Eris (Sinbad)

Villain Overview Gallery

Evil-doer
Full Name	Eris
Alias	Goddess of Chaos Goddess of Discord Spirit of Chaos
Origin	Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas
Occupation	Greek goddess of chaos and strife
Powers / Skills	Godly abilities Shapeshifting Trickery Charisma Seduction Ability to summon magical creatures at her command
Hobby	Causing chaos. Making deals with mortals.
Goals	Create chaos and disorder in the entire world (possibly failed). Kill Sinbad, Marina, and Proteus (failed).
Crimes	Attempted omnicide (implied) Conspiracy Identity theft Incitement Mass murder (implied) Incrimination Malefic
Type of Villain	Manipulative Deity

“	You humans are so predictable.	„
	~ Eris' famous catchphrase.

“	Just look at them. I pull one tiny thread and their whole world unravels into chaos. Glorious chaos.	„
	~ Eris

Eris is the main antagonist of DreamWorks' seventh full-length animated feature film Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas, based on the folktales of Sinbad the Sailor. She is the beautiful yet wicked goddess of chaos who plans to make the world as chaotic as possible and Sinbad's archenemy.

She was voiced by Michelle Pfeiffer, who also played Catwoman in Batman Returns, Velma Von Tussle in Hairspray, Lamia in Stardust and Queen Ingrith in Maleficent: Mistress of Evil.

Biography

Eris is the archaic Greek goddess of chaos and discord, and as such, her pursuits involve disrupting peace and instilling chaos into the world. She controls an army of pet monsters, including Cetus, Scorpio, Musca, Leo, Lacerta, and the Roc. As a goddess, Eris has almost omnipotent-level abilities; she is often seen appearing and disappearing at will, and doesn't appear to be bound by the same laws of physics as other human beings. She can take on the appearance of other humans, although it is unclear if she shape-shifts or simply manipulates perceptions. She is seen dwelling in her own godly realm, which appears to be a dimension different from humans' physical reality.

Eris is first seen observing Prince Proteus sailing towards Syracuse with the Book of Peace aboard his ship, with the thief Sinbad in pursuit. Because this setting appeals to her plans for global chaos, she sends Cetus to disrupt the ship's course. However, as Proteus and Sinbad are reunited, they ultimately work together to defeat the creature. Cetus drags Sinbad into the depths of the sea, where he meets Eris, who quietly breathes a huge underwater bubble to allow him to breathe. Eris and Sinbad make a deal, where she promises to give Sinbad anything he wants in exchange for stealing the Book of Peace for her.

Sinbad and his crew travel to Syracuse to take the Book, but after mingling with the prince's party, he is quickly taken aback after meeting Proteus' fiancée, Marina, and storms out shortly after arriving. Observing Sinbad departing the palace, Eris decides to frame him, by disguising herself as him; she kills a guard before stealing the book herself, and plants a replica of Sinbad's dagger as evidence. Syracuse immediately plunges into darkness, and Sinbad is arrested. When he states that he does not have the Book, he is sentenced to death until Proteus interferes, having believed Sinbad's earlier claim of Eris framing him. Sinbad is sent to steal the Book back from her and return it to Syracuse in ten days' time, or else Proteus will be executed in Sinbad's place.

Though initially reluctant, Sinbad agrees to confront Eris after Marina sneaks on board his ship and convinces him to save his friend. Meanwhile, Eris watches his progress, and sends her minions to disrupt his course, such as sirens and the Roc, but Sinbad and his crew manage to evade these threats thanks to Marina's aid. Eventually, Sinbad and Marina enter Eris' realm of chaos, where Eris reveals her plan to them. She had known that Proteus would take Sinbad's place, and counting on Sinbad being a selfish thief, would run away once he was free and leave his friend to die; this would then leave Syracuse without the next rightful king and gradually “tumble into chaos". Eris continues to put Sinbad to the test; playing on his supposedly manipulative and selfish nature by asking him a question and promising to give him the Book of Peace if he answers it truthfully. The question is whether Sinbad would actually go back to Syracuse to die instead of Proteus if he did not obtain the Book, to which he says yes. Claiming he is lying, Eris expels Sinbad and Marina out of her realm, keeping the Book of Peace for herself.

