There were only a few movies in the 2010s that garnered as much obsession as the Disney animated film Frozen. Following the success of Tangled, it felt like princess movies were back on a whole new level. You couldn’t go into a store without some Olaf memorabilia or “Let It Go” blasting on the radio.
Here are 21 cool Frozen movie facts that will make you go watch it again on Disney+:
1.
Although it may be surprising, Frozen, released in 2013, was the first Disney film directed by a woman. Directors Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck collaborated on the project, making Lee the first woman to direct a Disney animated film in 52 projects.
2.
Filmmakers invited a real-life reindeer onto the set to gain a better understanding of the animal’s behavior, which helped them create the character of Sven. (The reindeer, not that funny-looking donkey)
3.
Opening weekend for Frozen was, well, cold. The film only made $67.4M in its opening weekend. Turns out, word of mouth and reviews did the heavy lifting after those three days, because the film earned $1.28B in total at the global box-office. Yes, that “B” is BILLION.
5.
On the topic of ages, Hans is 23 years old in the first movie. In addition to being the youngest brother in his family, he is also the youngest villain in a non-Pixar Disney film. I emphasize “non-Pixar” film because “Happy Child” Sid (Toy Story) is still our youngest antagonist. I’d say Sid is more of a troubled child, whereas Hans is just a P.O.S. (Piece of Snow).
6.
“Let It Go,” although the one of the most popular Disney songs to date, wasn’t much of a challenge. It only took composers Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez a day to write a demo. That pen must’ve been on fire.
8.
Arendelle is based on real Norwegian towns. Bergen, Norway was a major inspiration to the design of the buildings and how the town sat on the water.
9.
Elsa was actually going to be the villain. In the fairy tale the film is loosely based on, “The Snow Queen,” the queen is actually the baddie. Her alternate character design was evil, heartless, and dare I say…cold.
13.
Sven’s original name was going to be Thor, as in God of Thunder. One can only assume another Disney-owned character undercut the original name since the acquisition of Marvel happened around the same time as Frozen’s production.
14.
The voice of Oaken (yoo-hoo, big summer blowout) is also that of Frozen’s storyboard artist Chris Williams. Williams is a director, writer, and animator…who has helped write stories we love like Moana, Prep & Landing, The Emperor’s New Groove, and Mulan.
17.
The snow monster was originally not-so-scary at all. In fact, the original version was just a giant-sized Olaf and acknowledged as a “brother” to Olaf. It didn’t quite have the same impact that they had wanted, since the character was meant to be intimidating, not silly.
19.
Actor Alan Tudyk was actually in back-to-back Disney movies: Wreck-It-Ralph (2012) and Frozen (2013). He voiced King Candy and then The Duke of Weaseltown…I mean, Weselton. This would lead him to voice acting for numerous Disney characters.
20.
The ice castle changes colors to reflect Elsa’s emotions. In a way, it works like a mood ring, fitting the proper emotions of the scene: dark colors for anger and fear, and warmer colors for when she speaks with her sister.
21.
Kristoff was originally going to punch Hans, but the filmmakers found more satisfaction in Anna getting the honors. It really wouldn’t have made any sense storyline-wise, so the change was the correct one. Hans is, however, seen rubbing his chin, implying either Kristoff or Sven punched him.