Animals in Disney movies have always been adorable and beloved by fans. Disney’s animated and live-action movies have featured some of the cutest and snarkiest animals as important characters. Even though dogs capture the top spot, horses are not far behind in being Disney’s favorite animals.
Horses are always associated with a sense of nobility, and that is because we see kings, queens, princes, and princesses riding them. For the most part, Disney also uses them in such situations. But other than that, ponies have been a favorite pet for kids, and thus, we also have a lot of Disney live-action versions of films revolving around children and their pet horses.
If you love them, you will dig this perfectly curated list of horses in Disney movies. Read on:
Top 20 horses in Disney movies
20. Achilles
- Name of the movie: The Hunchback of Notre Dame
- Director: Gary Trousdale
- Voice actor of the horse: Bob Bergen
Phoebus’ horse got its name in this movie due to a joke: “Achilles, heel!” The horse and his owner Phoebus were exploring the town of Paris at the film’s beginning. In the final fight in the film, Achilles helps his master a lot. He sits on the head of an enemy soldier at Phoebus’ command. In the sequel of Notre Dame, Achilles appears again, but now he is a snarkier version of himself. He taps his roof to answer rhetorical questions!
19. Cyril Proudbottom
- Name of the movie: The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad
- Director of the movie: Clyde Geronimi
- Voice actor of the horse: J. Pat O’Malley
We first see Cyril and his friend Mr. Toad on a journey along the countryside, singing the song We’re Merrily On Our Way. In his first animated film appearance, he also appeared in a Disney short, The Wind in the Willows. It continued in a Mickey Mouse short – Mickey’s Christmas Carol. He also made a cameo in one of the 90s Disney Movies, Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
18. Pegasus
- Name of the movie: Hercules
- Director of the movie: Ron Clements
- Voice actor of the horse: Frank Welker
Pegasus has its name inspired by the Greek character. He is the best friend and horse of the Greek superhero Hercules. In this Disney animated movie, Zeus describes Pegasus as a magnificent horse with a bird’s brain to Hercules. Thus, despite being a horse, sometimes Pegasus commits the actions of a bird! However, he is not an ordinary horse. He has super strength, speed, and the ability to free himself from chains.
17. Nasty Jack
- Name of the movie: Winnie the Pooh
- Director of the movie: Carole Beers
- Voice actor of the horse: Jim Cummings
This character is one of the few negative horse characters in this Walt Disney animation studio production. It is not a movie but a series of episodes. Nasty Jack is the leader of a group of horses who are thieves. He has an ongoing antagonistic relationship with the sheriffs of the town. In the story, Piglet becomes the new sheriff, becoming the bone of contention.
Nasty Jack from #winniethepooh
"You don't get the picture here, fellas. We're not "horse thieves", we're horse thieves. Horses who steal things, comprendo?" So funny pic.twitter.com/kZ4Vlw59Ny— Yorkshire Tongue (@yorkshiretongue) January 9, 2020
16. Conquistador
- Name of the movie: The Littlest Outlaw
- Director of the movie: Roberto Gavaldon
- Voice actor of the horse: N/A
This 1955 Disney movie is about a ten-year-old boy Pablito and his step-father, a horse trainer. He deals with his horses very cruelly, and our horse in question – Conquistador, becomes afraid of jumping in the race after the training. Before the authorities can dispose of the horse, young Pablito runs away with him.
The interesting thing about this often-forgotten Disney movie is that it was shot twice – once in English and once in Spanish. This allowed the movie to run in Spanish markets without dubbing.
15. Nautical
- Name of the movie: The Horse with the Flying Tail
- Director of the movie: Larry Lansburgh
- Voice actor of the horse: N/A
This entry is a documentary film in this list of Disney horse movies. Yes, a docu by Disney! This Best Documentary Award-winning is about a real-life Palomino horse called Nautical. Originally, his name was Pelo de Oro, but after training for the Olympic level, he became known as Nautical.
Whenever the horse could complete a clean jump, he characteristically raised his tail. That is what gave the movie its name.
Winner Best Documentary at 33rd Academy Awards (1961) "The Horse with the Flying Tail" #Nautical @DisneyPictures pic.twitter.com/V03MZgp8l9
— Fynmere (Peter) (@fynmere) February 23, 2015
14. Abu
- Name of the movie: Aladdin
- Director of the movie: John Musker
- Voice actor of the horse: Frank Welker
Yes, Abu was a (very adorable) monkey in the film and not a horse! But remember the scene where the genie transformed him into a horse? That makes him eligible to be a part of the list of horses in Disney movies. When the movie was released, it went past Beauty and the Beast to become the most successful Disney movie of its time. Later, Lion King surpassed it. The pet of street urchin Aladdin was a hit among the younger audience.
