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From [[WesternAnimation/TheLorax the animated film]]:
----
[[foldercontrol]]
!!Citizens of Thneedville
[[folder:In General]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tumblr_m7vwgnawgr1r2kcd8.png]]
The kooky citizens of Thneedville who, while aware of their home's environmental problems, still love it.
----
* ApatheticCitizens: Although out of ignorance, not malice.
* CrowdSong: Two of them, "Thneedville" at the beginning and "Let It Grow" at the end.
* DeliberatelyCuteChild: 3-year-old Marie.
* GullibleLemmings: Until Ted shows them the truth.
* HeelFaceTurn: Everyone decides to let the seed grow.
* IgnorantOfTheirOwnIgnorance: They don't know about their environmental problems at first.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ted Wiggins]]
[[quoteright:193:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ted_wiggins.png]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/ZacEfron
Theodore "Ted" Wiggins is the deuteragonist of The Lorax. He is an idealistic 12-year old boy who wants to get a real tree for Audrey in order to impress her.
----
* AscendedExtra: Compared to the book and the animated special.
* BadassBiker: Can do some neat tricks on his bike.
* BrainyBrunette: One of the most sane and resourceful characters in the story.
* ChildLikeVoice: Inverted. Even though he's a 12-year-old, he's voiced by Zac Efron using his natural voice, which makes him sound like a man in his late teens/early twenties as a result.
* {{Determinator}}: Girl you like wants to see a tree? Venture out into the wastelands. Town won't listen to you? ''Knock down the walls''.
* HeroesWantRedheads: He's madly in love with the redheaded Audrey.
* HeroOfAnotherStory: Ted is the one who helps bring back the trees.
* IdenticalStranger: To the Once-ler when he was young.
* LikesOlderWomen: At least in the case of Audrey, the age difference is slight but noticeable.
* NamedByTheAdaptation: His name was never revealed in the book or the 1972 adaptation.
* NiceGuy: Summed up by his willingness to find Audrey a real tree, even if it meant going into unknown, possibly dangerous territory.
* PrecociousCrush: Has a crush on Audrey, who is in High School.
* RedIsHeroic: He's the hero of the story with a red and orange striped shirt, red bike, and red bike helmet.
* TinyGuyHugeGirl: The Tiny Guy to Audrey's Huge Girl. {{Justified}} given their (slight) age difference.
* {{Tuckerization}}: Ted is the actual name of Dr. Seuss.
* VocalDissonance: His voice actor is twice his age. Averted in the 1972 adaptation.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Audrey]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/audrey_lorax.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by''': Music/TaylorSwift
Audrey is a kind hearted, good and nature loving girl who dreamed of one day being able to see a real tree. Thought we are not sure how she knew about it, it might have been a source like Grammy Norma who told her. The red head seems to be a good friend of Ted, and she seems to like him being around her.
----
* AuthorAvatar: To producer (and widow of Dr. Seuss) Audrey Geisel.
* CanonForeigner: She never made an appearance in the original short or the book.
* FieryRedhead: She's passionate but more laid back than other examples of this trope.
* FlatCharacter: She solely exists to be Ted's love interest and is merely a plot device to move his motivation along.
* FriendToAllLivingThings: She is loving and caring of all living things.
* GranolaGirl: A Downplayed example. She'd rather have the trees back than have to constantly buy air from O'Hare, but then again, it makes perfect sense to want to be able to get a resource from a free natural source than from an expensive corporation. Also, given the Crapsaccharine nature of the world, wanting nature to come back isn't an unreasonable request.
* NatureLover: Loves the idea of trees. Shown symbolically through her green eyes.
* NiceGirl: Audrey is a sweet, laid back teenager.
* RedheadInGreen: In Ted's fantasy where he presents her with a tree as a gift, she dons a green dress.
* SatelliteLoveInterest: Quick, name one of her character traits other than "hero's love interest"...
%%* SignificantGreenEyedRedhead
* SmoochOfVictory: Gives one to Ted for helping plant a ''real'' tree.
* TinyGuyHugeGirl: The Huge Girl to Ted's Tiny Guy. {{Justified}} given their (slight) age difference.
* {{Tuckerization}}: Audrey is the name of Dr. Seuss's wife.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Aloysius O'Hare]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/aloysius_ohare.png]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/RobRiggle
Aloysius O'Hare is the main antagonist. He is the mayor of Thneedville and the founder of O'Hare Air, a company for bottled air. He had the city walled off to hide the fact that air is available elsewhere for free.
----
* BigBad: For Ted's story.
* CanonForeigner: Never appeared in the original book or the ‘72 short.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: The only reason he doesn't want real trees to grow back is that it'll likely put him out of business. He wants the atmosphere of the entire town of Thneedville to remain smoggy for this very reason.
* {{Determinator}}: [[HateSink Say what you will about the guy]], but when the chips are down, he is shown to have balls of steel; see VillainousValor below. He also managed to work himself from a menial position to becoming a successful businessman and politician.
* EvilCannotComprehendGood: His entire life is built on greed, so he's not only caught off-guard, but doesn't seem to understand what's happening when one of his employees chooses to risk his job (indeed, his entire ''industry'') so all of Thneedville will have a chance to live in a better world.
* FauxAffablyEvil: He speaks to Ted in a smarmy, chummy tone that barely masks his paranoia and greed.
%% * FlatCharacter: Aside from {{Determinator}} above and VillainousValor below, he doesn't have much of a character beyond the usual [[CorruptCorporateExecutive evil corporate manager]] and basically exists to give Ted's story some dramatic tension.
* {{Foil}}: To the Onceler. The Onceler caused environmental degradation out of pure greed but was shown to have a human side and regretted his actions to the point where he gave Ted the means to repair the damage he inflicted. O'Hare, meanwhile, profited from the damage the Onceler inflicted, shows almost no remorse about any of his crooked schemes, and tries to stop Ted from fixing the environment.
* HateSink: Surprisingly [[DownplayedTrope downplayed]]. He is the corrupt and greedy dirt-bag mayor of Thneedville and founder of O'Hare Air, a company that sells bottled air. He walled up the city to hide the fact that breathable air is free elsewhere, ensuring that the people will remain dependent on the air his company sells. When he discovers Ted wandering outside the city walls, he has no problems threatening him, and when he discovers he has a truffula tree seed, he does everything he can to prevent it from being planted, from trying to seize the seed, to manipulating the citizens into trying to destroy it. Even after the citizens see the world outside and agree the seed must be planted, he is the only one who does not change his mind, still trying to convince the city to let the seed die, turning the citizens and his men against him. However, as shown in {{Determinator}} above and VillainousValor below, he clearly has the force of will and audacity to pose a considerable threat, which could give him a degree of admirability.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: In the Once-ler's flashback, he's seen as a janitor. When his coworker asks what "the next big thing" will be, before coughing on the smog, that's when his vision began.
* HeelFaceTurn: Invoked, then immediately defied. See below.
* IgnoredEpiphany: In the "Let It Grow" sequence, O'Hare looks like he's with the others, before he tries (and fails) to convince them to kill the seed.
* MisterBig: Owns a big company.
* TheNapoleon: The shortest and meanest character in the film.
* ProperlyParanoid: Knows full well that the return of trees would sink his business, so he does everything he can to keep people from even being aware of their existence.
* RagsToRiches: He started out as a poor janitor, before he realized he could profit from the contaminated environment.
* {{Tuckerization}}: O'Hare was named after Illumination's story artist Mark O'Hare.
* TyrannicalTownTycoon: Rules Thneedville both as its mayor and a businessman, keeping things polluted to ensure that his business isn't threatened.
* VillainousValor: When he fails to dissaude Ted from revealing the truth to the town the first time, he stops pulling his punches and does everything in his power to prevent the kid from doing so, even taking quite a bit of physical punishment and showing complete fearlessness even in the face of failure.
-->'''O'Hare:''' [[{{Determinator}} NOBODY BEATS ALOYSIUS O'HARE!]]
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: At the beginning.
* WouldHurtAChild: He doesn't have a problem threatening a boy.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ted's family]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_lorax_sprouted_seed.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/JennySlate (Ted's mother), Creator/BettyWhite (Grammy Norma)
Ted's family consists of his mother (Mrs. Wiggins) and grandmother (Grammy Norma).
----
* ActionMom: Both Ted's mom and grandma know how to get rough when it gets serious.
* AmazinglyEmbarrassingParents: Ted's mother is apparently this to her son, considering he was humiliated when she was turning own disco music, [[DiscoDan and trying to dance to it.]] This line says it all:
-->'''Ted:''' Oh, it hurts, Mom! Please stop.
* CanonForeigner: They weren't from the original story or the 1972 adaptation.
* CoolOldLady: Ted's grandma. Convinces Ted to go find the Once-ler, evades O'Hare to protect the seed when he comes looking for it, and snowboards like a pro! Lampshaded in the latter scene.
-->'''Audrey:''' ''(To Ted)'' Seriously? How cool is your grandma?!
* DisappearedDad: Ted's father was never seen or mentioned, leaving it unknown whether Mrs. Wiggins is a widower or divorcee.
* FullNameUltimatum: A downplayed instance; when O'Hare comes to visit and Ted is reluctant to speak to him, Ted's mom refers to Ted as Theodore Wiggins when she tells him to come meet O'Hare immediately.
%%* GoodParents
* JewishMother: Mrs. Wiggins is quite nagging.
* MamaBear: Mrs. Wiggins acted very nervous when O'Hare came to visit Ted. But the moment O'Hare and his goons mess with Ted, she drops all formalities and orders them to leave.
* NeverMessWithGranny: Ted's grandmother has no problems hitting people and riding snowboards and tractors.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Cy the O'Hare Delivery Guy]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Fletcher Sheridan
The delivery guy of Thneedville who delivers air to customers.
----
* {{Acrofatic}}: Has a large belly, yet is fit enough to survive falling into a manhole, then keep on dancing and even pull off the splits while doing a high note.
* AffablyEvil: Not exactly evil, but he is working for the BigBad of the film, and appears to have a little bit of personal greed, considering how he sniffs the money given to him by a client as if smelling the air. Besides that, he is a genuinely pleasant and cool guy who is friendly towards everyone.
* HeelFaceTurn: He is the first person to turn against O'Hare and encourages everyone else to do the same.
* HypocriticalHumor: Calls O'Hare a 'greedy dirtbag' for wanting to kill the seed, yet earlier in the movie can be seen smelling a $100 bill as if it were fresh air. Granted, liking money is a much less serious offense than actively stopping people finding out about the state of the world so they remain dependent on paying you to survive.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Gives a short but amazing one to O'Hare after he fails to convince everyone to turn on Ted and the others.
