15 Best Disney Sidekicks Of All Time, Ranked

While every character in the history of Disney probably feels like the main character of their story, everyone is also a supporting character in someone else's narrative. But that doesn't diminish the role of a sidekick. Whether they're the comic relief, the emotional support, or simply along for the vibes, they serve an important role for the hero. Honestly, sidekicks deserve more recognition.

That's why we're showing our appreciation for our favorite Disney sidekicks by counting down the very best in animation and live-action. It's the least we can do to honor those characters who are behind the main characters getting one jump ahead, wishing upon a star, or living out a tale as old as time.

However, it's worth noting that some characters that might be considered as sidekicks, such as Stitch, Baymax, or Baloo, do not appear on this list. In an effort to whittle down the list, we eliminated anyone who is more of a co-star rather than a sidekick. In other words, if the plot of their movie doesn't fundamentally change without their involvement, then they're a sidekick.

Now with that in mind, let's get into the best Disney movie sidekicks of all time. 

"Beauty and the Beast" is the tale as old as time. While many will typically remember the titular characters of a great story like this one, the villain of the 1991 animated classic (and the 2017 live-action remake) is just as memorable. In fact, Gaston has one of the best Disney villain songs of all time, and that song happens to start with the vain and chauvinistic hunter's sidekick, LeFou.

The diminutive character serves as proof that not every sidekick is their companion's friend. Despite his unwavering loyalty and undying admiration, LeFou is essentially Gaston's lackey. He does Gaston's bidding and gets nothing in return. Actually, the only thing that he does get is frequently overlooked or mocked by everyone in Belle's quiet village.

However, LeFou isn't stupid. He may be a bit bumbling, but he's cunning. He tricks Maurice into describing the Beast, so he would be committed. Then, he leads the townsfolk into battle against the enchanted inhabitants of Beast's castle, while Gaston goes after their master. Of course, he ultimately gets bested by the dog/footstool and the kitchen staff, but you can't deny his screen presence.

A practitioner of magic will typically have a familiar, an animal with supernatural tendencies that would assist with spells and general vibes. In "Aladdin," the villainous vizier Jafar has the talking parrot Iago as his companion. Though he isn't exactly a magical being, the bird voiced by the legendary comedian Gilbert Gottfried does his part around Agrabah.

Jafar's job is to advise the Sultan on a variety of matters. Iago likewise serves that purpose for the royal advisor. When the pair try to concoct a plan to usurp the kingdom, the parrot is the one who suggests that Jafar marries Princess Jasmine in order to become the new Sultan. He also flies around the palace grounds and acts as a spy to gather intelligence to use against Prince Ali/Aladdin.

With a sidekick like Iago, Jafar could have gone far in his evil schemes. Unfortunately for the both of them, his hunger for power was their downfall. As his wish to become a genie came true, he grabbed onto this avian partner to share the itty bitty living space inside the lamp for an extended period of time.

What do you get when you give a majestic horse the brain of a bird? Zeus found out in "Hercules," the 1997 animated musical based on the hero from Greek mythology, when he created Pegasus. Rather than sticking to the more gruesome origin involving Medusa's severed head, Disney's version of the story saw the ruler of the gods combine different types of clouds to create a sidekick and best friend for his newborn son.

While they were separated for years thanks to Hades' kidnapping plot, once Hercules and Pegasus reunited, they were practically inseparable. In fact, aside from his adoptive parents and his trainer Phil, Pegasus was the only other living being that wanted to associate with the clumsy hero-in-training. Even after the squad moved their operations to Thebes to save the disaster prone city, the winged steed stood faithfully beside his friend and carried him into battle whenever necessary.

Sure, they both might have momentarily forgotten each other when a pretty lady crossed their paths for the first time. However, it was a learning experience for them since Meg was there to stay and the pink winged horse turned out to be a trap laid by Pain and Panic.

Despite being mentioned in the title of the movie, the dwarves don't necessarily factor into the overall plot of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves." Walt Disney's first animated hit follows a fair-skinned princess/scullery maid who is driven into the forest after her wicked stepmother tries to have her killed for being prettier than her. Thanks to her woodland friends, Snow White is led to a cottage for safety. Doc, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy, Bashful, Sneezy, and Dopey later return to find a pleasant invader in their home. After Snow explains her situation, they let her stay, essentially swapping out being a maid in a castle for being a maid in a cottage. But there's singing and dancing sometimes, so at least the working conditions are much better.

Unfortunately, while the dwarves are working in the mine, the Queen disguises herself to give Snow White a poison apple. When they return and find their houseguest in a death-like slumber, the dwarves place her in a glass coffin under the protection of the animals in the forest. When the maiden awakens due to true love's kiss, they're there to celebrate. Honestly, the dwarves might be the most passive sidekicks on our list, but they're still beloved.

