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| “ | Welcome to hell. Now, recreate the soup. Take as much time as you need. All week if you must. | „ |
| ~ Skinner mocking Linguini. |
| “ | So, I have in mind a simple arrangement. You will create for me a new line of Chef Skinner frozen foods. And I, in return, will not kill you. (snickering) Au revoir, rat! | „ |
| ~ Skinner to Remy, and his most famous quote. |
| “ | Who cooked the ratatouille?! I demand to know! | „ |
| ~ Skinner's last lines in the film as he sees dozens of rats in the kitchen and gets locked in the freezer along with the health inspector, and his second most famous quote. |
Chef Skinner is the main antagonist of Disney·Pixar's 8th full-length animated feature film Ratatouille.
He is the former grumpy and short-tempered sous chef turned head chef under the restaurant Gusteau's, as well as the former employer of Linguini. When it becomes apparent that Linguini is the rightful heir in inheriting the restaurant, Skinner secretly schemes to maintain ownership of the restaurant and later had planned to release a new line of frozen foods for his own personal profit, capitalizing on what Gusteau established. He is also Remy's arch-nemesis.
He was voiced by the late Sir Ian Holm, who also played Zerah in Jesus of Nazareth, Ash in Alien, Squealer in the 1999 film adaptation of Animal Farm, Sir William Gull in From Hell and Jonas Muller in Renaissance.
Personality[]
| “ | Move it, garbage boy! You are COOKING?! How DARE you cook in MY kitchen? Where do you get the gall to even attempt something so monumentally idiotic?! I should have you quartered and drawn! I'll do it. I think the law is on my side. Larousse, quarter and drawn this man after you put him in the duck press to squeeze the fat out of his head. What are you blathering about? | „ |
| ~ Skinner berating Linguini for cooking the soup. |
Chef Skinner is shown to be very cunning, avaricious, deceitful, unrelenting and wrathful. When he discovers Remy is the brains behind Linguini's tasty recipes, he decides to capture Remy and force him to create his frozen foods for him. Skinner is also bent on claiming the restaurant as his when Auguste Gusteau had no heir.
Despite his nature, Skinner takes his job as a chef very seriously. For example, despite Linguini disobeying him, he gave him a chance to prove his worth and kept him on after he thought that his soup was excellent. He further displays this by becoming upset with Linguini for possibly serving a substandard meal; proving that he is somewhat passionate about his job despite selling out with frozen food. When the restaurant was under his management, he was very conscious of the restaurant's reputation being ruined by food critic reviews or rat infestation.
While it appears that he is tarnishing Gusteau's image while marketing his frozen food, he insisted the designer have the late chef resemble how he was in real life and alive when he saw a sketch of Gusteau as a dog in a corn suit, deeming the idea having no dignity, showing that he still at least has some respect for the late chef. He also had some decency of compassion, showing some sympathy for Linguini's loss of his mother.
Biography[]
Ratatouille[]
Skinner was the sous-chef under Gusteau but became the head chef after his death. In Gusteau's will, it was stated that Skinner would inherit Gusteau's business interests if no heir appeared within two years after the latter's death. Skinner did not hold Gusteau's ideals in the highest regard and was more interested in personal profit from his line of Chef Gusteau Frozen Foods. This line comprised of several different foreign foods like chicken, haggis, burritos, ribs, and corn dogs to appease oversea markets, with Gusteau as its image to woo buyers.
Skinner later hires a young man named Alfredo Linguini to work at the restaurant as the plongeur (garbage boy) when he learns that Linguini's mother Renata, with whom Gusteau was close, requested that Linguini get the job before her recent death. He is shocked when Linguini makes a soup that night that impresses a food critic that just happened to be at the restaurant, although it was Remy who cooked it in secret. Suspicious, Skinner reluctantly agrees not to fire Linguini and forces him to make the soup again, believing that it is all a fluke.
After Linguini and Remy team up, they successfully recreate the soup and impress Skinner. However, they become foes when Skinner learns that Linguini is Gusteau's biological son, and is determined to keep Linguini from discovering this fact. He becomes even more determined when he sees Linguini making contact with Remy on numerous occasions, suspecting that Linguini is scheming something bad in the restaurant. Skinner deliberately attempts to sabotage Linguini's success by tricking him into making a rancid recipe, although this backfires when Remy revives the recipe, much to the praise of the diners and patrons. Skinner attempts to get Linguini heavily drunken on wine in order to confirm his suspicions about Remy, but this fails as well.