--> ''(Singing)'' '''[[MemeticMutation You greedy dirtbag]]!'''
* SingingVoiceDissonance: Can pull off high notes and upbeat lyrics like a young fella despite being middle-aged.
* TheSingingMute: Subverted. He's not mute, but he only speaks through singing, even when chewing out O'Hare for his greedy nature.
* UnstoppableMailman: Gives off this impression. He's a cool upbeat delivery guy who likes to sing, and isn't even fazed from falling down a manhole or doing the splits despite being overweight.
* VocalDissonance: He has a fairly youthful and rhythmic voice despite being a middle-aged man.
[[/folder]]
!!The Once-ler's family
[[folder:In General]]
[[quoteright:266:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tumblr_m1a504o74c1qa0qdi.png]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Nasim Pedrad (Once-ler's mother), Stephen Tobolowsky (Uncle Ubb), Elmarie Wendel (Aunt Grizelda), Danny Cooksey (Brett and Chet)
The Once-ler's abusive family.
----
* AscendedExtra: In the book, they were only green hands like the Once-ler himself, did not have names, and did nothing relevant to the story besides helping knit the thneeds. In the movie, they are given names, appearances and personalities, have important roles (especially his mom), and, unlike the book and special, the flashback starts with the Once-ler leaving his family instead of arriving at the Truffula forest.
* EvilIsHammy: They all seem to be very hammy.
* FairWeatherFriend: They're the picture of sweetness once the Once-ler's business starts to take off, only to abandon him when things go bad.
* GoldDigger: They only start being nice to Once-ler after his idea became a success.
* HateSink: Their screentime is so the audience could hate them and [[TheWoobie feel sorry for the Once-ler]].
* {{Jerkass}}: Not one of them is a likable person.
* KarmaHoudini: As far as we know, they never suffered the consequences of their actions; did they even survive the smog?
* KickTheDog: Repeatedly to the Once-ler.
* NamedByTheAdaptation: Except for the mother (and possibly the Once-ler himself), everyone in the family gets an official name.
* NeverMyFault: They don't think they did anything wrong when it comes to how they treat Once-ler. Nor cutting down all the trees.
* VillainSong: They all share a part of The Once-ler's song, "How Bad Can I Be?"
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Once-ler]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/eyelashes_much.jpeg]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/EdHelms
The Once-ler is an old man who recounts to Ted Wiggins how his discovery of the Truffula Forest as a young adult led to its depletion. Therefore, he could be considered a (former) secondary antagonist as well as the story's main protagonist.
----
* AdaptationalAttractiveness: The Once-ler's face was never revealed in the book, and it's unknown if he is even human (given his spindly green arms and yellow eyes, plus the fact that most of Dr. Seuss's characters are weird creatures), although he does say he "speaks for men" and talks about "human opportunities". In the movie, he's fully seen and his younger self is a pretty human.
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: In the original story, The Once-ler's motivation was nothing but pure greed from the start until he cuts down the last Truffula tree. In the movie, he [[FaceHeelTurn starts out]] as a fairly decent guy who just wants to impress his family, and even agrees not to cut down any more Truffula trees-- until his family shows up.
* AffectionateNickname: The Lorax endearingly refers to him as "beanpole" a few times.
* AllForNothing: His whole motivation for harvesting Thneeds at the expensive of local wildlife and his promise to the Lorax was trying to earn the love of his shallow, materialistic family. Unfortunately for him, while he ''does'' earn their attention with his Thneed business, it just becomes a way for them to exploit him-- deep down, his parents don't truly care about him at all. The moment his business goes pear-shaped, his parents leave him high and dry and his relationship with the Lorax and the forest animals is damaged beyond repair as a result of his actions. Naturally, this turns him into a bitter, miserable recluse for a long time afterward.
* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: He was the constant target of his family's emotional abuse.
* AmbiguouslyHuman: In the book, as his face isn't seen and his limbs are green, but it isn't clear whether it is clothing or his body (in the movie, it is the former).
* AmbitionIsEvil: His ambition to create a successful business and earn the approval of his family, especially his mother, is what leads to him becoming a villain.
* AntiVillain: He never had any malicious intent towards the forest.
* TheAtoner: He spent all of his life saving/developing a seed that would help re-create the forests.
* AnAxeToGrind: Has both a regular one to cut down trees, and a VisualPun version-- an electric guitar.
* BigBad: A protagonist example, as the story is about his descent into villainy. By the time of the present, he's learnt his lesson and tries to offer the listener an ear against his environmentally damaging ways. In the film, he strangely becomes the BigGood in the present, giving Ted [[spoiler:the last Truffula seed]] and pushing him to help the environment that he destroyed.
* BigEater: Implied. In one particular scene, he cheerfully whips up a ''ninth'' serving of pancakes and offers them to the animals, many of whom are moaning and clutching their stomachs. It's assumed that he's eaten roughly the same amount they have, and yet he suffers no ill effects from it. He can also easily put away a bag of marshmallows.
* ByronicHero: A bizarre example, considering he's a character from an adaptation of a ''Dr. Seuss book''. Nonetheless, he qualifies-- he's handsome, morally conflicted, desperate to prove himself, and makes a huge mistake that leads to him becoming bitter until he's finally able to do something to fix it.
* ClassicVillain: Vice: Greed. His VillainSong is ''about'' greed. What do you think "biggering" means?
* ConspicuousGloves: Wears elbow-length green gloves from his VillainSong onward. He also puts on green work gloves when he cuts down the first tree.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Temporarily, but ''badly''.
* DeadpanSnarker: More so in his old age.
* {{Deuteragonist}}: Technically this, although his story gets more focus than Ted's.
* DrunkWithPower: His successful company led him to make ''very'' bad choices.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: The scene where he is digging through his cart and throwing his things willy-nilly. He comes within a hair's-breadth of harming several forest creatures on accident. It helps to establish his character as a well-meaning instigator of environmental doom.
* EvilCostumeSwitch: The green suit. Even after his HeelFaceTurn, he continues to wear it.
* FaceHeelTurn: Breaks his promise with the Lorax in favor of his business and family, and heads down [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope the slippery slope]] from there.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: And back to nobody again.
* GadgeteerGenius: He invents the Thneed, the Super-Axe-Hacker, and the various mobile contraptions around his house.
* HeWhoMustNotBeSeen: He is largely hidden behind a boarded-up window while telling his story to Ted. In the book, his face isn't seen ''at all'', showing only his arms and legs.
* HeelFaceTurn: After witnessing the animals and the Lorax leave, the Once-ler spends his entire life regretting it.
* TheHermit: Becomes this after the trees are gone and his business goes under, the animals leave in order to survive, and his family outright abandons him.
* {{Hipster}}: Trendiness is a large part of his character, and defines the Thneed as a fad item that no one actually needs. This becomes significant when he ultimately ends up alone, forgotten, and out of touch with society.
* HonestCorporateExecutive: He tries, and indicates that he takes care of his workers and donates to charity, but in the end, it's not enough and his neglect of the environment ruins him and everything around him.
* IGaveMyWord: Subverted. His promise to the Lorax to not cut down trees does not last. And no amount of [[PeerPressureMakesYouEvil peer pressure]] is enough to make the Lorax forget it.
* IJustWantToBeLoved: He just wanted to become successful in order to finally win the love and respect of his family, especially his mother's.
* InTouchWithHisFeminineSide: He likes to knit, sing, and cook, and likes pink. He seems pretty into fashion, and his dance moves consist of a lot of hip/butt shaking. All possible reasons why his family treat him the way they did.
* JerkJustifications: His FaceHeelTurn consists almost entirely of these, both Types 1 and 3, and several more besides.
* KickTheDog: Despite being an Anti-Villain, some of his actions during [[VillainSong "How Bad Can I Be"]] are undeniably cruel.
* KnightTemplar: He goes so far as to tell the Lorax "My conscience is clear."
* LargeHam: Can be quite dramatic.
* LookOnMyWorksYeMightyAndDespair: Basically the whole premise of his character.
* MeaningfulName: Though he has a somewhat different motivation than the original, he still ends up using resources "once".
* MisunderstoodLonerWithAHeartOfGold: The elderly Once-Ler.
* MrFanservice: His ass got a lot of screen time, and he seemed to like to show it off. He also strips down at one point, and later crawls across a table toward the audience.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: His reaction when he sees the landscape after the last tree goes down.
* NoodlePeople: The second type. The Lorax doesn't call him "Beanpole" for nothing.
* NotGoodWithPeople: He ironically seems to be more comfortable around the animals than other people.
* OnlyOneName: He's known only as the Once-ler.
* PeerPressureMakesYouEvil: Although that still [[EvilIsEasy doesn't say much]] for his integrity.
* PetTheDog: His rescue of Pipsqueak.
* PredecessorVillain: He is this to O'Hare.
* PrettyBoy: Young, slender, and not exactly the most masculine man with big blue eyes and a baby face.
* RealMenWearPink: "There's nothing unmanly about knitting."
* SelectiveObliviousness: He ends up ignoring what is blindingly obvious to the audience, because he has achieved his goal of success.
* SlasherSmile: Has one at the end of his VillainSong, driving the point home that this is no longer the nice, innocent young salesman who began the song.
* TheSocialDarwinist: Invokes this during "How Bad Can I Be" (and also in Biggering) in terms of business vs. nature.
* SpellMyNameWithAThe: '''The''' Once-ler.
* TemptingFate: He rants to the Lorax "I have my rights, and I intend to keep on biggering and ''biggering'' and turning more Truffula trees into thneeds! And NOTHING IS GOING TO STOP ME!" Cue a zoom to an Ax-Hacker approaching the last tree...
* TokenGoodTeammate: The only one in his family with something resembling a working conscience.
* TookALevelInJerkass: The Once-ler undergoes a jarring change in temperament (As part of a FaceHeelTurn in a DescentIntoDarknessSong) when his Thneed business becomes a success, turning from a mostly good-natured guy into a greedy, arrogant CorruptCorporateExecutive, carelessly abusing and exploiting the forest creatures he'd previously befriended.
* TookALevelInKindness: He then spent [[TheAtoner the rest of his life]] trying to fix his mistake and rebuild the forest.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Marshmallows and pancakes.
* TheUnfavorite: He only became the favorite when his mother realized he could make a fortune.
* VillainProtagonist: See FaceHeelTurn section.
* WellDoneSonGuy: He only wanted his family's affection (initially, anyway), especially his mother's.
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: He basically unleashes his personal issues on the world and gets high on his own power and success, realizing the harm he's done after the fact and regretting it.
* WouldntHitAGirl: Invoked. At one point, the Lorax is about to fight the Once-ler's Aunt Grizelda, and the Once-ler exclaims, "You wouldn't hit a ''woman'', would you?"