Wanting to do right by Marina and Proteus, Sinbad sails back to Syracuse to be executed. As the sword is about to fall, it shatters into hundreds of fragments, and a giant livid Eris manifests in the human realm before him and the people of Syracuse. Sinbad is confused until he realizes that this is part of her test, and he has fulfilled his side of the deal with Eris by coming back. Wrestling with frustration, Eris eventually hands over the Book of Peace to him as promised. Eris quickly shrugs off her frustration and tells the taunting Sinbad that she is off to create more chaos elsewhere, bidding farewell before vanishing. As a result of her arrival, Sinbad's name is cleared after everyone realizes he told the truth.

Personality

Eris is a personification of chaos; that is seen both literally and metaphorically. Literally, she often speaks of causing and creating chaos, and is constantly attempting to disrupt people's lives. But metaphorically, her role is that of a tester; she acts as a potent test of character to Sinbad the entire movie, and constantly tests the mettle of the various characters' whose path she disrupts.

She incarnates the idea of humankind's darker impulses, and her role works in tandem with Sinbad's desire to do good. She continuously challenges him, by throwing his lower sides in his face: she works on the premise that Sinbad is “black-hearted”, and frequently labels him selfish, or tells him he has no heart. Eris challenges characters to either do better, or succumb to their darker impulses.

In the end, despite being infuriated by Sinbad proving himself, she bows down gracefully when he does, and keeps her divinely given word by returning the Book to him.

Appearance

Eris is a slender feminine humanoid. Her skin is gray, her eyes are yellow with red irises, and her long black hair is continuously seen undulating as if having a life of its own, as if she is constantly underwater. She does not appear to have legs, as the purple dress she wears morphs into an ever-fuming cloud right around where humans would have knees.

Quotes

“	Wake up, my beauties. Rise and shine. It’s a brand new day and the mortal world is at peace, but not for long. Just look at them. I pull one tiny thread and their whole world unravels into chaos. Glorious chaos. And what could be more perfect than this? A noble prince, a priceless treasure, and a black-hearted thief. Oh, this is going to be fun.	„
	~ Eris at the opening of the film.

“	You're not thinking big enough, Sinbad. Steal the book for ransom and you'll be rich enough to lounge on an island beach. Steal the book for me, and you can buy the beach, and the island, and the world.	„
	~ Eris to Sinbad.

“	When Goddess gives her word, she's bound for all eternity.	„
	~ Eris

“	Now, now, my pets. Is this anyway to treat a guest? Bravo. No mortal has ever made it to Tartarus before. (chuckles) Alive, that is. Make yourself at home.	„
	~ Eris greeting Sinbad at Tartarus.

“	Like it? I'm planning the whole world this way.	„
	~ Eris bragging about her plan to destroy the world.

“	Sinbad: You thought I'd run. Then Proteus would die, and Syracuse would be... Eris: Left without the next rightful king, and tumble into glorious chaos. You humans are so predictable. Proteus couldn't help being ever so noble, and you couldn't help betraying him. Sinbad: But I didn't betray Proteus! I didn't run away. Eris: Oh, but you did betray him. You stole his only love. Look at her, Sinbad. (pushes Marina) He's not even in his grave yet, and you're moving in on his girl. Face it: your heart is as black as mine.	„
	~ Eris chastises Sinbad.

“	Don't push your luck, Sinbad. You're cute, but not that cute. And lucky for you, I've got places to go, things to destroy, stuff to steal... Ta!	„
	~ Eris' last words before leaving.

Trivia

• Eris's voice actress in the movie, Michelle Pfeiffer, is the same actress who also voiced Tzipporah in DreamWorks' 1998 animated film The Prince of Egypt.
• Eris is based on the real mythological goddess of chaos of the same name. But unlike the version of Eris seen in the film, the goddess of mythology was not always antagonistic.
• Despite her omnipotent powers, she cannot go against her promise to someone whom she makes a deal with. As the result, there is a flaw in her power or this rule may be the case with all gods and goddesses as in Greek mythology, always keeping their word (especially to a mortal) was one of the few laws that the gods had to obey no matter what.
• Eris is the second DreamWorks Animation character to be a female antagonist, the first is Mrs. Tweedy from Chicken Run, the third is Lola from Shark Tale, the fourth is the Fairy Godmother from Shrek 2, and the fifth is Dr. Zara from Abominable.
• Even though it is stated up above that she is the Spirit of Chaos, this was never said in the film.

External Links

• Eris on the DreamWorks Wiki
• Eris on the Magnificent Baddie Wiki