Nick Wilde

"Never let them see that they get to you."

- Nick Wilde's philosophy, as told to Judy Hopps

Nick Wilde is the deuteragonist of the 2016 Disney animated feature film Zootopia.

Background
Nick came from a poor background living with his mother (his father is never seen or mentioned). As a child, Nick had a dream of joining the local Junior Ranger Scouts, for the goal of receiving genuine acceptance. When he was 8 or 9 years old, his mother scraped up enough money to buy a brand new scout uniform, allowing him the opportunity to join the division. Though he was the only predator there, the only fox, Nick attended his initiation with confidence and zeal, unknowingly walking into a trap. The "initiation" turned out to be a hazing and Nick was ridiculed, brutally beat up and muzzled by the other scouts for being a fox (as foxes are considered amongst the most vile and untrustworthy species of mammals in Zootopia). After running outside to escape his tormentors, Nick broke down in tears, developing a triggering fear of muzzles and strong hatred towards preys, and other bigoted mammals. From that moment forward, Nick vowed to never expose his true vulnerability to others, resulting in the fox presenting himself as stoic and unreachable.

As a result of this experience, Nick declared that if the world viewed foxes as nothing more than vile and untrustworthy scoundrels, he should not only accept it, but embrace it, subsequently doing so by becoming a successful con artist.

At some point during his status as a con artist, Nick fell in with Mr. Big, a feared arctic shrew crime boss, developing a stable partnership with him. Mr. Big liked and trusted the fox, welcoming him into his home and even introducing him to his beloved grandmother. However, Nick later took advantage of Big's trust by selling him a very expensive wool rug secretly made from the fur of a skunk's rear end. Feeling betrayed and disrespected, Mr. Big turned Nick away, threatening to kill him if they ever met again.

By the start of the film, Nick appears to be well-off, claiming to have made $200 on a daily basis since the age of twelve (though the accuracy of these claims is questionable). He often works and splits the day's earnings with his quick-tempered best friend, partner and fellow fox, Finnick.

Official Description

 * Nick Wilde is a charming, small-time, con artist fox with a big mouth and a lot of opinions. But when a rabbit cop outsmarts him, he finds himself actually helping her solve a mystery.

Development
When the story was first pitched, Nick served as the film's protagonist. He was a savvy, wanted fox on a mission to clear his name, with no-nonsense Lieutenant Judy Hopps assisting him in achieving this goal. Much like his role in the film, Nick was every bit sarcastic and cynical, with a strong dislike towards the city of Zootopia, which was more of a dystopian society, with direct abuse and cruelty against predators. This would eventually lead to the story facing major overhaul late in production, as the filmmakers felt the tale of optimistic Judy Hopps, a starry-eyed bunny with ambitions to achieve her dreams in what she believes to be a wondrous city, Zootopia, would make for a more compelling story in terms of tying it into the overall message of bias, and preconceived notions.

Nick was characterized slightly different, evidenced by his appearance. Several pieces of art shows Nick as being classy and well-dressed, sporting a blackish blue suit, while the character Clawhauser wore the green Hawaiian shirt Nick wears in the film. Over time, Nick would be given the Hawaiian shirt, and his overall outfit was meant to appear as sloppy and lazily put together, to symbolize Nick's laziness.

A key story element in early stages of the film centered around predators being forced to wear electric shock collars, as a means to keep their "aggressive nature" under control. Nick was one of the victims of this cruelty, and it was Judy who would eventually grant Nick his freedom, as a symbol of trust, while learning predators are not as dangerous as they may seem. This directly tied into another major story element scrapped from the film, in which Nick was the owner of an illegal, indoor amusement park called "Wild Times". With the entrance disguised as a medical clinic, Wild Times was a park built by Nick for predators—then known as "chompers"—where they were allowed to remove their collars and enjoy being themselves, freely. This version of the story delved deeper into Nick's backstory. As a child, he was primarily seen with his hapless, but always loving father, who dreamt of starting a family business with Nick. He was also shown to have been friends with Finnick since childhood, as the two were in the same elementary class. Despite the development, the filmmakers felt the deeper Nick's past was explored, the darker the film became, which further influenced the story's eventual revision.

