Anastasia Tremaine is Cinderella's younger stepsister, Drizella's younger sister and Lady Tremaine's younger daughter in Disney's 1950 film Cinderella and its two saga sequels. She has been voiced by Lucille Bliss, Tress MacNeille and Gina Tuttle.
Personality
In the first movie, Anastasia was portrayed as being just as selfish and spoiled as her sister Drizella. However, her character is fleshed out considerably in Cinderella II: Dreams Come True and Cinderella III: A Twist in Time, showing that, while her mother is a socialite, she’s more interested in finding somebody who’ll love her for who she is. While she’s indeed unrefined and rather ugly in the first movie, as she becomes a more sympathetic character, she‘s portrayed as being only plain (compared to the beauty of Cinderella) rather than ugly. Her hair is seen as red and curly (styling into long ringlets and bangs). Her relationship with Cinderella was incredibly strained in the original film, but the sequel shows that Cinderella was able to let bygones be bygones. However, Anastasia still felt a little bit jealous of Cinderella's incredible beauty as she was shown to be hesitant in asking for Cinderella's help to woo the local Baker, with whom she fell in love. It’s possible that she was favored by Lady Tremaine, as in the third film, Lady Tremaine chose Anastasia to wear the slipper and marry the prince, when she altered time using the Fairy Godmother's wand. However, Anastasia had a romantic side, as she felt a desire to fall in love, at first with Prince Charming (upon whom her mother had placed a love spell to get him to love her), but realized, after speaking with Charming's father about love, that she wanted to be loved for who she really is, not because of a spell or a trick, and defied her mother, returning the wand and apologizing for everything she'd done. This repentant act earned her forgiveness from everyone, particularly Cinderella herself, and also the King who wanted Anastasia to keep the seashell his own wife had given him, telling her everyone deserves true love. Despite the events of the sequels, she‘s still depicted as an antagonist along with her sister and mother in most media.
Disney History
Cinderella
Anastasia makes her first appearance in the film Cinderella. Like Lady Tremaine and Drizella, she spends most of her time harassing and humiliating Cinderella, and making her life miserable. She doesn't always get along with Drizella, and the two are prone to arguments. Anastasia is shown to play the flute well. During a lesson, Cinderella presents Lady Tremaine with an invitation from the palace. The invitation details that a royal ball is to be held in honor of the prince, and that all eligible maidens are invited. When Cinderella realizes that means she can attend, Anastasia mocks the idea. She alongside Drizella are upset when Lady Tremaine seemingly agrees to allow Cinderella to go, although after their mother made clear that she only said she'll be going "if" she does some chores and has a dress ready with the implication that she intended to make sure Cinderella fails with at least getting a dress ready, she laughs with Drizella and their mother. As she and Drizella are preparing, Anastasia drops a pink sash, which the mice take in order to make Cinderella's mother's dress (narrowly avoiding Lucifer in the process). That night, Lady Tremaine subtly points out the sash on Cinderella's dress, enraging Anastasia into tearing Cinderella's dress to shreds. Anastasia then goes to the ball, along with her mother and sister, but like Drizella, she fails to catch the Prince's eye. The next morning, Lady Tremaine forcefully awakens Anastasia, announcing that the Grand Duke is coming to the house. He has been ordered to try a glass slipper onto the foot of every maiden, in an attempt to find the mystery girl the prince fell in "love" with at the ball. When the Grand Duke arrives to their home to see if the slipper fits or not, Anastasia's large foot proves to be too big to fit into a size 4 and a half shoe.
Cinderella II: Dreams Come True
In the second movie, Anastasia is the main character of the segment "An Uncommon Romance." She seems to not have changed until she meets with the town's handsome baker, who catches her eye. However, Lady Tremaine disapproves of the baker's commoner status, and tries to make her forget about the baker. As a result, Anastasia goes against her mother for the first time. When she and the baker first meet, she’s embarrassed after she gets kicked by a horse and sent flying into the bakery resulting in getting covered in raw eggs and flour. Cinderella sees Anastasia and realizes that Anastasia has fallen for the Baker, so Cinderella decides to help bring Anastasia and the baker together. Cinderella encourages Anastasia to follow her heart and also gives her stepsister a makeover, changing her looks for the better. As a result, the baker asks Anastasia to an upcoming ball, hosted by Cinderella. Though Lady Tremaine is angry and attempts to drag her away, Anastasia blatantly defies her mother and remains with the baker. Her part in the movie ends with her and the baker dancing at the ball hosted by Cinderella, who‘s seen dancing with her husband. Anastasia found what she wanted: true love.
