Taran (Disney)

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Taran is the main protagonist in Disney's 25th full-length animated feature film The Black Cauldron. He is a farm boy who dreams of becoming a warrior. When his pig, Hen Wen, gets kidnapped, he comes to rescue her. He is also in love with Princess Eilonwy.

He was voiced by Grant Bardsley.

Appearance[]

Taran is a slender and handsome young boy with fair skin, red hair, and green eyes. He wears a green vest, a yellow long-sleeved shirt, green pants and brown boots.

Personality[]

Taran is headstrong and courageous, though occasionally foolhardy, and harbors an intense desire to prove his worth and heroism through noble acts. Indeed, much of the movie centers on Taran's search for his own worth.

Biography[]

The rest of Taran's past remains unknown, but what is known is that when he was just a young boy, he was a foundling discovered by Dallben, a farmer who is also an enchanter, who took the young boy under his wing and let him stay in his home. As Taran grew up, he became restless and longed for adventures beyond the borders of Caer Dallben.

His time would eventually come when, just after being granted the position of Assistant Pig Keeper for Hen Wen (or Pig Boy for short), Dallben's oracular pig, the animal escapes her enclosure, Taran swiftly follows him throughout the forest, but after a wild chase he soon loses sight of the pig, he does however meet a strange anthropomorphic creature named Gurgi who fortunately tells him he knows where Hen Wen is, Taran is delighted at first, but is soon fades into fear & horror where he saw where Hen Wen ran of to; A scary-looking dark castle with a mountainous region around it.

Determined to save the pig (while also seeing this as the "great adventure he was dreaming about) Taran boldly but foolishly marches right towards the castles gates, only to be caught & brought before the castles master, a wicked emperor wizard appropriately named The Horned King, who wants to use Hen Wen's oracle powers to find a magical dark artifact called The Black Cauldron to use for his own gain, but when Taran refuses to tell him how it works, he has his assistant Creeper threaten to execute her before throwing him in his dungeon.

Fortunately, Taran is rescued by another prisoner named Princess Eilonwy and leads him down a secret escape tunnel. In the catacombs, Taran and Eilonwy discover the ancient burial chamber of a king. Taran arms himself with the king's sword, which contains magic that allows him to fight the Horned King's minions. Along with a third prisoner, comical bard Fflewddur Fflam, they escape and are found by Gurgi. The Horned King sends the Gwythaints to capture Taran and his friends.

Following Hen Wen's trail, the group stumbles into the underground kingdom of the Fair Folk, who have Hen Wen under their protection. When the kindly King Eidilleg reveals the cauldron's location, Taran decides to destroy it. Eidilleg's obnoxious right-hand man Doli is assigned to lead the friends to the Marshes of Morva while the Fair Folk escort Hen Wen back to Dallben. At Morva, they learn the cauldron is held by three witches—leader Orddu, greedy Orgoch, and benevolent Orwen. Orddu agrees to trade the cauldron for Taran's sword and he reluctantly agrees. The witches then reveal the cauldron is indestructible, and its power can only be broken when someone willingly climbs into it, which will kill them. Taran feels foolish for trading the sword for nothing but his companions show their belief in him. They are captured by the Horned King's minions and Gurgi flees. The Horned King uses the cauldron to raise the dead and his Cauldron-born army begins to pour out into the world.

Gurgi, deciding not to abandon his friends this time, rescues them. When they arrive at the Cauldron, Taran decides to jump into the cauldron to save everyone, but Gurgi jumps in instead, killing the Cauldron-born as well as himself. The cauldron loses control and begins consuming anything within its vicinity. Taran is confronted by the enraged Horned King, who attempts to sacrifice him to the Cauldron. Failing to escape, the Horned King is dragged in and violently ripped apart and devoured by the Cauldron, which destroys the castle.

The three witches come to recover the now-inert Black Cauldron. Taran has finally realized Gurgi's true friendship, and asks them to revive his friend in exchange for the cauldron, choosing to give up his sword permanently. The witches honor the request and Gurgi is resurrected, much to everyone's joy. Taran and Eilonwy kiss and the four friends journey back home to Dallben. Dallben and Doli watch them in a vision created by Hen Wen, and Dallben finally praises Taran for his heroism.