Wreck-It Ralph is the titular protagonist of Disney's 2012 animated movie of the same name and it's sequel.
Background[]
In Fix-It Felix Jr.—an 8-bit video game in Litwak's Arcade—Ralph serves as the villain, with a vendetta against the residents of Niceland for constructing an apartment building over his forest home and relegating him to the dump. Ralph shouts out, "I'm gonna wreck it!" and begins to demolish the building while Fix-It Felix Jr. comes in to save the day. Once the building is repaired in the end, the Nicelanders throw Ralph off the top of the building, sending him falling into a puddle of mud below.
After hours, Ralph is warm-hearted and friendly, albeit with a temper. Because of his role as the bad-guy of his game, however, he was ostracized by the inhabitants of Niceland and was forced to live in the town's dump with his stump and bricks, as opposed to the quaint apartment building with the other citizens. He was also feared by other denizens of the arcade, who opted to stay away from Ralph whenever he was about. After enduring this mistreatment for thirty years, Ralph found it increasingly difficult to enjoy his job.
Personality[]
Despite his hulking nature and villainous programming, Ralph is ultimately a sweet, well-meaning character. He is also extremely casual and somewhat laid-back. Though surrounded by over-the-top personalities (such as the excessively gruff Sergeant Calhoun or the magnanimous Felix), Ralph carries himself in a manner that's considerably more human, and less caricatured. However, a direct result of his programming, Ralph is also a destructive bumbler with an admittedly explosive temper. As such, he can occasionally fall into fits of rage, causing him to rampage and cause destruction to objects around him. This is what ultimately motivates Ralph's unpleasant reputation in Niceland, and the arcade as a whole, as well as the reasoning behind the bad-guy's insecurities and antisocial behavior. Even so, Ralph makes earnest efforts (in a rather passive-aggressive manner) to suppress his temper and wrecking habits for the sake of those around him, as well as himself—especially during social events like the 30th anniversary of Fix-It Felix Jr. Ralph's programming and constant mistreatment make this a difficult feat to accomplish, however.
Ralph was a fairly selfish character at the start of the film; his goal was to win the respect and hearts of other video game characters by retrieving a medal, but uncaringly causing havoc—including thefts, physical intimidation, and breaking Arcade bylaws by game-jumping along the way. He was also arrogant, blinded by his own self-interest, and had little regret in causing damage during his pursuit for a medal. Nevertheless, his intentions were pure at their core; he did not wish to become a hero for the sake of becoming one. Instead, he spent years living with the belief that only heroes were capable of making friends and garnering appreciation for their work, prompting him to change his reputation in hopes of receiving what he believes to be "good-guy exclusive" luxuries. Being that he spent thirty years facing prejudice and abuse, Ralph's lengths to achieve his goals had few bounds, with his breaking point having been reached.
Upon meeting the young, feisty misfit Vanellope, Ralph learns that having medals and an abundance of praise isn't what makes a good-guy, but showing love and care for others does. Loving and valiant, Ralph went through great lengths to ensure Vanellope's happiness and safety, ultimately at the expense of his own, thus allowing him to evolve from selfish to selfless over the course of the movie.
He is also shown to be extremely protective through his friendship with Vanellope, as he continuously protected her from various antagonists throughout the film, and was willing to bring legit, physical harm to those who unfairly opposed and discriminated her. This is partially out of relatable sympathy for the young glitch, as she had endured treatment similar to Ralph's own experiences, showing Ralph's desire to help those as unfortunate, or even less so, than himself. This is also seen during the first half of the film, where Ralph charitably bestowed stolen cherries to homeless Q*Bert and his colleagues, as their game was unplugged, leaving them without food and substance. Ralph's care for others was also showcased during the finale, where he invited homeless video game characters to live in Niceland as his neighbors.
Though he doesn't exactly appear to be much of an intellectual, Ralph actually proves to have some intelligence to him, as he has the ability to concoct plans and effective courses of action on the spot, using his brawn to his advantage in creative ways. This is notably seen during his adventures in both Hero's Duty and Sugar Rush, as well as the climax.
Physical appearance[]
Ralph is nine feet tall whose weight he claims as 643 lbs and a muscular guy with spiky, dark auburn hair, brown eyes, thick eyebrows, and has a big pink nose. He wears a red-and-orange plaid shirt with two yellow buttons up, a teal shirt underneath, and brown single-strapped overalls. He usually does not wear shoes.
In Ralph Breaks the Internet when the Disney Princesses rescued him from falling over the edge and lands on a bed, Snow White's signature dress was magically given to them as his bare back was exposed due to his size.
Trivia[]
- Wreck-It Ralph and Frozen writer Jennifer Lee once made a tweet jokingly suggesting that Elsa and Wreck-It Ralph would make a good couple during the 2013 D23 Expo. As a nod to that, in Disney INFINITY, if Ralph and Elsa are introduced to one another, Ralph will tell Elsa that she is "really pretty", and Elsa will reply "And you have a warm heart."
- In Ralph Breaks the Internet, Ralph and Elsa do officially meet (Ralph also meets her sister Anna and the rest of the Disney Princesses when they all save him from falling to his doom near the climax). However, it is really just friendly talk between Ralph and Elsa and they don't form a romance between each other,
- In Wreck-It Ralph, Ralph has a recurring instrumental theme which can be found as "Wreck-It Ralph" on the movie's official soundtrack.
- Originally, much like Ariel's "Part of Your World" and Tiana's "Almost There", Ralph was meant to have an "I Want" song. During its time in production, a running gag involved Ralph never being able to finish the song, as whenever he began to sing, a character or event would interrupt.
- Ralph’s characteristics were mostly influenced by Donkey Kong and Hulk.