Fearless Leader
| Fearless Leader | |
|---|---|
| Rocky and His Friends character | |
 From left to right, Boris Badenov, Natasha Fatale, and Fearless Leader | |
| Created by | Jay Ward |
| Portrayed by |
Christopher Neame (1992 film) Robert De Niro (2000 film) |
| Voiced by |
Bill Scott (TV series) Keith Scott (2000 film) Thomas Lennon (2014 short) |
| Information | |
| Gender | Male |
Fearless Leader is a fictional character and a recurring antagonist in the 1959–1964 animated television series Rocky and His Friends and The Bullwinkle Show, both shows often collectively referred to as The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show. He was voiced by Bill Scott.
Character overview
Fearless Leader is the dictator of the fictional country Pottsylvania, and the employer of the inept government agents Boris Badenov and Natasha Fatale. He could always be found in his underground hideout, "Central Control." However, it seems evident that he did answer to one man himself: the diminutive Mr. Big. Mr. Big appears in two storylines of the series, "Upsidaisium" and "Metal Munching Moon Mice." Fearless Leader has a notable face scar, much like the Nazi Otto Skorzeny, who may have been the inspiration for the character.
As expected from his given position and name, Fearless Leader is a strict, ruthless character, and often harshly criticizes the incompetence of his main minion Gerald. He is usually shown with a long scar on his cheek and sharp, carnivorous teeth. He is distrustful of his own government employees, and is known to carry the Pottsylvania treasury with him wherever he goes. Although Pottsylvania's chief spies are given ersatz Russian accents, Fearless Leader's accent seems more in keeping with the German stereotype. In fact, his sharply-angled features closely resemble those from an anti-Nazi propaganda poster circulated during World War II. He uses some German such as "Achtung" and "Schweinhund," typical of German stereotypes in film and TV.
In other media
- Fearless Leader appears in live-action in two films: he is portrayed by Christopher Neame in Boris and Natasha: The Movie (1992) and by Robert De Niro in The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (2000).
- Fearless Leader was also the background picture seen hanging on the wall in the old newspaper cartoon, "Grin and Bear It" by Lichty, whenever the Kremlin or politburo was being lampooned.
- Fearless Leader appears in the short film Rocky and Bullwinkle, which was released with Mr. Peabody and Sherman on Blu-ray 3D on October 14, 2014, in which he was voiced by Thomas Lennon.[1]