Claude Frollo

Judge Claude Frollo is the main antagonist of Disney's 1996 feature film The Hunchback of Notre Dame. He killed Quasimodo's mother 20 years previous to the true beginning of the film on the very steps of the cathedral of Notre Dame and prepared to drown Quasimodo. The Archdeacon stopped him, and, fearing repercussions from God and especially from Mary, the Virgin Mother of Jesus, Frollo was tasked with raising him and named the baby Quasimodo in reference to his disfigurement. Frollo however, kept Quasimodo hidden from the world in the church's belltower, until he could be of use to him. He was voiced by Tony Jay.

Personality
Frollo is the stern, predjudiced judge of Paris, using his power to carry out his personal vendettas. He believes that everything he does is in the name of God, even as he attacks the cathedral of Notre Dame. He comes to lust for the beautiful Esmerelda, but even blames his own lust for her on witchcraft and the devil rather than accept that he himself is committing crimes and sins. His lust drives him muderously insane, which ultimately proves to be his downfall when he pushes Quasimodo too far by almost killing Esmeralda.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame
At the film's beginning, Frollo ambushes a group of gypsies entering Paris illegally and chases one of them to Notre Dame where he kills her. However, he discovers that the gypsy's "stolen good" was actually her deformed baby son, whom he prepares to kill but for the intervention of the Archdeacon, who reprimands Frollo for killing an innocent woman and tells him that the only way to make up for his sin is to raise the boy as his own son, to which he begrudgingly agrees. Frollo names the boy "Quasimodo" (literally "Near-perfect mode" or "Half-formed"), and raises him in the Cathedral, hidden from the outside world, constantly teaching him that he would be considered an ugly and hideous monster by the cruel outside world.

20 years later, Frollo summons Captain Phoebus to aid him in his war with the gypsies, and at the same time, Quasimodo begins to rebel Frollo's strict actions. He attends the Feast of Fools, where he becomes enamoured of Esmeralda, a gypsy performing at the festival, but when Quasimodo is crowned King of Fools and then humiliated by the crowd, Frollo refuses to help him in order to teach him a lesson. Esmeralda openly defies Frollo for his cruelty, and in retaliation, Frollo orders her arrested. She escapes into the Cathedral, where he corners her and tells her that he will arrest her if she dares to leave. However, Quasimodo helps her escape. Frollo gets wind of this and orders a city-wide manhunt for Esmeralda, at the same time hunted by the lust he feels for her.

As Frollo nears insanity, Phoebus defies him and is ordered killed, although Esmeralda rescues him. Frollo eventually tricks Quasimodo into leading him to the gypsy hideout, the Court of Miracles, and plans to have Esmeralda executed the next day. Frollo succumbs to his desires and offers Esmeralda one last chance to live as his mistress, but she refuses and he orders her executed. Seeing Esmeralda suffering finally snaps Quasimodo and he openly defies Frollo, rescuing Esmeralda and pouring molten copper onto the streets of Paris, keeping anyone from entering the Cathedral. Frollo manages to enter and finds Quasimodo crying over Esmeralda's unconscious body. Frollo attempts to stab Quasimodo from behind, but Quasimodo retaliates and nearly kills Frollo in his rage. As Frollo goes for Esmeralda, Quasimodo takes her to the balconies and fights Frollo. During the fight, Frollo reveals to Quasimodo that he killed his mother, and eventually, the two fall from the Cathedral balcony. While Quasimodo is caught in mid-air by Phoebus, Frollo falls to his death.

Difference from the original
Frollo was very different in the original novel. He was far more compassionate, caring, and tragic, as well as significantly less villianous in the original novel. As the archdeacon of Notre Dame in the original novel, he took Quasimodo in willingly as his own son when his mother abandoned him in the book (instead of Frollo just killing her himself like in the Disney film) and named him after Quasimodo Sunday instead of his disfigurement. He even helped Quasimodo develop some sort of sign language after the latter became deaf from becoming the bellringer. He only becomes the villain when Esmerelda enters the picture. His lust drives him insane much like in the Disney version. The only difference at this point was that Frollo actually succeeded at killing Esmeralda just before Quasimodo throws him off of Notre Dame, killing him.

House of Mouse
Frollo makes a few cameos in the series. He appears in Mickey's House of Villains but not as one of the villains that takes over.

Disney Parks
Frollo appears occasionally as a meetable character.

Frollo also appears in the Disney's Hollywood Studios version of Fantasmic! along with the other villains. He is defeated b the power of Mickey's imagination.

Kingdom Keepers
Frollo appears in the fourth book, Power Play. He is seen in Disney's Hollywood Studios where he attempts to drown Willa.

Kingdom Hearts
Frollo is more than likely to appear in Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance as a villain and a boss, since a world based on The Hunchback of Notre Dame is slated to appear in the game.

Trivia

 * The Nostalgia Critic listed Frollo as Number 4 on his "Top 11 Disney Villians" list. His song "Hellfire" was listed as Number 1 on his "Top 11 Villain Songs". His female counterpart, The Nostalgia Chick, listed Frollo as Number 2 on her "Top 10 Evil Nostalgia Characters" list.
 * Despite being a "human", Frollo ranks as one of the most evil Disney villains due to his personality, xenophobic hate, immense political power and above-the-law status.
 * Frollo is placed 10th on the Ultimite Disney.com's Disney Villain countdown.
 * Frollo is very similar to Mother Gothel in Tangled in the sense of not letting his "ward" leave his/her home for his own benefits.
 * The way Frollo tells Quasimodo that he killed his mother is quite similar to how Scar reveals that he killed Mufasa to Simba at the end of The Lion King (1994), given how they do not reveal it until they believe they are about to kill their respective foes, only to arouse their foes' rage and lead to their own deaths.
 * The way that Frollo burns the miller's family house with them still inside is similar to how Nihilus from The Storykeepers burns Ben's bakery with Helena, Justin, Cyrus and Marcus still in it. However, there is one similarity and two differences: the similarity that the latter that would be burned alive were saved at the last minute. The first difference is that Frollo burned the miller's family's house at once while Nihilus gave Ben until sunset to come out into the open or his bakery would burn with Helena and the 3 boys still in it. The second difference is that Phoebus saved the miller's family by breaking them out of the house while Antonius's men mined their way into the bakery and saved Helena and the boys by pulling them into the catacombs of Rome before the fire and smoke could inflame their lungs.