Every State’s Most Popular Disney Villain
Thanks to the 2019 release of Disney+, it’s easier than ever to experience a little Disney nostalgia. For those of us who feel warm inside each time we watch our favorite childhood flick, don’t expect to lose the feeling any time soon — the remake of Mulan is set to premiere at the end of March, meanwhile Cruella (the spin-off of 101 Dalmatians) is set to come out in May of 2021.
While it’s exciting to see your favorite Disney heroes and heroines in live-action on the big screen, the villains often steal the show. Over at ViasatSavings.com, we were curious—with all the Disney love in the air, which villains do Americans love to hate the most?
To find the answer, we analyzed internet data across 50 states, and voila: our list of each state’s most popular Disney villain was born.
Interesting findings
- 10 states chose Scar as the class favorite of all the villains. The 1994 premiere of The Lion King did well, but the 2019 remake did even better. The modern-day rendition brought in $1.3 billion — that’s more than Frozen 2’s earnings.
- The country’s second favorite villain is the cold-hearted evil queen, Maleficent (a.k.a. Angelina Jolie) from Maleficent: the Mistress of Evil. But despite the character getting Google love in 9 states, the movie tanked in theaters. As Disney’s lowest opening weekend in 2019, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil suffered a $36 million loss in box office earnings.
- North Carolina’s preferred villain, Gaston, would feel right at home in the Tar Heel state. The state boasts 9 million chickens which produce about 7.5 million eggs per day — perfect for an outsize character who gulps down 5 dozen raw eggs every morning to help him achieve barge status.
- Frozen’s outlaw, Hans, has 12 brothers, making him the villain with the largest family of any Disney foe. Vermont googled Hans the most of any other villain, despite being one of the states with the smallest average family size.
- Tamatoa, the villainous crab in Moana, is Hawaii’s favorite villain. Not only is Tamatoa of Polynesian and Haitian descent, but the film itself is set in the pacific. Plus, did you know that Tamatoa is Maori for trophies? Maybe that explains why he hoards so many.
Methodology
We started with a list of 21 of the most recognizable Disney villains. From there, we looked at each state’s Google Trends to determine which villains people are searching on the internet the most.
Most-Googled Disney villain by state
| Alabama | Hades |
| Alaska | Shere Khan |
| Arizona | Maleficent |
| Arkansas | Scar |
| California | Shan Yu |
| Colorado | Maleficent |
| Connecticut | Jafar |
| Delaware | Dr. Facilier |
| Florida | Maleficent |
| Georgia | Scar |
| Hawaii | Tamatoa |
| Idaho | Mother Gothel |
| Illinois | Shan Yu |
| Indiana | Maleficent |
| Iowa | Michael Yagoobian |
| Kansas | Scar |
| Kentucky | Maleficent |
| Louisiana | Dr. Facilier |
| Maine | Captain Hook |
| Maryland | Scar |
| Massachusetts | Ursula |
| Michigan | Ursula |
| Minnesota | Hades |
| Mississippi | Scar |
| Missouri | Scar |
| Montana | Hades |
| Nebraska | Scar |
| Nevada | Maleficent |
| New Hampshire | Captain Hook |
| New Jersey | Hades |
| New Mexico | Maleficent |
| New York | Ursula |
| North Carolina | Gaston |
| North Dakota | Scar |
| Ohio | Scar |
| Oklahoma | The Evil Queen |
| Oregon | Gaston |
| Pennsylvania | Hades |
| Rhode Island | Lady Tremaine (Wicked Stepmother) |
| South Carolina | Hades |
| South Dakota | Captain Hook |
| Tennessee | Maleficent |
| Texas | Maleficent |
| Utah | Cruella de Ville |
| Vermont | Hans |
| Virginia | Scar |
| Washington | Ursula |
| West Virginia | Lady Tremaine (Wicked Stepmother) |
| Wisconsin | Dr. Facilier |
| Wyoming | Gaston |
Are you a member of the media with a question?
About ViasatSavings.com: ViasatSavings.com is an authorized retailer of Viasat.
For media inquiries, please contact: media@viasatsavings.com