Big Good / Disney

Warning! Spoilers below.

The Mouse House offers a lot of heroes who serve as the cornerstones that guide and lead other people throughout many stories in the media. However, some can have a positive influence on people, and those has been promoted to the position at some point.

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Animated Canon

Examples

• Pinocchio: The Blue Fairy fulfills Geppetto's wish merely because of his selfless and caring personality, following with her encouraging Pinocchio to choose the path of good if he wishes to become a real boy.
• Bambi: The Great Prince of the Forest protects and oversees all life in the forest, a title eventually taken by his son, Bambi himself.
• Cinderella has the Fairy Godmother, who magics up Cinderella's ball gear and allows her to get her happily-ever-after.
• Sleeping Beauty: Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather form the Big Good Triumvirate in the third act, single-handedly protecting Phillip from all of Maleficent's traps, providing him with weapons, and then enchanting those weapons to allow him to destroy the evil fairy.
• The Sword in the Stone: Merlin is the most powerful good guy and serves as The Mentor to Arthur.
• The Jungle Book: Bagheera is very knowledgeable about the jungle and its many dangers, taking the role as the opposing force to Shere Khan.
• Robin Hood: Much like most adaptations, King Richard is the motivation behind the heroes fighting Prince John, and his absence is what allows everything to fall apart.
• The Little Mermaid: King Triton is the (mostly) benevolent ruler of the seas and the one Ursula ultimately targets in her quest for power.
• Aladdin: The Sultan is the ruler of Agrabah, his removal is what Jafar seeks to achieve for most of the movie, and a single sentence from him solves one of the movie's main conflicts.
• The Lion King has Mufasa, ruler of Pride Rock, whose death is what prompts everything to go to badly. Post-climax, at the end of the film Simba takes on his role.
• Pocahontas: Grandmother Willow is a sentient weeping willow tree that serves as an adviser to the main heroes.
• The Hunchback of Notre Dame: The Archdeacon is the highest (mortal) authority on the side of the angels, serving as a counterpoint to Judge Frollo, although he's mostly absent.
• Hercules: Zeus, after he gets Hijacked by Jesus, is the loving Grandpa God to Olympus and Bumbling Dad to Hercules, rather than the Jerkass God from the original stories.
• Mulan has the Emperor of China, who all the heroes serve, and the Big Bad targets him personally.
• Tarzan: Despite being an Hero Antagonist who is opposed to the idea of Tarzan being part of the band, Kerchak is still the Alpha of the gorilla band that Clayton hunts in the end.
• Dinosaur: Yar the lemur chief, Plio and Zini's father, Suri's biological grandfather, and Aladar's adopted grandfather. Aladar himself becomes this to the Herd near the end of the movie, after their previous leader, Kron, is proven to be a cruel tyrant who constantly mistreats them.
• Atlantis: The Lost Empire: Preston Whitmore, who helps Milo Thatch book an expedition to Atlantis. Kida, the Princess of Atlantis, is this to the Atlanteans, with her becoming the new Queen in the epilogue after her father King Kashekim Nedakh dies from a fatal injury from Rourke, with Milo himself becoming this as well by marrying Queen Kida and becoming the new King.
• Lilo & Stitch: The Grand Councilwoman starts as a Hero Antagonist but falls into this by the end, vowing to protect Stitch and his new family.
• Treasure Planet: Captain Amelia is the experienced captain of the R.L.S. Legacy. Her injury requires Jim to take up the hero role.
• Brother Bear: Sitka, Kenai's oldest brother and the chief of the local Inuit tribe, who ultimately dies protecting Kenai and Denahi from a mother bear, and upon death, turns Kenai into a bear himself as punishment for killing said mother bear and helps Kenai become a better person by becoming the adopted older brother to Koda, the son of the bear Kenai killed. The prologue reveals that Denahi, post-Heel–Face Turn has become this next in line to Sitka when we first see him as an old man narrating the story.
• Meet the Robinsons: Cornelius Robinson is the brilliant scientist who's responsible for the inventions that led to the good future. He is actually Lewis in the future.
• The Princess and the Frog: Mama Odie is known as Queen of the Bayou and is the most powerful voodoo practitioner on the heroic side. Likewise, she serves as the benevolent counterpart to Facilier, with less Friends on the Other Side.
• Tangled: Rapunzel's parents King Frederic and Queen Arianna as they are the loving king and queen of Corona and Rapunzel's real parents.
• Wreck-It Ralph:
  • Fix-It-Felix Jr who serves as this in his game is one of the few people to be nice to Ralph and tries to rescue him after Ralph "goes turbo."
  • In-Universe, Calhoun is this in her game: The lead character and the one to directly talk to the first person shooter. She's also this out of her game, to an extent, being the only one of the four main characters to have some sort of military training and possessing a Crazy-Prepared attitude.
• Big Hero 6: Tadashi Hamada who Hiro looks up to and after his death in a fire caused by the Big Bad, Hiro takes over the role.
• Zootopia: Police Chief Bogo starts as a Hero Antagonist but becomes this by the end of the film.
• Moana: Te Fiti is the kindest and most benevolent character in the story, and once her heart is returned, works to undo the darkness unleashed upon the world thus restoring life to Moana's island.
• Raya and the Last Dragon has Raya's father Chief Benja, the leader of Heart who wants to unite all the kingdoms and have them be at peace.
• Encanto: Deconstructed and eventually reconstructed by Alma Madrigal. She tries to play up the role and live up to the responsibility of being worthy of the miracle. The town of Encanto looks to her for hope and guidance, and when the magic is in danger, they turn to her for reassurance. She serves as the matriarch of her family and they follow her orders implicitly, however, this takes a heavy toll as Alma's "toxic perfectionism" creates expectations that are hard to live up to. Thankfully, at the end of the film, Alma appears on the right track to play the trope properly.