Personality
Nick is generally charismatic, sociable, wise-cracking and highly intelligent. A shifty, sly, mischievous and cunning fox, traits supposedly common to all foxes, Nick is easygoing and slick, easily conning and tricking others through his charm and friendly demeanor. He nearly always has a sly smile on his face and seems unfazed throughout most of the events.

Due to his troubled history, Nick grew to be cynical, devious and prejudiced himself. Unlike Judy, he viewed the world of Zootopia as an abysmal place, where dreams are nothing more than far-off fantasies, and those who strive to become something more than they're stereotyped to be, are simply wasting their time and energy. Nevertheless, he kept a somewhat positive aura by embracing and exploring his strong points, which were his wit, intelligence and ability to con practically everyone he came across. He also maintained a strong sense of humor, as he often uses wisecracks as a coping mechanism when found in a troublesome situation. As a result of his past, Nick grew to be uncaring towards the opinions of other mammals, no matter how cruel, giving him a sense of strength and independence. These traits would ultimately play a crucial role in solving Zootopia's deadliest conspiracy, and would lead Nick to understanding that it is possible to become something more than you're stereotyped to be.

Though he appeared to be uncaring to those around him, Nick was sympathetic towards those who experience prejudice, like he did in the past. Witnessing firsthand the trials and tribulations that Judy was wrongfully forced to endure while fighting to prove her worth on the police force, Nick became a firm supporter to the bunny, subsequently proving himself to be quite fearless and protective, when it comes to those he cared about.

However, Nick's love for Judy would also act as his weakness, bringing about his vulnerability and rendering him capable of becoming strongly affected by the viewpoints of someone else. He is quite resentful towards those he held a personal trust towards, particularly the ones he personally believed to have accepted him. Said anger was present when Judy publicly stated the feral disease to be due to the predators' biology, which caused Nick to feel betrayed towards their apparent friendship when she had essentially reinforced prejudice of predators, foxes included. Even so, his laid-back nature makes him a quick forgiver, as his care for others ultimately overrides his occasional bitterness.

As collected as he appears to be, Nick doesn't handle intense situations particularly well, compared to Judy (a trained officer, granted) who generally maintains her composure and takes charge of situations when things go haywire. Contrast to this, Nick often goes into immediate panic when in danger, becoming anxious, cowering in fear, and pessimistically jumping to the conclusion that he'll soon meet his demise, seen several times throughout the Otterton case. Nevertheless, he was unwilling to abandon Judy in these situations, against her wishes, and even before their relationship matured; this would hint at Nick's selflessness before his true nature was revealed to Judy.

Physical appearance
Nick is a fox with a trim build. He's covered in red fur with a cream underbelly up to his muzzle. He has dark auburn fur on his feet, his hands, the tips of his ears, and at the tip of his tail. He has green eyes and a dark purple nose.

Nick's wardrobe consists of a light green Hawaiian shirt, a dark indigo necktie with red-and-blue stripes, and a pair of brownish-gray pants. While helping Judy during her investigation, he wears a junior ZPD badge sticker over the pocket of his shirt, originally a gift from Judy for Finnick before the latter humorously passed it onto Nick. The sticker is removed after Judy's press conference when Nick feels betrayed by her.

After Nick graduated into a police officer, his fox-size uniform is navy blue with sleeves, a peaked cap, a high collar and pants with a gold aiguillette and the ZPD insignia on his shoulders, along with having a black tie and a utility belt filled with various paraphernalia. He's also shown wearing police sunglasses.

Zootopia
On an average day, Nick and Finnick were in the midst of their latest scheme. He is first seen snooping about Savanna Central, and eventually entering Jumbeaux's Café, unknowingly being tailed by Officer Judy Hopps, a rookie of the Zootopia Police Department, as she believes Nick, being a fox, is up to no good. Inside the café, Nick is denied service due to his species, though Nick claims he means no harm, and is simply looking to buy a Jumbo-pop as a birthday present for his son (Finnick, disguised as a toddler). The shop owner, Jerry Jumbeaux Jr., refuses again, prompting Judy to intervene. She does so by threatening to shut down Jerry's establishment for health code violations, and out of fear, Jerry complies with Judy's demands by allowing Nick to buy the pop. With his luck running strongly, Nick furthers his scheme by claiming to have left his wallet at home, prompting Judy to pay out of sympathy. Nick then thanks Judy for her services, before he and Finnick leave the scene.

