Elastigirl

This article is about the character from The Incredibles. For the DC Comics superheroine, see Elasti-Girl.

Helen Parr Elastigirl / Mrs. Incredible
The Incredibles character
Helen Parr / Elastigirl as seen in Incredibles 2
First appearance	The Incredibles (2004)
Created by	Brad Bird
Voiced by	Holly Hunter (2004–present) E. G. Daily (video game) Ally Johnson (Lego The Incredibles)
In-universe information
Full name	Helen Parr (née Truax)
Alias	Elastigirl Mrs. Incredible
Occupation	Superhero Housewife
Spouse	Bob Parr
Children	Violet Parr (daughter) Dash Parr (older son) Jack-Jack Parr (younger son)
Abilities	Superhuman elasticity Shapeshifting

Helen Parr (née Truax), also known as Elastigirl or Mrs. Incredible, is a fictional character in Pixar's The Incredibles franchise. A superhero possessing superhuman elasticity, she is able to stretch and contort her body to extreme lengths and shapes. The wife of Bob Parr (Mr. Incredible) and mother of Violet, Dash, and Jack-Jack, she first appears in the animated film The Incredibles (2004), where she and her family emerge from government-mandated retirement to battle the supervillain Syndrome. In its sequel, Incredibles 2 (2018), she is recruited to lead a public relations campaign in relegalizing superheroes, while a new villain attempts to tarnish their reputation permanently.

The character was created by the film's screenwriter and director, Brad Bird, who gave her elasticity to symbolize the multitasking demands placed on mothers. Animators used a layered rig system and custom deformation tools to animate her stretching abilities. One of the most significant challenges for the animators, she was the most complex rig Pixar had used up to that point. For the sequel, which shifts focus to Helen, technological advancements made in the 14 years since the original film granted more complex animation of her stretching, hair, and clothing, while the writers also made a concerted effort to humanize her character. She is voiced by actress Holly Hunter.

Helen received a positive response from film critics, who praised her characterization and the animation of her superpowers. Hunter's performance was similarly acclaimed, with some publications ranking it among the strongest voice acting performances in an animated film. The character's portrayal prompted a range of reactions concerning themes of feminism, gender roles, and working women across both films, with commentary ranging from praise to criticism. Helen has been recognized by multiple publications as one of Pixar's greatest characters and one of fiction's most notable on-screen mothers, while critics have discussed her role in relation to the scarcity of lead female superheroes in the superhero film genre.

Following the release of the sequel, Helen's exaggerated figure became a topic of widespread media discussion. Some commentators viewed her full-bodied appearance as a positive representation of women's bodies in animation, while others expressed concern that the character was being sexualized in a film primarily aimed at children. The character's likeness has been used in various tie-in media and merchandise.

Role

Helen Parr first appears in The Incredibles (2004) as Elastigirl, a superhero with superhuman elasticity. Following the government's ban on superheroes due to a series of accidents and lawsuits, she marries fellow superhero Bob Parr (Mr. Incredible) and retires into civilian life. The couple has three children, Violet, Dash, and Jack-Jack, and insists that they conceal their own powers to remain hidden among society. While Bob struggles with the loss of his superheroic identity, Helen adapts to domesticity as a housewife easier than her family, but becomes increasingly concerned by Bob's aloofness as he secretly resumes hero work. Suspicious of his behavior, Helen consults costume designer Edna Mode, who reveals Bob's actions and location, restores her confidence, and outfits her with a new super suit. She tracks Bob to Nomanisan Island, where she infiltrates the base of Syndrome (Buddy Pine), a crazed former superfan of Mr. Incredible's who turns against him after he dismisses him as a child. Unbeknownst to her, Violet and Dash stowaway aboard her chartered jet; it is destroyed by Syndrome's missiles but they survive. After reuniting with Bob on the island, the family is captured but manages to escape and return to Municiberg, where they defeat Syndrome’s final Omnidroid. Back home, Syndrome attempts to abduct Jack-Jack, but the baby unexpectedly manifests powers and escapes. Helen catches Jack-Jack midair by transforming into a parachute, while Syndrome is ultimately killed when his own cape is caught in his aircraft. The film ends three months later, with the family preparing to confront a new threat, the Underminer.

