Carl Fredricksen is the protagonist of Disney•Pixar's 2009 animated feature film Up. He is an old and cranky retired helium balloon salesman, and the widower of Ellie Fredricksen. He is voiced by the late Edward Asner, who also reprised the role in Dug Days and Carl's Date.
Background[]
Development[]
One of the stylization choices made for Up was that a square represented the past and a circle represented the future, the reason for Carl being box-shaped. After the death of his wife, Ellie, Carl has shut off the world around him and has sunk very low to the ground, like a brick. But the characters around him, which have curves, circles, and other shapes making up their figures, continue to change while Carl stays within the confinements of his "square".
Personality[]
As a little boy, Carl was shown to be imaginative, and greatly admired the famous adventurer Charles F. Muntz. He was also quite shy as seen when he first met Ellie, but was able to strike a friendship with her due sharing a love for adventure and idolizing Muntz.
Following Ellie's death, Carl became lonely, cranky, and bitter and misses his wife terribly, but became nicer with Russell's help.
Carl has the typical stubborn character of a man his age, but deep down he's a kind person but has his limits in patience and temper. He found Russell, Dug, and Kevin to be annoyances and obstructions in his goal to fulfill Ellie's dream of moving their home to Paradise Falls, but after he read her last message to him, he did what was right and saved Russell and Kevin, and accepted Dug as his dog.
When he lost his and Ellie's house, he was saddened, but realized Ellie would have done the same, stating "It's just a house".
Carl vouched for Russell at his ceremony and gave the young scout the very same soda bottle cap that Ellie gave him the day they met, having come to love Russell as the son, or perhaps grandson he never had.
Appearances[]
Up[]
In the late 1930s, young Carl Fredricksen was a shy, quiet boy who idolized renowned explorer Charles F. Muntz. One day, Carl befriended a tomboy named Ellie, who was also a Muntz fan. She confided to Carl her desire to move her "clubhouse" — an abandoned house in the neighborhood — to a cliff overlooking Paradise Falls and made him promise to help her. Carl and Ellie eventually got married and grew old together in the restored house, working in a zoo as a balloon vendor and a zookeeper, respectively.
After being informed that Ellie was infertile, they repeatedly pooled and budgeted their savings for a trip to Paradise Falls, but always ended up spending it on more pressing needs such as house damages and tire repair.
Just as Carl and Ellie, who were both senior citizens, finally seemed able to take their trip, Ellie contracted an illness and died, leaving Carl by himself, becoming bitter and cranky and missing his wife terribly. As the years passed, the city grew around Carl's old house with construction as he refused to move.
After confronting a construction worker over his broken mailbox, the court orders Carl to move into the Shady Oaks Retirement Home. Carl comes up with a scheme to keep his promise to Ellie: he uses his old professional supplies to create a makeshift airship, using 10,000 helium balloons, which lifts his house off its foundations. Russell, a young Wilderness Explorer (a fictional scouting organization), becomes an accidental passenger in an effort to earn his final merit badge for assisting the elderly.
After surviving a thunderstorm, the house lands near a ravine facing Paradise Falls. Carl and Russell harness themselves to the still-buoyant house and begin to walk it around the ravine, hoping to reach the falls before the balloons deflate. They later befriend a tall, colorful flightless bird whom Russell names "Kevin" who is trying to reach her chicks and a dog named Dug, who wears a special collar that allows him to speak.
Carl and Russell encounter a pack of dogs led by Alpha and are taken to Dug's master, who turns out to be an elderly Charles Muntz. Muntz invites Carl and Russell aboard his dirigible, where he explains that he has spent the years since his disgrace searching Paradise Falls for the giant bird. When Russell innocuously notes the bird's similarity to Kevin, Muntz becomes hostile, prompting the pair to flee with Kevin and Dug. Muntz eventually catches up with them and starts a fire beneath Carl's house by breaking his lantern, forcing Carl to choose between saving it or Kevin. Carl rushes to put out the fire, allowing Muntz to take the bird. Carl and Russell eventually reach the falls, but Russell is angry with Carl for breaking his promise by saving his house instead of Kevin.
Settling into his home, Carl looks through Ellie's childhood scrapbook, seeing that it actually has many more photos of their lives on it than he thought, and finds the last note from Ellie thanking him for the "adventure" and encouraging him to go on a new one. It was at that moment when Carl realized how foolish he had been. Reinvigorated, he goes to find Russell, only to see him sailing off on some balloons to save Kevin. Carl empties his house of furniture and possessions and pursues him.
