There’s no question that Encanto is one of the most charming and endearing Disney movies of recent years. With its story of a young woman who struggles with her family’s expectations for her and her lack of magical powers.
Given that it focuses on magic, it’s not surprising that the movie would have some things in common with Harry Potter. It is thus worth comparing the characters from these two franchises, in order to see how their similarities shed light on the various aspects and complexities of their various personalities.
Luisa - Neville
As one of the strongest characters in the Disney movie, Luisa has a great deal weighing on her, and she sometimes struggles to live up to the expectations that her family has of her. A similar problem faces Neville Longbottom, who likewise comes from a family that is known for its magical abilities. Both of them, however, continually demonstrate that they have what it takes to be the heroes of their own stories, even as they are secondary parts in someone else’s tale.
Mirabel - Harry
Mirabel is inarguably one of the best and bravest characters in this Disney movie, and she repeatedly shows that she is also one its most intelligent. She is the one, after all, who leads the family away from its conservative way of doing things and points the way to a better future. In many ways, then, she bears a resemblance to Harry Potter, someone else whose very existence is a catalyst for various changes that take place in the wizarding world, most of which are for the better.
Abuela - McGonagall
Abuela may not be one of the most likable characters in this Disney movie, but there’s no question that she does dearly love and care about her family and wants what’s best for them. At the same time, she can be quite stern and impatient with those that she thinks haven’t lived up to her lofty expectations. In all of these senses, she has a great deal in common with McGonagall, someone else who has a good heart but isn’t always as compassionate as she could be with those under her care.
Bruno - Snape
Bruno is one of the most tragic characters in the movie, sentenced as he is to always exist on the outskirts of the family. However, he also shows that he is fiercely intelligent and, what’s more, loyal to the very people that did so much to cast him out. Thus, he has a lot in common with Snape, arguably one of the most complicated characters to appear in Harry Potter, as well as someone who was very misunderstood around him (including and especially Harry).
Julieta - Mrs. Weasley
Julieta makes it very clear that she cares and loves about her family a great deal, and she is one of the few who doesn’t look down on Mirabel for her lack of a magical gift. However, she also has a lot of love and support to give to all of the other members of the family, and they all know that they can count on her.
The same is true of Mrs. Weasley, the matriarch of her family who always greets any newcomers with open arms and a love that is seemingly boundless.
Agustín - Sirius
Like his wife, Agustín has a lot of love for his daughter, and he is also willing to love her unconditionally, making him one of the best Disney parents. To some degree, of course, his ability to see Mirabel as more than just her lack stems from his own liminal space within the Madrigal family, since as an outsider that married in he has no powers of his own. In a very similar way, Sirius is always a bit of an outcast, both from his own family and from others, which makes his adoption of Harry all the more significant and emotionally meaningful for the both of them.
Félix - Hagrid
Félix is another character that has married into the Madrigal family, and he is very much a moderating influence on his wife. Whereas she is very excitable, he is calm and jovial and always willing to be the life of the party. He has a great deal in common with Hagrid, who remains one of the most likable characters to have appeared in Harry Potter. Even when others are panicking or losing control, Hagrid has a solidity about him that makes him feel like a calming presence during a calamity.
Isabela - Hermione
As a Disney-princess like character, Isabela knows what it takes to be perfect, even as she also has to contend with the many expectations and burdens this puts on her as a person. What’s more, she is also more than a little impatient with those that she thinks aren’t living up to her lofty expectations, and that includes her sister Mirabel.
In all of these regards, she bears a striking resemblance to Hermione, another young woman who was very conscious of the burdens of perfectionism and had very high standards for others.
Dolores - Luna
Like the other members of her family, Dolores has a magical gift that can sometimes be a bit of a burden. After all, she has to literally hear almost anything that happens around her. This leads her to be somewhat of a nervous character, as well as someone who has a bit of an abstracted air. Luna Lovegood of Harry Potter had some similar traits, for in addition to being one of the odder characters to appear, she also had hidden depths, as she repeatedly revealed.
Pepa - Ron
Given that she has the ability to control the weather, it’s not always a good thing that Pepe is one of the more emotionally volatile members of the Madrigal family. As she shows time and again throughout the movie, she has a tendency to let her feelings get the better of her. In many ways, she has a lot of similarities to Ron Weasley who, as he gets older, shows a similar ability to keep his feelings under control, even when doing so is absolutely essential to the mission to defeat Voldemort.