Completely independent of his friend's cinematic adventure, Pascal from "Tangled" is a great animal buddy. Not only is he loyal, he's ready to fight for Rapunzel the second Flynn Rider enters the tower unannounced. Not only will he listen, but he's there to ride the wave of emotions with you no matter what. And not only is he down for anything, he's down for everything (as seen in the opening number of the movie "When Will My Life Begin").

In "Tangled: The Series," we learn that Pascal and Rapunzel met when they were young. The chameleon's mother put him on a lily pad and sent him down the river before sacrificing herself when a snake attacked them. Enchanted by little Rapunzel's song, he climbed her tower to make a new friend. The snake would eventually catch up with him and finish the job before meeting the business end of the princess' frying pan. Critically injured by the attack, Pascal is healed by Rapunzel's magic hair. After that, he literally becomes her "ride or die" friend. Now that is #FriendshipGoals.

Rizzo the Rat is another sidekick who is "ride or die." However, considering that his best friend is the magnificent daredevil Gonzo the Great, he doesn't always have a say on the matter. One of the best instances of this can be found in "The Muppet Christmas Carol."

With Gonzo starring as the great Victorian novelist Charles Dickens and Rizzo starring as himself, the duo act as the narrators of this theatrical adaptation of the iconic Christmas tale. Rizzo also acts as the proxy for the audience, since he learns vital information about the whole cast, including Michael Caine's Ebenezer Scrooge and Kermit the Frog's Bob Cratchit as we meet them along the way. 

In between important plot points and delightful songs, we see Mr. Dickens and Rizzo do their best to literally keep up with the story and that's where their friendship shines. Sometimes that means hopping over fences, dashing through rapidly closing doors, or using a rope to catch a ride to the past on a ghost. Plus, Rizzo gets frozen, lit on fire, and dropped down a chimney onto a roasting goose. This ordeal, much like the Christmas season, is much easier to navigate with friends and loved ones.

You may need a sidekick who is also a partner in crime. We're talking about someone who knows where the skeletons are buried and isn't afraid to bury more. But in the case of Bert in "Mary Poppins," the "skeletons" are practically perfect adventures that could only take place with a little bit of magic.

Their relationship is never revealed explicitly, but the characters played by Dick Van Dyke and Julie Andrews certainly go back a long way. Bert wouldn't think twice about a talking umbrella or an enchanted snow globe, which was almost lost to history. He doesn't need to question Mary's plans because he knows the deal and he's along for the ride. The Banks children need their nanny, so he's ready to support them in any way necessary. In some instances, it's jumping into his sidewalk chalk artwork for an afternoon. Other times, it may involve leading the group back to Cherry Tree Lane with the help of some friendly chimney sweeps. Regardless of what needs to be done, Bert is the guy to call if your name is Mary Poppins.

A good sidekick can be in such high demand that they could be called to be a sidekick to multiple adventuring parties. Believe it or not, this is exactly how Launchpad McQuack rolls.

Known for being an ace pilot with a laid back demeanor, Launchpad is an adventurer through and through. He's also a lovable, charming doofus that often forgets things and makes mistakes. Despite those common occurrences, he finds a way to get he and his companions out of sticky situations safely. For example, in the opening of "Ducktales The Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp," McQuack accidentally knocks down some ancient ruins. Just like Denzel Washington in "Flight" (minus the drugs), he lands his plane upside down and gets Scrooge McDuck and his family on the ground in one piece.

Meanwhile, when he's not exploring with Scrooge and the kids on "Ducktales," he's off being a superhero with Darkwing Duck. But whether he's flying the Sun Chaser or the Thunderquack, Launchpad is prepared to get his companions out of any tight spots they might find themselves in.

While he may share some qualities with the other villainous sidekicks on this list, Kronk is a Swiss Army knife of a human being. He serves as Yzma's right hand man in "The Emperor's New Groove," where he assists her with carrying out her schemes to overthrow Kuzco. However, his childlike naiveté and upstanding moral compass leads him to the path of good by the end of the movie and into the beginning of his own direct-to-video sequel.

No matter which side he's aligned with, Kronk brings a lot to the table. He's strong, he has great survival instincts due to his time as a Junior Chipmunk, and he's a spectacular chef. He can even talk to squirrels! These specific abilities may not come in handy all the time, but since he's full of surprises, there are a number of ways to win with Kronk on your side. You may not get to take over the empire, but at least your belly will be filled with delicious spinach puffs on any given day.

