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| “ | How can I refuse? | „ |
| ~ Preminger's catchphrase. |
Preminger is the main antagonist of Barbie as the Princess and the Pauper, the fourth film of the stand-alone Barbie direct-to-video film series.
His goal is to rule the kingdom by marrying a royal. Preminger has a French Poodle named Midas that antagonizes Serafina and Wolfie. He also has two minions named Nick and Nack who work for him.
He was voiced by Martin Short, who also played Huy in The Prince of Egypt, Ooblar in Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, Jack Frost in Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause, The Appraiser and Jester in Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return, Sebastian Ballentine in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Mr. Wiloughby in The Wiloughbys and Cam Clarke in the CD ROM version of the movie.
Appearance[]
Preminger appears to be a middle-aged Caucasian with white hair and light brown eyes. He wears standard attire for a servant of the royal family in 1700s Victorian England. His most distinctive piece of clothing is his purple coat.
Personality[]
On the surface, Preminger likes to present himself as a loyal royal adviser who only lives to serve the royal family. In reality, Preminger is an egotist with the ambition to one day become a wealthy monarch. He is willing to do anything to achieve this, even through deplorable means such as lying and stealing. He is very abusive, often pushing around his lackeys and scolding them for their disobedience. He is malicious in nature, often having little care for the people that he has to hurt in order to achieve his ultimate goal.
Preminger often portrays himself as flamboyant and feminine. He portrays himself as a natural thespian, sometimes breaking out into song and speaking in a dramatical manner.
Biography[]
Much of Preminger's early history remains unknown. However, it is known that Preminger is the son of a peasant, and, at some point he became the royal adviser of Queen Genevieve. His main goal is to become the king of her kingdom. To do this, he has his minions, Nick and Nack, steal the kingdom's gold supply over a period of ten years. His plan is to show the stolen gold to Genevieve and pass it off as something he "discovered" while away on a long journey. Then, Princess Anneliese would marry him to save the kingdom and he would be crowned king.
However, when he learns that the queen is going to marry off her daughter to King Dominick, the wealthy king of Dulcinea, he orders his minions to kidnap her so that the wedding will be cancelled. They succeed in their task, however Prince Julian, the princess's tutor and closest friend, suspects that Preminger is trying to have the wedding cancelled and asks her look-a-like, Queen Erika, to take her place while Julian searches for her. She succeeds in fooling the Queen, so Preminger, fearing that the princess escaped, goes to check in on his minions who are keeping her captive.
By the time he arrives at the cabin, he discovers that the real Anneliese has escaped, but ponders why she didn't tell the queen she had been captured. As he tries to figure out what is happening with the princess, he realizes that Julian is spying on them and has his minions ambush him from behind.
Later, he presents Anneliese (who's actually Erika) to King Dominick and watches from afar as the two begin to bond. Eventually, the princess's cat, Serafina, delivers a hand-written message to the palace, found by Preminger and his dog Midas. The message reveals that Anneliese is locked up in Madame Carp's Dress Emporium, so he retrieves her and pretends to take her back to the palace. Instead, he takes her to a mining cave where Julian had been imprisoned, locking them up before collapsing the cave's exit. Preminger then returns to the palace, claims that Anneliese is dead, and exposes Erika for the imposter that she is, ordering the guards to throw her into the dungeon. To make sure Genevieve believes him, he tells her that he tried to save Anneliese but could only find her ring. He shows Genevieve the stolen gold and proposes to her, promising to save the kingdom with the gold on the condition that he becomes king which Genevieve reluctantly agrees. As she’s about to marry him, however, Anneliese appears, having escaped from where he imprisoned her and exposes Preminger as a schemer. With his cover blown, Preminger tries to escape, but his horse, Hervé turns on him and throws him off his back after suffering enough abuse from him. He lands into the wedding cake, with the topmost tier landing on his head to ironically and mockingly represent his selfish desire to be king.
Quotes[]
| “ | Why, hello. | „ |
| ~ Preminger's first line |
| “ | Good. Keep her here until the wedding to King Dominic is canceled. Then we'll see whom the princess marries. | „ |
| ~ Preminger giving Nack further instructions |
| “ | Why don't you stick to your books, schoolboy? Wouldn't that be fun? | „ |
| ~ Preminger brushing off Julian |
| “ | Who let this mangy beast in here?! | „ |
| ~ Preminger disgusted by Wolfie |
| “ | Let me in, YOU IDIOTS! | „ |
| ~ Preminger scolding his minions |
| “ | How did she escape? [Who?] |
„ |
| ~ Preminger scolding Nack |
| “ | She's a royal all right, a royal pain in the behind! | „ |
| ~ Preminger defining the princess |
| “ | GET OUT OF THAT BED! | „ |
| ~ Preminger scolding Nick |
| “ | I can figure out how princess escaped you fools. But why didn't she tell the Queen she'd been captured? Hmm, something's odd... I must solve this princess-puzzle if I am to be king. | „ |
| ~ Preminger berating his minions |
| “ | You're the tutor, you're supposed to have all the answers. | „ |
| ~ Preminger after kidnapping Julian |
| “ | Your most Beautiful Highness, oh! | „ |
| ~ Preminger greeting the false princess, Erika |
| “ | Very clever, finding a double to fool the Queen, but not clever enough. Checkmate,... I win. | „ |
| ~ Preminger revealing his true nature to Princess Anneliese |
| “ | Your mother is a very handsome woman. | „ |
| ~ Preminger revealing his next backup plan to usurp the throne to the princess |
| “ | THROW HER IN THE DUNGEON! | „ |
| ~ Preminger ordering Erika's false arrest |
| “ | I've seen snails move faster! | „ |
| ~ Preminger berating Hervé and abusively forcing him to run faster while trying to escape custody |
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 Villains
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Barbie as Sleeping Beauty Barbie in the Nutecracker Barbie as Rapunzel Barbie of Swan Lake Barbie as The Princess and the Pauper Barbie Fairytopia/Barbie Fairytopia: Mermaidia/Barbie Fairytopia: Magic of the Rainbow Barbie and the Magic of Pegasus The Barbie Diaries Barbie in the 12 Dancing Princesses Barbie as The Island Princess Barbie: Mariposa/Mariopsa and the Fairy Princess Barbie & the Diamond Castle Barbie in A Christmas Carol Barbie presents: Thumbelina Barbie and The Three Musketeers Barbie in A Mermaid Tale Barbie: A Fashion Fairytale Barbie: A Fairy Secret Barbie: Princess Charm School Barbie: The Princess & the Popstar Barbie in the Pink Shoes Barbie & Her Sisters in A Pony Tale Barbie: The Pearl Princess Barbie and the Secret Door Barbie in Princess Power Barbie in Rock 'N Royals Barbie & Her Sisters in A Great Puppy Adventure Barbie: Spy Squad Barbie: Starlight Adventure Barbie: Video Game Hero Barbie: Dolphin Magic Barbie: Princess Adventure Barbie & Chelsea: The Lost Birthday Barbie: Big City, Big Dreams Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse Barbie: Dreamhouse Adventures Barbie: It Takes Two Barbie: Mermaid Power Barbie (2023) Barbie: A Touch of Magic | ||