They head to Sahara Square to further their plot, which is revealed to be an elaborate scheme in which he and Finnick melt down the Jumbo-pop to create dozens of miniature pops (pawpsicles), selling them to lemmings at less than the original price, and recycling the popsicles' sticks to sell to mice for construction in Little Rodentia. After the work for the day is complete, Nick and Finnick split the profits and part ways, just before Judy reveals to have witnessed their entire scheme unfold, feeling foolish for having fallen for Nick's trickery. Out of anger, Judy threatens to arrest Nick, but the fox retorts by claiming he's done nothing illegal, having all of the required permits and paperwork in check to allow such schemes to take place. He subsequently berates Judy on her failure as a police officer, and giving her the "reality check" that Zootopia is not a utopia where anyone can be anything, but a dystopia where you are what preconceptions say you are.

These words strike Judy, and the following day, she becomes determined to prove herself, as her boss, Chief Bogo, also has negative feelings towards a bunny cop. She receives the opportunity when she volunteers to help solve the missing mammals case of Emmitt Otterton, though Bogo only allows her 48 hours to do so, or face resignation. After investigating, Judy finds that Nick had ties to Otterton, and labels him as a key witness. She finds both Nick and Finnick in the midst of another scam, and asks information on Otterton's whereabouts, being that Nick sold him a pawpsicle shortly before his disappearance. When Nick refuses to help, Judy threatens to arrest the former for felony tax evasion, which she hustles him into admitting to have committed, using her carrot pen with a voice recording function to do so.

With his luck run out, Nick begrudgingly joins Judy's mission, hoping to retrieve and dispose of the carrot recorder once their job is complete. He confesses that he only knows where Otterton went following their interaction, but sadistically neglects to inform Judy that the location is a naturist club, wanting to make her as uncomfortable as possible, as a means to exact revenge for her trickery. At the club, Judy, despite being horrified in response to the nude animals, manages to push through and gain information—the license plate of the car Otterton was last seen in—from the club's owner, Yax. However, being that she is not yet in the city's system, Judy uses Nick to run the plate, claiming she'll release his bind once her case is over in a matter of hours. Nick once again retaliates by taking Judy to the DMV run by sloths, where his friend Flash takes the majority of the rest of the day running the plate, according to plan.

They find the car to be in Tundratown, though the lot is closed for the day by that point. When confronted about his schemes, Nick admits that he believes Judy's investigation to be a joke, claiming it should be a "real cop" searching for Otterton in her place. He then notes that Judy must back down as she doesn't have a police warrant to enter the closed premises, meaning their partnership is over. However, Judy throws the recorder over the fence, making Nick rush to get it, thus violating trespassing laws. This legally allows Judy to enter under "probable cause", and she successfully retrieves the pen before Nick, thus leaving her in charge once more. As the two search through the car, Nick realizes that it belongs to Mr. Big, the most feared crime boss in Tundratown, who has a grudge against him for a business transaction gone wrong. Nick attempts to escape, only to find himself and Judy captured by Mr. Big's polar bear henchmen. They are taken to the crime boss' mansion, where Judy interrogates the arctic shrew, accusing him of being a suspect in Mr. Otterton's disappearance. In response to this and Nick, Mr. Big orders to have the two frozen to death, only to have a change in heart when his daughter, Fru Fru, arrives and explains that Judy saved her life earlier. Mr. Big allows the two to live, and invites them to Fru Fru's wedding as honored guests. There, Mr. Big gives information on Otterton's disappearance, advising that Nick and Judy travel to the Rainforest District to question Mr. Manchas, the last person to have seen Otterton.

When they find Manchas, he is in a state of deep fear, feeling reluctant to allow Nick and Judy inside, though he reveals the events of Otterton's disappearance, explaining that he went savage and attacked him, exclaiming something incoherent regarding the "night howlers". Nick cleverly convinces Manchas to allow himself and Judy inside, to which the latter complies, but before they can undergo further questioning, Manchas suddenly loses his sanity and becomes savage himself. Nick and Judy flee and are hotly pursued by Manchas. Judy manages to evade the jaguar, but Nick is left cornered near a drop off. Manchas lunges to kill Nick, but Judy chains the jaguar's ankle to a supporter, saving Nick's life; much to his surprise. Chief Bogo and his police force later arrive onto the scene, only to find that Manchas is nowhere to be found. Bogo accuses Judy of failure, and requests her badge, revealing to Nick that she was pressured to solve the case in a mere two days or face resignation. Having been struck with the revelation that Judy's case is legitimately urgent, Nick steps in to defend Judy, calling out Bogo's bigotry and noting that she still has ten hours left to solve the case. This forces Bogo to stand down, while Nick establishes himself as Judy's supportive ally, now with the knowledge that his enlistment was out of desperation, rather than spite.