In Incredibles 2 (2018), Helen is recruited by telecommunications moguls, siblings Winston and Evelyn Deavor, to lead a public relations campaign aimed at restoring public support for superheroes, who remain outlawed after a failed mission involving the Underminer. Chosen over Bob due to her lower history of collateral damage, Helen becomes the public face of the movement and undertakes solo missions designed to demonstrate the value of superheroes, while Bob remains home with the children. During one of these missions, she encounters a mysterious villain called the Screenslaver, who uses hypnotic signals transmitted through screens to control others. Helen eventually discovers that Evelyn is the Screenslaver, motivated by a belief that society's dependence on superheroes contributed to her parents’ deaths. Evelyn captures Helen and Bob and attempts to sabotage the campaign by hijacking a luxury ship and crashing it into the city. Helen is ultimately freed by her children, helps stop the ship, and apprehends Evelyn during her attempted escape, after rescuing her.

Development

Creation

Screenwriter and director Brad Bird pitched The Incredibles to Pixar as a scenario where a superhero family is forced to live as civilians in a witness relocation program. While the father is stuck reliving his past, the mother, Helen, embraces their new life to the point where she has severed "a certain part of herself that is still alive ... she thinks that she’s not missing anything, but it turns out that she is a little bit". Bird said that, by the end of The Incredibles, Helen "has no intention of slowing down ever, and is rediscovering and reawakening that side of her". He created Helen as a tribute to "the typical modern-day mom", and cited his own wife as a source of inspiration for the character. Wanting the family's powers to symbolize typical nuclear family roles, he gave Helen elasticity to represent mothers who are constantly "juggling a million things and [being] pulled in a million directions".

Originally, the script included a scene where Helen defends her decision to be a stay-at-home mother from a businesswoman who openly mocks the term. It was inspired by interactions Bird's wife had with her peers when she had first decided to be a homemaker and found that several people reacted dismissively. The scene was storyboarded but cut when the writers decided to open the film by introducing Helen and Bob as younger superheroes instead of a normal couple. One of the earliest ideas Bird had conceived for the film was when Helen notices her reflection after breaking into a supervillain's lair, and wearily acknowledges the weight she has gained since last donning a supersuit. Bird said this demonstrates some of the mundane, relatable feelings the titular family struggles with despite their extraordinary talents. Although there were some concerns that this moment would unintentionally undermine or sexualize the character, most of the crew understood Bird's intentions to make her more interesting, flawed, and relatable. Pixar had asked Bird to rewrite an argument between Helen and Bob because they feared it looked like she was being bullied by her husband. Instead of changing any dialogue, the director had Helen stretch to meet Bob's height to visually establish that "she’s not intimidated by him, she’s just as tough as he is", and possibly hints at one of many reasons Bob loves her.

In earlier drafts of the film, Bird had intended for Helen's friend, pilot Snug Porter, to fly her to Nomanisan Island himself, only to be killed when the plane is attacked to emphasize the ruthlessness of the villains. Executive producer John Lasseter suggested that Helen fly the plane herself, which Bird protested, knowing he could not kill off Helen. Eventually, Snug became too reliant on exposition at the expense of central characters and was ultimately reduced to a telephone conversation. Another discarded character, Xerek, had originally been envisioned as an ex-boyfriend of Helen's and the film's antagonist. He was written out and replaced by Syndrome, removing the ex-boyfriend subplot. Since the film's head of story was a military enthusiast, Bird made sure Helen's aviation terminology was authentic. Helen's call sign for her jet, India Golf Niner-Niner (IG99), is a reference to the animated film The Iron Giant (1999), which Bird also wrote and directed.

The writers were challenged to create dozens of unique, meaningful names for their superheroes. Because the character shares her name and some abilities with the DC Comics superheroine Elasti-Girl, Pixar made an arrangement with DC's parent company, Warner Bros., to use the name "Elastigirl" in The Incredibles. According to comic book historian Peter Sanderson, DC had possibly neglected to renew the name's trademark, unintentionally allowing Disney to use it in the film.

