Every Main Character In Strange World Ranked Worst To Best

Warning: This article contains spoilers for the movie "Strange World."

"Strange World" tests the bonds of love and the importance of family through a sci-fi adventure. Director Don Hall and writer/co-director Qui Nguyen have sculpted an extraordinary world full of bizarre creatures. In crafting such a magnificent world, the creative team sought out pulp fiction and films like "The Matrix," approaching the environment with an eye toward flipping expectations. Instead of crafting your usual landscapes littered with trees and rocks, production designer Mehrdad Isvandi wanted to bring a sense of whimsy and playful colors to the screen. In the way Isvandi uses "every color except green ... our brains don't know how to feel." Isvandi adds, "We challenged ourselves to design a world that felt otherworldly yet grounded and relatable, and also not too beautiful to be distracting."

With a voice cast that includes Jake Gyllenhaal, Lucy Liu, and Dennis Quaid, "Strange World" manages to plant the exaggerated world in a timeless era. Its themes — from family to teenage crushes — weave through the unique story but feel as though they could relate to anyone, anywhere. It's that universal appeal that makes the film pulse with heart and warmth. The story follows the Clades, a family of farmers and explorers, who must forge deep within the earth to figure out why their crops are suffering. Along their journey, they learn how to trust one another, what love really means, and how to let go of the past. Below, we've ranked the core cast of characters, and it's time to buckle up for the ride.

Jaeger Clade (Dennis Quaid) is an explorer and the manliest of men. He's been on a mission his entire life to scale the mountains surrounding Avalonia and discover a new land. His obsession comes at the cost of his relationship with his son Searcher (Jake Gyllenhaal), who has no ambitions to follow in his father's footsteps. Jaeger is a curmudgeon and never falters when it comes to what he wants.

On an expedition with Searcher, Callisto (Lucy Liu), and others, Jaeger ignores his son's pleas not to venture further into the snow-bound mountains. When Searcher discovers a new plant, Jaeger splits from the group. He climbs a nearby ridge and disappears. Decades later, he becomes a ruler over a subterranean labyrinth located deep in the earth below Avalonia. He lives as a primal human, removed from society and any stable way of life.

Jaeger is the most frustrating character of the bunch. He's so stuck in his ways that it appears he doesn't care about Searcher at all. It's only when the chips are down that he eventually comes around, but it takes the entire runtime for that to happen. Searcher wanting to carve out his own path brings up long-buried anger and resentment. When he reveals the human being behind the facade — that he's fearful of being stuck in life and who he would be without exploration — you come to a greater understanding of who he is. Still, he's a tough nut to crack.

Years after the ill-fated expedition, Callisto rises in the ranks of Avalonia and eventually becomes the president. She exudes leadership and quick-thinking skills, often going off of instinct to guide her hand. When the pando crops begin to suffer from an unknown source, she initiates a brand new expedition to travel to the heart of the pando roots to find out what's going on. Her bravery should certainly be commended, but like Jaeger, when she sets her sights on something, it's difficult to get her to see another perspective.

She firmly believes the ginormous pando plant to be in danger, and why would she know any differently? Pando, a plant generating its own electricity, has supplied Avalonians with their way of life. Their fate relies completely on the pando plant's survival. Possessing a courageous spirit, Callisto leads Searcher and the team down into the earth and follows the system of roots to the heart.

When it's revealed that the underground world is actually a living, breathing creature and that the pando roots are actually killing it, Searcher attempts to change Callisto's mind. But she won't hear of it. She's on a mission and nothing can change her mind. She's nothing if not reliable, but her loyalty and commitment are her biggest Achilles' heels.

Splat is the most unlikely of heroes. A gooey creature in the colorful underworld (think Slimer from "Ghostbusters"), Splat crosses paths with Ethan (Jaboukie Young-White), Searcher's adventurous son. It initially displays a charming persona but quickly reveals its sinister intentions. It whips out Searcher's lost handkerchief and lures Ethan to his death, alerting bigger, more carnivorous creatures out of their home.