Nick and Judy take their leave on a gondola, and after a moment of silence, Judy thanks Nick for his compassion. Nick responds by revealing his traumatic childhood experience that would lead to his stoic nature, conning lifestyle, and sympathy towards the oppressed and underestimated, in turn providing Judy with a better understanding towards his previously harsh attitude. He immediately regrets doing this, as he broke his vow to keep his vulnerability under wraps; he makes an attempt to change the subject, but Judy merely comforts him on the matter, thanking him for sharing his story. Nick doesn't acknowledge her words, as he suddenly gets the idea to uncover what happened to Manchas by using the city's traffic camera systems, which are plugged into just about every area in each district.

Later that morning, they visit Bellwether, the assistant to Mayor Lionheart, who grants them access to the city's traffic cams. They discover that Manchas was captured by wolves (which Judy assumes is what Manchas meant by "night howlers"), and Nick cunningly tracks their path through hidden roads to an abandoned hospital outside of town called Cliffside. Judy, impressed by Nick's actions, congratulates the fox, and notes that he has the potential of being a valuable addition to the ZPD, though he playfully brushes this off. Once the two head out, they eventually find the asylum to be heavily guarded by wolves, and filled with imprisoned predators who have fallen under the mysterious "savage" affliction. The operation is revealed to be run by Mayor Lionheart, who Nick and Judy eavesdrop on, learning that he wants to keep the imprisoned predators a secret to prevent public panic, and by extension, the loss of his position. When discovered, Nick and Judy escape, and report their findings to Bogo, who arrives with his police forces and arrests Mayor Lionheart.

Following these events, Judy is hailed a hero, and a press conference is held in regards to the situation. Nick advises a nervous Judy to remain calm, and moments before it's time for her to speak to the press, Judy offers Nick a position on the police force as her partner. Nick, touched that someone sees something beyond his species, takes it into consideration, and proudly looks on as she speaks about her latest victory. When asked why the predators have gone savage, however, Judy, at a loss for answers, suggests that it may have something to do with "biology", which is taken as a serious sign that predators are reverting back to their ruthlessly primitive and aggressive ways. Nick takes extreme offense by this, feeling Judy has done nothing but labeled all predators as "savages" which, in technicality, she did. While being confronted on the matter, Judy starts to feel threatened, and actually makes reach for her fox repellent, confirming that she, too, sees Nick as a potential savage, much like the rest of the world. A betrayed Nick then leaves the department, returning the application and declining Judy's offer to join the force. When Judy takes a look at the application, she finds that it was filled out entirely.

Following these events, Nick returns to his normal life in the streets, reuniting with Finnick and finding himself lounging about in solitude in his spare time. Months after the press conference, Judy suddenly returns and with a breakthrough in the case, needing Nick's help to solve it and save the city. Nick declines, which prompts Judy to confess how foolish she's been, and how regretful she is for causing so much trouble for innocent predators while, most importantly, betraying Nick in the process. Knowing her words are genuine, Nick forgives Judy, teasingly recording her confession on her carrot recorder, which he has held onto. The two share a warm embrace to further solidify their reunion, and with the case back on track, Nick and Judy take their leave to follow the night howlers, which Judy has discovered are actually toxic flowers that have severe psychotropic effects on mammals.

They track down Duke Weaselton for information. Duke had stolen "moldy onions" on Judy's second day at work; they were actually night howler buds. When Duke refuses to cooperate, the pair bring him before Mr. Big, who threatens to ice him unless he tells them what they wanted to know. Duke reveals that the flowers were sold to a ram named Doug, who operates a secret lab hidden in the subway tunnels. Nick and Judy find Doug, and learn that the flowers are being used to create a serum which he has been injecting into predators via a dart gun, turning them savage. Judy hijacks the lab (which is on a still-functional train) and tries to take the evidence to Bogo. Doug's assistants and fellow rams, Woolter and Jesse pursue, and though they are defeated, the train is derailed and destroyed.