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Mother]]
* AbusiveMom: Of the emotional variety.
* DeepSouth: The mother has a deep Southern accent.
* FurAndLoathing: Much to the Lorax's horror.
* GreaterScopeVillain: If she hadn't ordered the Once-ler to chop the trees down, the air never would have been polluted and O'Hare never would have gone into business.
* NoNameGiven: We never find out what her name is.
* ParentalFavoritism: Once-ler's mother dubs her most successful child as her "favorite child", meaning the title can change people.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Aunt Grizelda]]
* EvilAunt: [[CaptainObvious Yeah, no kidding!]]
* EvilRedhead: Aunt Grizelda is the only one with red hair and is also a FatBitch.
* FatBitch: Aunt Grizelda is a big, mean woman.
* LadyLooksLikeADude: The Lorax was surprised to learn that she's a lady.
* HairTriggerTemper: She's not afraid to get her hands dirty when the Lorax prepares to fight her (before finding out she's a she).
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Brett and Chet]]
* BigBrotherBully: They both abuse and tease their younger brother.
* TheDividual: Both of them are dim-witted hicks with little qualities to differentiate them.
* EveryoneHasStandards: [[spoiler:After the Once-ler's business fails, they are shown to have looks of regret when their mother disowns their younger brother.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Uncle Ubb]]
[[/folder]]
!!Forest Critters
[[folder:In General]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/screen_shot_2013_03_03_at_51435_pm.png]]
The animals that reside in the forests and are friends of the Lorax, and later, the Once-ler.
----
* AllAnimalsAreDomesticated: They only attack when they feel threatened. Otherwise, they're quite cuddly.
* AllThereInTheManual: Apart from one blink-and-you-miss-it moment[[note]]When the Lorax is trying to rescue a Bar-ba-loot from the Once-ler's bed after it's put in the water, he says "Oh, Bar-ba-loots!" when the bar-ba-loot [[SkewedPriorities chooses a truffula fruit over getting rescued by the Lorax.]][[/note]], the movie never tells us what any of the animal species are called. That and the CutSong version of "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yW4A1eL8Lh4 This is the Place]]", which names all three.
* CartoonCreature: Of Bar-Ba-Loots (bears), Humming Fish (fishes), and Swaomee Swans (swans).
* CloudCuckoolander: All of them are rather odd.
* CuteCrittersActChildlike: They all act quite childish.
* KillerRabbit: After the Once-ler barely misses killing some of the animals while unloading his wagon, one of the Bar-Ba-Loots doesn't hesitate to try to tear his throat out.
* NotAllowedToGrowUp: When we see the little Bar-Ba-Loot dubbed “Pipsqueak” alongside all the other animals when they leave their destroyed home, he looks exactly the same even though enough time has passed for the Once-ler to become a businessman producing thousands of Thneeds.
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: See PerpetualSmiler below.
* PerpetualSmiler: The little Swomee cygnet is always smiling, even after it almost gets killed by the Once-ler's pointy tools. In "How Bad Can I Be", however, it can be seen with a sad expression when the Lorax shows the Once-ler the animals, [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness showing that it really got serious]].
* RidiculouslyCuteCritter: Each and every one is a cutie. The smallest Bar-Ba-Loot cub “Pipsqueak” just might be the cutest with his wide eyes and fluffy body.
* RuleOfCute: Cuteness is their weapon.
* ShooOutTheClowns: The three Humming Fish disappear when it's time to be serious.
* SuperNotDrowningSkills: Inverted. The fish have no trouble breathing out of water despite being fish.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: We never find out where they went, or whether they survived. Although a Swaomee Swan does appear at the end while the Once-ler is watering the trees he planted.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Lorax]]
[[quoteright:247:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_lorax_lorax_wiki.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/DannyDeVito
Lorax is the Guardian of the Forest. He speaks for the trees.
----
* AdaptationDyeJob: In the book, his fur was tan. But in the movie, it was orange.
* BigEater: In the movie, when the Once-ler whips up a ''ninth'' serving of pancakes, the Lorax manages to groan "Pass 'em over" despite being as stuffed as the surrounding animals.
* DeadpanSnarker: Whenever it comes to the Once-ler.
* DemotedToExtra: Even though the movie's named after him, it's more about Ted and the Once-ler.
* EveryoneHasStandards: He wanted to get rid of Once-ler but he doesn't want to kill him. In the river bed scene The Lorax was horrified that Once-ler was unconscious and limped after he landed on the ground with Pipsqueak and did everything he can to wake Once-ler up.
* FightsLikeANormal: Though it's made clear that he is magical, when asked by the Once-ler why he doesn't use his powers to stop him destroying the forest if he cares about it so much, the Lorax simply replies [[HandWave "That's not how it works."]]
* FriendToAllLivingThings: He's friends with the forest animals and "speaks for the trees".
* MoralityChain: To the Once-ler. Played straight at first, but ultimately averted as he cannot compete with the Once-ler's desire to succeed.
* NatureHero: "I speak for the trees".
* NatureSpirit: He was summoned after the Once-ler cut down a tree.
* NonDubbedGrunts: Subverted with Danny [=DeVito=], since he re-recorded his lines as the Lorax in Spanish (both Latin American and European), Italian, German and Russian.
* PowerFloats: When he lifts himself away. [[spoiler: And then un-lifts himself many years later.]]
* SecondaryCharacterTitle: The movie's named after him, but he isn't the protagonist.
* SignificantGreenEyedRedhead: He has orange fur (except for his yellow beard) and green eyes.
* VitriolicBestBuds: With the Once-ler for a while. [[spoiler: It looks like they might become this again at the end.]]
[[/folder]]
----
[[foldercontrol]]
!!Citizens of Thneedville
[[folder:In General]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tumblr_m7vwgnawgr1r2kcd8.png]]
The kooky citizens of Thneedville who, while aware of their home's environmental problems, still love it.
----
* ApatheticCitizens: Although out of ignorance, not malice.
* CrowdSong: Two of them, "Thneedville" at the beginning and "Let It Grow" at the end.
* DeliberatelyCuteChild: 3-year-old Marie.
* GullibleLemmings: Until Ted shows them the truth.
* HeelFaceTurn: Everyone decides to let the seed grow.
* IgnorantOfTheirOwnIgnorance: They don't know about their environmental problems at first.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ted Wiggins]]
[[quoteright:193:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ted_wiggins.png]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/ZacEfron
Theodore "Ted" Wiggins is the deuteragonist of The Lorax. He is an idealistic 12-year old boy who wants to get a real tree for Audrey in order to impress her.
----
* AscendedExtra: Compared to the book and the animated special.
* BadassBiker: Can do some neat tricks on his bike.
* BrainyBrunette: One of the most sane and resourceful characters in the story.
* ChildLikeVoice: Inverted. Even though he's a 12-year-old, he's voiced by Zac Efron using his natural voice, which makes him sound like a man in his late teens/early twenties as a result.
* {{Determinator}}: Girl you like wants to see a tree? Venture out into the wastelands. Town won't listen to you? ''Knock down the walls''.
* HeroesWantRedheads: He's madly in love with the redheaded Audrey.
* HeroOfAnotherStory: Ted is the one who helps bring back the trees.
* IdenticalStranger: To the Once-ler when he was young.
* LikesOlderWomen: At least in the case of Audrey, the age difference is slight but noticeable.
* NamedByTheAdaptation: His name was never revealed in the book or the 1972 adaptation.
* NiceGuy: Summed up by his willingness to find Audrey a real tree, even if it meant going into unknown, possibly dangerous territory.
* PrecociousCrush: Has a crush on Audrey, who is in High School.
* RedIsHeroic: He's the hero of the story with a red and orange striped shirt, red bike, and red bike helmet.
* TinyGuyHugeGirl: The Tiny Guy to Audrey's Huge Girl. {{Justified}} given their (slight) age difference.
* {{Tuckerization}}: Ted is the actual name of Dr. Seuss.
* VocalDissonance: His voice actor is twice his age. Averted in the 1972 adaptation.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Audrey]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/audrey_lorax.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by''': Music/TaylorSwift
Audrey is a kind hearted, good and nature loving girl who dreamed of one day being able to see a real tree. Thought we are not sure how she knew about it, it might have been a source like Grammy Norma who told her. The red head seems to be a good friend of Ted, and she seems to like him being around her.
----
* AuthorAvatar: To producer (and widow of Dr. Seuss) Audrey Geisel.
* CanonForeigner: She never made an appearance in the original short or the book.
* FieryRedhead: She's passionate but more laid back than other examples of this trope.
* FlatCharacter: She solely exists to be Ted's love interest and is merely a plot device to move his motivation along.
* FriendToAllLivingThings: She is loving and caring of all living things.
* GranolaGirl: A Downplayed example. She'd rather have the trees back than have to constantly buy air from O'Hare, but then again, it makes perfect sense to want to be able to get a resource from a free natural source than from an expensive corporation. Also, given the Crapsaccharine nature of the world, wanting nature to come back isn't an unreasonable request.
* NatureLover: Loves the idea of trees. Shown symbolically through her green eyes.
* NiceGirl: Audrey is a sweet, laid back teenager.
* RedheadInGreen: In Ted's fantasy where he presents her with a tree as a gift, she dons a green dress.
* SatelliteLoveInterest: Quick, name one of her character traits other than "hero's love interest"...
%%* SignificantGreenEyedRedhead
* SmoochOfVictory: Gives one to Ted for helping plant a ''real'' tree.
* TinyGuyHugeGirl: The Huge Girl to Ted's Tiny Guy. {{Justified}} given their (slight) age difference.
* {{Tuckerization}}: Audrey is the name of Dr. Seuss's wife.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Aloysius O'Hare]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/aloysius_ohare.png]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/RobRiggle
Aloysius O'Hare is the main antagonist. He is the mayor of Thneedville and the founder of O'Hare Air, a company for bottled air. He had the city walled off to hide the fact that air is available elsewhere for free.
----
* BigBad: For Ted's story.
* CanonForeigner: Never appeared in the original book or the ‘72 short.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: The only reason he doesn't want real trees to grow back is that it'll likely put him out of business. He wants the atmosphere of the entire town of Thneedville to remain smoggy for this very reason.
* {{Determinator}}: [[HateSink Say what you will about the guy]], but when the chips are down, he is shown to have balls of steel; see VillainousValor below. He also managed to work himself from a menial position to becoming a successful businessman and politician.
* EvilCannotComprehendGood: His entire life is built on greed, so he's not only caught off-guard, but doesn't seem to understand what's happening when one of his employees chooses to risk his job (indeed, his entire ''industry'') so all of Thneedville will have a chance to live in a better world.