He loses the restaurant to Linguini when it comes out that Linguini is the son of Gusteau, as Remy discovered the paternity test results that Skinner tried to steal and gave it to Linguini so that he may assume his rightful place as owner. Linguini later cancels the frozen food line altogether, as it was smearing Gusteau's image.
After losing the restaurant, Skinner uses all his power to shut down the restaurant so stalks on Linguini to get proof of the rats infestion and eventually discovers that Remy is the real cook. In order to get revenge on both of them, he captures Remy and intends on forcing him as blackmail to create a new line of frozen foods in exchange for the latter’s life being spared, while attending the restaurant in disguise to see Linguini fail miserably and endure another scathing review from the famed critic Anton Ego. Fortunately, Remy escapes and had his swarm of rats to help Linguini serve the dishes without attracting any attention from the customers.
To Skinner's great amusement, Linguini served him and Ego a simple dish of ratatouille but is surprised when Ego likes it. After Skinner tries his dish and finds its taste irresistible as well, he races to the kitchen and demands who cooked dish, only to find that Remy and his colony of rats cooked the dish. The rats are then forced to bind him with the ropes and gags him with duct tape. He is then thrown in the refrigerator along with the health inspector who has been bound and gagged as well.
Despite the restaurant getting a high-star review from Ego for Remy's delicious recipe, the rats were forced to let Skinner and the health inspector loose, since they cannot keep them cooped up forever. This allows Skinner to report the rat infestation to the health department, causing the restaurant to be closed and Ego losing his job and his credibility as a critic. Despite the restaurant being closed down, Linguini and Remy manage to open a new successful bistro called La Ratatouille to serve for both humans and rats alike with the help from Ego (who now works as a business investor) and Colette, which means Skinner finally leaves them alone.
Other Media[]
Kingdom Keepers III: Disney in Shadow[]
In the 2020 edition of Kingdom Keepers III: Disney in Shadow, Skinner appears as one of the Overtakers and pursues the Keepers through Epcot's Ratatouille attraction.
Disney Heroes: Battle Mode[]
In Disney Heroes: Battle Mode, Skinner appears as an unlockable playable character.
Quotes[]
| “ | What are you playing at? | „ |
| ~ Skinner threatening Linguni after the latter thinks that he cooked the soup. |
| “ | Get my lawyer! | „ |
| ~ Skinner after he read shockingly that Linguini is actually Gusteau's son. |
| “ | Talon Labarthe: Well, the will stipulates that if after a period of two years from the date of death no heir appears, Gusteau's business interests will pass to his sous chef. You. Chef Skinner: I know what the will stipulates! What I want to know is if this letter... If this boy changes anything! Talon Labarthe: There's not much resemblance. Chef Skinner: There's no resemblance at all. He is not Gusteu's son. Gusteu had no children, and what of the timing of all this? The deadline in the will expires in less than a month! Suddenly, some boy arrives with a letter from his recenlty deceased mother claiming Gusteu is his father? Highly suspect! Talon Labarthe: This is Gusteu's? Chef Skinner: Yes, yes, yes. Talon Labarthe: May I? Chef Skinner: Of course, of course. Talon Labarthe: But the boy does not know. Chef Skinner: She claims she never told him, or Gusteu, and asks that I not tell. Talon Labarthe: Why you? What does she want? Chef Skinner: A job for the boy. Talon Labarthe: Only a job? Chef Skinner: Well, yes. Talon Labarthe: Then what are you worried about? If he works here, you'll be able to keep an eye on him while I do a little digging. Find out how much of this is real. I will need you to collect some DNA samples from the boy. Hair, maybe. Chef Skinner: Mark my words. The whole thing is highly suspect. He knowns something. Talon Labarthe: Relax, he's a garbage boy. I think you can handle him. |
„ |
| ~ Skinner to his laywer after finding out that Linguini is Guesteau's son and trying to disclaiming about it. |
| “ | They are asking for food from Linguin?! | „ |
| ~ Skinner angrilly hearing Mustafa that he asked for Linguini soup. |
