Waterfields dark reimagining of Pooh Bear and Piglet as oversized, murderous antagonists plotting against Christopher Robin for abandoning them is absurd to the extreme. It has all the hallmarks of a low-budget fearfest, like gratuitous gore and campy aesthetics. However, it is completely devoid of humor, which is particularly jarring, given how hard it is to take this film seriously. If only it werent related in any way to the charming seventies cartoon, it could have passed as a decent horror flick.

#1: The Full Ensemble

Pinocchio (2022)

Disneys attempt at leveraging the sentimentality around the enchanting original animation with this remake comes across as a plain old cash grab. Every character, including Tom Hankss Geppetto, is a hollow shell spouting lifeless dialogue at an unamused audience. It tries to be quirkier than the 1940 version but ends up falling on its face, leaving nothing but cringiness in its wake. Pinocchio is a goody-two-shoes from the get-go, leaving little room for an impactful arc. Meanwhile, Geppetto fails to earn much of our sympathy, and Jiminy Crickets unsolicited narration gets tiring. Robert Zemeckis's bid for brownie points with new songs isnt impressive enough to add to the charm of the characters either. Clearly, the visual department and the cast did the heavy lifting here.

When it comes to animated characters, are you team live-action or team leave them alone? Sound off in the comments!