* FauxAffablyEvil: He speaks to Ted in a smarmy, chummy tone that barely masks his paranoia and greed.
%% * FlatCharacter: Aside from {{Determinator}} above and VillainousValor below, he doesn't have much of a character beyond the usual [[CorruptCorporateExecutive evil corporate manager]] and basically exists to give Ted's story some dramatic tension.
* {{Foil}}: To the Onceler. The Onceler caused environmental degradation out of pure greed but was shown to have a human side and regretted his actions to the point where he gave Ted the means to repair the damage he inflicted. O'Hare, meanwhile, profited from the damage the Onceler inflicted, shows almost no remorse about any of his crooked schemes, and tries to stop Ted from fixing the environment.
* HateSink: Surprisingly [[DownplayedTrope downplayed]]. He is the corrupt and greedy dirt-bag mayor of Thneedville and founder of O'Hare Air, a company that sells bottled air. He walled up the city to hide the fact that breathable air is free elsewhere, ensuring that the people will remain dependent on the air his company sells. When he discovers Ted wandering outside the city walls, he has no problems threatening him, and when he discovers he has a truffula tree seed, he does everything he can to prevent it from being planted, from trying to seize the seed, to manipulating the citizens into trying to destroy it. Even after the citizens see the world outside and agree the seed must be planted, he is the only one who does not change his mind, still trying to convince the city to let the seed die, turning the citizens and his men against him. However, as shown in {{Determinator}} above and VillainousValor below, he clearly has the force of will and audacity to pose a considerable threat, which could give him a degree of admirability.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: In the Once-ler's flashback, he's seen as a janitor. When his coworker asks what "the next big thing" will be, before coughing on the smog, that's when his vision began.
* HeelFaceTurn: Invoked, then immediately defied. See below.
* IgnoredEpiphany: In the "Let It Grow" sequence, O'Hare looks like he's with the others, before he tries (and fails) to convince them to kill the seed.
* MisterBig: Owns a big company.
* TheNapoleon: The shortest and meanest character in the film.
* ProperlyParanoid: Knows full well that the return of trees would sink his business, so he does everything he can to keep people from even being aware of their existence.
* RagsToRiches: He started out as a poor janitor, before he realized he could profit from the contaminated environment.
* {{Tuckerization}}: O'Hare was named after Illumination's story artist Mark O'Hare.
* TyrannicalTownTycoon: Rules Thneedville both as its mayor and a businessman, keeping things polluted to ensure that his business isn't threatened.
* VillainousValor: When he fails to dissaude Ted from revealing the truth to the town the first time, he stops pulling his punches and does everything in his power to prevent the kid from doing so, even taking quite a bit of physical punishment and showing complete fearlessness even in the face of failure.
-->'''O'Hare:''' [[{{Determinator}} NOBODY BEATS ALOYSIUS O'HARE!]]
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: At the beginning.
* WouldHurtAChild: He doesn't have a problem threatening a boy.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ted's family]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_lorax_sprouted_seed.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/JennySlate (Ted's mother), Creator/BettyWhite (Grammy Norma)
Ted's family consists of his mother (Mrs. Wiggins) and grandmother (Grammy Norma).
----
* ActionMom: Both Ted's mom and grandma know how to get rough when it gets serious.
* AmazinglyEmbarrassingParents: Ted's mother is apparently this to her son, considering he was humiliated when she was turning own disco music, [[DiscoDan and trying to dance to it.]] This line says it all:
-->'''Ted:''' Oh, it hurts, Mom! Please stop.
* CanonForeigner: They weren't from the original story or the 1972 adaptation.
* CoolOldLady: Ted's grandma. Convinces Ted to go find the Once-ler, evades O'Hare to protect the seed when he comes looking for it, and snowboards like a pro! Lampshaded in the latter scene.
-->'''Audrey:''' ''(To Ted)'' Seriously? How cool is your grandma?!
* DisappearedDad: Ted's father was never seen or mentioned, leaving it unknown whether Mrs. Wiggins is a widower or divorcee.
* FullNameUltimatum: A downplayed instance; when O'Hare comes to visit and Ted is reluctant to speak to him, Ted's mom refers to Ted as Theodore Wiggins when she tells him to come meet O'Hare immediately.
%%* GoodParents
* JewishMother: Mrs. Wiggins is quite nagging.
* MamaBear: Mrs. Wiggins acted very nervous when O'Hare came to visit Ted. But the moment O'Hare and his goons mess with Ted, she drops all formalities and orders them to leave.
* NeverMessWithGranny: Ted's grandmother has no problems hitting people and riding snowboards and tractors.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Cy the O'Hare Delivery Guy]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Fletcher Sheridan
The delivery guy of Thneedville who delivers air to customers.
----
* {{Acrofatic}}: Has a large belly, yet is fit enough to survive falling into a manhole, then keep on dancing and even pull off the splits while doing a high note.
* AffablyEvil: Not exactly evil, but he is working for the BigBad of the film, and appears to have a little bit of personal greed, considering how he sniffs the money given to him by a client as if smelling the air. Besides that, he is a genuinely pleasant and cool guy who is friendly towards everyone.
* HeelFaceTurn: He is the first person to turn against O'Hare and encourages everyone else to do the same.
* HypocriticalHumor: Calls O'Hare a 'greedy dirtbag' for wanting to kill the seed, yet earlier in the movie can be seen smelling a $100 bill as if it were fresh air. Granted, liking money is a much less serious offense than actively stopping people finding out about the state of the world so they remain dependent on paying you to survive.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Gives a short but amazing one to O'Hare after he fails to convince everyone to turn on Ted and the others.
--> ''(Singing)'' '''[[MemeticMutation You greedy dirtbag]]!'''
* SingingVoiceDissonance: Can pull off high notes and upbeat lyrics like a young fella despite being middle-aged.
* TheSingingMute: Subverted. He's not mute, but he only speaks through singing, even when chewing out O'Hare for his greedy nature.
* UnstoppableMailman: Gives off this impression. He's a cool upbeat delivery guy who likes to sing, and isn't even fazed from falling down a manhole or doing the splits despite being overweight.
* VocalDissonance: He has a fairly youthful and rhythmic voice despite being a middle-aged man.
[[/folder]]
!!The Once-ler's family
[[folder:In General]]
[[quoteright:266:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tumblr_m1a504o74c1qa0qdi.png]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Nasim Pedrad (Once-ler's mother), Stephen Tobolowsky (Uncle Ubb), Elmarie Wendel (Aunt Grizelda), Danny Cooksey (Brett and Chet)
The Once-ler's abusive family.
----
* AscendedExtra: In the book, they were only green hands like the Once-ler himself, did not have names, and did nothing relevant to the story besides helping knit the thneeds. In the movie, they are given names, appearances and personalities, have important roles (especially his mom), and, unlike the book and special, the flashback starts with the Once-ler leaving his family instead of arriving at the Truffula forest.
* EvilIsHammy: They all seem to be very hammy.
* FairWeatherFriend: They're the picture of sweetness once the Once-ler's business starts to take off, only to abandon him when things go bad.
* GoldDigger: They only start being nice to Once-ler after his idea became a success.
* HateSink: Their screentime is so the audience could hate them and [[TheWoobie feel sorry for the Once-ler]].
* {{Jerkass}}: Not one of them is a likable person.
* KarmaHoudini: As far as we know, they never suffered the consequences of their actions; did they even survive the smog?
* KickTheDog: Repeatedly to the Once-ler.
* NamedByTheAdaptation: Except for the mother (and possibly the Once-ler himself), everyone in the family gets an official name.
* NeverMyFault: They don't think they did anything wrong when it comes to how they treat Once-ler. Nor cutting down all the trees.
* VillainSong: They all share a part of The Once-ler's song, "How Bad Can I Be?"
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Once-ler]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/eyelashes_much.jpeg]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/EdHelms
The Once-ler is an old man who recounts to Ted Wiggins how his discovery of the Truffula Forest as a young adult led to its depletion. Therefore, he could be considered a (former) secondary antagonist as well as the story's main protagonist.
----
* AdaptationalAttractiveness: The Once-ler's face was never revealed in the book, and it's unknown if he is even human (given his spindly green arms and yellow eyes, plus the fact that most of Dr. Seuss's characters are weird creatures), although he does say he "speaks for men" and talks about "human opportunities". In the movie, he's fully seen and his younger self is a pretty human.
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: In the original story, The Once-ler's motivation was nothing but pure greed from the start until he cuts down the last Truffula tree. In the movie, he [[FaceHeelTurn starts out]] as a fairly decent guy who just wants to impress his family, and even agrees not to cut down any more Truffula trees-- until his family shows up.
* AffectionateNickname: The Lorax endearingly refers to him as "beanpole" a few times.
* AllForNothing: His whole motivation for harvesting Thneeds at the expensive of local wildlife and his promise to the Lorax was trying to earn the love of his shallow, materialistic family. Unfortunately for him, while he ''does'' earn their attention with his Thneed business, it just becomes a way for them to exploit him-- deep down, his parents don't truly care about him at all. The moment his business goes pear-shaped, his parents leave him high and dry and his relationship with the Lorax and the forest animals is damaged beyond repair as a result of his actions. Naturally, this turns him into a bitter, miserable recluse for a long time afterward.
* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: He was the constant target of his family's emotional abuse.
* AmbiguouslyHuman: In the book, as his face isn't seen and his limbs are green, but it isn't clear whether it is clothing or his body (in the movie, it is the former).
* AmbitionIsEvil: His ambition to create a successful business and earn the approval of his family, especially his mother, is what leads to him becoming a villain.
* AntiVillain: He never had any malicious intent towards the forest.
* TheAtoner: He spent all of his life saving/developing a seed that would help re-create the forests.
* AnAxeToGrind: Has both a regular one to cut down trees, and a VisualPun version-- an electric guitar.
* BigBad: A protagonist example, as the story is about his descent into villainy. By the time of the present, he's learnt his lesson and tries to offer the listener an ear against his environmentally damaging ways. In the film, he strangely becomes the BigGood in the present, giving Ted [[spoiler:the last Truffula seed]] and pushing him to help the environment that he destroyed.
* BigEater: Implied. In one particular scene, he cheerfully whips up a ''ninth'' serving of pancakes and offers them to the animals, many of whom are moaning and clutching their stomachs. It's assumed that he's eaten roughly the same amount they have, and yet he suffers no ill effects from it. He can also easily put away a bag of marshmallows.
* ByronicHero: A bizarre example, considering he's a character from an adaptation of a ''Dr. Seuss book''. Nonetheless, he qualifies-- he's handsome, morally conflicted, desperate to prove himself, and makes a huge mistake that leads to him becoming bitter until he's finally able to do something to fix it.