13. Major
- Name of the movie: Cinderella
- Director of the movie: Hamilton Luske
- Voice actor of the horse: Earl Keen
A slender white horse, Major, was a very loyal friend to Cinderella. Cinderella’s father had gifted the horse to her when she was little. However, after his death, neither Cinderella nor the horse was treated properly by the stepmother. The film had a lot of songs and was a hit among pre-teen girls (mostly). With this film, Disney had turned to fairy tale renditions after a long break.
And of course Major, the actual horse in Cinderella who got to hold the reins that night. #DisneyHorses pic.twitter.com/nQ1dU2HqX3
— Boudica's Heir ⚔️🇺🇦🌻 (@dawg4life99) December 13, 2018
12. Captain
- Name of the movie: 101 Dalmations
- Director of the movie: Wolfgang Reitherman
- Voice actor of the horse: Thurl Ravenscroft
In this Disney film, a gray horse Captain lives with a sheepdog, Colonel, and a tabby cat Sergeant Tibbs. Captain was resourceful, brave, and courageous in rescuing the dalmatian puppies from Cruella de Vil. The background story shows that he used to serve in the British army. However, in the 1996 rendition of this film, the name of this helpful horse was changed from Captain to Punch.
A project I contributed too called the #SidekicksCollab on twitter, a project by @CalMoray! Drawing disney characters, but only the side ones! I drew Captain from 101 Dalmations! #Disney #horse #art pic.twitter.com/5VpqguEhJI
— Oscardarla 🦄 (@oscardarla) September 17, 2018
11. Philippe
- Name of the movie: Beauty and the Beast
- Director of the movie: Gary Trousdale
- Voice actor of the horse: Hal Smith
This beautiful Belgian draft horse with a blonde mane and tail belonged to Belle and Maurice. He was friendly and loyal, but he made it to the bottom part of this list due to his easily frightening nature. This Disney musical movie was released during the Disney Renaissance period. The supervising animator for Philippe was Russ Edmonds. However, Frank Welker voiced the horse’s character in the second film.
Hal Smith provided many voices for Disney characters, including Goofy, Winnie the Pooh and Owl, Gyro Gearloose & Flintheart Glomgold in DuckTales, the Auctioneer in The Small One, & Philippe the Horse in Beauty and the Beast, among others. #popculture pic.twitter.com/SHlCNwyRxf
— DrPopCultureBGSU (@DrPopCultureBG) November 21, 2020
10. Samson
- Name of the movie: Sleeping Beauty
- Director of the movie: Clyde Geronimi
- Voice actor of the horse: Frank Welker
Frank Welker nailed the voice of Samson the horse, a renowned name in the world of Disney animated canon. However, unlike the previous movies, this horse does not belong to the titular character. He is the royal steed of Prince Phillip (yes, Disney did recycle a few names!) and accompanies him when he goes in search of Aurora.
It is also the first movie with a notable horse character that set a precedent for other significant horses in Disney movies like Pegasus, Maximus, etc.
Here's to Prince Phillip's horse Samson, Disney's original faithful equine companion from Sleeping Beauty: pic.twitter.com/xwn3N7l5wl
— TheDisneyBlog.com (@TheDisneyBlog) October 7, 2014
9. Shetan
- Name of the movie: The Young Black Stallion
- Director of the movie: Simon Wincer
- Voice actor of the horse: N/A
This Disney IMAX film revolves around a young girl Neera who befriends a young black stallion Shetan. In addition to being one of Disney’s major horse movies, it is also the first film in the Black Stallion trilogy book series. AIt is also the first Imax film that Disney released, and many people are surprised that this film lasts only 49 minutes.
8. Angus
- Name of the movie: Brave
- Director of the movie: Mark Andrews
- Voice actor of the horse: Frank Welker
The Disney movie Brave became the first film about a Disney princess that did not end with a prince getting her happily ever after. This movie had no romantic notions and broke the idea that a girl needed a prince charming to be happy. It featured a black Shire horse who was a close confidante of princess Merida.
7. Bullseye
- Name of the movie: Toy Story 2
- Director of the movie: John Lasseter
- Voice actor of the horse: Frank Welker
It is almost as if you cannot have horses in Disney movies without the talented Frank Welker voicing them. And we love it! This toy horse in Al’s collection of toys made its first appearance in the sequel of Toy Story and then kept featuring in the later sequels. Despite being a horse, Bullseye behaves like an adorable pup. He is the first toy Woody met in Al’s apartment.
