25 Disney characters that are actually good role models

22. Judy Hopps (Zootopia)

At this point, you’re probably sensing a theme. A character starts out on their journey as a relatively uncomplicated being. They’re often all one thing or another. They’re angry. They are happy. Their actions are either good or bad. By the end of their story, though, they’ve learned the value of complex emotions. As a result, they’re far wiser and stronger thanks to a newly mature mindset.
Such is the story of Judy Hopps, an idealistic young police recruit. She’s just joined the force in the big city, Zootopia. However, there is a bit of a complication. Hopps is a rabbit. Nearly everyone else on the force is some other, larger kind of animal. In fact, Zootopia is a bustling metropolis full of intelligent animals, with nary a human in sight.

What makes Zootopia unique is its sideways address on the issue of race. No one talks about different colors, exactly, but Judy is certainly told she can’t do things simply because she is a small rabbit. Other characters point out that predators are inherently more bloodthirsty and therefore less trustworthy than herbivores. Though Judy has come to the big city with big dreams, she soon learns that there is a lot of institutional trouble blocking her way.

Hopps, however, doesn’t give up. Through dogged detective work and collaboration with a fox named Nick Wilde, she effects real change in her society. Though our real world can never seem to just solve a problem and put a bow on the whole affair, we at least get to see that happen in Zootopia. It has a certain kind of clear-eyed decency that lends hope to real-world proceedings.