Hades

Hades is the Greek God of the underworld, and the villain of Hercules. While the Hades of Greek Mythology was not particularly malevolent, he is made into an evil Satan-like figure in the Disney film, where he attempts to steal his brother Zeus's throne as ruler of Mount Olympus. Hades appears as a blue-grey humanoid with flaming hair and a smoky base who is normally eccentric and cynical, but is very easily angered. He has many powers, including immortality, regeneration, teleportation, levitation, intangibility, and control over fire and smoke. Also in the movie, and TV series Hades is referred to as Zeus's younger brother when in fact he is the eldest brother of Zeus, Poseidon, Demeter, and Hera, Hestia is also his sister but she is older than him.

Role In Hercules
Early in the film, Hades consults with the Fates on his plan to take over Mount Olympus. They tell him that when the planets align eighteen years later, Hades will unleash the horrible Titans and that they would lead him to victory. However, if Hercules fought, Hades would fail.

Hades decides to nip the Hercules threat in the bud by having Pain and Panic feed the infant Hercules a potion that will make him mortal,. However, Hercules doesn't drink the last drop of the potion, meaning he still retains his godlike strength. Years later, when Hades discovers Hercules was still alive, he takes matters into his own hands, attempting to recruit an army of monsters to defeat Hercules.

When Hades discovers that Hercules could not be defeated by his monsters, he sends Megara to seduce Hercules and find his weakness. She falls in love with Hercules on their date and forgets about the mission, simply saying that he has no weakness. Hades deducts that Hercules's love for Megera is his weakness and uses her to trick Hercules into giving up his godlike strength for Meg's safety. Hercules agrees, and Hades, knowing Hercules will not interfere, not only unleashes the Titans but also sends the Cyclops to kill Hercules while he is powerless.

During the Cyclops's attack on Hercules, a pillar falls on Meg, killing her. This breaks Hades' promise that Meg would not be hurt, causing Hercules to regain his strength. Hercules proceeds to defeat the Cyclops and go to Mount Olympus, defeating the Titans and thwarting Hades' invasion. However, Hades has now claimed Meg's soul.

Hercules storms into the Underworld, subdues Cerberus, and confronts Hades, demanding him to return Meg. Hades smugly explains to Hercules that Meg is dead, and he can't have her back. Hercules offers his soul in exchange for Meg's, and Hades agrees on the condition that Hercules must retrieve her himself. It is not until Hercules has already dived in that he shouts after Hercules that he'll be dead before he can get her out. The Fates attempt to cut Hercules' life thread, but are unable to. Hercules' heroic sacrifice causes him to become a god, making him immortal. Hercules emerges from the river, carrying Meg, and Hades, astounded, attempts to make yet another deal with Hercules, who angrily punches him, sending Hades into the Styx, where he is swarmed by the souls trapped inside and dragged into its depths. Pain and Panic, upon seeing this, make the following exchange:

Panic: "He's not going to be happy when he gets out of there!" Pain: "You mean, IF! He gets out of there!" Panic: "If... If is good..."

Seeing as Hades is a god and therefore immortal, and the fact that no chronological sequel to Hercules exists, Hades' ultimate fate is uncertain, but so far his most likely fate is that he repains trapped in the River Styx - at least until a sequel lets him climb out.

In the end, Hades caused his own downfall; Hades' efforts to neutralize Hercules were what caused him to learn of his plans and provoked him to fight against Hades, and inevitably resulted in his god-hood being restored.

James Woods: Voice Actor
James Woods once said that he enjoyed playing Hades so much, that he will always be willing to reprise his role, which he has done so throughout Hercules: The Animated Series, in all the Kingdom Hearts games, and has featured in Mickey's House of Mouse on multiple occasions as comic relief.

Originally, Hades was supposed to apeak in a slow, menacing and spooky manner, but Producer Alice Dewey decided that James Woods' 'mile-a-minute' would be 'a great take' for a villain. Many of James Woods' mannerisms during acting were incorporated into Hades' animation, and he did a lot of ad-libbing, especially in his scenes with Megara. Turning Hades into a sleazy, car-dealer type character was also apparently his idea.