Russell is captured by Muntz, but Carl manages to board the dirigible in flight and free both Russell and Kevin, having a fight with Muntz. Muntz pursues them around the airship, finally cornering Dug, Kevin, and Russell inside Carl's tethered house. Carl lures Kevin out through a window and back onto the airship with Dug and Russell clinging to her back, just as Muntz is about to close in. Muntz leaps after them, only to snag his foot on some balloon lines and fall to his death. Snapped from its tether, the house descends out of sight through the clouds, which Carl accepts as being for the best.
Carl and Russell reunite Kevin with her chicks, then fly the dirigible back to the United States. When Russell's father misses his son's Senior Explorer ceremony, Carl presents Russell with his final badge: the grape soda cap that Ellie gave to Carl when they first met, to the applause of Russell's mother in the audience. The two then enjoy some ice cream together, sitting on the curb outside the shop as Russell and his father used to do, with the dirigible parked nearby. Unbeknownst to Carl, the house is shown to have landed on the exact location beside the falls, fulfilling his promise to Ellie.
Dug's Special Mission[]
Carl and Russell only appear at the end of the short film where Dug is looking at a rock shaped like a turtle during the events where he and Russell arrive in the rocky area of Paradise Falls. After hearing the voice, Dug reunites with the two to find a new master for him after Alpha, Beta, and Gamma scold Dug for not capturing Kevin, the rare bird Muntz was to capture, as he finds two new masters to assist him. During the image where Dug speaks to Carl and Russell, the two are suddenly surprised that he is able to talk before the image cuts to black.
George and A.J.[]
Carl first appears telling nurses George and A.J. that he is ready to leave for his retirement at Shady Oaks. However, the two nurses notice there are lots of balloons on his house which floats over them as Carl bids them a farewell. The next day during morning news, a journalist tells the nurses to tell the public what they saw after mentioning that Carl was accused of harming a construction worker and now takes off with his house filled with balloons and indeed escaped.
Later during the events when Carl and Russell return with the Spirit of Adventure dirigible, he and Russell leave the dirigible while Russell tells him he would like to steer the dirigible's helm the next time they arrive.
Dug Days[]
Carl appears in the Disney+ short series with Dug, where they sold the Spirit of Adventure dirigible, so they could buy a house to live in.
Carl's Date[]
Carl makes his final speaking appearance in this short, due to the passing of Ed Asner back in 2021. In this short film, which is the finale in Dug Days, Carl reluctantly accepts a date with Ms. Meyers, who lives in a nursing home, but he immediately regrets it, as he doesn't know how dating works. He gets Dug to help him, but nothing works and Carl panicks. Eventually, Dug convinces him to just go on with the date and that Ms. Meyers will understand. This calms Carl down and he straightens himself up. Before leaving, he speaks to a photo of himself with Ellie, which was taken during their wedding. Talking to the photo, he tells Ellie that he is going on a new adventure. Carl then offers Dug to come along with him as a companion, to which the Golden Retriever agrees. Together, they leave the house to go to the Nursing home where Ms. Meyers live, so Carl can begin his date.
Video games[]
Disney Emoji Blitz[]
- “Tap left or right to bring Carl and Ellie's house to Paradise Falls!”
- ―Carl's Power description.
Carl appears as a Gold emoji, unlockable through the game's Gold Boxes. His Power has the player quickly perform a mini-game where they must tap the screen to land Carl's house upon the rocky cliffs of Paradise Falls. Carl is one of six different Up emoji the player must unlock / upgrade in order to complete the Up collection.
Disney Heroes: Battle Mode[]
- “Carl begrudgingly takes to the battlefield, ready to beat back enemies with his cane and yell at those who get in his way.”
- ―Carl's in-game Hero description.
Carl appears as a frontline Tank Hero, specializing in silencing enemies by yelling at them, spitting his dentures at opponents who get to close, and playing a game of catch with Dug. Like all characters, Carl has two unique Friendship Campaigns, each pairing him up with another Hero. His first, "Blustery Balloon", has him help Eeyore chase after a bundle of balloons which carried Winnie the Pooh away, while his second, "Mis-Adventure Awaits!", has him (and Olaf) recruited by Corey the Manticore on a quest to retrieve a legendary artifact. Additionally, Carl appears in the Friendship Campaigns for Russell & Kevin and Statler and Waldorf.
