Judge Claude Frollo

Judge Claude Frollo is the main antagonist in Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame. He is the justice minister of Paris, xenophobic, fanatical and self-righteous to the point of delusion. His voice was provided by the late Tony Jay, and animated by supervising animator Kathy Zielinski and her animation team.

It must be noted that in Victor Hugo's famous novel Notre Dame de Paris from which the Disney movie was inspired, Frollo is not a judge but the Archdeacon of the cathedral of Notre Dame, who was at first a gentle and caring man who struggles against his bitterness and his lust for Esmeralda to the point of near madness. In the book, Frollo took care of Quasimodo out of genuine pity, though he comes to despise him. It can be guessed that the Disney Studios made Frollo a judge instead of a clergyman to avoid controversity. For this original version, see Claude Frollo.

History
"Judge Claude Frollo longs to purge the world of vice and sin. And he saw corruption everywhere except within."

- Clopin (the narrator) about Claude Frollo Judge Claude Frollo resides in Paris, France, where he is employed as a Court Judge, or as the Justice Minister, this is not very clear. (Though the latter would explain his almost complete control over the affairs of Paris. It has been assumed that the King is away at war, leaving him in charge.) A deeply religious man, Frollo uses his position to inflict great suffering upon the gypsy population, believing them to "live outside the natural order" and engage in "heathen" behavior.

One night, a group of gypsies attempt to enter Paris, only to be stopped by Frollo and his soldiers. When a gypsy woman attempts to flee, Frollo, believing her to be hiding stolen goods, chases her to Notre Dame. When Frollo catches up to her, he wrestles the "stolen goods" from her and kicks her in the head, causing her to fall on the steps of the parvis and die from a head concussion. He then finds out the the goods was actually her hideously deformed son, whom he attempts to cast in a well, believing him to be an "unholy demon". Yet, the Archdeacon of Notre Dame tells him that to atone from his crimes in the eyes of the Virgin Mary, (Notre-Dame meaning "Our Lady in French) he must raise the child as his own. Fearing damnation, Frollo begrudgingly accepts and names the baby Quasimodo (half-formed). He keeps him out of the people's attention in the cathedral towers. As Quasimodo grows-up as the bell-ringer of Notre Dame, Frollo persuades him never to venture outside to avoid the hatred of the world, which he describes as cruel and unforgiving for deformed people.

Twenty years later, while attending the annual Festival of Fools, Frollo discovers a gypsy dancer named Esmeralda, who both attracts and disgusts him with her beauty. Shortly afterwards, Quasimodo is revealed to have fled the tower and joined the festivities, only to be crowned the "King of Fools". Frollo has his men cause a riot and reveal that Quasimodo does not wear any mask, leaving him to suffer the wrath of the crowd to teach him a lessson.

Esmeralda then goes to Quasimodo's aid, ridiculing and humiliating Frollo in the process. The gipsy girl can only escape Frollo's wrath by remaining within Notre Dame, where she befriends Quasimodo. That evening, Frollo is disturbed by his attraction for Esmeralda, believing that she cast a spell on him to damn his soul and resolving to have her for him or burn her. (Which he expresses in the song "Hellfire".) Unbeknownst to Frollo, Quasimodo has allowed Esmeralda to escape the cathedral in gratitude for her rescue of him during the Festival as well as feelings of love towards her. Upon learning that Esmerelda had escape, Frollo leaves at once. He bribes some of the gypsies to find Esmerelda, and has everyone whom he believes to have aided the gypsies killed and their house burned, causing immense casualties. Appalled, Captain Phoebus intervenes and rescues an innocent family that Frollo had locked in their home, planning to burn it. Frollo then declares Phoebus a traitor and attempts to execute him, but he is rescued by Esmeralda, though he is injured in the process by an arrow that almost pierced his heart.

Realizing Quasimodo assisted Esmeralda, Frollo convinces him that the Court of Miracles has been found and will eventually be attacked. A misled Quasimodo leads Phoebus to the Court to warn the gypsies, but it was a ruse and Frollo was in fact following them. The fanatical judge attacks the Court of Miracles, has Quasimodo chained down in Notre Dame, and sentences all gypsies to be burned at the stake for witchcraft.

Frollo offers to save Esmeralda if she becomes his mistress but she spits on his face and he prepares to burn her. Fortunately, Quasimodo who managed to escape, rescues her after she passes out and brings her to the cathedral, calling for the divine right of Sanctuary. Enraged, Frollo launches an attack against the cathedral, but Phoebus rallies the outraged people of Paris against him. While his guards are getting soundly defeated, Frollo enters the cathedral directly defying the Archdeacon and flinging him down a flight of stairs.

As Quasimodo is mourning Esmeralda who seems to be dead, Frollo pretends to confort him, concealing a dagger behind his back to kill him. A violent struggle ensues, in which Quasimodo overpowers the deranged judge. Esmeralda awakens, and Quasimodo rushes her to safety. Frollo chases them onto a balcony overlooking the city, striking them with a sword to knock them off the balcony; but Quasimodo manages to hold on and pulls Frollo along with him. While Esmeralda is struggling to rescue Quasimodo, Frollo manages to climb a gargoyle and prepares to deal the finishing blow. Yet the gargoyle breaks under him, casting him to the fiery street filled with molten lead far below.

The gargoyle breaking right when Frollo uttered a last blasphemy, and roaring menacingly at the deranged judge when he falls to his doom can be interpreted as a divine intervention. The truly wicked one is indeed cast into a fiery pit, as a possible symbol of his fall into Hell itself. In the end, Frollo suffers from what he feared the most, the damnation of his very soul.

Kingdom Hearts
Frollo makes an appearance in the latest Kingdom Hearts game; Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance. He is voiced by Corey Burton.

Reception
Frollo has left a lasting impact on audiences, being remembered as one of the darkest and cruelest Disney villains, as his crimes include trying to kill a baby and trying to burn an innocent family alive, and the sexual element of his character is otherwise almost unheard of for an animated Disney character. It is also implied that he is responsible for the deaths of possibly thousands of gypsies. An official poll of the Top 30 Disney Villains placed him in the #10 spot, and the Nostalgia Critic gave him the #4 spot on his personal list.

At the same time however, Frollo is arguably the most complex, realistic and "human" Disney villains as he does have second thoughts and an internal conflict, as well as a distinct insecurity and fear for his soul, which he fails to listen to due to his delusional denial of his own sins. Some even find him sympathetic, and wish he had redeemed himself or even ended up with Esmeralda. This may have something to do with the book, where he legitimately is sympathetic. In addition, Frollo's conflict with the Archdeadcon of Notre Dame (a character meant to embody the good aspect of Frollo's character in the novel) has been regarded by some as mirroring the conflict between pure religion and fanaticism.

Despite (and, given the absurdist nature of the phenomenon, likely because of) being such a dark character, Frollo is the second most popular Disney character in the Youtube Poop community, next to Gaston. The "Hellfire" scene in particular is a very popular source, again despite and perhaps because of being so dark. The most notable YTP work starring Frollo is "The Frollo Show" by Chincherrinas.