Scar (The Lion King)

Scar is a fictional character and the main antagonist of Disney's The Lion King franchise. He is introduced in the 1994 animated film as the younger, envious brother of Mufasa, the ruler of the Pride Lands. Originally first in line to the throne, Scar is abruptly replaced by Mufasa's newborn son, Simba. Enraged, he devises a plot to usurp the throne by leading an army of hyenas and betraying both Mufasa and Simba. After killing Mufasa, Scar manipulates Simba into believing he is to blame, prompting Simba to flee into exile.

Created by screenwriters Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and Linda Woolverton, and animated by Andreas Deja, Scar is loosely based on King Claudius, the main antagonist in William Shakespeare's Hamlet. His villainy was further inspired by German dictator Adolf Hitler, as well as by lions' natural behavior of pride takeovers. As the character's supervising animator, Deja modeled Scar's appearance on the original voice actor Jeremy Irons, drawing particularly from Irons's performance as Claus von Bülow in Reversal of Fortune. Chiwetel Ejiofor voices the photorealistic version of Scar in the 2019 remake, while Kelvin Harrison Jr. portrays the character in Mufasa: The Lion King.

As a character, Scar has garnered widespread acclaim from film critics, with Irons's vocal performance receiving equal praise. However, his violence, dark color palette and allegedly effeminate mannerisms initially sparked mild controversy. Nevertheless, Scar remains celebrated as one of Disney’s greatest villains by various media outlets—topping The Huffington Post's list and ranking within the top ten of similar lists published by Yahoo! Movies, the Orlando Sentinel, E! and CNN. He has also been recognized among the greatest villains in film history by Digital Spy and Entertainment Weekly.