* ClassicVillain: Vice: Greed. His VillainSong is ''about'' greed. What do you think "biggering" means?
* ConspicuousGloves: Wears elbow-length green gloves from his VillainSong onward. He also puts on green work gloves when he cuts down the first tree.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Temporarily, but ''badly''.
* DeadpanSnarker: More so in his old age.
* {{Deuteragonist}}: Technically this, although his story gets more focus than Ted's.
* DrunkWithPower: His successful company led him to make ''very'' bad choices.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: The scene where he is digging through his cart and throwing his things willy-nilly. He comes within a hair's-breadth of harming several forest creatures on accident. It helps to establish his character as a well-meaning instigator of environmental doom.
* EvilCostumeSwitch: The green suit. Even after his HeelFaceTurn, he continues to wear it.
* FaceHeelTurn: Breaks his promise with the Lorax in favor of his business and family, and heads down [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope the slippery slope]] from there.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: And back to nobody again.
* GadgeteerGenius: He invents the Thneed, the Super-Axe-Hacker, and the various mobile contraptions around his house.
* HeWhoMustNotBeSeen: He is largely hidden behind a boarded-up window while telling his story to Ted. In the book, his face isn't seen ''at all'', showing only his arms and legs.
* HeelFaceTurn: After witnessing the animals and the Lorax leave, the Once-ler spends his entire life regretting it.
* TheHermit: Becomes this after the trees are gone and his business goes under, the animals leave in order to survive, and his family outright abandons him.
* {{Hipster}}: Trendiness is a large part of his character, and defines the Thneed as a fad item that no one actually needs. This becomes significant when he ultimately ends up alone, forgotten, and out of touch with society.
* HonestCorporateExecutive: He tries, and indicates that he takes care of his workers and donates to charity, but in the end, it's not enough and his neglect of the environment ruins him and everything around him.
* IGaveMyWord: Subverted. His promise to the Lorax to not cut down trees does not last. And no amount of [[PeerPressureMakesYouEvil peer pressure]] is enough to make the Lorax forget it.
* IJustWantToBeLoved: He just wanted to become successful in order to finally win the love and respect of his family, especially his mother's.
* InTouchWithHisFeminineSide: He likes to knit, sing, and cook, and likes pink. He seems pretty into fashion, and his dance moves consist of a lot of hip/butt shaking. All possible reasons why his family treat him the way they did.
* JerkJustifications: His FaceHeelTurn consists almost entirely of these, both Types 1 and 3, and several more besides.
* KickTheDog: Despite being an Anti-Villain, some of his actions during [[VillainSong "How Bad Can I Be"]] are undeniably cruel.
* KnightTemplar: He goes so far as to tell the Lorax "My conscience is clear."
* LargeHam: Can be quite dramatic.
* LookOnMyWorksYeMightyAndDespair: Basically the whole premise of his character.
* MeaningfulName: Though he has a somewhat different motivation than the original, he still ends up using resources "once".
* MisunderstoodLonerWithAHeartOfGold: The elderly Once-Ler.
* MrFanservice: His ass got a lot of screen time, and he seemed to like to show it off. He also strips down at one point, and later crawls across a table toward the audience.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: His reaction when he sees the landscape after the last tree goes down.
* NoodlePeople: The second type. The Lorax doesn't call him "Beanpole" for nothing.
* NotGoodWithPeople: He ironically seems to be more comfortable around the animals than other people.
* OnlyOneName: He's known only as the Once-ler.
* PeerPressureMakesYouEvil: Although that still [[EvilIsEasy doesn't say much]] for his integrity.
* PetTheDog: His rescue of Pipsqueak.
* PredecessorVillain: He is this to O'Hare.
* PrettyBoy: Young, slender, and not exactly the most masculine man with big blue eyes and a baby face.
* RealMenWearPink: "There's nothing unmanly about knitting."
* SelectiveObliviousness: He ends up ignoring what is blindingly obvious to the audience, because he has achieved his goal of success.
* SlasherSmile: Has one at the end of his VillainSong, driving the point home that this is no longer the nice, innocent young salesman who began the song.
* TheSocialDarwinist: Invokes this during "How Bad Can I Be" (and also in Biggering) in terms of business vs. nature.
* SpellMyNameWithAThe: '''The''' Once-ler.
* TemptingFate: He rants to the Lorax "I have my rights, and I intend to keep on biggering and ''biggering'' and turning more Truffula trees into thneeds! And NOTHING IS GOING TO STOP ME!" Cue a zoom to an Ax-Hacker approaching the last tree...
* TokenGoodTeammate: The only one in his family with something resembling a working conscience.
* TookALevelInJerkass: The Once-ler undergoes a jarring change in temperament (As part of a FaceHeelTurn in a DescentIntoDarknessSong) when his Thneed business becomes a success, turning from a mostly good-natured guy into a greedy, arrogant CorruptCorporateExecutive, carelessly abusing and exploiting the forest creatures he'd previously befriended.
* TookALevelInKindness: He then spent [[TheAtoner the rest of his life]] trying to fix his mistake and rebuild the forest.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Marshmallows and pancakes.
* TheUnfavorite: He only became the favorite when his mother realized he could make a fortune.
* VillainProtagonist: See FaceHeelTurn section.
* WellDoneSonGuy: He only wanted his family's affection (initially, anyway), especially his mother's.
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: He basically unleashes his personal issues on the world and gets high on his own power and success, realizing the harm he's done after the fact and regretting it.
* WouldntHitAGirl: Invoked. At one point, the Lorax is about to fight the Once-ler's Aunt Grizelda, and the Once-ler exclaims, "You wouldn't hit a ''woman'', would you?"
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Mother]]
* AbusiveMom: Of the emotional variety.
* DeepSouth: The mother has a deep Southern accent.
* FurAndLoathing: Much to the Lorax's horror.
* GreaterScopeVillain: If she hadn't ordered the Once-ler to chop the trees down, the air never would have been polluted and O'Hare never would have gone into business.
* NoNameGiven: We never find out what her name is.
* ParentalFavoritism: Once-ler's mother dubs her most successful child as her "favorite child", meaning the title can change people.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Aunt Grizelda]]
* EvilAunt: [[CaptainObvious Yeah, no kidding!]]
* EvilRedhead: Aunt Grizelda is the only one with red hair and is also a FatBitch.
* FatBitch: Aunt Grizelda is a big, mean woman.
* LadyLooksLikeADude: The Lorax was surprised to learn that she's a lady.
* HairTriggerTemper: She's not afraid to get her hands dirty when the Lorax prepares to fight her (before finding out she's a she).
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Brett and Chet]]
* BigBrotherBully: They both abuse and tease their younger brother.
* TheDividual: Both of them are dim-witted hicks with little qualities to differentiate them.
* EveryoneHasStandards: [[spoiler:After the Once-ler's business fails, they are shown to have looks of regret when their mother disowns their younger brother.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Uncle Ubb]]
[[/folder]]
!!Forest Critters
[[folder:In General]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/screen_shot_2013_03_03_at_51435_pm.png]]
The animals that reside in the forests and are friends of the Lorax, and later, the Once-ler.
----
* AllAnimalsAreDomesticated: They only attack when they feel threatened. Otherwise, they're quite cuddly.
* AllThereInTheManual: Apart from one blink-and-you-miss-it moment[[note]]When the Lorax is trying to rescue a Bar-ba-loot from the Once-ler's bed after it's put in the water, he says "Oh, Bar-ba-loots!" when the bar-ba-loot [[SkewedPriorities chooses a truffula fruit over getting rescued by the Lorax.]][[/note]], the movie never tells us what any of the animal species are called. That and the CutSong version of "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yW4A1eL8Lh4 This is the Place]]", which names all three.
* CartoonCreature: Of Bar-Ba-Loots (bears), Humming Fish (fishes), and Swaomee Swans (swans).
* CloudCuckoolander: All of them are rather odd.
* CuteCrittersActChildlike: They all act quite childish.
* KillerRabbit: After the Once-ler barely misses killing some of the animals while unloading his wagon, one of the Bar-Ba-Loots doesn't hesitate to try to tear his throat out.
* NotAllowedToGrowUp: When we see the little Bar-Ba-Loot dubbed “Pipsqueak” alongside all the other animals when they leave their destroyed home, he looks exactly the same even though enough time has passed for the Once-ler to become a businessman producing thousands of Thneeds.
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: See PerpetualSmiler below.
* PerpetualSmiler: The little Swomee cygnet is always smiling, even after it almost gets killed by the Once-ler's pointy tools. In "How Bad Can I Be", however, it can be seen with a sad expression when the Lorax shows the Once-ler the animals, [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness showing that it really got serious]].
* RidiculouslyCuteCritter: Each and every one is a cutie. The smallest Bar-Ba-Loot cub “Pipsqueak” just might be the cutest with his wide eyes and fluffy body.
* RuleOfCute: Cuteness is their weapon.
* ShooOutTheClowns: The three Humming Fish disappear when it's time to be serious.
* SuperNotDrowningSkills: Inverted. The fish have no trouble breathing out of water despite being fish.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: We never find out where they went, or whether they survived. Although a Swaomee Swan does appear at the end while the Once-ler is watering the trees he planted.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Lorax]]
[[quoteright:247:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_lorax_lorax_wiki.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/DannyDeVito
Lorax is the Guardian of the Forest. He speaks for the trees.
----
* AdaptationDyeJob: In the book, his fur was tan. But in the movie, it was orange.
* BigEater: In the movie, when the Once-ler whips up a ''ninth'' serving of pancakes, the Lorax manages to groan "Pass 'em over" despite being as stuffed as the surrounding animals.
* DeadpanSnarker: Whenever it comes to the Once-ler.
* DemotedToExtra: Even though the movie's named after him, it's more about Ted and the Once-ler.
* EveryoneHasStandards: He wanted to get rid of Once-ler but he doesn't want to kill him. In the river bed scene The Lorax was horrified that Once-ler was unconscious and limped after he landed on the ground with Pipsqueak and did everything he can to wake Once-ler up.
* FightsLikeANormal: Though it's made clear that he is magical, when asked by the Once-ler why he doesn't use his powers to stop him destroying the forest if he cares about it so much, the Lorax simply replies [[HandWave "That's not how it works."]]
* FriendToAllLivingThings: He's friends with the forest animals and "speaks for the trees".
* MoralityChain: To the Once-ler. Played straight at first, but ultimately averted as he cannot compete with the Once-ler's desire to succeed.
* NatureHero: "I speak for the trees".
* NatureSpirit: He was summoned after the Once-ler cut down a tree.