Pixar

Examples

• Toy Story: Woody is the one all the toys look up to and they rely on his leadership.
• A Bug's Life: The Queen leads the ants and tries to safeguard them from Hopper, a role then taken up by Atta.
• Monsters, Inc.: Roz turns out to be the number 1 agent of CDA who was trying to capture the guy who they suspected committed crimes at MI, aka Waternoose.
• Cars:
  • Doc Hudson takes up the role in the first movie, serving as the Reasonable Authority Figure within Radiator Springs, and eventually becoming his pit crew chief at the tiebreaker race.
  • Finn McMissile occupies this role in Cars 2, as he is a British spy car who mistakes Mater for an American spy and recruits him in the mission to solve and thwart the conspiracy that sabotaged the World Grand Prix.
  • Cars 3 has Doc in a posthumous sense, Smokey in a living sense, as he helps train Lightning to get back on track and then Lightning McQueen himself takes over the position by the end of the movie.
• Ratatouille: Chef Auguste Gusteau (in a posthumous fashion), being the founder of the restaurant and the motivation for the main character.
• WALL•E: Captain McCrea takes up this role once he begins leading the humans back to Earth, and defying AUTO.
• Brave: Queen Elinor serves this role as her grace and wisdom are what holds the kingdom together and is the one answering correspondence for the royal family.
• Coco: Mamá Imelda is this for the Riveras, as she's the one responsible for her family's shoemaking business. She also plays the role more efficiently by helping save Héctor with various skills, including her singing, dancing, and her command of her giant flying jaguar Alebrije, Pepita.
• Incredibles 2: Winston Deavor is a rich tycoon of a world-class telecommunications company who calls all the shots in the organization of the return of superheroes.
• Turning Red: Sun Yee is Meilin's and Ming's most famous and revered ancestor, the guardian of the red pandas. Thanks to her being granted the power of a red panda spirit, she was able to defend her daughters and her village in the absence of the men in her village.

