Disney may have acquired both Star Wars and Marvel Comics in recent years, but DC Comics remains separate from this company. Even so, Disney has offered more than a few subtle winks to DC icons Superman and Batman in the way it has depicted its versions of Hercules and Aladdin over the years.
While many of these similarities seemed coincidental at first, Disney eventually had the two heroes meet in the Hercules animated series crossover episode “Hercules Meets the Arabian Night” (now streaming on Disney +) which made their link to the DC superheroes playfully obvious.
Let’s take a closer look at both Aladdin and Hercules and examine how Disney used their own animated characters to put their own spin on Batman and Superman.
Aladdin: Arabian Knight or Dark Knight?
At first glance, Disney’s teen heartthrob Aladdin bears very little resemblance to DC’s grim and gritty Batman. But a closer look reveals a surprisingly large number of similarities. Like Bruce Wayne, Aladdin has no innate superpowers but acquired a high level of street smarts, stealth skills, and acrobatic maneuvers thanks to his years living as a thief. His ability to navigate the chaotic marketplace of Agrabah, disguise himself at a moment’s notice, and evade capture closely mirror Batman’s own skill at using the streets of Gotham to his advantage. And where Batman has a trusty sidekick in Robin, Aladdin has his own partner-in-crime in Abu the Monkey.
Although Aladdin spent the majority of his early life living in poverty, he soon “inherits” a Wayne-level fortune when he stumbles into his own version of the Batcave – “The Cave of Wonders.” There, Aladdin acquires a magic carpet that’s faster and more maneuverable than the Batmobile or Batwing. And he gains his greatest ally in the blue skinned Genie. Genie becomes Aladdin’s version of Batman’s Alfred – constantly giving Aladdin advice and helping to sell the idea that he’s a prince (Agrabah’s version of a billionaire playboy).
While some may point out that Aladdin’s tools are based more in magic than technology, one popular fan theory suggests Aladdin may actually take place in the far future after a major apocalypse wiped out humanity and forced everyone to start over from scratch. This is supported by the fact that Genie constantly makes pop culture references to the 20th century (turning into Jack Nicholson or wearing Disneyland Goofy ears) that he should have no knowledge of. As such, Genie’s “magic” could be based on highly advanced future technology, giving Aladdin the equivalent of Batman Beyond-type gadgets.
Aladdin also showcases other Batman-like qualities in his later appearances, including the recent live action Aladdin movie. His quick mind allows him to deduce that a disguised Jasmine is from the palace by recognizing the embroidered silk of her dress is used only by royalty (although he falls short of realizing she’s the princess, concluding she must work at the palace). His attraction to Jasmine – who’s devoted to her pet tiger Rajah – also subtly mirrors Batman’s own attraction for a different cat-lady.
Granted, Aladdin never swore vengeance on all criminals after his parents were murdered in an alley (in fact, in Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996), Aladdin discovers his father is alive – and the leader of a group of bandits). Attitude-wise, this Disney prince also shares more in common with Nightwing than Batman. Nevertheless, Aladdin tendency to champion the downtrodden with the aid of tools that grant him superhuman-like abilities does show this “Arabian Knight” has more than a few things in common with DC’s Dark Knight.
Hercules: The Last Son of… Olympus?
Disney’s animated Hercules movie offers multiple similarities to the classic Superman: The Movie starring Christopher Reeve. Like Kal-El, infant Hercules was sent to Earth from his true home on Mount Olympus. Disney’s Hercules also has two godly parents, Zeus and Hera – unlike the mythical Hercules who was the result of one of Zeus’ many infidelities with a mortal woman. While this was likely done to avoid raising uncomfortable questions about Hercules’ parentage, it also mirrors Superman’s own Kryptonian parents Jor-El and Lara. Disney’s Hercules is also raised as a mortal by a kind farmer and his wife (like the Kents raised Kal-El) and learns at a young age that he possesses powers and abilities far beyond mortal men.
Just as Clark Kent traveled to the Arctic to learn his true origins at the Fortress of Solitude, Disney’s Hercules travels to the Temple of Zeus. There, he communes with a giant statue of Zeus almost exactly like a teenage Clark spoke to a giant hologram of Jor-El’s floating head. Upon discovering his divine birth and heroic mission on Earth, Hercules undergoes a period of lengthy training (just as Reeve’s Clark Kent was whisked away to outer space for a 12-year Kryptonian education) and returns a full-fledged hero.
Even as an adult superhero, Disney’s Hercules displays a Clark Kent-level of awkwardness around women, a strong departure from the mythological Hercules who had multiple wives. His love interest Megara also displays an acerbic attitude similar to the no-nonsense Lois Lane. Such qualities made this Disney version of Hercules more kid-friendly, likely because he had so much in common with Christopher Reeve’s version of Superman (who described himself simply as “a friend”).
Aladdin v. Hercules
Okay, so both Disney’s Aladdin and Hercules share more than a few similarities to Batman and Superman. But that doesn’t mean the two actually share a relationship like the one between the Dark Knight and Last Son of Krypton, right?
Actually, they do! During the 1990s, Disney produced Hercules: The Animated Series, a show that focused on Hercules’ teenage years (basically, Disney’s version of Smallville). The show expanded Hercules’ supporting cast and even gave him his own version of Jimmy Olson (or Pete Ross) in his goofy classmate Icarus. At one point, the series featured a crossover episode titled “Hercules Meets the Arabian Night” which not only allowed Hercules and Aladdin to finally meet but also established that at least some of Disney’s characters live in a “shared universe” not unlike the MCU or DCEU.
The episode indulges heavily in multiple superhero story tropes and plays out somewhat similarly to the animated film The Batman Superman Movie: World’s Finest (1997), which saw the Joker and Lex Luthor team up to take out Batman and Superman. In the episode, Hercules’ enemy Hades discovers Aladdin’s nemesis Jafar in his realm of the dead following the sorcerer’s demise in The Return of Jafar. The two compare notes and decide to take down each other’s enemies. However, Hercules’ strength overwhelms Jafar and Hades’ minions prove too dim-witted to outsmart Aladdin.
Jafar then proposes a different strategy seen in hundreds of comic books – trick the heroes into fighting each other. This leads to a classic hero vs. hero misunderstanding where Aladdin, unable to compete with Hercules’ strength, leads the demigod under a collapsing building and traps him under a ton of rubble. Fortunately, the two realize who’s really behind their fight and team up – with Hercules suggesting they switch costumes to throw off the villains (another classic Superman/Batman maneuver). The plan works, the bad guys are defeated, and Aladdin and Hercules form a friendship that basically makes them Disney’s version of The World’s Finest Team.
Unfortunately, Hercules and Aladdin never get another chance to team up (although they do show up separately in the Kingdom Hearts video game). Still, the fact that Disney saw fit to pit the two against each other in a Superman/Batman-style brawl shows they also see the similarities between their characters and the iconic superheroes.
Next: Frozen 2 Theory: The Story Takes Place in Marvel’s Universe
