Flower (skunk from Bambi)

Last updated
Flower
Bambi 3.jpg
Flower (right) first meeting his mate Petunia in the film Bambi.
First appearance
Created by Marc Davis
Voiced by
Species Skunk
SpousePetunia
ChildrenBambi, Buttercup, Primrose

Flower is a fictional striped skunk from Disney's animated feature Bambi (1942) and the midquel Bambi II (2006). He is an original character created for the film. [1]

Contents

In addition to the Bambi films, Flower has made several cameos in other Disney works, including animated series and films. Flower also appears in various forms (including merchandise) at Disney Parks and other retailers.

Flower is voiced by Stan Alexander, Tim Davis, and Sterling Holloway in the original film, Nicky Jones in Bambi II , and Roland Rubio in Lego Disney Princess: The Castle Quest . [2]

According to Disney animator and historian Andreas Deja, Flower was the first animal character that Marc Davis researched, studied, sketched, and animated before his work on Bambi and Thumper. [3]

In terms of Flower's personality and character, he is consistently timid, coy, and soft-spoken. As he matures from kit to adult skunk, Flower becomes a bit less bashful and a tad more masculine. Miscellaneous scholarly writings covering gender fluidity and misrecognition refer to Flower's evolving tendencies or mannerisms as an example. [4]

Appearances

Bambi filmography

Bambi (1942)

Thumper is teaching Bambi how to speak while exploring the forest. After learning bird and butterfly, Thumper shows Bambi a flower in a flower bed. Bambi sticks his head into the flowers and comes nose to nose with a baby skunk. Bambi, trying to impress Thumper, mistakenly calls the skunk a flower. While Thumper laughs hysterically, the bashful yet friendly skunk tells Thumper: "Oh, that's alright, he can call me a flower if he wants to. I don't mind." [5]

The following winter, Bambi and Thumper wake up Flower to join in on the fun. Flower declines and falls back asleep into hibernation.

Bambi II (2006)

The midquel covers Bambi's life after losing his mother until a young adult buck, including the relationship between him and his father, the Great Prince of the Forest, and efforts to earn his father's love and respect. [6]

Along with Thumper, Flower takes the time to teach Bambi how to be brave. While Bambi is trying to apply his learning of bravery, Flower reveals his chelonaphobia (fear of turtles). This fear was reinforced near the film's ending when he and his forest friends witness a turtle bite Ronno's nose. In hopes of more winter (and hibernating), Flower also joins his forest friends to watch the groundhog. [7]

When Man's pack of hunting dogs chases Bambi through the forest, Flower sprays one of them away on Thumper's command.

Additional TV and film appearances

Other appearances

Disney Theme Parks

Flower was a meet-and-greet character at Disneyland and at Walt Disney World until the late 1970s. [9]

Topiary of Flower at the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival Flower-epcot.png
Topiary of Flower at the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival

Since 2015 at the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival, Flower has his own topiary next to Bambi and Thumper. [10]

The scene of Flower meeting Bambi for the first time was included in the World of Color at Disneyland California Adventure. A pencil line drawing of the same scene is projected during Wondrous Journeys at Disneyland. [11]

Skunk awareness

Various wildlife sanctuaries and humane societies around the United States have named their rescued skunks "Flower" after the fictional character, to help educate the public about wildlife and domesticated skunks. [12] [13]

References

  1. ↑ "Consider the Source: "Bambi"". waltdisney.org. Walt Disney Family Museum. June 11, 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 "Flower Voices (Bambi)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved May 15, 2025. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
  3. ↑ Deja, Andreas (2016). "Marc Davis". The Nine Old Men: Lessons, Techniques, and Inspiration from Disney's Great Animators (1st ed.). CRC Press. ISBN   978-0-203-75661-4.
  4. ↑ Mastrostefano, Stephanie (2013). "Gender and Ideology in Disney's Beast Fables". Honors Projects Overview. 85. Rhode Island College. Archived from the original on 2023-11-09. Retrieved 2025-06-13.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  5. ↑ Seifrit-Griffin, Stacie (April 11, 2024). "Showers bring Disney's Flower…". Library of Congress.
  6. ↑ Lawson, Corrina (Sep 2011). "Bambi II: Less Scary but Less Memorable Than the Original". Wired .
  7. ↑ "Bambi II - Synopsis". afi.com. American Film Institute . Retrieved 22 March 2025.
  8. ↑ Reif, Alex (October 16, 2023). "Disney's "Once Upon a Studio" – List of Characters in Order of Appearance". Laughing Place.
  9. ↑ "Back in 1979, Thumper and Flower from "Bambi" enjoyed the flowers at Magic Kingdom Park". x.com. Disney Parks. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
  10. ↑ Smith, Thomas (22 May 2024). "21 Disney Topiaries Taking Art Form to the Next Level". disneyparksblog.com. Disney Parks.
  11. ↑ Davis-Friedman, Samantha (29 Jan 2023). "'Wondrous Journeys' music tells the story of Disney animation". Attractions Magazine.
  12. ↑ "Critter Tales - Striped Skunk". youtube.com. City of Lake Wales Critter Tales. 30 Apr 2025.
  13. ↑ Rivard, Leah (27 Oct 2021). "Flower the Skunk hopes to educate locals about the species". news8000.com. WKBT.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.