Hercules (1997)
Disney's Greek myth as a gospel number: five Muses narrating, Danny DeVito's satyr training a gangly demigod, and James Woods' fast-talking Hades stealing the whole picture. Hercules was the mid-90s Disney musical that didn't quite hit at the box office — and the one whose songs, "Zero to Hero" and "Go the Distance," everyone still knows.
Ron Clements and John Musker, coming off Aladdin, joined the project in 1993 after their Treasure Planet pitch was shelved. Researching the myths, they decided the ancient world's Hercules mania resembled modern celebrity fandom for athletes and actors. "When we researched him at the British Museum, for example, Hercules's face was on a huge number of vases," Musker said. The look came from Gerald Scarfe: the directors remembered his Beatles cover for Time, saw a match between his style and Greek vase painting, and hired him as production designer, and he produced more than 700 character designs. Alan Menken wrote the music with lyricist David Zippel, the animation was split between Burbank and Paris, and the budget was $85 million.
Tate Donovan voiced the grown Hercules, Susan Egan was Megara, Danny DeVito the crotchety satyr Philoctetes, trainer of heroes, and Rip Torn was Zeus. Charlton Heston opened as narrator before five gospel-singing Muses — Lillias White, Cheryl Freeman, LaChanze, Roz Ryan and Vaneese Thomas — took the story over. Disney had wanted Jack Nicholson for Hades, but he asked for a $10–15 million paycheck plus half the proceeds from Hades merchandise, and the studio wouldn't share. James Woods got the part and the reviews: Entertainment Weekly's Owen Gleiberman gave the film an A− and called Woods' "dry jocularity" "hilariously incongruous."
Hercules premiered on June 14, 1997, at the New Amsterdam Theatre and opened wide on June 27 on 2,621 screens, backed by tie-ins with 85 licensees. It came in second that weekend behind Face/Off, and its first two weeks brought $58 million against The Lion King's $119 million over the same span. Shareholders were disappointed and Disney's stock slipped 9.7 percent; executives blamed "more competition." It finished at roughly $99 million domestic and $253 million worldwide. Greece was not amused either. A planned open-air premiere at Pnyx hill was declined by the Greek government after a backlash from critics and audiences, and the film was retitled Beyond the Myth of Heracles there.
The songs outlived the disappointment. "Go the Distance" earned an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song, with Michael Bolton's cover released as a single. A syndicated TV series followed in 1998, a direct-to-video follow-up, Hercules: Zero to Hero, in 1999, and a stage musical played the Delacorte Theater in 2019.
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