Theory Thursday: Will the REAL Prince Hans Please Step Forward?

As a Disney fan, all around the internet from the time the movie came out to when Zootopia toppled it in the box office, Prince Hans was given a bad reputation. Many people consider him to be one of the biggest masterminds in animated movie history, certainly in Disney history, and yet he seemed so sincere around Anna when they first met.

A lot of theories have flown around as to why that happened, but here is a thought for you guys to think about…

Welcome to theory Thursday

Hans is the member of the royal family that has economic and political control over the southern isles, a neighboring kingdom to Arendelle where the events of the film take place, but there is a few inconsistencies with Han’s appearance at the coronation of Elsa.

Seriously, He wanted to leave the Southern
Isles. He even packed his Winter Coat for
an Event That took place in the Summer.

During the song “Love is an Open Door”, Hans mentions that he is the youngest of 12 older siblings. He explains that those twelve older siblings never really gave him the time of day or any real responsibility as a member of the royal family. From his story, it seems that Hans is the Cinderella that looked into the abyss and blinked (as Batman would say). So how did Hans get picked to represent the Southern Isles at the coronation of a neighboring kingdom that, according to the Duke of Weasletown, is flowing with riches and power? The only other member of the Southern Isles family is at the end when they are de-porting Hans for bad behavior.

Not only does this smile look genuine, no one is looking at this
point! He really is admiring Anna. No faking here!

As a child, Hans never got attention from his brothers, as mentioned above. In such, the guy never had any real chance to prove himself. It is likely that Hans was neglected. This is the point that Hans goes to Arendelle, likely to escape his family and start a new life (note that Hans brought all of his winter gear with him. he was planning on staying a while). Hans accidently knocks over Anna, and as soon as Hans realizes who she is, he is immediately repentant “I would like to apologize for knocking you over, and everything after that” (It’s not exact. Sorry). Anna mentions that it’s not a big deal and Hans is noticed by someone nice who likes him. This accounts for the sincere smile that he gave, even when Anna was no longer looking at him.

No one knows the back story to this other than the Audience.
Anna is shocked, the dignitaries are shocked, Han's is shocked.
Everyone is Scared.

Elsa flips out. From Han’s perspective, all he can see is that the queen is a sorcerer that just jeopardized the lives of the royal families of several kingdoms. Anna puts Hans in charge and he is rather good at it. During the darkest time that Arendelle had since the passing of its king and queen, Hans was the one who kept everything afloat.

Hans goes out to search for Anna, as he does so he sees Elsa attack several guards. He doesn’t know the buildup to that moment, only that Elsa is now all the sudden sticking an icicle against a man’s throat. Elsa is captured.

This Single moment and the Ball are the only
experiences that Han's has to judge Elsa by.

Anna gets back and mentions that she needs an act of true love to cure her. Han’s then realizes that he will have to go back to how he was before. During this panic, he has to revert to the same methods that he was taught by his family and he becomes a total jerk face. The kingdom is running well under Han’s supervision, likely better than it did when the royal family of Arendelle made 0 public appearances for the last several months. He doesn’t want that power to leave, so he makes a huge deal about simply wanting to take over the kingdom rather than admit that he probably didn’t have very strong feelings for Anna to begin with other than fear, relief, and a false sense of mutual love due to both Han’s and Anna being neglected as children (Anna had the worst parents ever).

Elsa Already said she couldn't reverse
the storm, Han's is likely doing the only
thing that he sees as logical. sacrifice the one
to save the many.

Hans sees no end to this winter storm, but maybe if he can get Elsa to stand still for a minute and kill her the storm would be over and everyone could go home.

Han’s is deported for his actions and sentenced to stable duty on the Southern Isles, likely not a worse situation than he had before he left Arendelle.

The point is that in order to understand why a villain is so bad, you need to understand why they are the hero of their own story. Han’s was a rather complex character, but you only got to see that when you see his own perspective, ignore what you know, and try to figure out what he knows.

That is my thoughts on Prince Han’s and how I explain his genuine smile and his jerk butt moves against Anna. Is Han's a dasterdly villian or is he a victim of his upbringing and the circumstances in the movie? Let’s talk about it in the comments below! Also be sure to like my Facebook page, follow me on twitter @SupermanLegion, and share this article with someone who thinks Han’s is the absolute worst person ever. It’ll be fun. I promise.