Some Disney characters are talented, dedicated, hard-working or clever. They solve their problems and face their fears, growing as people along the way.
Others are… just lucky.
There’s nothing wrong with a little luck, though! It spices up a movie’s plot and can add much-needed comic relief to a film. Usually the lucky ducks in a Disney movie are going to be the sidekick characters. And that makes sense: it looks bad when a princess or protagonist gets through a tough spot just by luck instead of having to test herself. But if it’s a wise-cracking sidekick, not too many fans are going to complain if they luck out!
So, in honor of Saint Patrick’s Day, I thought I’d share my list of the Five Luckiest Disney sidekicks!
1 – Cri-Kee (Mulan)
“What? What do you mean you’re not lucky? You lied to me? And what are you? A sheep?”
Mushu, Mulan
This is probably the character everyone thinks of when you say “lucky,” but is Cri-Kee actually as lucky as Grandma Fa believes he is?
Well, Grandma doesn’t get squished when she plays blindfolded-Frogger across the road, Mushu finds and pulls Cri-Kee out of the middle of an avalanche, and he and all his friends survive all of the movie’s battles against nearly impossible odds. And since Cri-Kee doesn’t actually do much other than type out a note or two, I’d say that’s pretty much luck. He certainly didn’t survive using his hand-to-hand combat skills against the Huns!
2 – Jack Sparrow (Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl)
Well then, I confess. It is my intention to commandeer one of these ships; pick up a crew in Tortuga; raid, pillage, plunder, and otherwise pilfer my weaselly black guts out.
Jack Sparrow (Captain)
For all that he steals the show, Jack Sparrow is definitely the sidekick to the Will & Elizabeth protagonist-pair in the first Pirates of the Caribbean film. And boy is he lucky, always managing to make it out of a situation at the very last moment and with enviable calm.
Even the moments that seem decidedly unlucky for Captain Jack, like picking a fight with the one blacksmith in town who can best him with a sword, end up being fortuitous in the end – that one blacksmith ends up being the son of Bootstrap Bill Turner and the only person who can break the pirates’ curse (and end their reign of terror).
Honorable mention to the Walt Disney Company here, who lucked into making an amazing film based on a theme park attraction. Sadly, their luck didn’t continue (see: Tower of Terror, the Haunted Mansion) but maybe the upcoming Jungle Cruise film will turn their luck around!
3 – Heihei (Moana)
I am curious about that chicken eating the rock. He basically lacks an intelligence required for pretty much… everything. So can we just……Cook him?
Villager, Moana
Heihei (aka Hei Hei aka Boat Snack) is truly the embodiment of sheer, dumb luck. I don’t think anyone would argue that he’s hilarious and one of the best characters in Moana, but he’s definitely lucky to be alive!
Heihei is lucky that he didn’t get cooked and eaten by the villagers, that he doesn’t get eaten by Maui, that Moana is willing to keep rescuing him after he jumps into the ocean, and that he never gets an esophageal tear from swallowing rocks! Is this rooster immortal?
Of course, we are a 100% pro-Heihei blog! In fact, one of our favorite pairs of ears that we’ve reviewed is this Heihei pair! I guess that’s another bit of luck for this sidekick!
4 – Linguini (Ratatouille)
Ratatouille doesn’t sound delicious. It sounds like ‘rat’ and ‘patootie.’ Rat-patootie.
Linguini, Ratatouille
That’s right: Linguini is Remy’s sidekick in Ratatouille and this is a hill I’m willing to die on. And he might be the luckiest human character in Disney history.
This guy can’t cook and was going nowhere. He just got really lucky that a friendly, talented, cooking-savvy rat was willing to climb onto his head and use him as a human puppet to make gourmet food.
Plus they both got really lucky that the dish they happened to make, ratatouille, just happened to be food critic Anton Ego’s favorite childhood dish.
5 – Susan Hegarty aka “Rescue Lady” (Lilo and Stitch)
Oh yes, mm-hmm, all of our dogs are adoptable. [Lilo walks in with Stitch] Except that one!
Susan Hegarty, Lilo and Stitch
She’s a pretty minor character, but this lady LUCKED OUT when Lilo and Nani walked into her pet shelter looking for a puppy. Not only does she introduce the two title characters to each other and find Lilo the perfect “dog” without even trying, she also gets the most problematic creature out of her shelter.
Can’t get enough Stitch? Check out our review of these ears inspired by our favorite not-a-dog!
Runners-up for luckiest characters in this scene were all the other dogs terrified of Stitch is Susan’s shelter – they got lucky that Nani didn’t return Stitch just when they thought it was safe to come down from the rafters.
Well, that’s my list of lucky sidekicks in Disney films! Did I miss any? Let me know here, on Instagram and Facebook (@fashionearsta) and our brand new YouTube channel! Be sure to follow us so that you’re always in the loop and can follow along with our adventures!
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