6. Khan
- Name of the movie: Mulan
- Director of the movie: Barry Cook, Tony Bancroft
- Voice actor of the horse: Frank Welker
Khan belongs to the titular character Fa Mulan and is her trusted and beloved steed. Unlike other horses in Disney animated canon, Khan is not capable of human speech but conveys his emotions through his body language. In Tuco-Mongol languages, the name Khan means prince or king. He is the third horse that a Disney princess has owned after Major and Philippe.
In Mulan (1998), Mulan's horse Khan, is a Ferghana horse, a classical Chinese breed. On the other hand, Shan Yu's horse is a Mongolian Horse, one of the original horse breeds, small, but incredibly strong. pic.twitter.com/rJoIviOKpG
— Movie Details (@moviedetail) October 8, 2020
5. Taff/Bo
- Name of the movie: Ride a Wild Pony
- Director of the movie: Don Chaffey
- Voice actor of the horse: N/A
This Disney live-action film is about a horse and its ownership based in a small town in Australia. The main conflict in the movie is about a pony between a poor farm boy Scott and a rich disabled girl Josie who both claim the horse. Scott names it Taff, and Josie names it Bo. The film is also called Born to Run.
4. Secretariat
- Name of the movie: Secretariat
- Director of the movie: Randall Wallace
- Voice actor of the horse: N/A
This is an often-forgotten addition to the list of horses in Disney movies. It is a biography about the thoroughbred racehorse who won the Triple Crown in 1973. Anyone with a working knowledge of the racetrack would love this film about a true story. Few people know that one of the many horses that acted as Secretariat in this film is Trolley’s Boy, who is the great-great-grandson of the real-life Secretariat.
3. Tonka
- Name of the movie: Tonka
- Director of the movie: Lewis R. Foster
- Voice actor of the horse: N/A
Another live-action horse movie, this addition to the list of Disney movies, is a cavalry horse. Disney studios have made very few Western adventure films, and Tonka is one of them. David Appel wrote the book Comanche: Story of America’s Most Heroic Horse, which inspired this movie.
2. Maximus
- Name of the movie: Tangled
- Director of the movie: Nathan Greno
- Voice actor of the horse: Nathan Greno
Maximus is a warhorse that Flynn Rider rides in the Disney box office hit film Tangled, a story about princess Rapunzel. The horse is shown to be soft-hearted beneath his tough exterior and rigid law-following nature. This character was an instant hit due to its shenanigans and thus captured the second-best spot on this list about horses in Disney movies. A fun fact is that the creators initially thought to subtitle Maximus’ neighs in German as the movie is a German fairy tale.
Animator: Daniel Peixe
Clip to study from: TangledA lot of Maximus’s action here came from Daniel’s test of the rig, playing around with personality and flexibility#agorastudio #framebyframe #animation #animator #tangled
This study is sponsored by https://t.co/mHO3rOQavr pic.twitter.com/aUfbavOCgg
— FramebyFrame (@TheFramebyFrame) November 1, 2022
1. Black Beauty
- Name of the movie: Black Beauty
- Director of the movie: Ashley Avis
- Voice actor of the horse: Kate Winslet
When you think about horses in Disney movies or stories, chances are the first name that pops into your head is that of Black Beauty. Disney Plus released this as a part of its Original movies collection. Based on Anna Sewell‘s book of the same name, the movie revolves around an orphan girl and her bonding with a horse. This is the second rendition of Black Beauty that Disney has done after its 1966 version.
All of these movies are available for streaming on Disney Plus. Take your pick from live-action or animated among and indulge in a ‘Disney horse movies’ movie marathon (pun intended)!
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1: What are the Disney female horse names?
Ans: the Disney female horse’s names are Frou-Frou, Madame Bonfamille’s horse in Disney’s The Aristocats. Long in the tooth, Frou-Froe has a kind demeanor and a clear love for her patron and other animals around her.
Q2: What is the story of the Disney horse Movie Spirit?
Ans: In Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, a wild stallion is captured by humans and slowly loses the will to resist training, yet, throughout his struggles for freedom, the stallion refuses to let go of the hope of one day returning home to his herd.
Q3: What is meant by Pocahontas’s horse name?
Ans: Pocahontas was an English Thoroughbred racehorse and the dam of three sires who had a great influence on the breed. Although mares are not generally considered to be as influential as sires, Thoroughbred Heritage refers to Pocahontas as “one of the most influential Thoroughbreds of all time, male or female
