The Disney film, Hercules, is full of stereotypes and predetermined notions. The portrayal of the characters and the development of the plot reveal these stereotypes. The focus will be on gender roles and body image to expose the tacit connotations presented in this film. Stereotypes hidden in Disney films send children unfair messages about the role of women, physical appearance and heroism. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Disney has a very rich history of portraying female characters in their films as stereotypical damsels in distress, and it is very evident in this film. The Oxford Dictionary defines the phrase "damsel in distress" as "a young woman in trouble (with the implication that the woman needs saving, as from a prince in a fairy tale)". The film confesses to supporting this idea when the coach, Phil, yells, “Sounds like your basic 'DID,' damsel in distress” (Clements, 1997). Meg is the female protagonist and has the stereotypical portrayal of a vulnerable young woman or in other words the damsel in distress. Hercules, the superhero, saves Meg time and time again from the dangers she is exposed to despite being helpless. Hercules is given the girl's heart just like any other superhero or dominant male character in Disney films, which supports the idea of ​​femininity in animated films equating to being saved and marrying one's savior (King et al., 2010). This overly rehearsed stereotype reinforces the impression of a passive and receptive woman, who shows no strength or ascendancy. The representation of femininity in Hercules is archetypal and invalidated. The female characters are inconsistent and weak and do not play an effective role in the plot. Rodan et. al (2014) explained how one of the representations of women in the media is that they are trivialized when they appear on television, such as a character similar to Meg. The most notable contribution the women get in the film is when Meg is tied up and offered to Hercules as part of a deal with Hades, the antagonist. In addition to being held captive, Meg likes to spend her time admiring Hercules or exploiting him in some stratagem planned by the enemy. Meg is just a puppet without any kind of substance or ambition. Meg's personality supports the femininity portrayed by female character animations as they are very one-dimensional and flat (King et al. 2010). It is only meant to be a reward and motivation for the hero's actions and boundless expeditions. Other female characters in the film also failed to achieve any real purpose other than to empower a male character or be a follower mesmerized by his appearance. Women are depicted as hysterical, as they are often seen screaming at the hero's appearance or being effortlessly manipulated by flattery. For example, Hades was able to flatter the Fates, a group of sisters who can see the future, enough to allow them to tell him the future of his hostile takeover (Clements, 1997). Careful analysis reveals that the male portrayals are not treated much better than their female counterparts despite them being the dominant figures in this film. It seems that the main standard by which the male figures in Hercules are evaluated is their muscular strength. Men lack depth of emotion or intelligence, but are the only agents of pure power. Disney projects a fixed type of hegemonic masculinity in this film, which was one of the first criticisms of the concept (Connell and Messerschmidt, 2005). While real-world hegemonic masculinity is subject to change, Hercules embodies.