Nick, fortunately, reveals to have saved the evidence containing the dart gun and its night howler toxin ammo, and the two make way to Bogo through the history museum. There, they encounter Bellwether, who is revealed to be the true mastermind behind the villainous operation. She sends her henchrams to capture Nick and Judy, and though they make a break for it with the evidence in hand, Judy is injured in the process. Nick refuses to leave her, and tries to carry her to safety, only to be thrown into a pit-like exhibit by the sheep. There, Bellwether regains the dart gun and shoots Nick with it so that he will become feral and kill Judy. Bellwether subsequently calls Bogo to make it all look like another "savage attack", but both Judy and Nick reveal to have gotten the best of Bellwether, as the drug pellet was actually just a blueberry, which they switched before Bellwether could regain the gun. With Bellwether's confession of criminal activity recorded on the carrot pen, Bogo and his force arrive and arrest her and her goons.

In the end, Judy is reinstated as a member of the Zootopia Police Department. Nick, with a change of heart towards his life, joins as well, becoming the first fox officer. At Nick's police graduation ceremony, Judy badges the former herself, exchanges salutes with him as an official welcoming into the force, and subsequently takes him on as her partner. The epilogue shows that Nick has become a welcomed member of the force, and even a liked companion of Chief Bogo, who gives both Nick and Judy the task of tracking down a street racer as their first assignment (though not before jokingly regulating them to parking duty). While staking out, the relationship between Nick and Judy is shown to be stronger than ever, with Nick getting Judy to admit that she loves him; sentiments he returns with a warm smile. Eventually, their perp zooms by who, ironically, reveals himself to be Flash, much to Nick's surprise and amusement.

During the end credits, Nick joins Judy and several other Zootopia citizens in attending a concert starring pop star Gazelle. At first, he just watches, but a nudge from Judy gets him to dance.

Other appearances
In a promotional video released on Twitter, Nick engages in a group chat conversation with Judy and her parents; he soon finds himself amused by Stu's antics and limited knowledge of emojis.

An emoticon version of Nick appeared in the Zootopia entry of the As Told by Emoji short series.

Disney INFINITY 3.0
Nick appears as a playable character in the Toy Box mode. His figure was released on March 1, 2016, alongside Judy.

Nick's basic melee attack arms him with a Jumbo-pop, which he uses against enemies as a weapon. His range attack also utilizes the Jumbo-pop, which he can throw a considerable distance using his "Snack Attack" move. His special attack is "A Little Friend", in which Nick can summon the Finnick townsperson to assist him in battle.

Nick also has an exclusive Toy Box story, which intertwines with the exclusive Toy Box story of Judy, entitled Nick Wilde: Undercover Cop. After a case opens around the stolen Jumbo-pops of Jerry Jumbeaux, Nick is assigned to investigate within the café to uncover clues, while Judy takes the field. After infiltrating and being discovered in the villain's base, he becomes an undercover employer, under the alias "Maximus Payne", as a means to gain information. This Toy Box story can be downloaded by accessing the "Developer's Pick" menu, under "Community Content".

Nick also has a costume change power disc: "Officer Wilde", which allows Nick to don his police uniform.

Other games
In Kingdom Hearts Unchained χ, Nick appears as a costume available as customizable attire, a pochette accessory, and as one of the four Zootopia avatar companions for the game's avatars. He is also featured as a 5 star golden power combat medal.

In Disney Tsum Tsum, when activating the special skill of the Nick Wilde tsum tsum, a silhouette of Nick briefly appears on the screen selling pawpsicles to the lemmings.

Disney Parks
Nick made his live debut at the red carpet premiere of Zootopia on February 17, 2016, alongside Judy.

Disneyland
In California, Nick and Judy are currently making meet-and-greet appearances on Hollywood Land at Disney California Adventure.

Walt Disney World Resort
In Florida, both Nick and Judy made their theme park debut at Disney's Animal Kingdom, at the Harambe Village Marketplace, for meet-and-greet sessions during a promotional event for Zootopia.