Characterization and animation

Bird based much of Helen's personality on his own wife and mother, who he described as strong women "that will face down anybody". He described Helen as more emotionally developed than Bob, having transitioned from superhero to civilian easier. According to the director, she, unlike Bob, considers herself to be a parent and wife first and foremost over a crime-fighter. According to Hunter, Helen possesses "total fearlessness" as a superhero, but also "a very strong, protective instinct" that extends to both her children and civilians. As the first Pixar film with an all-human cast, The Incredibles posed several unprecedented computer animation challenges. Bird prioritized the human characters feeling real over looking real, and maintains that Helen uses scientifically accurate "physics when [she] stretches, even though it's physically impossible". Deciding each character should move differently from each other, Bird said Helen's "buttery movements ... suggest that she could fit into any situation". Each member of the Parr family is based on a geometric shape, with Helen resembling a heart. Animator Lou Romano found designing her in a believable manner that showed her as both maternal and heroic to be challenging. Incredibles 2 producer Nicole Paradis Grindle, who had worked as a simulation manager on the first film, specifically requested that Helen's second supersuit consist of tights to better reflect women favoring less revealing clothing as they age, and referenced her own body to inform the character's design.

Her character model was built in Maya, rigged and animated using Pixar's proprietary tools, and rendered in RenderMan. To show the turmoil she endures when using her powers, the director decided a simple morph would not suffice. Helen's musculature was particularly difficult to master, since the character must stretch, bend, and fold herself into various shapes. Animators developed a program called a deformer, which allowed them to twist and turn the character as required, and mold her body and limbs into different shapes. Character supervisor Bill Wise believes Helen was likely the most sophisticated articulation rig Pixar had created to that point. Character articulation artist Mark Therrell explained that one of the most significant challenges Helen posed was the crew's requirement to build an "attractive woman that we could articulate in a traditional way using joints, elbows, wrist, knees, and girly features", while also being able to "transition this attractive human rig into a monster-like thing that still looked elegant, slender and feminine while doing something humanly impossible". To achieve this, Therrell created two different rigs: the first was a standard rig, traditionally articulated using Pixar's proprietary animation software; the second was a "snake" rig that used the curve deformer on a duplicate of her geometry. By layering the snake rig on top of the standard rig, they were able to control a nearly identical version of Helen's body that remains hidden from audiences. Animators would animate Helen like any other human character, switching to a different rig when they needed her to stretch, and using control points along the curve to achieve various effects, such as constraining objects and wrapping her arms around telephone poles. To return to animating the original Helen, animators reduced her control point values back to zero.

To create the effect of Helen transforming into a parachute, the team adapted the curve deformer to use flat, surface-based geometry. They developed a flattened gingerbread man-like version of her body that moved in sync with her standard skeleton, which allowed them to venture beyond simple linear stretches and transitions into broader, more malleable shapes. In certain scenes, her costumes were animated using completely different software, such as when Edna is showing her newly-designed supersuit for the first time, where it was a 2.5D matte painting created with 3ds Max and rendered with SplutterFish's Brazil rendering system. Animator Dave Mullins worked on the scene where Helen nearly drops her telephone during her conversation with Edna for six weeks, and referenced video footage of himself performing the same actions to understand its dynamics. Similarly, animator Karen Kiser filmed herself and her children jumping off a dock to animate the scene where Helen and her children freefall from their downed jet. In 2004, media outlets reported that Mister Fantastic's role in the final act of the then-upcoming Fantastic Four (2005) film was expanded once filmmakers saw what The Incredibles had been abled to achieve with Elastigirl's special effects.

Voice

Helen is voiced by American actress Holly Hunter. Bird cast Hunter because he found her natural voice possesses a combination of vulnerability and strength indicative of the character he had envisioned, who he described as just as resilient as she is flexible. Hunter had never voiced an animated character before, and welcomed the role as an opportunity to expand her repertoire. She was also drawn to the film's "unconventional story about family and human dynamics".

Actress Holly Hunter voices Elastigirl in both Incredibles films.