| “ | Chef Skinner: No, no, no, no, no, no, NO! Talon Labarthe: The DNA matches, the timing works, everything checks out. He is Gusteau's son. Chef Skinner: This can't just happen! The whole thing is a setup! The boy knows! Look at him out there, pretending to be an idiot. He's toying with my mind like a cat with a ball of... Something. Talon Labarthe: String? Chef Skinner: Yes! Playing dumb. Taunting me with that rat. Talon Labarthe: Rat? Chef Skinner: Yes. He's consorting with it. Deliberately trying to make me think it's important. Talon Labarthe: The rat. Chef Skinner: Exaclty! Talon Labarthe: Is the rat important? Chef Skinner: Of course not! He just wants me to THINK that it is. Oh. I see the theatricality of it. A rat appears on the boy's first night, I order him to kill it. And now he wants me to see it everywhere. (excitedly) Ooh! It's here! No, it isn't, It's here! Am I seeing things, am I crazy? Is there a phantom rat or is there not? But, oh, no! I refused to be sucked into his little game of... Talon Labarthe: Should I be concerned about this? About you? |
„ |
| ~ Skinner and his laywer after finding out that Linguini is Guesteau's son and the latter of thinking Remy accomplise along with Linguini. |
| “ | You might think you are a chef, but you are still only a rat. | „ |
| ~ Skinner taunting Remy after he successfully capture him in a cage. |
| “ | The rat is the cook. | „ |
| ~ Skinner shocked as he saw that Remy is the cook. |
| “ | No, it can't be. | „ |
| ~ Skinner after he tatses the Ratatouille. |
| “ | Ratatouille? They must be joking. | „ |
| ~ Skinner doubting Ratatouile. |
Trivia[]
- Skinner is the direct antithesis to Remy. Throughout the movie, humans are associated with creating, while rats throughout the entire movie are synonymous with stealing; Remy is a rat that wants to break the boundaries and create, whereas Skinner is a human that only leeches off of others' talent and success. During their confrontation near the climax of the film by the car trunk, the contrast between the two characters are shown, and how Skinner is so much of a rat that, by the movie's standards, he was willing to go to extreme lengths to leech off of the success of a literal rat to further progress his status and fortune. If Remy wasn't able to fully understand the value of passion in cooking, then he might've ended up like Skinner (whose focus in the culinary field is more about its rewards rather than his innate desire for it).
- Skinner's name is a nod to the late behavioral psychologist B. F. Skinner, who was famous for his experiments with rats.
- Skinner's behavior, diminutive size, and body language are loosely based on the late Louis de Funès.
- It is highly likely that if Skinner was still kept in the refrigerator, he would die inside there as the duct tape is rendering him unable to breathe.
- Skinner's line: "Welcome to Hell", could be a reference to Gordon Ramsay's Hell's Kitchen, where Ramsay said "Welcome to Hell" a few times.
- Skinner using a footstool to get up to a stove references to an old dictator of France, Napoleon Bonaparte, who to this day is mocked for being short for his age (however this is actually a myth spread via propaganda, Napoleon was actually of average height for his era, if not even slightly taller than normal).
- Skinner is one of the few main Pixar villains to succeed in his plans (and his is to vengefully shut down Gusteau's after being out of his job there), with the other three being Chick Hicks from Cars (although his victory is very pyrrhic when he was booed by the angry fans furious on what he did to The King), Ernesto de la Cruz from Coco (despite his plan being foiled after stealing Hector’s glory for years), and Gabby Gabby from Toy Story 4 (despite turning good at the end, in addition with the help of Woody and his friends which led to her redemption).
- In the video game adaptation of the film, Skinner's fate is different from the movie. Instead of being locked into the refrigerator and being released shortly thereafter to close down the restaurant, Skinner is accidentally crushed by the chandelier while chasing Remy throughout the restaurant, furious by the food's delicacy he made for Anton Ego. The restaurant is still exposed for a rat infestation though, but Remy decides to open up the new La Ratatouille restaurant with the help of Linguini. Skinner is last shown watching in anger finding out Linguini opening-up the new La Ratatouille restaurant, with Remy as its head chef.
- Despite closing down Gusteau's in both the movie and the video game, Skinner is still Remy's adversary, as he appears as a boss in the PSP version of Ratatouille: The Video Game, which takes place after the events of the film.
- Skinner is the late Sir Ian Holm's fifth voice role.
- He is one of the few Disney villains to say hell in a G-rated film, alongside Frollo and Maleficent.
External Links[]
- Chef Skinner on the Disney Wiki
- Chef Skinner on the Pixar Wiki
- Chef Skinner on the Villainous Benchmark Wiki
- Chef Skinner on the Ratatouille Wiki