Beginning on March 26, 2016, Nick appears alongside Judy during the ''Move It! Shake It! Dance & Play It!'' Street Party at the Magic Kingdom in place of Genie and Stitch. In the same park, Nick appeared alongside Judy during the 2016 Easter pre-parade. On September 2016, he and Judy started their meet-and-greet sessions during Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party.

A statue of Nick and Judy is also featured at Disney Springs.

Tokyo Disney Resort
Nick will make his debut with Judy during the next Easter parade which will be held in 2017 at Tokyo Disneyland.

Disneyland Paris
Nick made his debut in France at the Disneyland Park during the 2016 Easter event. Both he and Judy made meet-and-greet appearances on Main Street, U.S.A.

Hong Kong Disneyland
On April 25, 2016, Nick and Judy had began their meet-and-greet sessions in Main Street, U.S.A. at Hong Kong Disneyland, as part of its 10th anniversary celebration.

Shanghai Disneyland
In Shanghai, Nick appears alongside Judy during the Ignite the Dream fireworks show.

For live appearances, he can be found during Mickey's Storybook Express, and sometimes in Happy Circle in Adventure Isle for meet-and-greets.

Trivia

 * Nick's last name, Wilde, is a play on the word "wild", given the fact that foxes are wild animals.
 * Nick first appeared as a cameo in Big Hero 6, specifically on one of the billboards in San Fransokyo and with his likeness on Honey Lemon's phone case.
 * His actor, Jason Bateman, finished recording his voiceover work on September 16, 2015.
 * In earlier drafts of the story, Nick and Finnick worked at a fast food restaurant in Little Rodentia called Chez Cheese. Another version had them working at a factory called Bug-Burga.
 * According to Nick's job application for the police force, he is 4 ft (1.2 m) tall and weighs 80 lbs (36 kg).
 * Nick's tax forms show some of his personal information:
 * His "benefits number", whatever that means, is 555-16-2234.
 * His legal address is 1955 Cypress Grove Lane.
 * The number 1955 references 1955, the year Disneyland was opened.
 * He was committing tax evasion as his records were all zeros, despite earning income through his cons and scams.
 * The pattern of Nick's shirt is nigh-identical to the wallpaper in the hallway of his childhood home.
 * Since real-life red foxes are nocturnal and being in direct sunlight could damage their eyesight, Nick has a pair of sunglasses.
 * Ironically, the original protagonist for Zootopia was going to be a jackrabbit spy named Jack Savage. To avoid confusion with the Gigantic character with a similar name, Jack Savage was changed to Nick.
 * Along with Finnick, Nick was also friends with Clawhauser and a badger character. In the final film, neither Clawhauser nor the badger associate with Nick.
 * Several pieces of concept art label Nick's father as "John Wilde". In the final version of the film, Nick's father is never mentioned, so his canonical name is unknown.
 * On Nick's filled out ZPD application form, at the bottom, one question asks if he's been arrested or charged in the past. It's seen that he checked "Yes", but then scribbled it out and checked "No" instead and in bold. Given Nick's past, it's highly likely that he indeed got in trouble with the ZPD at some point. It seems that whatever legal troubles he may have had in the past, they weren't notable enough to prevent him from becoming an official police officer.
 * During renovations of the Walt Disney Animation Studios building, beginning in 2014, Nick was one of the character silhouettes featured on the wall mural.
 * Nick and Flash went to high school together, and were both members of the track team.
 * In one version of the story, Nick's residence was a leaky basement apartment in the Rainforest District.
 * The handkerchief that Nick uses to patch Judy's leg wound during the climax is the same neckerchief that was part of his Ranger Scout uniform.
 * Nick seems to suffer from PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) or a Panic Disorder triggered by muzzles. This is seen at Judy's press conference when he looks at the pictures of the savage predators being muzzled; he is visibly horrified at the sight and promptly has a flashback to his traumatic childhood event when he was muzzled.
 * According to Zootopia: The Essential Guide, Nick's top 3 secrets are:
 * Secretly wants to be seen as more than a sly fox.
 * Wanted to be a Zootopia Junior Ranger when young.
 * Bullied by mean prey kids as a cub.
 * Nick seems to have knowledge in first aid as he was seen patching Judy's leg wound by using a neckerchief.
 * Nick's handwriting resembles Walt Disney's.