Nick Wilde

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

- Nick Wilde to Judy

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

Background
As a child residing in Zootopia with his mother, Nick had a dream of joining the local Junior Ranger Scouts, for the goal of receiving genuine acceptance. Though he appeared to have been welcomed by the fellow young members, this was not truly the case. Upon "initiation", Nick was ridiculed, savagely beaten, made fun of and muzzled by the other scouts, as a result of being a fox (and the only predator present), which are considered amongst the most untrustworthy and vile species of mammals in Zootopia. After running outside to escape his tormentors, Nick broke down in tears, developing a triggering fear of muzzles and dislike towards prey 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. He additionally decided that, if the world viewed foxes as nothing more than sly scoundrels, he should not only accept it, but embrace it, subsequently doing so by becoming a successful con man.

Nick appears to be well-off by the start of the film, having made $200 a day since the age of 12 (though the accuracy of these claims is questionable), and often works and splits the day's earnings with his quick-tempered partner and fellow fox, Finnick.

Official Bio

 * 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.

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 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 all of whom he came across. Furthermore, his past resulted in the fox no longer caring for 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, despite the world's viewpoints, 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 also sympathetic towards those who experience prejudice, as he did in the past. Witnessing, firsthand, the trials and tribulations that Judy Hopps 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 care about.

However, Nick's admiration and love for Judy would also act as his weakness, bringing about his vulnerability, once more, 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, 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 high collar and pants with a gold chain and sewn ZPD patches on her shoulders, along with having a darker tie and a belt filled with various paraphernalia. He's also shown wearing sunglasses.

Role in the film
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 fell 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 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 unwillingly 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 was 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 distraught 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. Nick comments that Judy must back down as she doesn't have a police warrant to enter the 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 price on his head for a business transaction gone wrong. Nick attempts to escape, only to find himself and Judy captured by Mr. Big's 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 alive.

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, which the latter commends, but before they can undergo further questioning, Manchas suddenly loses his sanity, turning savage, himself. Nick and Judy make a run for their lives, 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 former's ankle to a supporter, saving Nick's life; much to his surprise. Chief Bogo and his police force arrive on the scene, only to find that Manchas is nowhere to be found. Bogo accuses Judy of failure, and requests her badge. Nick views the cruelty from behind and steps in to defend Judy, calling out Bogo's bigotry and noting that she still has ten hours left to solve the case, forcing Bogo to stand down and allow the opportunity.

Nick and Judy take their leave on a gondola, where Judy thanks Nick for his compassion. Nick then takes to time to explain his rough childhood, his sympathy towards the oppressed, and the reasoning behind his conning lifestyle. He immediately regrets doing this, as he broke his vow to keep his vulnerability under wraps, and makes an attempt to change the subject. 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 camera systems, which are plugged into just about every area in each district, with Judy having the connections in City Hall that allows her to accomplish this.

Later that morning, they visit Bellwether, the assistant to Mayor Lionheart, who grants them access to the city's traffic cams. They find that Manchas was captured by wolves (the "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 brushes this off. Once the two head out, they eventually find an asylum heavily guarded by wolves, and filled with imprisoned predators who have fallen under the "savage" infection. The operation seems 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, protect his job. When discovered, Nick and Judy escape, and report their findings to Bogo, who arrives with his force 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, an 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, reuniting with Finnick and finding himself lounging about in solitude in his spare time. Suddenly, Judy 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 while, most importantly, hurting 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 then make their leave and track down Duke Weaselton for information. Duke had stolen flowers on Judy's second day in the city, and those flowers were linked to what causes animals to go savage. When Duke refuses to cooperate, the pair bring him before Mr. Big, who threatens to ice him unless he told them what they wanted to know. Duke reveals that the flowers were sold to a ram named Doug, who owns a lab hidden in the underground subway tunnels. Nick and Judy find Doug, and learn that the flowers have been used to create a serum that, when injected, will turn predators savage. Judy hijacks the lab (which is on a still-functional train) and tries to take the evidence to Bogo. Doug and other rams attack, but 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 minions 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 Bellwether's goons. There, Bellwether regains the dart gun and shoots Nick with the savage serum so that he would become feral and kill Judy. Bellwether subsequently calls Bogo to make it all look like another accident, but both Judy and Nick reveal to have gotten the best of Bellwether, as the bullet 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.

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. 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.

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.

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 will begin making appearances on Hollywood Boulevard at Disney California Adventure, staring in June of 2016.

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 in spring of 2016, Nick will appear alongside Judy during the ''Move It! Shake It! Dance & Play It!'' Street Party at the Magic Kingdom.

Judy Hopps
"You bunnies, so emotional."

- Nick Wilde to Judy Hopps

At the start of their partnership, Nick viewed Judy as a nuisance. He also mentioned to have noticed her canister of fox repellent when they first met, leading him to believe her to be a bigoted individual, which he detests. He spent their first few hours together, as accomplices, making attempts to rid himself of her grasp, though the fact that she was just as cunning made this a difficult task, and one that was never fully seen through. Their first interactions would contradict the stereotype, and one that Nick initially abided by, of the "dumb bunny and sly fox".