* NonDubbedGrunts: Subverted with Danny [=DeVito=], since he re-recorded his lines as the Lorax in Spanish (both Latin American and European), Italian, German and Russian.
* PowerFloats: When he lifts himself away. [[spoiler: And then un-lifts himself many years later.]]
* SecondaryCharacterTitle: The movie's named after him, but he isn't the protagonist.
* SignificantGreenEyedRedhead: He has orange fur (except for his yellow beard) and green eyes.
* VitriolicBestBuds: With the Once-ler for a while. [[spoiler: It looks like they might become this again at the end.]]
[[/folder]]
to:
----
[[foldercontrol]]
!!Citizens of Thneedville
[[folder:In General]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tumblr_m7vwgnawgr1r2kcd8.png]]
The kooky citizens of Thneedville who, while aware of their home's environmental problems, still love it.
----
* ApatheticCitizens: Although out of ignorance, not malice.
* CrowdSong: Two of them, "Thneedville" at the beginning and "Let It Grow" at the end.
* DeliberatelyCuteChild: 3-year-old Marie.
* GullibleLemmings: Until Ted shows them the truth.
* HeelFaceTurn: Everyone decides to let the seed grow.
* IgnorantOfTheirOwnIgnorance: They don't know about their environmental problems at first.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ted Wiggins]]
[[quoteright:193:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ted_wiggins.png]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/ZacEfron
Theodore "Ted" Wiggins is the deuteragonist of The Lorax. He is an idealistic 12-year old boy who wants to get a real tree for Audrey in order to impress her.
----
* AscendedExtra: Compared to the book and the animated special.
* BadassBiker: Can do some neat tricks on his bike.
* BrainyBrunette: One of the most sane and resourceful characters in the story.
* ChildLikeVoice: Inverted. Even though he's a 12-year-old, he's voiced by Zac Efron using his natural voice, which makes him sound like a man in his late teens/early twenties as a result.
* {{Determinator}}: Girl you like wants to see a tree? Venture out into the wastelands. Town won't listen to you? ''Knock down the walls''.
* HeroesWantRedheads: He's madly in love with the redheaded Audrey.
* HeroOfAnotherStory: Ted is the one who helps bring back the trees.
* IdenticalStranger: To the Once-ler when he was young.
* LikesOlderWomen: At least in the case of Audrey, the age difference is slight but noticeable.
* NamedByTheAdaptation: His name was never revealed in the book or the 1972 adaptation.
* NiceGuy: Summed up by his willingness to find Audrey a real tree, even if it meant going into unknown, possibly dangerous territory.
* PrecociousCrush: Has a crush on Audrey, who is in High School.
* RedIsHeroic: He's the hero of the story with a red and orange striped shirt, red bike, and red bike helmet.
* TinyGuyHugeGirl: The Tiny Guy to Audrey's Huge Girl. {{Justified}} given their (slight) age difference.
* {{Tuckerization}}: Ted is the actual name of Dr. Seuss.
* VocalDissonance: His voice actor is twice his age. Averted in the 1972 adaptation.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Audrey]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/audrey_lorax.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by''': Music/TaylorSwift
Audrey is a kind hearted, good and nature loving girl who dreamed of one day being able to see a real tree. Thought we are not sure how she knew about it, it might have been a source like Grammy Norma who told her. The red head seems to be a good friend of Ted, and she seems to like him being around her.
----
* AuthorAvatar: To producer (and widow of Dr. Seuss) Audrey Geisel.
* CanonForeigner: She never made an appearance in the original short or the book.
* FieryRedhead: She's passionate but more laid back than other examples of this trope.
* FlatCharacter: She solely exists to be Ted's love interest and is merely a plot device to move his motivation along.
* FriendToAllLivingThings: She is loving and caring of all living things.
* GranolaGirl: A Downplayed example. She'd rather have the trees back than have to constantly buy air from O'Hare, but then again, it makes perfect sense to want to be able to get a resource from a free natural source than from an expensive corporation. Also, given the Crapsaccharine nature of the world, wanting nature to come back isn't an unreasonable request.
* NatureLover: Loves the idea of trees. Shown symbolically through her green eyes.
* NiceGirl: Audrey is a sweet, laid back teenager.
* RedheadInGreen: In Ted's fantasy where he presents her with a tree as a gift, she dons a green dress.
* SatelliteLoveInterest: Quick, name one of her character traits other than "hero's love interest"...
%%* SignificantGreenEyedRedhead
* SmoochOfVictory: Gives one to Ted for helping plant a ''real'' tree.
* TinyGuyHugeGirl: The Huge Girl to Ted's Tiny Guy. {{Justified}} given their (slight) age difference.
* {{Tuckerization}}: Audrey is the name of Dr. Seuss's wife.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Aloysius O'Hare]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/aloysius_ohare.png]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/RobRiggle
Aloysius O'Hare is the main antagonist. He is the mayor of Thneedville and the founder of O'Hare Air, a company for bottled air. He had the city walled off to hide the fact that air is available elsewhere for free.
----
* BigBad: For Ted's story.
* CanonForeigner: Never appeared in the original book or the ‘72 short.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: The only reason he doesn't want real trees to grow back is that it'll likely put him out of business. He wants the atmosphere of the entire town of Thneedville to remain smoggy for this very reason.
* {{Determinator}}: [[HateSink Say what you will about the guy]], but when the chips are down, he is shown to have balls of steel; see VillainousValor below. He also managed to work himself from a menial position to becoming a successful businessman and politician.
* EvilCannotComprehendGood: His entire life is built on greed, so he's not only caught off-guard, but doesn't seem to understand what's happening when one of his employees chooses to risk his job (indeed, his entire ''industry'') so all of Thneedville will have a chance to live in a better world.
* FauxAffablyEvil: He speaks to Ted in a smarmy, chummy tone that barely masks his paranoia and greed.
%% * FlatCharacter: Aside from {{Determinator}} above and VillainousValor below, he doesn't have much of a character beyond the usual [[CorruptCorporateExecutive evil corporate manager]] and basically exists to give Ted's story some dramatic tension.
* {{Foil}}: To the Onceler. The Onceler caused environmental degradation out of pure greed but was shown to have a human side and regretted his actions to the point where he gave Ted the means to repair the damage he inflicted. O'Hare, meanwhile, profited from the damage the Onceler inflicted, shows almost no remorse about any of his crooked schemes, and tries to stop Ted from fixing the environment.
* HateSink: Surprisingly [[DownplayedTrope downplayed]]. He is the corrupt and greedy dirt-bag mayor of Thneedville and founder of O'Hare Air, a company that sells bottled air. He walled up the city to hide the fact that breathable air is free elsewhere, ensuring that the people will remain dependent on the air his company sells. When he discovers Ted wandering outside the city walls, he has no problems threatening him, and when he discovers he has a truffula tree seed, he does everything he can to prevent it from being planted, from trying to seize the seed, to manipulating the citizens into trying to destroy it. Even after the citizens see the world outside and agree the seed must be planted, he is the only one who does not change his mind, still trying to convince the city to let the seed die, turning the citizens and his men against him. However, as shown in {{Determinator}} above and VillainousValor below, he clearly has the force of will and audacity to pose a considerable threat, which could give him a degree of admirability.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: In the Once-ler's flashback, he's seen as a janitor. When his coworker asks what "the next big thing" will be, before coughing on the smog, that's when his vision began.
* HeelFaceTurn: Invoked, then immediately defied. See below.
* IgnoredEpiphany: In the "Let It Grow" sequence, O'Hare looks like he's with the others, before he tries (and fails) to convince them to kill the seed.
* MisterBig: Owns a big company.
* TheNapoleon: The shortest and meanest character in the film.
* ProperlyParanoid: Knows full well that the return of trees would sink his business, so he does everything he can to keep people from even being aware of their existence.
* RagsToRiches: He started out as a poor janitor, before he realized he could profit from the contaminated environment.
* {{Tuckerization}}: O'Hare was named after Illumination's story artist Mark O'Hare.
* TyrannicalTownTycoon: Rules Thneedville both as its mayor and a businessman, keeping things polluted to ensure that his business isn't threatened.
* VillainousValor: When he fails to dissaude Ted from revealing the truth to the town the first time, he stops pulling his punches and does everything in his power to prevent the kid from doing so, even taking quite a bit of physical punishment and showing complete fearlessness even in the face of failure.
-->'''O'Hare:''' [[{{Determinator}} NOBODY BEATS ALOYSIUS O'HARE!]]
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: At the beginning.
* WouldHurtAChild: He doesn't have a problem threatening a boy.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ted's family]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_lorax_sprouted_seed.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/JennySlate (Ted's mother), Creator/BettyWhite (Grammy Norma)
Ted's family consists of his mother (Mrs. Wiggins) and grandmother (Grammy Norma).
----
* ActionMom: Both Ted's mom and grandma know how to get rough when it gets serious.
* AmazinglyEmbarrassingParents: Ted's mother is apparently this to her son, considering he was humiliated when she was turning own disco music, [[DiscoDan and trying to dance to it.]] This line says it all:
-->'''Ted:''' Oh, it hurts, Mom! Please stop.
* CanonForeigner: They weren't from the original story or the 1972 adaptation.
* CoolOldLady: Ted's grandma. Convinces Ted to go find the Once-ler, evades O'Hare to protect the seed when he comes looking for it, and snowboards like a pro! Lampshaded in the latter scene.
-->'''Audrey:''' ''(To Ted)'' Seriously? How cool is your grandma?!
* DisappearedDad: Ted's father was never seen or mentioned, leaving it unknown whether Mrs. Wiggins is a widower or divorcee.
* FullNameUltimatum: A downplayed instance; when O'Hare comes to visit and Ted is reluctant to speak to him, Ted's mom refers to Ted as Theodore Wiggins when she tells him to come meet O'Hare immediately.
%%* GoodParents
* JewishMother: Mrs. Wiggins is quite nagging.
* MamaBear: Mrs. Wiggins acted very nervous when O'Hare came to visit Ted. But the moment O'Hare and his goons mess with Ted, she drops all formalities and orders them to leave.
* NeverMessWithGranny: Ted's grandmother has no problems hitting people and riding snowboards and tractors.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Cy the O'Hare Delivery Guy]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Fletcher Sheridan
The delivery guy of Thneedville who delivers air to customers.
----
* {{Acrofatic}}: Has a large belly, yet is fit enough to survive falling into a manhole, then keep on dancing and even pull off the splits while doing a high note.
* AffablyEvil: Not exactly evil, but he is working for the BigBad of the film, and appears to have a little bit of personal greed, considering how he sniffs the money given to him by a client as if smelling the air. Besides that, he is a genuinely pleasant and cool guy who is friendly towards everyone.