| Skill Type | Skill Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| White Skill | "Ball Chase" | Carl pulls a tennis ball off his cane and throws it past all enemies. Dug chases after the ball, dealing damage to all enemies. Any silenced enemies also get knocked back, have 300 Energy removed, and are stunned for 6 seconds. |
| Green Skill | "Hey You!" | Carl shouts at enemies, dealing damage to them and Silencing them for 9 seconds. Enemies also have 3 stacks of Fatigue applied to them. Fatigue blocks 1 buff from being applied and then is removed. |
| Blue Skill | "Cane Counter" | Once every 8 seconds, Carl blocks a melee attack with his cane and counters by spitting his dentures out at the enemy. The enemy takes damage and is Sapped for 8 seconds. |
| Purple Skill | "Nice and Quiet" | Carl takes 75% reduced damage from Silenced enemies. |
| Red Skill | "Another Adventure" | "Cane Counter" deals more damage and reduces the attacking enemy's Reality for 8 seconds. Carl also gains 150 Energy when he counters an enemy with "Cane Counter". Additionally, Carl gets a stat boost to his max HP, Reality, and the damage of "Hey You!" |
| Friendship Disk 1 | "Blustery Balloon" | Carl heals himself for an amount of his Max HP for each Silenced enemy Dug damages during "Ball Chase". Additionally, Carl gains a stat boost in Armor and Reality when equipping this disk. This disk is unlocked and upgraded through Carl's Friendship Campaign with Eeyore. |
| Friendship Disk 2 | "Glad I Cane" | Carl's Silence from "Hey You!" lasts a longer period of time. Additionally, Carl gains a stat boost to his Max HP, increases Skill Power for himself and his teammates, and enemies lose Reality while Silenced when equipping this disk. This disk is unlocked and upgraded through Carl's Friendship Campaign with the Manticore. |
Disney Parks[]
Disneyland Paris[]
Carl appears at the Walt Disney Studios Park as a walkaround character.
Disneyland[]
Carl appears on the Up float in the Pixar Play Parade following its 2018 refurbishment.
Tokyo Disneyland[]
Carl alongside Russel appear for the Up float in the Disney Harmony in Color Parade as part of the resort's 40th Anniversary Celebration.
Relationships[]
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- If Carl is 78 years old in 2009, and if he was 9 in 1939, then he was born between 1930 and 1931.
- Carl wore the same style of glasses at every age.
- He is also the first Pixar protagonist to wear glasses followed by Joe Gardner from Soul and Mei Lee From Turning Red.
- Carl's personality may be a reference to Shel Silverstein's The Giving Tree.
- To lift a house such as Carl's (and rip it loose from the utility pipes/cables anchoring it) would, in reality, require vastly more balloons than are shown.
- Also, an unpowered airship (such as Carl's house) would not be steerable; it would go wherever the wind goes.
- Although Carl doesn't have his own musical theme, Ellie's theme plays whenever he thinks about her, and also plays against Muntz's theme during the climax.
- Carl is the second oldest protagonist of a Pixar film, the oldest being WALL-E, as he has been "alive" for more than 700 years (the movie WALL-E takes place in 2805, and Up takes place in 2009 the year it was released).
- Carl is also the second Pixar protagonist to lose his love interest after Marlin from Finding Nemo.
- He is also the first Pixar protagonist to have more than one love interest.
- In an interview with the director of Up, Pete Docter, he has stated that the letter Andy has addressed from Carl and Ellie in Toy Story 3, was signed to person by the name of Emma Jean, who was Carl's previous love interest before Ellie, but are now close friends who frequently go out together.[1]
- While Carl bought tickets to Paradise Falls, he didn't make the trip, airplane tickets can be seen on his mantle.
- In an alternative opening, he met Ellie when he was about to trap a bird and Ellie would punch him then tell him to leave the birds alone. Also, during the montage when you watch them grow old together you would see the two playfully punching each other. Carl would notice something was wrong with Ellie when he was hiding in a place waiting to punch her and it took her a long time to get there. What remains of this opening was when Carl visited Ellie in the hospital, Ellie punched him.
- Carl’s voice actor, Ed Asner died on August 29, 2021 and the Disney+ original series, Dug Days, was his final performance, which is dedicated to his memory.
- There is a good chance Carl likes cats. In the intro to Dug Days, Carl is shown suggesting a bright colorful house covered in cats and cat related items during their house selection process.
- The surname "Fredricksen", a derivative from "Fredriksen", suggests Carl is from Norwegian descent. The name "Carl Fredriksen" was used as a code name for certain Norwegian operations during World War II, but this is completely unrelated to the character or his creation.
- He is the second Pixar protagonist to commit a crime and be sent to court, after Lightning McQueen. In addition, he is also the second protagonist to injure a public worker, after Mr. Incredible.
- It assumes that Carl stopped being a fan of Muntz after learning his true nature as a paranoid, bitter, and heartless person
- Carl (along with Dug) are the only characters in the Up Franchise to appear in every UP production.
- If Carl's Date is part of Dug Days then Russell would appear in all the productions to.
References[]
External links[]
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