TV Series

Animated

• Aladdin: The Series has Fasir, a mystic force for good whose mission it is to counter her great evil wherever he can, usually by guiding the main characters towards their destinies.
• Gargoyles: Goliath is the official leader of the Manhattan Clan and thus of Manhattan's defense against supervillains.
• Recess:
  • T.J. Detweiler is the one most of the other kids look towards for help and to lead them against threats. In the movie, Hustler Kid and Digger Dave both think the kids are doomed without having T.J. around to come up with a plan to stop Benedict.
  • King Bob is the unibrowed king of the Third Street School playground, who looks after the good of the student body.
• Buzz Lightyear of Star Command has the titular character himself; he's the hero of the Galactic Alliance, recipient of just about every known award for heroics, and greatest defender of the galaxy.
• Kim Possible: Sensei is the headmaster of the Yamanouchi Ninja School, who arranged for Ron Stoppable and Rufus to come to the Yamanouchi Ninja School in Japan through a student exchange program. He reveals that Ron had been chosen because he had Mystical Monkey Power, and because he was connected by destiny to the Lotus Blade, a magical shape-shifting sword that only those with the power could wield.
• American Dragon: Jake Long:
  • Luong Lao-Shi takes up the position as Jake and Haley's maternal grandfather, as well as the former's dragon teacher.
  • Through the Dragon Council, all dragons are designated protectors of the magical community defending it from threats from within and without.
• Get Ed gives us Anthony Ol' Skool, who runs Dojo Deliveries and often acts as a mentor to the group.
• Phineas and Ferb:
  • Major Francis Monogram serves the role, as the head of the O.W.C.A., a secret spy agency whose mission seems to be to stop evil scientists from carrying out their diabolical plans.
  • In Across the 2nd Dimension, Candace Flynn-2 takes over the position as the Resistance leader.
• Gravity Falls:
  • Stanford Pines, aka, the Author, seems to have filled this role. Much of what he has written has been ways of fighting the various unnatural elements of Gravity Falls which has helped Dipper save the day countless times. However, it is zig-zagged as of his character introduction; while Stanford seems to have a great deal of knowledge and skill and has genuinely good intentions, he isn't perfect and his arrival set off a lot of hidden tensions in the Pines family.
  • In "Weirdmageddon Part 3: Take Back the Falls", Dipper himself takes up the role, leading the residents of the town (and several supernatural entities the main cast met) in fighting Bill.
• Wander over Yonder: The episode "The Little Guy" indicates that Wander and Sylvia are this without even really trying to be, or at least that Hater thinks they are. Simply by spreading good and kindness around wherever they go, the two of them have become a force for good that's singlehandedly thwarting Hater's plan to fill the universe with "fear and hate". According to Peepers, Hater believes that the only reason good still exists in the galaxy is because Wander still exists - hence the two of them being public enemies #1.
  • Even moreso in Season 2: By now Wander and Sylvia are actually rather famous, and there's even stories and folklore about the two of them and the good they've done. "The Secret Planet" reveals that Wander's heroic deeds are well-known and Sylvia's mother keeps a wall in the house full of news articles about their good deeds. "The Legend" takes this one step further by revealing that Wander is actually a LEGENDARY hero, whose heroic exploits over the centuries have become Shrouded in Myth.
• Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero has Phyllis, who maintains the dimensional gate and serves as a mentor to the younger part-time heroes.
• Star vs. the Forces of Evil:
  • Moon Butterfly, Star's mother and the current Queen of Mewni, while a bit flawed, still serves as this for most of the series. Until season 4 when it's revealed that Moon had been behind every bad thing that happened that season and was supporting Mina Loveberry's conspiracy to dethrone Eclipsa, which ends up devastating Mewni.
  • Despite her abysmal reputation, after she's released from her prison, Eclipsa Butterfly goes on to prove herself as one of the most benevolent and powerful forces on the side of the heroes. As an ally to Star and Marco, she's nothing but an incredibly loyal ally and her relationship with both heroes is almost maternal.
• The Lion Guard:
  • Kion becomes this when he marries Rani and becomes King of the Tree of Life.
  • Askari formed the first Lion Guard to stop some evil lions from destroying the Pride Lands during his lifetime, many generations before the original film. Had he not done that, the Pride Lands might not be in good conditions at the start of the original film, let alone have good monarchs like Mufasa. His actions also led to the Roar of the Elders and the tradition of the Lion Guard to be passed down for many generations, which are very beneficial to the Circle of Life.
• Elena of Avalor has the titular character herself, as she was the one who was granting Sofia powers for good deeds and cursing her for bad ones, primarily to teach her a lesson as well as possibly summoning the Disney Princesses to give her much needed advice when necessary.
• In the 2017 re-imaging of DuckTales, Ludwig Von Drake is the director of the super secret spy organization, S.H.U.S.H..
• Amphibia: The Mother Olm is the wisest and oldest olm in the world of Amphibia. She also aids the three girls and the Plantars succeed at their mission to save the worlds.
• The Owl House:
  • Raine Whispers, Darius Deamonne and Eberwolf form the Big Good Triumvirate as they are the only good Coven Heads who work together in a plan to stop Emperor Belos from performing the Day of Unity, upon learning of his true intentions with the Draining Spell.
  • The Titan is the posthumous Big Good of the series. Even in death, he helps push Luz towards the glyphs, hindered Belos' attempts to learn glyphs for years, and gave his life imprisoning the Collector in the In-Between Realm in a well intentioned if mistaken attempt to protect his last surviving son.