* HeelFaceTurn: He is the first person to turn against O'Hare and encourages everyone else to do the same.
* HypocriticalHumor: Calls O'Hare a 'greedy dirtbag' for wanting to kill the seed, yet earlier in the movie can be seen smelling a $100 bill as if it were fresh air. Granted, liking money is a much less serious offense than actively stopping people finding out about the state of the world so they remain dependent on paying you to survive.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Gives a short but amazing one to O'Hare after he fails to convince everyone to turn on Ted and the others.
--> ''(Singing)'' '''[[MemeticMutation You greedy dirtbag]]!'''
* SingingVoiceDissonance: Can pull off high notes and upbeat lyrics like a young fella despite being middle-aged.
* TheSingingMute: Subverted. He's not mute, but he only speaks through singing, even when chewing out O'Hare for his greedy nature.
* UnstoppableMailman: Gives off this impression. He's a cool upbeat delivery guy who likes to sing, and isn't even fazed from falling down a manhole or doing the splits despite being overweight.
* VocalDissonance: He has a fairly youthful and rhythmic voice despite being a middle-aged man.
[[/folder]]
!!The Once-ler's family
[[folder:In General]]
[[quoteright:266:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tumblr_m1a504o74c1qa0qdi.png]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Nasim Pedrad (Once-ler's mother), Stephen Tobolowsky (Uncle Ubb), Elmarie Wendel (Aunt Grizelda), Danny Cooksey (Brett and Chet)
The Once-ler's abusive family.
----
* AscendedExtra: In the book, they were only green hands like the Once-ler himself, did not have names, and did nothing relevant to the story besides helping knit the thneeds. In the movie, they are given names, appearances and personalities, have important roles (especially his mom), and, unlike the book and special, the flashback starts with the Once-ler leaving his family instead of arriving at the Truffula forest.
* EvilIsHammy: They all seem to be very hammy.
* FairWeatherFriend: They're the picture of sweetness once the Once-ler's business starts to take off, only to abandon him when things go bad.
* GoldDigger: They only start being nice to Once-ler after his idea became a success.
* HateSink: Their screentime is so the audience could hate them and [[TheWoobie feel sorry for the Once-ler]].
* {{Jerkass}}: Not one of them is a likable person.
* KarmaHoudini: As far as we know, they never suffered the consequences of their actions; did they even survive the smog?
* KickTheDog: Repeatedly to the Once-ler.
* NamedByTheAdaptation: Except for the mother (and possibly the Once-ler himself), everyone in the family gets an official name.
* NeverMyFault: They don't think they did anything wrong when it comes to how they treat Once-ler. Nor cutting down all the trees.
* VillainSong: They all share a part of The Once-ler's song, "How Bad Can I Be?"
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Once-ler]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/eyelashes_much.jpeg]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/EdHelms
The Once-ler is an old man who recounts to Ted Wiggins how his discovery of the Truffula Forest as a young adult led to its depletion. Therefore, he could be considered a (former) secondary antagonist as well as the story's main protagonist.
----
* AdaptationalAttractiveness: The Once-ler's face was never revealed in the book, and it's unknown if he is even human (given his spindly green arms and yellow eyes, plus the fact that most of Dr. Seuss's characters are weird creatures), although he does say he "speaks for men" and talks about "human opportunities". In the movie, he's fully seen and his younger self is a pretty human.
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: In the original story, The Once-ler's motivation was nothing but pure greed from the start until he cuts down the last Truffula tree. In the movie, he [[FaceHeelTurn starts out]] as a fairly decent guy who just wants to impress his family, and even agrees not to cut down any more Truffula trees-- until his family shows up.
* AffectionateNickname: The Lorax endearingly refers to him as "beanpole" a few times.
* AllForNothing: His whole motivation for harvesting Thneeds at the expensive of local wildlife and his promise to the Lorax was trying to earn the love of his shallow, materialistic family. Unfortunately for him, while he ''does'' earn their attention with his Thneed business, it just becomes a way for them to exploit him-- deep down, his parents don't truly care about him at all. The moment his business goes pear-shaped, his parents leave him high and dry and his relationship with the Lorax and the forest animals is damaged beyond repair as a result of his actions. Naturally, this turns him into a bitter, miserable recluse for a long time afterward.
* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: He was the constant target of his family's emotional abuse.
* AmbiguouslyHuman: In the book, as his face isn't seen and his limbs are green, but it isn't clear whether it is clothing or his body (in the movie, it is the former).
* AmbitionIsEvil: His ambition to create a successful business and earn the approval of his family, especially his mother, is what leads to him becoming a villain.
* AntiVillain: He never had any malicious intent towards the forest.
* TheAtoner: He spent all of his life saving/developing a seed that would help re-create the forests.
* AnAxeToGrind: Has both a regular one to cut down trees, and a VisualPun version-- an electric guitar.
* BigBad: A protagonist example, as the story is about his descent into villainy. By the time of the present, he's learnt his lesson and tries to offer the listener an ear against his environmentally damaging ways. In the film, he strangely becomes the BigGood in the present, giving Ted [[spoiler:the last Truffula seed]] and pushing him to help the environment that he destroyed.
* BigEater: Implied. In one particular scene, he cheerfully whips up a ''ninth'' serving of pancakes and offers them to the animals, many of whom are moaning and clutching their stomachs. It's assumed that he's eaten roughly the same amount they have, and yet he suffers no ill effects from it. He can also easily put away a bag of marshmallows.
* ByronicHero: A bizarre example, considering he's a character from an adaptation of a ''Dr. Seuss book''. Nonetheless, he qualifies-- he's handsome, morally conflicted, desperate to prove himself, and makes a huge mistake that leads to him becoming bitter until he's finally able to do something to fix it.
* ClassicVillain: Vice: Greed. His VillainSong is ''about'' greed. What do you think "biggering" means?
* ConspicuousGloves: Wears elbow-length green gloves from his VillainSong onward. He also puts on green work gloves when he cuts down the first tree.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Temporarily, but ''badly''.
* DeadpanSnarker: More so in his old age.
* {{Deuteragonist}}: Technically this, although his story gets more focus than Ted's.
* DrunkWithPower: His successful company led him to make ''very'' bad choices.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: The scene where he is digging through his cart and throwing his things willy-nilly. He comes within a hair's-breadth of harming several forest creatures on accident. It helps to establish his character as a well-meaning instigator of environmental doom.
* EvilCostumeSwitch: The green suit. Even after his HeelFaceTurn, he continues to wear it.
* FaceHeelTurn: Breaks his promise with the Lorax in favor of his business and family, and heads down [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope the slippery slope]] from there.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: And back to nobody again.
* GadgeteerGenius: He invents the Thneed, the Super-Axe-Hacker, and the various mobile contraptions around his house.
* HeWhoMustNotBeSeen: He is largely hidden behind a boarded-up window while telling his story to Ted. In the book, his face isn't seen ''at all'', showing only his arms and legs.
* HeelFaceTurn: After witnessing the animals and the Lorax leave, the Once-ler spends his entire life regretting it.
* TheHermit: Becomes this after the trees are gone and his business goes under, the animals leave in order to survive, and his family outright abandons him.
* {{Hipster}}: Trendiness is a large part of his character, and defines the Thneed as a fad item that no one actually needs. This becomes significant when he ultimately ends up alone, forgotten, and out of touch with society.
* HonestCorporateExecutive: He tries, and indicates that he takes care of his workers and donates to charity, but in the end, it's not enough and his neglect of the environment ruins him and everything around him.
* IGaveMyWord: Subverted. His promise to the Lorax to not cut down trees does not last. And no amount of [[PeerPressureMakesYouEvil peer pressure]] is enough to make the Lorax forget it.
* IJustWantToBeLoved: He just wanted to become successful in order to finally win the love and respect of his family, especially his mother's.
* InTouchWithHisFeminineSide: He likes to knit, sing, and cook, and likes pink. He seems pretty into fashion, and his dance moves consist of a lot of hip/butt shaking. All possible reasons why his family treat him the way they did.
* JerkJustifications: His FaceHeelTurn consists almost entirely of these, both Types 1 and 3, and several more besides.
* KickTheDog: Despite being an Anti-Villain, some of his actions during [[VillainSong "How Bad Can I Be"]] are undeniably cruel.
* KnightTemplar: He goes so far as to tell the Lorax "My conscience is clear."
* LargeHam: Can be quite dramatic.
* LookOnMyWorksYeMightyAndDespair: Basically the whole premise of his character.
* MeaningfulName: Though he has a somewhat different motivation than the original, he still ends up using resources "once".
* MisunderstoodLonerWithAHeartOfGold: The elderly Once-Ler.
* MrFanservice: His ass got a lot of screen time, and he seemed to like to show it off. He also strips down at one point, and later crawls across a table toward the audience.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: His reaction when he sees the landscape after the last tree goes down.
* NoodlePeople: The second type. The Lorax doesn't call him "Beanpole" for nothing.
* NotGoodWithPeople: He ironically seems to be more comfortable around the animals than other people.
* OnlyOneName: He's known only as the Once-ler.
* PeerPressureMakesYouEvil: Although that still [[EvilIsEasy doesn't say much]] for his integrity.
* PetTheDog: His rescue of Pipsqueak.
* PredecessorVillain: He is this to O'Hare.
* PrettyBoy: Young, slender, and not exactly the most masculine man with big blue eyes and a baby face.
* RealMenWearPink: "There's nothing unmanly about knitting."
* SelectiveObliviousness: He ends up ignoring what is blindingly obvious to the audience, because he has achieved his goal of success.
* SlasherSmile: Has one at the end of his VillainSong, driving the point home that this is no longer the nice, innocent young salesman who began the song.
* TheSocialDarwinist: Invokes this during "How Bad Can I Be" (and also in Biggering) in terms of business vs. nature.
* SpellMyNameWithAThe: '''The''' Once-ler.
* TemptingFate: He rants to the Lorax "I have my rights, and I intend to keep on biggering and ''biggering'' and turning more Truffula trees into thneeds! And NOTHING IS GOING TO STOP ME!" Cue a zoom to an Ax-Hacker approaching the last tree...
* TokenGoodTeammate: The only one in his family with something resembling a working conscience.
* TookALevelInJerkass: The Once-ler undergoes a jarring change in temperament (As part of a FaceHeelTurn in a DescentIntoDarknessSong) when his Thneed business becomes a success, turning from a mostly good-natured guy into a greedy, arrogant CorruptCorporateExecutive, carelessly abusing and exploiting the forest creatures he'd previously befriended.
* TookALevelInKindness: He then spent [[TheAtoner the rest of his life]] trying to fix his mistake and rebuild the forest.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Marshmallows and pancakes.