Cinderella III: A Twist in Time
Anastasia's largest role comes in the third and final film where she appears as a main character and anti-heroine. Following Cinderella's marriage to Prince Charming, Anastasia and Drizella are stuck doing her chores. Later, Anastasia, in an attempt to avoid more work, follows Cinderella and the Prince to a picnic held by the Fairy Godmother and the mice. She is seen climbing a tree, only to fall and unknowingly grab the wand belonging to the Fairy Godmother. She rushes back to her sister and mother and shows them the wand, saying it was the answer to their prayers. Both Drizella and Lady Tremaine are skeptical until Anastasia accidentally transforms Lucifer's body into that of a goose and the Fairy Godmother (who followed Anastasia to retrieve her wand) into a stone statue.
Lady Tremaine uses the wand to reverse time, to when the Grand Duke comes to their home with the glass slipper. Using the wand, Lady Tremaine alters the glass slipper so that it fits Anastasia. Anastasia is taken to the palace, where it is intended that she’ll marry the Prince. Though Prince Charming is certain that Anastasia wasn’t the girl from the ball, his memory is altered by Lady Tremaine using the wand. Later on, Anastasia speaks with the King, who takes a shine to her. Apparently, Anastasia resembles his late wife, both in looks and in a lack of dancing talent. The king gives Anastasia a shell, which he claims is his most precious possession, as it was what made his and his wife's hands touch.
Over time, Anastasia realizes that the prince doesn’t love her or anyone, and begins to question her mother's motives. Meanwhile, her mother's plan is revealed and the three are ordered to be arrested. Still, in possession of the wand, Lady Tremaine captures Cinderella, and transforms Anastasia into a Cinderella look-alike. Cinderella manages to escape arrives back at the wedding just as the vows are being exchanged. However, to the real Cinderella's amazement, Anastasia's conscience gets the better of her, and she refuses to marry the Prince. Suddenly, Lady Tremaine tries to turn Anastasia into a toad, until Cinderella steps in to defend her for her honesty. An unfazed Lady Tremaine decides to turn them both into toads, but the Prince intervenes and reflects the magic beam with his sword so that it hits Lady Tremaine and Drizella instead. Anastasia brings the real Cinderella and the Prince together and uses the wand to transform herself back to normal. Cinderella thanks Anastasia and the two reconcile, putting their animosity firmly behind them. Together, they restore the Fairy Godmother. Anastasia later tries to return the shell to the king, stating she does not deserve it, but the king allows her to keep it as he believes everyone deserves true love. She then hugs the king, who welcomes her into the royal family, and then watches happily as Cinderella and Prince Charming finally tie the knot again.
At the end of the movie, Anastasia now lives at the palace with Cinderella and the Prince and is seen during the end credits in a picture with the baker from the second film, which slightly confuses when the events of each film a take place first (this can be accounted for the rewritten timeline). This saves her from becoming a scullery maid like her now-estranged mother and sister. This portrait also implies that she and the Baker got married as he gives her a single cupcake in the painting.
House of Mouse
Anastasia makes numerous appearances in the animated series House of Mouse. Anastasia is usually found with Drizella or Lucifer. Anastasia along with Drizella was also a part of the villains gang in the animated feature, Mickey's House of Villains. In Jiminy Cricket, she and Drizella were used as an example of negative temptations. In Ask Von Drake, she was seen trying on the slipper when Ludwig Von Drake appeared and advised the Grand Duke to try it on Cinderella. In Goofy's Valentine Date, Mortimer Mouse flirted with her and Drizella, until Lucifer attacked him.
Gallery
Trivia
- Anastasia's current voice actor is Tress MacNeille, who also portrays Daisy Duck and Merryweather.
- In the Charles Perrault fairytale that the original movie is based, it was mentioned that one of the stepsisters was actually nicer to Cinderella than the other, if only somewhat. This is most likely the inspiration for Anastasia's reformation in the sequels.
- Anastasia's laugh is very similar to Lady Tremaine's.
- The shape of Anastasia's foot changes in two of the films. In the first movie, it was long, then in the third movie, it was fat.