Live-Action

• Kickin' It: Bobby Wasabi is the founder of the Bobby Wasabi dojo. He owns the chain of Bobby Wasabi Dojos around the world. Likewise, he believes in honor, loyalty and friendship between other martial artists.
• Once Upon a Time has quite a several:
  • Regina Mills ultimately becomes this by Season 7, despite her iconic role as the show's first Big Bad. She is the oldest and thus wisest of the protagonists, acting as the mentor to characters like Drizella and Lucy. Furthermore, she is crowned The High Queen in the series finale.
  • Glinda is the head of the Witches, and thus acts as the greatest good Oz has known in the face of the deceptive Wizard Walsh and the Wicked Witch Zelena.
  • Merlin assumes the role as the Big Good in Season 5, being by far the most powerful force for good so far.
  • Despite having committed some less-than-stellar things, the Blue Fairy still remains the most powerful force of good, always willing to help the heroes.
• Lab Rats: The President occupies the role in the third season. In "Rise of the Secret Soldiers", he tries to help the Lab Rats team after the world turned against them.

Star Wars

Films

• Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda in the classic trilogy are opposed both thematically and in characterization to Darth Vader and The Emperor respectively, the last remnants of the Jedi Order, and are both The Mentor to Luke.
• Yoda and Mace Windu in the prequel trilogy, being the leaders of the still extant Jedi Council. In Episode 1 Chancellor Valorum tries for this, but is quickly deposed of by pre-Emperor Palpatine.
• Padmé Amidala served as one for the Naboo as Queen Amidala back in The Phantom Menace. Interestingly enough, most of the appearances of "Queen Amidala" were actually her decoy Sabé, while Padmé herself participated in the Battle of Naboo disguised as a handmaiden.
• Bail Organa was one of the driving forces behind the formation of the Rebel Alliance and started working to subvert the Empire the day Order 66 was issued. Bail remained in this role for the Rebellion until his death on Alderaan.
• The Rebels have Mon Mothma leading their political side, and Admiral Ackbar leading their military side.
• The Force Awakens:
  • General Leia Organa serves as the leader of the heroic Resistance.
  • Luke Skywalker himself becomes the Big Good in the Sequel Trilogy Era. His presence holds significant gravity over the story arcs of many of the characters, and much of what happens is a result of his actions in prior years, making him a Greater-Scope Paragon for the time period. Ultimately, due to expending all of his energy saving the Resistance at Crait, he can no longer be an active member on the field so to speak, but his presence in the Force and that same sacrifice re-ignites people's hope and faith in the Resistance itself.

TV series

• Ahsoka Tano serves as the Big Good to the Ghost crew before losing to Vader on Malachor. She's a spymaster working with a number of rebel cells and coordinating their efforts.
• Lady Bo-Katan Kryze is perceived as such by the Mandalorians who follow her because they genuinely believe that she can unite them all and rebuild Mandalore under her rule. She is especially sustained by the Armorer and Din.
• Resistance: Imanuel Doza is the leading figure for the good guys in the Colossus.
• The Mandalorian: After making his Heel–Face Turn during Season 2, Greef Karga takes up the Big Good mantle, as basically the guy/magistrate running Nevarro. Under his efforts (plus Cara's Marshal duties), they've managed to convert Nevarro, slowly but surely, into a place where families and regular citizens can live, trade, and even educate their kids. He also readily gives Din an offer of credit for the badly needed repairs to the Razor Crest (albeit not for free, he's got a town to run).
• Commander Rex becomes the Big Good for the Clones in The Bad Batch. Even though he's a Reg, he's the main leading heroic clone whom even Clone Force 99 looks up to and rallies behind.
• In Andor, Luthen Rael is slowly revealed to be the mastermind of the Rebel Alliance as a concept and active organization working against the Empire. With his own resources, connections and determination, he rallies the likes of Mon Mothma, Cassian Andor and even Saw Gerrera under his banner to lead the charge in taking down the Empire, paving the way for future heroes like Luke Skywalker to take the reins.

Marvel Cinematic Universe

Films

• Odin Borson is the king of Asgard and the highest authority against Laufey, the king of Jötunheim. The fragile peace between them is the catalyst of the plot of Thor.
• Nick Fury fulfills this role in The Avengers. He brings the titular superhero team together and directs/manipulates/motivates them.
• Although he's far from the most powerful hero, Steve Rogers, aka Captain America, serves as the leader of the Avengers, thanks to his charisma, experience, and strategic prowess. This status all but became official following Winter Soldier, which saw even Nick Fury deferring to Cap's orders and led the Avengers to become the world's most important heroic organization following S.H.I.E.L.D.'s fall. Even in Wakanda and after years of being separated, it's Steve that's issuing orders to his fellow Avengers and leading the (futile) charge against Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War.
• The Nova Corps serves this role in the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie since they are the Space Police.
• Whoever holds the title of Sorcerer Supreme is this in regards to mystical matters. During Doctor Strange, it's the Ancient One; and it's mentioned as a Sequel Hook-style plot point at the end that her death, with no apparent successor, is likely to open the door for all kinds of evil to move unopposed. As of Phase Four, the title has been given to Wong.
• After his debut movie, Doctor Strange essentially takes on this role for the MCU, even though he's not yet the Sorcerer Supreme. Since then, he's decided to keep watch on any potential threats to Earth, not just from other dimensions, so that he can summon and direct heroes to deal with it. Plus, he's had to take serious time to learn about the infinity stones to allow him to help other heroes deal with the impending threat Thanos poses to the universe by the time of Infinity War, and then enacted the big plan to ensure the one outcome where the heroes win, which means allowing himself to perish during the Snap. By the time he gets unsnapped in Endgame, he continues to ensure Tony sticks to the plan.
• Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings features a dragon known as the Great Protector. While Shang-Chi faces Wenwu in a personal fight, the Great Protector is the one taking on the main threat directly and the rest of the cast just provides it critical assistance.