* TheUnfavorite: He only became the favorite when his mother realized he could make a fortune.
* VillainProtagonist: See FaceHeelTurn section.
* WellDoneSonGuy: He only wanted his family's affection (initially, anyway), especially his mother's.
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: He basically unleashes his personal issues on the world and gets high on his own power and success, realizing the harm he's done after the fact and regretting it.
* WouldntHitAGirl: Invoked. At one point, the Lorax is about to fight the Once-ler's Aunt Grizelda, and the Once-ler exclaims, "You wouldn't hit a ''woman'', would you?"
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Mother]]
* AbusiveMom: Of the emotional variety.
* DeepSouth: The mother has a deep Southern accent.
* FurAndLoathing: Much to the Lorax's horror.
* GreaterScopeVillain: If she hadn't ordered the Once-ler to chop the trees down, the air never would have been polluted and O'Hare never would have gone into business.
* NoNameGiven: We never find out what her name is.
* ParentalFavoritism: Once-ler's mother dubs her most successful child as her "favorite child", meaning the title can change people.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Aunt Grizelda]]
* EvilAunt: [[CaptainObvious Yeah, no kidding!]]
* EvilRedhead: Aunt Grizelda is the only one with red hair and is also a FatBitch.
* FatBitch: Aunt Grizelda is a big, mean woman.
* LadyLooksLikeADude: The Lorax was surprised to learn that she's a lady.
* HairTriggerTemper: She's not afraid to get her hands dirty when the Lorax prepares to fight her (before finding out she's a she).
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Brett and Chet]]
* BigBrotherBully: They both abuse and tease their younger brother.
* TheDividual: Both of them are dim-witted hicks with little qualities to differentiate them.
* EveryoneHasStandards: [[spoiler:After the Once-ler's business fails, they are shown to have looks of regret when their mother disowns their younger brother.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Uncle Ubb]]
[[/folder]]
!!Forest Critters
[[folder:In General]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/screen_shot_2013_03_03_at_51435_pm.png]]
The animals that reside in the forests and are friends of the Lorax, and later, the Once-ler.
----
* AllAnimalsAreDomesticated: They only attack when they feel threatened. Otherwise, they're quite cuddly.
* AllThereInTheManual: Apart from one blink-and-you-miss-it moment[[note]]When the Lorax is trying to rescue a Bar-ba-loot from the Once-ler's bed after it's put in the water, he says "Oh, Bar-ba-loots!" when the bar-ba-loot [[SkewedPriorities chooses a truffula fruit over getting rescued by the Lorax.]][[/note]], the movie never tells us what any of the animal species are called. That and the CutSong version of "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yW4A1eL8Lh4 This is the Place]]", which names all three.
* CartoonCreature: Of Bar-Ba-Loots (bears), Humming Fish (fishes), and Swaomee Swans (swans).
* CloudCuckoolander: All of them are rather odd.
* CuteCrittersActChildlike: They all act quite childish.
* KillerRabbit: After the Once-ler barely misses killing some of the animals while unloading his wagon, one of the Bar-Ba-Loots doesn't hesitate to try to tear his throat out.
* NotAllowedToGrowUp: When we see the little Bar-Ba-Loot dubbed “Pipsqueak” alongside all the other animals when they leave their destroyed home, he looks exactly the same even though enough time has passed for the Once-ler to become a businessman producing thousands of Thneeds.
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: See PerpetualSmiler below.
* PerpetualSmiler: The little Swomee cygnet is always smiling, even after it almost gets killed by the Once-ler's pointy tools. In "How Bad Can I Be", however, it can be seen with a sad expression when the Lorax shows the Once-ler the animals, [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness showing that it really got serious]].
* RidiculouslyCuteCritter: Each and every one is a cutie. The smallest Bar-Ba-Loot cub “Pipsqueak” just might be the cutest with his wide eyes and fluffy body.
* RuleOfCute: Cuteness is their weapon.
* ShooOutTheClowns: The three Humming Fish disappear when it's time to be serious.
* SuperNotDrowningSkills: Inverted. The fish have no trouble breathing out of water despite being fish.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: We never find out where they went, or whether they survived. Although a Swaomee Swan does appear at the end while the Once-ler is watering the trees he planted.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Lorax]]
[[quoteright:247:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_lorax_lorax_wiki.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by''': Creator/DannyDeVito
Lorax is the Guardian of the Forest. He speaks for the trees.
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* AdaptationDyeJob: In the book, his fur was tan. But in the movie, it was orange.
* BigEater: In the movie, when the Once-ler whips up a ''ninth'' serving of pancakes, the Lorax manages to groan "Pass 'em over" despite being as stuffed as the surrounding animals.
* DeadpanSnarker: Whenever it comes to the Once-ler.
* DemotedToExtra: Even though the movie's named after him, it's more about Ted and the Once-ler.
* EveryoneHasStandards: He wanted to get rid of Once-ler but he doesn't want to kill him. In the river bed scene The Lorax was horrified that Once-ler was unconscious and limped after he landed on the ground with Pipsqueak and did everything he can to wake Once-ler up.
* FightsLikeANormal: Though it's made clear that he is magical, when asked by the Once-ler why he doesn't use his powers to stop him destroying the forest if he cares about it so much, the Lorax simply replies [[HandWave "That's not how it works."]]
* FriendToAllLivingThings: He's friends with the forest animals and "speaks for the trees".
* MoralityChain: To the Once-ler. Played straight at first, but ultimately averted as he cannot compete with the Once-ler's desire to succeed.
* NatureHero: "I speak for the trees".
* NatureSpirit: He was summoned after the Once-ler cut down a tree.
* NonDubbedGrunts: Subverted with Danny [=DeVito=], since he re-recorded his lines as the Lorax in Spanish (both Latin American and European), Italian, German and Russian.
* PowerFloats: When he lifts himself away. [[spoiler: And then un-lifts himself many years later.]]
* SecondaryCharacterTitle: The movie's named after him, but he isn't the protagonist.
* SignificantGreenEyedRedhead: He has orange fur (except for his yellow beard) and green eyes.
* VitriolicBestBuds: With the Once-ler for a while. [[spoiler: It looks like they might become this again at the end.]]
[[/folder]]
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* {{Foil}}: To the Onceler. The Onceler caused environmental degradation out of pure greed but was shown to have a human side and regretted his actions to the point where he gave Ted the means to repair the damage he inflicted. O'Hare, meanwhile, profited from the damage the Onceler inflicted, shows almost no remorse about anything, and actively stops Ted from fixing the environment.
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* {{Foil}}: To the Onceler. The Onceler caused environmental degradation out of pure greed but was shown to have a human side and regretted his actions to the point where he gave Ted the means to repair the damage he inflicted. O'Hare, meanwhile, profited from the damage the Onceler inflicted, shows almost no remorse about anything, any of his crooked schemes, and actively stops tries to stop Ted from fixing the environment.
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* {{Determinator}}: [[HateSink Say what you will about the guy]], but when the chips are down, he is shown to have balls of steel; see VillainousValor below.
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* {{Determinator}}: [[HateSink Say what you will about the guy]], but when the chips are down, he is shown to have balls of steel; see VillainousValor below. He also managed to work himself from a menial position to becoming a successful businessman and politician.
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* {{Foil}}: To the Onceler. The Onceler caused environmental degradation out of pure greed but was shown to have a human side and regretted his actions to the point where he gave Ted the means to repair the damage he inflicted. O'Hare, meanwhile, profited from the damage the Onceler inflicted, shows almost no remorse about anything, and actively stops Ted from fixing the environment.
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* BigBad: A protagonist example, as the story is about his descent into villainy. By the time of the present, he's learnt his lesson and tries to offer the listener an ear against his environmentally damaging ways. In the film, he strangely becomes the BigGood in the present, giving Ted [[spoiler:the last Truffula seed]] and pushing him to help the environment that he destroyed.
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* KillerRabbit: After the Once-ler barely misses killing some of the animals while unloading his wagon, one of the Bar-ba-loots doesn't hesitate to try to tear his throat out.
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* KillerRabbit: After the Once-ler barely misses killing some of the animals while unloading his wagon, one of the Bar-ba-loots Bar-Ba-Loots doesn't hesitate to try to tear his throat out.out.
* NotAllowedToGrowUp: When we see the little Bar-Ba-Loot dubbed “Pipsqueak” alongside all the other animals when they leave their destroyed home, he looks exactly the same even though enough time has passed for the Once-ler to become a businessman producing thousands of Thneeds.
* NotAllowedToGrowUp: When we see the little Bar-Ba-Loot dubbed “Pipsqueak” alongside all the other animals when they leave their destroyed home, he looks exactly the same even though enough time has passed for the Once-ler to become a businessman producing thousands of Thneeds.
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* RidiculouslyCuteCritter: Each and every one is a cutie.
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* RidiculouslyCuteCritter: Each and every one is a cutie. The smallest Bar-Ba-Loot cub “Pipsqueak” just might be the cutest with his wide eyes and fluffy body.
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* The Dividual: Both of them are dim-witted hicks with little qualities to differentiate them.
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* The Dividual: TheDividual: Both of them are dim-witted hicks with little qualities to differentiate them.
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* The Dividual: Both of them are dim-witted hicks with little qualities to differentiate them.
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* CuteCrittersActChildlike: They all are quite childish.
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* CuteCrittersActChildlike: They all are act quite childish.
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* NiceHat: Everyone of them (sans Once-ler's mother) wears a head piece.
Deleted line(s) 201 (click to see context) :
* NiceHat: He wears a fedora, and later a top hat.
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* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Marshmallows.
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* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Marshmallows.Marshmallows and pancakes.
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* NeverMyFault: They don't think they did anything wrong when it comes to how they treat Once-ler.
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* NeverMyFault: They don't think they did anything wrong when it comes to how they treat Once-ler. Nor cutting down all the trees.
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* InTouchWithHisFeminineSide: He likes to knit, sing, and cook, and likes pink. He seems pretty into fashion, and his dance moves consist of a lot of hip/butt shaking.
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* InTouchWithHisFeminineSide: He likes to knit, sing, and cook, and likes pink. He seems pretty into fashion, and his dance moves consist of a lot of hip/butt shaking. All possible reasons why his family treat him the way they did.
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* LadyLooksLikeADude: The Lorax was surprised to learn that she's a lady.
* HairTriggerTemper: She's not afraid to get her hands dirty when the Lorax prepares to fight her (before finding out she's a she).
* HairTriggerTemper: She's not afraid to get her hands dirty when the Lorax prepares to fight her (before finding out she's a she).
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* RagsToRiches: He started out as a poor janitor, before he realized he could profit from the contaminated environment.
