Fear tends to multiply when viewers learn a horror film has real-life inspiration. However, not only killers from scary movies can be based on true events. Disney has drawn inspiration from numerous stars -- mostly classic Hollywood film actors -- to create many characters throughout its extensive catalog.
Even villains from classic Disney films were based on real people, like the Evil Queen in Snow White. The wicked Cruella de Vil first emerged in Dodie Smith's 1956 novel The Hundred and One Dalmatians. Viewers met her onscreen five years later in Disney's 1961 film 101 Dalmatians. Cruella had a cat and a husband in the novel, neither of which was included in the animated film. What was included was Cruella's vile attitude, which was actually based on a classic Hollywood film star. But how could someone be as evil as her?
Cruella de Vil's Inspiration Was More Than Just Appearance
While the name Cruella de Vil was a pun on both cruel and devil, the inspiration for this villain's name was created in 1939, when Smith purchased a Rolls-Royce 25/30 Sedanca de Ville motorcar. She rode in the Rolls-Royce with her pet Dalmatian named Pongo, and the vehicle later became the cartoon model for Cruella's own vehicles in the animated films. Cruella also lived extravagantly in her mansion in London due to her ancestral wealth.
Other than her memorable split hairstyle, Cruella was etched into children's brains for her cruelty toward animals. Cruella stole Dalmatian puppies and took their fur to design gaudy fur coats. She hired thieves named Jasper and Horace to steal a litter of Dalmatian puppies, but parents Pongo and Perdita saved their offspring from Cruella. Decades after the original film, fans of the 101 Dalmatians franchise learned a little more about Cruella's infamous history in 2021's Cruella, arguably one of the better Disney live-action films.
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Several people inspired the creation of Cruella. According to Entertainment Weekly, actor Mary Wickes served as the model for the character. But the Hollywood actor who left the biggest mark on the development of Cruella was Tallulah Bankhead. Bankhead was extremely thin and smoked around 120 cigarettes per day, both traits Cruella also possessed. Bankhead even had the notorious arched brows, similar to those of the Disney villain.
The comparisons between Bankhead and Cruella don't stop at their appearance and financial status. According to David Bret's 2017 biography Tallulah Bankhead, Bankhead suffered from manic narcissism throughout her life. Bankhead was even banished to convents, but the nuns expelled her twice: once for throwing ink at the Mother Superior and another time for her flirtatious attitude. Likewise, The Hundred and One Dalmatians revealed Cruella was expelled when she was caught drinking ink.
While Bankhead didn't capture dogs for fur coats like Cruella, the Hollywood star undoubtedly lived a controversial life in luxury. Despite her alcohol and drug addictions, Bankhead also fostered children to help them escape both the Spanish Civil War and World War II, an act of charity people likely wouldn't see Cruella perform.