Judge Claude Frollo

Judge Claude Frollo is a minister of Paris who serves as the main antagonist of the 1996 Disney film, The Hunchback of Notre Dame. He is voiced by Tony Jay.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame
In the film's opening, Frollo, who had recently been promoted the Minister of Justice over Paris, ambushed a group of gypsies attempting to sneak into the city. Frollo ordered the gypsies imprisoned in the Palace of Justice, but a gypsy woman fled when Frollo demanded that her baby, who he mistook to be stolen goods, be taken from her. Frollo pursued her on horseback and finally caught up with her on the steps of Notre Dame. A brief struggle for the infant ensued during which Frollo unintentionally killed the gypsy. Upon discovering the infant to be deformed, Frollo prepared to drown the infant, but was stopped by the Archdeacon, who accused Frollo of sinning for the gypsy's murder and demanded that Frollo raise the child in atonement. Frollo, fearful of damnation, conceded and raised the infant in the bell-tower, naming him Quasimodo.

In the twenty years that followed, Frollo kept Quasimodo under strict rule, forcing him to remain in the bell-tower, while continuing to imprison the gypsies that lived in the streets of Paris. Frollo learned that the gypsies had a hide out called the Court of Miracles and would often order searches for the hide out, but was unsuccessful. On the day of the annual Festival of Fools, which Frollo would reluctantly take part in due to his role as a public official, Quasimodo unintentionally expressed his desire to attend the festival. Astounded, Frollo attempted to convince Quasimodo otherwise, reasoning that the public would scorn him for his deformity. Declaring the bell-tower Quasimodo's sanctuary, Frollo left.

Soon afterwards, Captain Phoebus, who had returned from a war, was promoted to Frollo's Captain of the Guard as a replacement for Frollo's previous captain, who had disappointed him. After informing Phoebus of his duty to eradicate the gypsies in Paris, Frollo allowed Phoebus to attend the Festival of Fools. Some time during the festival, Frollo was entranced when he bore witness to gypsy dancer, Esmeralda, who danced as an entertainment to the crowd. However, when Quasimodo was exposed to the public, Frollo was furious that Quasimodo had disobeyed him. Thus, when Frollo's men instigated a riot against Quasimodo, Frollo refused to take action to help him.

However, Esmeralda took a stand and freed Quasimodo, inciting Frollo's anger. After Esmeralda openly defied Frollo's authority, Frollo ordered her arrested. However, Esmeralda used parlor tricks to escape, causing Frollo to believe she was a witch. After sending Quasimodo back into the bell-tower, Frollo ordered a search for Esmeralda. Soon afterwards, Frollo and his men cornered Esmeralda in the cathedral, but the Archdeacon demanded that Frollo leave. However, Frollo threatened Esmeralda with imprisonment lest she make any attempt to leave the cathedral, and stationed guards to surround the cathedral to block any escape.

That night, Frollo discovered that he had gained lustful feelings for Esmeralda, and reasoned that Esmeralda had bewitched him. Praying to the Virgin Mary to protect him from his enchantment for Esmeralda, Frollo vowed to destroy Esmeralda unless she submitted to him. Immediately afterwards, Frollo got word that Esmeralda had escaped the cathedral. In response, Frollo ordered a city-wide manhunt for her, imprisoning dozens of hiding gypsies and becoming increasingly desperate when he turned up no results. Eventually, Frollo ordered Phoebus to burn the house of a miller and his family who had been accused of harboring gypsies. Phoebus refused and Frollo set the house aflame, but Phoebus rescued the family. In response, Frollo ordered Phoebus executed, but he escaped with help from a concealed Esmeralda, but was injured in the process and presumed dead.

Becoming crazed with his obsession for Esmeralda, Frollo had a massive section of the city burned down in his hunt, but still turned up no results. Eventually, Frollo realized that Quasimodo must have helped Esmeralda escape, and arrived in the bell-tower to question him. After his suspicions were confirmed, Frollo accused Quasimodo of being responsible for Paris burning before claiming that he knew where Esmeralda was hiding and planned to attack at dawn tomorrow. To save Esmeralda, Quasimodo and Phoebus used a penchant to locate the Court of Miracles to warn the gypsies. However, Frollo and his army followed them to the hide away and captured the gypsies, including Esmeralda.

In the city square the following day, Frollo had Esmeralda sentenced to death for alleged witchcraft. However, as Esmeralda was tied to the stake, Frollo offered to let Esmeralda live if she became his mistress. Esmeralda refused to submit to him and Frollo set her pyre aflame. Before Esmeralda succumbed from smoke inhalation, Quasimodo managed to free himself from the bell-tower, landed in the city square, and freed Esmeralda before returning her to the bell-tower. Frollo then ordered his men to seize the cathedral, but Phoebus freed himself and rallied the public to fight back against Frollo's men. The gypsies were freed and Frollo's men were set upon by the public.

After Quasimodo poured molten copper onto the streets of Paris to prevent Frollo's men from getting in, Frollo managed to break into the cathedral. The Archdeacon attempted to stop him, but Frollo defied the Archdeacon and knocked him down a flight of stairs. Afterwards, Frollo arrived in the bell-tower to see Quasimodo mourning Esmeralda, who had supposedly passed away. Frollo attempted to stab Quasimodo, but was disarmed. Now at Quasimodo's mercy, Frollo begged to be spared, but Quasimodo angrily rejected all of Frollo's teachings, but chose not to kill him. Esmeralda awoke soon afterwards, and Frollo drew his sword to kill both of them.

Quasimodo, holding Esmeralda, fled onto the balcony and hung from a gargoyle to hide. However, Frollo succeeded in finding the two and attempted to slash them with his sword. Eventually, Frollo had Quasimodo at sword-point and revealed that he killed Quasimodo's mother. Immediately afterwards, Frollo knocked Quasimodo off a gargoyle with his cape, but Quasimodo grabbed hold of the cape, causing Frollo to plummet after him. As Esmeralda struggled to pull Quasimodo up the balcony, Frollo swung towards a gargoyle and grabbed hold of it. Getting a footing on the gargoyle, Frollo raised his sword and prepared to kill Esmeralda. However, the gargoyle began to loosen due to Frollo's weight, and he stumbled and clung onto the gargoyle, only for it to spring to life and growl at him. Screaming in horror, Frollo plummeted from the balcony and into the molten copper below, killing him.

Trivia

 * Frollo is considered one of the darkest and most evil Disney villains.
 * Frollo's death symbolizes that his soul is trapped in eternal damnation in Hell.
 * Frollo represents the Deadly Sin of Lust, as his lust for Esmeralda leads to his downfall.