When Ethan tends to a wound caused by pando pods, Splat has a change of heart. He immediately tries to save Ethan but is completely outmatched. Fortunately, Jaeger flies out of nowhere and uses a flamethrower against the horde of creatures. Splat and Ethan make quite the pair, their dynamic together being the best part of the whole film.

Things quickly escalate in the third act. As the expedition team draws nearer to their destination, a vat of swirling acid threatens to burn through their vessel. But thanks to Splat, who communicates with the other creatures, they're able to safely cross to the other side. One perilous situation down, many more to come. Splat is both essential to the story and supplies great comic relief. Its gags are some of the best in animation you'll see all year, including a scene in which the group is playing a card game called Primal Outpost. Splat sticks a bunch of cards to its body and walks around, all hoity-toity. Also, one of its frequent attributes is slapping new friends. It's hilarious the first time — and every single time after that.

Meridian is the real MVP. She's a natural-born leader whose pilot skills come in quite handy during the expedition. When Duffle dies amidst an early attack, she takes over the reins and navigates the ship further along the root network. She is intensely loyal to her family and would die for them. In fact, there are three things she loves in life: family, the farm, and flying (in that order).

One of the most compelling aspects of the film is her relationship with her son Ethan. She pushes him to explore the things he wants and desires in life. Particularly, she encourages him to understand the emotions surrounding why he feels the way he does. Meridian loves her husband, but she knows that her son wanting to carve out his own path is of utmost importance. It's not about what Searcher wants or even feels. By her nature, she's insightful and instinctual. When things hit the fan, she's a fierce warrior and buckles down, doing what needs to be done. And she never wavers in the face of danger. She looks it squarely in the eye (perhaps quite literally) and says: Go ahead. Make my day.

Two threads in the film revolve around one's legacy and ending past cycles. Jaeger is an explorer and wants to hand down his legacy to his son, so he too can forge ahead with his own. But Searcher doesn't want that. He has other interests. He wants to be a farmer, and he resents his father for always putting adventure before his family. During an expedition as a young teen, Searcher discovers a pando plant that harbors its own power source. He harvests one of the plants and ventures back home, where he becomes crucial in bringing Avalonia into modern times. They now have become self-sustainable.

Years later, he has made quite a comfy life for himself and his family. His father's disappearance hangs over his head, however. Even if he doesn't talk about it, there's still pain coursing through his mind. He's never been able to accept what happened, nor has he been able to forgive himself. He and Meridian have a son named Ethan, who could not be more different but also the same.

Searcher broke past cycles only to start them up again. He's overbearing in the way he communicates with his son, and you can tell he does it out of love. He wants what is best, but his approach leaves much to be desired. He could learn to give Ethan some space to figure things out on his own, and he eventually does. It just takes a life-or-death expedition to do it.

The first openly gay character for Disney Animation Studios, Ethan is not like his father. He has an adventurous spirit and wants to explore beyond the mountains. It's through their expedition to the pando's heart that he learns exactly how much he has in common with his grandfather Jaeger. They may have never known each other, yet their spirits seem intertwined. It's not that Ethan doesn't care about the farm or his father, but he simply wants the freedom to find his place in the world.

While forging through the subterranean wilderness, Ethan befriends a sticky little creature he names Splat. He sees the good in people (and things), so he's totally oblivious to the fact the creature has ill intentions. When Splat burns one of its tentacles on a pando pod, Ethan wraps his father's handkerchief around the wound, which causes Splat to see Ethan as a good, caring person. And he is; he's compassionate and feels things deeply.

Speaking of which, he has a crush on Diazo (Jonathan Melo) but can't seem to tell him how he feels. Diazo appears in a brief scene but he's essential to Ethan's journey to self-actualization. Ethan struggles with his feelings, in general, turning to Jaeger and then his mother to figure out what he wants in life. He comes to a greater understanding of himself, and I'd like to think he finally tells Diazo how he feels and they live happily ever after. It's what we deserve.