Mickey Mouse is one of the most popular Disney characters of all time, created by Ub Iwerks and Walt Disney himself. As a plucky and cheerful anthropomorphic mouse, the character first appeared publicly on 18 November 1928, in "Steamboat Willie".

Weighing 10 kilograms (23 pounds) and standing around 69 centimeters (2'3''), Mickey Mouse can be identified via his yellow shoes, white gloves, red shorts, and big round ears. The mouse talks in falsetto tones, whose speeches are often laced with popular slang in the 1930s such as "gee" and "swell". He is a type of underdog, who overcomes his adversities with his can-do spirit and quick wit, despite his vulnerable character and small size.

Later on, Mickey Mouse received massive fame with his own short film franchises. The "rubber hose" and simplistic design of the character foster both exaggerated gags and relatable emotions. Mickey's flexibility and adaptability, on the other hand, allow him to be anywhere, anyplace, and at any time while still keeping his core attributes.

Over the years, the famous Disney mascot slowly expanded his popularity to other mediums, starting with a string of comic strips drawn by Floyd Gottfredson - a famous cartoonist at the time - in 1930. Ten years later, Mickey debuted in a feature-length movie "Fantasia", in which the animators redesigned him for a more modern audience.

First appearance: 1928

Movies: Steamboat Willie, Mickey’s Birthday Party, Twice upon A Christmas,...

Tinker Bell (often referred to as Miss Bell and Tink in certain regions) appears in Peter Pan, Disney's feature film in 1953. Tink is quite a sassy character, being Peter Pan's trusted sidekick and joining Peter often on his many exploits and trips throughout Neverland - a magical isle. Tinker Bell values the relationship with Peter so much, to the point that other girls who are close to him will make her become spiteful and insanely jealous - especially Wendy Darling.

Tinker Bell often brings Pixie Dust with her, a type of dust that will make her and other children fly in the sky - as long as they always think about positive things. Most of the time, Tinker Bell remains silent, speaking fairy languages that are barely comprehensible to humans. Tink's vocalizations are conveyed through jingling noises that sound like a bell.

Ever since her debut, Tinker Bell has grown into one of the most popular Disney characters of all time. Famous for flying straight to the screen and spreading pixie dust, the character has been assigned as the spokesperson for Walt Disney Corporation (along with Jiminy Cricket and Mickey Mouse). Eventually, she was so famous that she successfully earned her own series - Disney Fairies - which revolves around Tinker Bell and her fairy friends.

First appearance: 1904

Movies: Peter Pan, Disney Fairies

Cinderella is the main character in a 1950 movie with the same title produced by Disney, and the second official Disney princess (ranked behind Snow White). After her mom died, her dad married another woman in the belief that his daughter needed a mom. However, the dad, unfortunately, passed away shortly after that, and ever since, Cinderella was made to serve the wicked stepmother (Tremaine) and her two daughters (Drizella and Anastasia). Despite her stepfamily's cruelty and jealousy, Cinderella was always a beautiful, spirited, and kind girl. Her everlasting optimism and faith were so strong that they took the physical form of the Fairy Godmother, who helped Cinderella turn from a maid into a princess.

Cinderella's Disney version was inspired by the French version of Cinderella in 1698, written by Charles Perrault. Eric Larson and Marc Davis animated her, though these animators did not share the same viewpoints about the character. In the end, they decided to merge Larson's simplicity and Davis' elegance for the final draft, resulting in Cinderella's more complicated personality than Snow White.

As with most other Disney pictures, Disney hired Helene Stanley - a famous actress - to perform real-life references for the animators to draw Cinderella's movements. (The actress also did the same things for princess Aurora in Sleeping Beauty and the villain Anita Radcliffe from 100 and 1 Dalmatians).

First appearance: 1957

Movies: Cinderella, Cinderella II, Cinderella III

Elsa The Queen is a deuteragonist in 2013's feature film, Frozen, produced by Disney, who also appeared in the 2019 sequel. Ever since she was born by Queen Iduna and King Agnarr, Elsa was already gifted with the great power of snow and ice. During most of her childhood, Elsa was always afraid that the power she had was monstrous. As a result, she decided to separate herself from the rest of the world, determined to protect her kingdom and her family.

But soon when she grew up, her one-time anger triggered a terrifying curse that turned the kingdom into eternal winter seasons. But thanks to Anna's devotion to her, Elsa eventually managed to keep her powers under control and enjoy a peaceful life among her dear people, gaining new self-confidence.

However, only after a three-year reign, the queen has to come back to Ahtoh Allan and assume her position as the Spirit of The Magical Forests, whose goal is to close the gap between people and nature magic. So Elsa decided to abdicate her throne in her kingdom, letting her sister, Anna, become Arendelle's new queen.

It's speculated that Elsa is more or less inspired by Andersen's story "The Snow Queen". At first, Disney wanted to build her as a villain. However, thanks to the song "Let It Go", the filmmakers were inspired to turn her into a tragic character.

First appearance: 2013

Movies: Frozen, Frozen II, Frozen Fever

Princess Aurora is a gentle, loving, angelic, graceful, elegant, and kind person - and she is hopelessly romantic as well. At first glance, she seems to be carefree, playful, and a bit shy - the result of being kept in the forest during her first 16 years of life. Also, she is extremely honest and loyal to the three fairies (whom she thought were her "aunts"), always obeying their rules with respect even though she did not always agree with what they said.

As the three fairies taught her to never talk with strangers, the princess was apprehensive and startled when Prince Phillip came to the forest. Nevertheless, she still found herself attracted to him - before remembering what her "aunts" had told her about the stranger rule. The princess then decided to talk with him by arranging a secret meeting with him at a cottage - under her aunts' supervision.

Even though she might be innocent and a bit dependent on others' opinions and actions, Aurora is not completely helpless or passive as we expected. For instance, she sometimes showed annoyance whenever the three fairies treated her as a child - a rather clear hint that Aurora yearns for independence and does not want to always rely on others' opinions.

Also, Aurora is actually pretty strong-willed and selfless: when she finds out the truth about her background and realizes she can never meet Prince Phillips anymore, she still decides to push those feelings away to do what she believes is right: come back home to her parents and fulfill her princess duty.

First appearance: 1959

Movies: Sleeping Beauty

Ariel is the main character in the 1989 movie, "The Little Mermaid", produced by Disney. Being the youngest daughter of the family, Ariel has always enjoyed the love that Queen Athena and King Triton hold for her. She goes through most of her childhood with a forbidden - yet burning - passion and admiration for humans, longing to experience human life above the sea surface.

The character Ariel is more or less inspired by the nameless mermaid in Andersen's story, "The Little Mermaid". However, contrary to the original tale, where the character couldn't get together with her prince and died in the end, Disney decided to give Ariel a much happier ending.

Aside from being the main character in the movie The Little Mermaid, Ariel is also regarded as the fourth Disney official princess. Unlike some of her predecessors, she's the very first Princess to be established and developed after Disney passed away - two decades after his death in 1966.

Speculations said that Walt Disney attempted to make "The Little Mermaid" in the early 40s but failed to do so. Thankfully, his successors have made his dream come true, turning Ariel into one of the most iconic female characters in animation history.

First appearance: 1989

Movies: The Little Mermaid