The Genie in Aladdin
To celebrate the release of Despicable Me FemaleFirst have put together some of animation's best loved and popular characters that have graced the big screen over the years.
When a criminal mastermind uses a trio of orphan girls as pawns for a grand scheme, he finds himself profoundly changed by the growing love between them.
We take a look at the top five animation characters of all time:
5. Mike and Sully - Monsters Inc
Monsters Inc hit the big screen in 2001 and if, like me, you can't decide between Mike and Sully who you like the best then both of them find themselves on our chart to find the best animation character.
Billy Crystal and John Goodman make a fiercely funny comedic team as job partners and best friends, Mike (Crystal), a little green guy with one huge eyeball, and Sulley (Goodman), a big purple and blue fuzzy guy with dinosaur spikes down his back.
Mike and Sully work at Monsters, INC., a gigantic corporation that captures the screams of little children and turns them into energy. To make the children scream, the monsters must enter each child's bedroom through the closet door, then deliver a frightening affront.
The only problem is, kids aren't scared anymore. And because of this problem, Monsters, Inc. is in a jam. But when one little girl, Boo (Mary Gibbs), follows Sully through her closet door and into the factory, she brings an even more dire issue to the fore: the monsters are actually terrified of children.
The pair have gone on to become one of the best movie double acts and Monsters Inc one of the jewels in Pixar's crown.
4. Puss in Boots - Shrek 2
They always say that sequels never work, however the guys at Dreamworks proved everyone wrong with their follow-up to Shrek in 2004. While Keeping the three main characters of Shrek, Donkey and Fiona a new character was added in the form of Puss in Boots.
Voiced by Antonio Banderas Puss in Boots is hired by King Harold to assassinate Shrek. And the direct frontal assault on the ogre in the woods is the first time the audience is introduced to this new character in the franchise.
But his attack goes wrong when he gags on a hairball spitting it up. When Shrek and Donkey decide to spare him and Puss claims he owes Shrek a life debt. Despite initial competition between Donkey and Puss the trio become friends and allies.
Parodying Banderas' role as Zorro Puss in Boots became a welcome addition to the franchise and went on to become of the film's most popular characters.
3. Simba - The Lion King
No chart would be complete without including Simba, one of Disney's most famous characters, The Lion King was the biggest grossing animation movie of all time until Finding Nemo came along.
A heroic coming-of-age story which follows the epic adventures of a young lion cub named Simba as he struggles to accept the responsibilities of adulthood and his destined role as king of the jungle.
Simba is the son of Mufasa and Sarabi, nephew of Scar, and is always looking for danger. Mufasa's evil brother, Scar, hopes that day will never arrive and schemes to do away with the king and Simba so that he can assume the throne for his own tyrannical purposes.
Scar and his hyena henchmen lure Simba into the path of a wildebeest stampede in which Mufasa is killed trying to save his son. Scar convinces Simba that he is responsible for his father's death and urges him to leave the Pride Lands and never return.
Away from the pride he is able to accept who he is and forget the past before returning to save everyone from Scar's rule.
A box office triumph Disney once again tackled the issue of losing a parent, for the first time since Bambi and Scar became the biggest Disney villain since Shere Khan.
2. Buzz Lightyear
In 1995 Toy Story became the first computer generated animation movies giving birth to a new age of cinema that has swept through the box office over the last few years.
But the most memorable moment from the film is when Buzz Lightyear uttered those now immortal words 'To infinity... and beyond' for the very first time cementing the character as a movie legend.
Buzz Lightyear is given to Andy as a birthday gift but his arrival in the toy room causes a rift as he soon replaces Woody as Andy's favourite toy.
But Buzz doesn't realise that he is a toy, believing instead that he is the real Buzz Lightyear and all his equipment is in full working order.
But Woody and Buzz have to put their differences aside as they take on toy destroying child Sid Phillips and Woody is there to help Buzz when he realises that he is only a toy.
Toy Story 2 went on to be just as successful and a third film is now in the pipeline.
1. The Genie - Aladdin
'You ain't never had a friend like me' and he wasn't wrong Aladdin had never met such a bold brash character in all in life and neither had cinema audiences, that was until 1992.
Despite Aladdin being the lead character and his story to defeat Jafar and win the hand and heart of Jasmin but it was Robin Williams' Genie that stole the movie.
Like most genie's he was a slave with 'phenomenal cosmic power' but he can only use that power on his master, the owner of the lamp, granting him three wishes.
However Aladdin keeps his promise and grants the Genie's freedom. Aladdin was the most successful movie of 1992 and saw a return to form for Disney following on from The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast.
Despicable Me is released 15th October.
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw
Tagged in Aladdin Despicable Me