Over time, however, Nick would learn more about Judy and her persistence in cracking her first case, discovering that her will to prove herself on the force had been motivated by the prejudice given to her by her fellow officers at the police department, namely Chief Bogo. Nick personally related to this as he, too, had made attempts to join a team, to fit in, only to be scorned and shunned due to his species. With this in mind, he made it his goal to ensure Judy achieved her dream of proving her worth, going as far as to explain his backstory to her, believing she deserved to know the reasonings behind his ill treatment towards her at the start. This would be a significant moment for Nick, as he had once vowed to never expose his hidden vulnerability. Judy, in turn, would comfort Nick and push him to understand that he's more than what the world sees him as, and although he initially avoided acknowledging this, he was shown to have taken it to heart once Judy offers him the chance of becoming her partner on the police force. It was further revealed just how strongly he valued Judy and her friendship after the latter's unintentionally prejudice words against predators were given during a press conference, as he lamented to the bunny his feeling of betrayal, after the one individual in the world that had finally believed in him turned out to be as prejudice as everyone else. The fact that Nick filled out the application Judy gave him just moments ago, means he was more than happy to join the ZPD and become her partner.

Following their falling out, Nick didn't entirely forget Judy, having held onto her carrot pen the entire time of their separation. When she finally returned to reconcile, it didn't take long for him to forgive her, knowing that—after the heat of the confrontation had passed—her words and positive feelings towards him were genuine.

From that moment forward, Nick continued to treat Judy with love, care and support. He was unwilling to ever leave her side, even in the darkest of moments, such as their final confrontation with Bellwether, and subsequently accepted her offer of becoming an officer, and her partner, at the ZPD, proudly so. He was shown to have garnered a respect for her cleverness and ability to, now playfully, outsmart him, affectionately referring to her as a "sly bunny". With his realistic views on the world having influenced her in a positive light, Judy's optimism and self-righteous attitude influenced Nick, all the same, as he was now open to taking chances and making a difference in the world, firstly doing so by becoming the ZPD's first fox officer.

Finnick
Finnick is Nick's partner and closest friend. They regularly work together, pulling off cons across Zootopia as a means to make money at the start of the film. The two are vastly different in personality, with Nick being reserved and charming, while Finnick acts mostly on raw emotion. The two are nevertheless successful in their partnership, though they have been shown to constantly take shots at one another for their own amusement, when not working. When Judy blackmails Nick into helping her in a case, Finnick leaves Nick while laughing at his humiliation, though it appears that neither took that particular instance seriously, as they kept contact with one another following that event.

Behind their sassy remarks, their relationship appears to be a healthy one, as Finnick was willing to help Judy and Nick reconcile after their falling out, indicating that there is care between the two, though they simply express it in an unconditional way. After Nick becomes a cop, he can been seen eating a pawpsicle, further implying that their companionship remains by the end of the film.

Mr. Big
"I trusted you, Nicky. I welcomed you into my home. We broke bread together, Grandmama made you a cannoli. And how did you repay my generosity? With a rug made from the butt of a skunk. A skunk-butt rug. You disrespected me. You disrespected my grandmama, who I buried in that skunk-butt rug."

- Mr. Big talking about their history to Nick Wilde

Prior to the events of the film, Nick had a stable partnership with the powerful crime lord, Mr. Big, with the latter having grown significant fondness for the fox during these events, inviting him into his home, and even introducing him to his grandmother. However, Nick took advantage of Mr. Big's trust by selling him an expensive wool rug secretly made from the fur of a skunk's butt, and since that incident, Mr. Big grew a harsh disliking towards Wilde, threatening to kill him if he ever returned to his estate. Nick, meanwhile, grew to fear Big immensely.

Once the two crossed paths again during Judy's case, Mr. Big confronts Nick on his actions, expressing genuine feelings of hurt and betrayal, to which Nick silently responds to with apparent guilt. However, due to his association with Judy, who coincidentally saved the life of Big's daughter, Big's grudge against Wilde had lifted, and their friendly relationship was rekindled, with Big going as far as to invite Nick to Fru Fru's wedding reception, among other tokens of kindness.

Chief Bogo
When Nick first meets Bogo, he showed no feeling of intimidation, despite the cape buffalo being a generally feared and respected figure. He was quick to call the chief out on his bigotry, and was successful in putting the truth behind Bogo's prejudice into light. So much so, that Bogo was unable to argue against him. Nevertheless, like Judy, Nick's efforts during the Otterton case was enough for Bogo to accept the fox into his force, and the two have been shown to share a comradery amongst each other; one that amuses both Judy and the other officers.

Trivia

 * 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.
 * In the original Zootopia draft, Nick was the protagonist whilst Judy was the deuteragonist, however, their roles were later switched during production of the film.
 * His actor Jason Bateman, finished recording his voice 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.
 * According to Judy, Nick was committing tax evasion. Also, since Nick was lying on his tax forms, it's considered a federal offense which would lead to 5 years in jail.
 * According to Nick's job application for the police force, he is approximately 4 ft (1.2 m) tall and 80 lbs (36 kg) in weight.
 * Nick's tax forms shows personal information on him:
 * His phone number is 555-16-2234.
 * His address is 1955 Cypress Grove Lane.
 * He was committing tax evasion as his records were all zeros.
 * Aside from his name being true, it is unknown if his phone number and/or his address are false.
 * Nick's design was based on that of the titular character of Robin Hood, also an anthropomorphic fox.
 * Nick's last name, Wilde, is a play on the word "wild".
 * The pattern of Nick's shirt is similar to the wallpaper of his childhood home.
 * Since real-life red foxes are nocturnal and being in direct sunglight 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.
 * During renovations of the Walt Disney Animation Studios building, beginning in 2014, Nick was one of the character silhouettes featured on the wall mural.