According to Entertainment Weekly, actor Mary Wickes served as the model for the character. But the Hollywood actor who left the biggest mark on the development of Cruella was Tallulah Bankhead. Bankhead was extremely thin and smoked around 120 cigarettes per day, both traits Cruella also possessed.
Disney based its version of Cruella on the personality and mannerisms of Tallulah Bankhead, and her long, lanky physical design came from Mary Wickes, who served as her live-action model.
Cruella begins with Estella as a child with black and white hair, something that she was born with due to a disease called poliosis. The condition is caused by a decrease or absence of melanin in the hair on the body, typically resulting in a white streak or splotches in someone's hair.
Artie fully embodies the typical gay stereotype in the movie: He runs a vintage clothing store in London. Even though it is never directly stated that Artie is queer, his appearance and scripted mannerisms make it clear that this was Disney's attempt at sculpting a gay character.
Baroness Von Hellman is the main antagonist of the 2021 film Cruella, portrayed by Emma Thompson. She is the biological mother of Cruella De Vil and an esteemed fashion designer operating in London. Known for founding the House of Baroness, she is fiercely protective of her position and reputation.
The first thing Disney did to make Cruella a redeemable character was to portray her as having dissociative identity disorder (sometimes called multiple personality disorder).
In 101 Dalmatians, Cruella wanted to purchase Perdita and Pongo's Dalmatian puppies because she was a selfish heiress who viewed the puppies as a fashionable commodity to be exploited rather than as innocent living beings.
In the 1961 animated original film, the fashion-obsessed heiress was usually seen clutching a cigarette and holder as sickly green smoke wafted behind her. When asked why the wardrobe statement piece was intentionally left out, Stone attributed it to evolving opinions about smoking within the past 60 years.
Marc Davis, the animator behind iconic Disney characters like Sleeping Beauty's Maleficent, spoke about basing Cruella on a woman he met in real life as well as the actor Tallulah Bankhead. “I had several partial models in mind when I drew Cruella,” Davis told the Los Angeles Times in 1985.
Ever since her debut in Dodie Smith's novel, there have been many films and shows that have showcased the character Cruella de Vil. She appeared in 101 Dalmatians, the 1961 animated film by Walt Disney, where her character was voiced by Betty Lou Gerson.
It is there the movie arbitrarily suggests Cruella de Vil's eventual obsession with Dalmatians is because that breed of dog was used as a literal murder weapon in the death of her mother.
She is an eccentric, fashion-obsessed heiress who wishes to use the skins of 99 Dalmatian puppies to create a spotted fur coat. Regarded as a "witch" and "devil woman", Cruella's infatuation with furs drives her to murderous insanity.
Cruella comes to visit and feels that Anita just sending the sketches of her designs because she is on leave from work isn't the same as the interaction they had together. She mocks Roger for his job and for starting a family which makes his respect for her, turn to hatred.
A huge theme to acknowledge in this film is the idea of nature vs. nurture. Estella was raised by a caring mother who always tried to “love her into shape” as Cruella herself states it. Try as she might, Estella could never quite tame those wild inclinations.
What The Ending of Cruella Really Means. Cruella ends with the Baroness being proven guilty of Estella's murder and being taken to jail for her crimes. While the Baroness is exposed in the eyes of the public, she is shown to hold a considerable amount of influence due to her social stature.
The reason given for Cruella's distinctive hair is poliosis, a disease that causes a decrease or absence of melanin in head hair, eyebrows, eyelashes, or any other hairy area. More often than not, the hair is affected in splotches or directly over the forehead to create a streak of white, akin to Rogue in X-men.
From the original Disney animation, we learn that behind her glamour, Cruella de Vil is a murderous, narcissistic psychopath; she is a woman who is perfectly willing to illegally abduct, murder and skin 99 puppies to create her own spotted fur coat.
It is not until the end Cruella reveals her true personality, a violent, careless, murderous, destructive, and downright evil psychopath, after the dalmatians escape, she becomes nearly insane and preposterous, so she goes on a rampage trying to retrieve the dogs but accidentally crashes the car she was driving.
Catherine, a former employee of the filthy rich Baronness, is there to ask her former employer for a bit of money. Rather than extend some compassion, the Baronness silently whistles for her trained Dalmatian attack dogs, who leap at Estella's mother and push her off a cliff into the sea.
John tells the baroness that he didn't kill her "only child" in response to the baroness questioning why he didn't take care of it. At the end of the movie, Estelle reveals to an unknowing Baroness she is her daughter.
