Dr. Faciliermakes for an incredibly memorable Disney villain inThe Princess and the Frog.Obviously, a bad guyusing petro voodoo who also had friends on the "other side" was bad news, and most people avoided him, knowing they were better off that way. Tiana certainly didn't fall for Facilier's charming façade like Naveen did, and she was the one to bring down the big bad bokor.
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Dr. Facilier is clearly manipulative, using people's desires against them, and he obviously has dark and dangerous power. However, there are several other qualities of his that are underestimated or possibly overlooked that make him far more dangerous than initially perceived by audiences.
He's Manipulative
One of the many things Dr. Facilier is capable of given his powers is he can see what a person's innermost desires are. He tries to manipulate Tiana into giving him the talisman by promising her the restaurant she longs for, and he isn't happy when she sees through him anyway. He manipulated Lawrence much in the same way, all to get what Dr. Facilier himself wanted the entire time: power and money.
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The Misery Of Others Brings Him Joy
Dr. Facilier doesn't care who he has to take down or hurt to get his way, and he genuinely enjoys scamming people. Immediately, audiences see Facilier enjoying someone else's misery when he strikes a deal with a bald man, and the deal backfires big time for the poor guy as he grows more hair than he'd wanted, which Facilier finds humorous. The witch doctor cares for no one but himself, and he certainly isn't using his magic to help others.
His Shadow
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Dr. Facilier's shadow is about as friendly as he is, and that's not saying much considering the two are both scary and menacing. The shadow serves Facilier in his evildoing; Facilier is called the "shadow man" for a reason.
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The shadow makes him that much more threatening, and it'd be creepy to have a shadow like his following him around everywhere. No matter where he goes, Dr. Facilier carries darkness around with him.
He's Intelligent
Dr. Facilier sees an opportunity, and he wastes no time in taking it. He comes up with the scheme to use Lawrence to fool Charlotte and to kill her father following their marriage on the fly. He puts his plan for fortune and power together swiftly, and had Naveen not gotten away to begin with, his plan might have worked seamlessly. When it comes to evil plans and get-rich-quick schemes, Dr. Facilier certainly has a talent for it.
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He's A Smooth Talker
One of the primary reasons that Dr. Facilier is so good at scamming people is because he's a gifted smooth talker. He can easily be perceived as charming and persuasive, given his false persona. Even if he's revealing who he truly is, as was the case with Naveen, he still got the prince to agree to make a deal with him. He's a ruthless villain, but he can certainly convince anyone to do what he wanted given his persuasive and beguiling act.
He Keeps His Mother's Shrunken Head Around
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The fact that Dr. Facilier was keeping his mother's shrunken head around is a major red flag; it's like Norman Bates keeping his mother's corpse. If his mother's head isn't disturbing enough, the fact that Facilier happily shows it to Naveen shows how casually he views this.
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It shows how dangerous he and his voodoo really are; no customer wants to end up as a shrunken head in Facilier's possession.
He's Volatile
Usually, Dr. Facilier displays a calm and collected manner, but if he's offended or if someone messes up on his watch, he snaps. Granted, he's under a lot of pressure given his debt to his friends on the "other side", but his volatile personality makes him not only unpredictable, but also dangerous. Desperation makes Dr. Facilier do all kinds of things, including trying to murder Charlotte's father, and it ultimately leads to his demise.
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He's A Con Man
Dr. Facilier is all about running scams. He's not trustworthy, and he's certainly not out to help people with his abilities. There isn't a time when he's not pulling one over on the residents of New Orleans; he's a con man by nature, and it goes against every fiber in his being to be truthful. If's he not running a scam, he's operating on an evil plot; whatever he's doing, audiences can bet that it's nothing good.
He Has No Conscience
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Murder, dealing with friends on the "other side" and offering them the souls of New Orleans to pay them back for helping him, and doing wrong unto others; Dr. Facilier certainly lacks a conscience. He killed Ray, and he was ready to murder Eli La Bouff so that he'd get a large sum of Charlotte's inheritance, per his deal with Lawrence.
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Never does he pause and think about how much wrong he's doing, let alone express any regret. That is, apart from when he's unable to pay his debt and must suffer the consequences, not unlike Gothel in Tangled.
He Has Friends On The "Other Side"
His friends on the "other side"; that alone should render Dr. Facilier terrifying. Even he is afraid of his so-called friends; though he gets his power from them, he owes them a lot in return. His terror is especially evident after Tiana breaks the talisman, and he and his shadow are dragged away by his so-called "friends", even leaving behind Facilier's terrified expression on a tombstone.
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NEXT: Ranking The Disney Villains By Style