TV series

• Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has Phil Coulson, whose position as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. marks him as this through 2^nd and 3^rd seasons.
• Daredevil & The Defenders: Stick is a lead authority figure for the Chaste, the one organization that has kept the Hand at bay. Likewise, he acts as a wise mentor for the Defenders, informing them of their purpose.
• What If…?: Uatu the Watcher qualifies for the role when he forms the Guardians of the Multiverse, chooses their members, and directs them in their efforts to stop Infinity Ultron from destroying the multiverse.

Kingdom Hearts

Examples

• Yen Sid takes up the position in the later games, as he is the guy King Mickey goes to for advice. He co-ordinates the effort to rescue those suffering and prepares for Xehanort's reincarnation.
• King Mickey himself filled in this role for the first three games since he was the one who organized and led the heroes and their allies against the threats towards the worlds and they're inhabitants.
• coded: As the representation of the digitized Jiminy's Journal, Data-Riku is the Big Good for the game and the journal's datascape in general. Even after the journal's data is fully restored and reset, he continues to assist the heroes in deciphering the mysterious message.
• Riku is the closest thing 358/2 Days has to one, acting as a Stealth Mentor to Xion.
• In χ[chi], Ava is shaping up to be this as she is taking matters into her own hands to make something salvageable out of the whole war - all without the other Foretellers' knowledge. However, this is downplayed, because everything about the Dandelions and her involvement in them were her Master's orders. But then, even later on, she plays the role straight by defying some of the Master of Masters’s orders and manipulating events behind the scenes to change fate. Her full plan is unknown, but it involves putting a wrench in the Master of Masters’s plan in the form of Brain.
• In III, James P. "Sulley" Sullivan serves this role in Monstropolis as the CEO of Monsters, Inc. and as a Papa Wolf towards Boo.

Other Movies

Animated

• The Nightmare Before Christmas: Santa Claus is the old benevolent man in red who sports a white beard and lives in Christmas Town. Likewise, once freed, he is able to solve all the problems caused by Jack literally overnight.
• The Lion King (2019): Like in the original 1994 film, Mufasa is the king of the Pride Lands. Even in death, he remains an important part of Simba's life and appears as a spirit to give him guidance.
  • Sarabi takes the position for the Pride Lands after the death of Mufasa and before Simba’s return.

Live-Action

• TRON: TRON is created by Lora and Alan to curtail Master Control's unmitigated power. He gets sent to the Game Grid to die for his efforts, but is notoriously difficult to kill.
  • TRON: Legacy: Kevin Flynn is considered the great pioneer of information freedom and computer ethics in the analog world, and considered a benevolent deity among those who still believe in him on The Grid.
• Pirates of the Caribbean:
  • Hector Barbossa arguably takes up the Big Good mantle of the third film. He’s the one leading the crew on their journey to save Jack and is concerned with the welfare of all pirates, being the one who convened the Fourth Brethren Court. In the climax, even with Elizabeth being elected king, she asks him to take command of the Pearl so he can man the ship during the battle.
  • Elizabeth Swann becomes this in the third film when she is voted as the new Pirate King. She even leads the pirate army into battle against Cutler Beckett and his army.
• Sky High: Steve Stronghold/The Commander seems to fulfill this role for the superhero community at large. He is a stereotypical upright and patriotic superhero widely considered to be the best, and has the powers of super strength and near-invulnerability.
• From the Tim Burton version of Alice in Wonderland, the White Queen is the leader of the forces opposed to the Red Queen. She is beloved instead of feared and struggles daily to be good.
• Descendants: Ben is the overarching benevolent force of good and leader of the Heroes in the movie. He wants to prove that the villains' kids deserve a second chance.

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