Introduction

Throughout the 20th century, toga movies were produced en masse and made the genre quite successful with their big budgets and A-list actors who helped put ancient Rome on the silver screen. The enduring popularity of toga movies in Hollywood, however, eventually declined toward the end of the 1970s. When Hercules came out in 1999, Disney reignited the flame for ancient Greek and Roman films. Stereotypes in the toga movies we have seen made before 1999 have been subject to ridicule and appear to weaken the favorability of the film for viewers who are knowledgeable about ancient Greek and Roman history. I will be arguing that the many stereotypes in Hercules are what make this film great. In looking at the costumes, Hercules follows common tropes and stereotypes of how ancient Greeks should look in order to meet audience expectations. This can be seen with the gladiator-style wardrobe of Hercules, who dons strappy leather laced sandals and the classic pleated warrior-skirt. The women of Hercules, like Meg, wear revealing togas, sandals, and elaborate updo-hairstyles. Similarly, the set of Hercules does a great job at establishing the setting and reminding viewers that it takes place in Greece, not Rome, through depictions of the Greek countryside's natural landscapes, art, and architecture. A strong attention to detail led to the incorporation of traits of Greek culture like the meandros design pattern to separate itself from Rome. The movie incorporates other stereotypes as well, and in masterful ways that add value to the film instead of detracting from it. For example, the music in Hercules adopts stereotypes about Africans and their role in the ancient world, but positively subverts it. Hercules perpetuates the trope that Africans serve as entertainers through the performances of the Muses, but for once avoids harmful representations of African culture like wearing jungle-animal fur and parading around for white audiences. In this paper I will present that though Hercules is riddled with stereotypes, they work together to improve the film and make it something great.