When you're feeling down, nothing brings you back up quite like good friends. For Simba in "The Lion King," he had so much to deal with at a young age after his father's death that he couldn't think clearly. Luckily, he met Timon and Pumbaa (voiced by the perfectly cast Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella) at the right time in his life to make the necessary adjustments necessary to clear his head. 

Though running away from your problems isn't great, it's still good to remember this carefree duo's mantra of "hakuna matata" when things get to be too overwhelming. As the incredibly catchy song says, "It means no worries." Or to put it another way, try to focus on the things you can control in a situation. Beyond that, let it go, because you can't change it. 

These self-care kings were happy to stick by Simba's side when he went back to the Pride Lands to reclaim his rightful place on the throne, since that was something that he could change as an adult. As far as sidekicks go, despite being chill most of the time, even Timon and Pumbaa know when to take action. That's certainly a lesson we should all remember.      

While Millennials have Timon and Pumbaa, Gen Z has Olaf the enchanted snowman from "Frozen." Built by Anna and Elsa when they were young, he became Arendelle's friendliest resident all year round when he was reunited with the sisters shortly after the elder sibling's coronation brought an "eternal winter" into the kingdom.

The qualities that make Olaf such a good sidekick are his innocence and his hopefulness. Even in the face of certain danger or defeat, this little guy continuously stays optimistic. This could be due to the fact that he hasn't had enough life experience yet in his first movie to even know what will happen to snow in summer. Regardless, he believes Anna will be saved, Elsa will find a way to save the kingdom, and he will melt to make any of that happen if he has to because some people are melting for.

On top of his unwavering support of his friends, it doesn't hurt that Olaf's quirky awkwardness provides a little comic relief in even the most dire circumstances.

Though there are plenty of other fan-favorite Disney sidekicks, Jiminy Cricket is probably the quintessential one. This could be largely due to the way that the studio has adopted his signature song "When You Wish Upon A Star" as their theme song. But another reason why this character still holds up decades after his film's 1940 release date is that Jiminy wants Pinocchio to be the best version of himself.

In the movie that interestingly maintains a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, the cricket is tasked by the Blue Fairy to be the conscience for a puppet that became a real boy. Jiminy has to teach Pinocchio how to tell the difference between right and wrong so the wooden boy can be brave, truthful, and unselfish. The road to this lesson is filled with twists and turns that cause the puppet to make plenty of bad decisions since sometimes your companions need to make mistakes and learn from them on their own. Thankfully, Jiminy is still there through thick and thin to put him back on the right track. 

It may be controversial to younger Disney fans to place Sebastian from "The Little Mermaid" so high on this list. When you're young, King Triton's royal advisor and composer is kind of a huge buzzkill. He eventually comes around to Ariel and Prince Eric getting together as seen during the iconic "Kiss The Girl" musical number, but before that, it's a lot of, "Don't do this," and, "Don't do that."

However, as you get older, you slowly start to see where Sebastian is coming from in the classic Disney Renaissance era film. Ariel was too close to the situation to see how she was getting played by Ursula. Yes, the Caribbean crab narked to her father, but he wanted to keep the headstrong princess safe at all costs. By the end of the movie, I like to think that Ariel came to appreciate it. Whether or not she does, it's still good to have a sidekick who will make the tough call of possibly alienating someone in order to protect them.

While Jafar has his own sidekick in Iago, Aladdin really has three sidekicks: Abu the monkey, the Magic Carpet, and the Genie. If we're being honest though, Genie is clearly the best one. After all, the titular hero has never had a friend like him.

First, the lovable character is voiced by the incredible Robin Williams (whose outtakes are as funny as his final performance), who simply embodies this role to the fullest. Second, this character shares a lot of DNA with Jiminy Cricket and Sebastian, in the sense that Genie also wants Aladdin to be the best version of himself. In order to do that, he needs to come clean and tell Princess Jasmine the truth about his feelings without all the magic.

In the end, it's Genie's counsel rather than his magic that pushed Aladdin to do the right thing by telling the truth and keeping his promise to free his friend from servitude. Of course, things are a lot more fun with magic, but the real magic in "Aladdin" is the friends they made along the way.

Out of everyone on this list, Mushu from "Mulan" is the only one who willingly and explicitly signs up to be a sidekick. He's looking to get back into the good graces of the ancestors and showing that he has what it takes to be a guardian of the Fa family again by making a warrior out of Mulan. As part of this mission, he makes sure that she is supported during her army training and her foray into battle. Not only did his friendship and guidance lead our heroine to successfully protect her father and her family, but Mushu helped Mulan save the entire country from Shan Yu and the Hun Army.

Eddie Murphy delivers a phenomenal performance as Mushu as well. Simply based on the mighty dragon's accomplishments alone, he deserves the top spot on our list. With his help, Mulan brings honor to her family for many generations.