Disney‘s live-action remake of Peter Pan (1953), renamed Peter Pan & Wendy, was released on Disney Plus a few weeks ago. Already, the movie has received tons of backlash for its changes; some questionable, some understandable. Therefore, Peter Pan & Wendy is much more like a political statement, than a truthful remake of the Peter Pan movie from 1953. This means that it’s backed to the brim with many changes, so much that it’s hard to even call this a Peter Pan movie.
I decided to watch Peter Pan & Wendy about a week ago, and while it’s a pretty bad movie, I found a few redeeming qualities. It has some well-filmed spots, some nice moments, and a handful of decent/good characters. Thus, I decided to whip up this list of the top 3 characters from Peter Pan & Wendy! Hopefully you’ll find some enjoyment in this list, whether you liked the movie or not!
Before you jump into the list, let me remind you that this movie had plenty of characters, but most of them were absolutely terrible. Thus, I’m only writing a top 3 list of the best characters in Peter Pan & Wendy!
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3. Wendy Darling
Ever Anderson, the daughter of Milla Jovovich and Paul W.S. Anderson, does a good job as Wendy Darling, and I wholeheartedly mean that! Not only does she convey emotion well, she manages to make the “new” version of Wendy her own, and that’s quite impressive. While she won’t win any awards for her performance, this is definitely a good showing for someone who has only ever been in 3 movies.
When it comes to the character itself, this is definitely a new version of Wendy. She’s no longer our beloved mother of the group, but she’s more like a big sister, who wants others to listen to her, without ever earning that role. While the storyline forcefully fits Wendy into the story, she feels all too different to actually work well with the other characters. But that’s maybe not too surprising, now is it? This really is a different take on a classic Disney character. But sadly, this reimagining of Wendy falls short of making the character relatable, warm and fitting. Thus, I’m forced to place her at the 3rd spot on my list of the best characters from Peter Pan & Wendy!
2. Captain Hook
Jude Law is by far the best actor in the movie, but sadly he’s forced to play the worst version of Captain Hook ever seen in film! The character looks ridiculous, acts all too serious, without the personality and charisma of the OG-version of the villain. Instead of a Captain Hook worth remembering, I only recall Jude Law’s performance, but not the characters itself. Simply put, Jude Law made the character worth watching and following!
Now I’m sure that some people will immediately point to Captain Hook’s backstory and the newly added history he has with Peter Pan. While I commend the creators for adding some story to Captain Hook, I question the reason behind it? Did we need it? Like were we actually supposed to sympathize with him, and blame Peter Pan for “creating” Captain Hook? If so, it was a terrible attempt, and an unnecessary one! Live-action or not, sometimes a mysterious character is much more interesting than one who you force us to sympathize with. Especially if the character wants to kill children! Thus, I found the added backstory to be mildly amusing. If it wasn’t for Jude Law’s efforts, I would most likely rank Wendy Darling over Captain Hook.
1. Peter Pan
The confidence in which Alexander Molony plays Peter Pan immediately caught my attention. It’s the way he acts, the way he smiles, and the way he seems sad on the inside. It’s the whole package, and while it’s a more serious interpretation of Peter Pan, Alexander Molonoy makes it work. From his charismatic presence on the screen to his ability to pull off heartwrenching emotional scenes, Alex does it all! Not only that, but this version of Peter Pan is the definition of “less is more”. It’s the only character that isn’t over-the-top. It’s like he’s the only one that doesn’t feel out of place, when everyone else does, and that’s quite impressive!
I’m not just saying that Alexander Molonoy did a good job, I’m saying that he’s the only actor to actually nail their character! Thus, Peter Pan is the most interesting and attention-grabbing character in the movie, and it’s not particularly close. I simply mean that the gap between Pan and everyone else is large. So, as far as I’m concerned, Peter Pan is the best character of Peter Pan & Wendy!
