When it comes down to it, Disney Princes simply are not on the same level as the Disney Princesses. They aren’t anywhere near as popular or memorable, in large part due to the fact that they tend to be underwritten as characters. It’s only in recent years where Disney Princes have actually started to develop into more three dimensional figures alongside their Princesses.
As a result, some of the early Disney Princes can come off as quite… daft. When you spend most of your movie doing next to nothing, waiting around until there’s someone to save (who you may not even end up saving), it’s hard to really establish a compelling personality for yourself. Still, the early Princes all play important structural roles in their film which are interesting to observe.
The Prince (Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs)
Snow White’s Prince exists for one reason and one reason alone: to give Snow White a happy ending. Without The Prince, the film’s story comes to a rather bleak close. The Dwarfs have avenged Snow White, but she remains dead. The Prince offers a miraculous happy ending, befitting of a fairy tale.
But that doesn’t make him a good character, or smart. While he ends up reviving Snow White with true love’s kiss, he isn’t present for anything else in the film other than his introduction. The Prince misses essentially the entire plot, oblivious to anything and everything that has happened to Snow White over the course of the movie.
The Beast (Beauty & The Beast)
The Beast isn’t a bad guy (eventually,) but he kind of deserves his fate. He genuinely was an incredibly cruel and unkind young man. That speaks to a profound lack of emotional intelligence.
It’s really a miracle Belle sees anything of value in the Beast. He doesn’t inspire too much hope on the surface level (and even beneath,) but dig through enough layers and the Beast turns out to at the very least be cultured enough to own a vast library. One he’s happy to share with Belle in the good movie.
Prince Charming (Cinderella)
Prince Charming is a lot like Snow White’s Prince in that he isn’t a particularly active present. He more or less exists in the background as a means to give his Princess (in this case Cinderella,) a dream to aspire for. To his credit, though, Cinderella isn’t exactly a plot calling for Prince Charming’s action.
When it does near the end of the film, he does at least have the agency to have Cinderella’s glass slipper fitted on every woman’s foot, so that he may find his true love. Beyond that, he’s played by Richard Madden in the live action remake. That’s gotta count for something, right?
Prince Philip (Sleeping Beauty)
One of the quieter Disney Princes, spending a good chunk of his movie completely silent, Prince Philip is nonetheless one of the most active. He’s the first Disney Prince to actually get off his butt and do something for his Princess. With the help of Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather, Prince Philip marches into Maleficent's Castle in one of the best animated sequences in Disney’s canon.
No, it’s not a display of intelligence, but Philip is competent on a level his predecessor princes weren’t. It doesn’t make up for his distinct lack of a personality, but just seeing a Disney Prince do something must have been revolutionary for audiences.
Prince Eric (The Little Mermaid)
Alright, now we’re starting to get to the Princes who are actual characters. (Beast notwithstanding. He’s not the brightest, but he’s actually one of the most layered Disney Princes.) Prince Eric takes Ariel for who she is, how she interacts with the world. She doesn’t need to speak for him to understand her.
That shows a considerable amount of emotional maturity on his part, and Eric himself takes after Philip in actually contributing come the climax of The Little Mermaid. He’s not the first Prince to take action, but he is the first to stand on somewhat equal ground with his Princess. Albeit really only in the last act.
Aladdin (Aladdin)
It’s odd to think of Aladdin as an official Disney Prince considering his character’s entire background is rooted in a distinct lack of royalty, but Prince Ali has to count for something. Plus, he does marry Jasmine when all is said and done, so yeah, Aladdin is a Disney Prince.
As the main character of his own movie, this does mean Aladdin ends up one of the most competent Princes on this list. He probably is the most competent, actively solving all his problems by the end of his movie. Aladdin is cunning and bright, but while not unintelligent, his lack of education can only take him so far.
Li Shang (Mulan)
Although nepotism landed him his high ranking role within the Chinese military, it’s hard to ignore Li Shang’s status as a General and his general background. He’s one of the most hypercompetent Disney Princes in the canon, arguably the only one who can realistically hold his own when push comes to shove.
He’s a bit on the flat side, but he has a charm to him. Not just that, he has the decency to at least spare Mulan when he learns the truth of her gender. Considering the era, this is quite the move on Li Shang’s part–showing that he understands what Mulan has contributed, even if his reaction is ultimately rooted in sexism.
John Smith (Pocahontas)
John Smith is an interesting character to discuss. The real life John Smith was not this casanova of a man who could intimately connect with nature or the Powhatan people. He was a cruel man who razed villages and enslaved Native Americans when push came to shove. He knew Pocahontas, but she was very young at the time.
Disney John Smith is another story entirely! He’s charming, kind, and a racially progressive bloke. He’s not about this whole “Savages” nonsense. Through Pocahontas, Disney’s John Smith has his mind opened, coming to truly see the the Powhatan as equals–just people sharing the same land. This is all clouded under a mess of a movie, of course, so take it with a grain of salt.
Hans (Frozen)
Hans is technically an unofficial Disney Prince, but he’s still worth pointing out considering he would be an official Prince were he not ultimately Frozen’s main villain. Hans subverts the Disney Prince routine pretty hard, manipulating Anna at every turn. By the last act, Hans has actually succeeded in claiming rule over Arendelle.
His big mistake is leaving Anna to die instead of killing her outright. That’s a pretty damning move, one that results in a humiliating defeat at the hands of both Elsa and Anna, but the fact he comes so close to getting everything he wanted is impressive.
Flynn Rider (Tangled)
Flynn Rider is one of the best written characters in the Disney canon, and the most nuanced Prince. He’s likable, charming, goofy, bright, crafty, and all around cool without being edgy. He’s got a dorky lovable side to him. He isn’t always in a position of power which makes him easy to root for, but he’s not incompetent either.
Flynn is Rapunzel’s other half in a way few other Disney Princes are. They complement each other thematically, narratively, and as characters. Them working together so often only makes Flynn come off more intelligent, even if he does lack conventional schooling.
Prince Naveen (Princess & The Frog)
Prince Naveen is almost like a prototype for Flynn Rider. They share similar backgrounds (with Naveen’s royalty front and center,) and are generally depicted as charming leading men. The key difference being that Flynn is depicted as more likable than Naveen who has to grow into his likability over the course of the movie.
But his arc is strong for a Disney Prince and he ends up becoming a suitable companion for Tiana. The two come to understand one another, and it becomes clear that while Naveen is lazy, he’s a very smart man who knows what he wants out of life.