Hunter did not use a script or storyboards for much of her time working on The Incredibles. Instead, she relied on Bird's direction and knowledge of her character, describing the director as a "walking encyclopedia". Although a complete script had been written, she explained that avoiding it was inherent to the non-chronological manner in which animated projects are often filmed. Bird would describe scenes and read as other characters from within her recording booth. Describing the process as mysterious, abstract, and fluid, she welcomed Bird's hands-on approach to directing, an intimacy she believes has been lost in live-action since monitors allow directors to maintain distance from their actors on set. The actress reportedly lost her voice during nearly every recording session, despite Bird's efforts to limit yelling and screaming until the end. Hunter made sure to understand the military terminology used during the plane crash scene, much of which she only recorded once. Animators filmed Hunter's recording sessions for live-action reference. Although she worked closely with Bird, she remained surprised by the final film due to her unfamiliarity with the animation process, for which she was better prepared by the sequel. Despite her involvement, she does not consider herself to be a creator of her character, crediting Helen's realization to the efforts of Bird and the animators instead.

Hunter described working on the sequel as fun due to being more familiar with Bird's filmmaking process and Helen's character development, despite knowing little about the story. She attributed the cast and crew's willingness to return to Bird's genuine interest in crafting an authentic story for Helen. However, she did not realize how much more substantial her character's role was until six months into recording Incredibles 2. In total, she recorded on-and-off for approximately one-and-a-half years. For the sequel, she only read scenes her character appears in, thus roughly half of the film remained a secret to her until she watched it in completion. Because the actors only recorded opposite Bird instead of each other, Hunter did not meet Craig T. Nelson, voice of Bob, until approximately a year before the release of Incredibles 2. Hunter had become a mother herself in-between The Incredibles and Incredibles 2. Having played mothers since the beginning of her career, she maintains that the role had never felt foreign due to her active imagination. She found it refreshing to see Elastigirl explore a persona beyond motherhood and domesticity, and noted that the character subverts the types of roles actresses her age are typically offered, particularly in live-action. Helen remained the only character Hunter voiced until her guest role on Bless the Harts in 2019.

Incredibles 2

Helen becomes the protagonist of Incredibles 2. According to Bird, the core idea of Helen and Bob reversing roles had existed since he was promoting the first film in 2004. Grindle confirmed that Bird had conceived Helen receiving her own mission 14 years before the sequel, which focuses on reminding her she "was really good at being a Super" before housework. Despite its apparent simplicity, Bird rewrote the scene where Helen and Bob discuss her leaving home to work for DevTech several times to make sure Bob expresses some unhappiness without seeming overly childish or resentful, while retaining some conflict. He also used the scene to establish that Helen's hesitancy is not about lacking confidence in herself, but rather prioritizing being a superhero to a lesser degree than her husband. Frequent Pixar director Andrew Stanton helped Bird recognize that the sequel’s stakes would need to be significantly heightened to credibly motivate Helen—a devoted mother and law-abiding hero—to leave her family and violate laws she once staunchly defended, without compromising her character. The director acknowledged that Helen could easily be perceived as perfect or idealized, and set a personal goal to further humanize her in the sequel.

Bird insisted that Helen's expanded role was not inspired by the #MeToo and Time's Up movements, but rather a decision that developed organically from how the writers progressed the story. Ultimately, they wanted to revive the bold, action-oriented version of Helen introduced in the first film – the part of herself she had suppressed to care for her family – by exploring how she would channel the same aggression and ambition returning to the field as a more mature woman, essentially calling back to the opening of The Incredibles when she asserts that she is not interested in settling down. Although he appreciated audiences finding real-world parallels, Bird argued that Helen's action heroine self-rediscovery was just as integral to The Incredibles, and she remains the same strong female character she was before. Similarly, Hunter said the sequel is about character revelation and its release during the movements was coincidental rather than intentional. Hunter explained that unlike the first film in which Helen resumes heroism out of necessity, she confronts "her own ambition head-on". The actress appreciated seeing a "full-fledge" version of her character boast traits she believes women are often taught to suppress, without sacrificing her femininity, and described the sequel's iteration of Helen as a hybrid between the character and her adolescent self. Furthermore, Hunter said her new family dynamic mirrors real families where "a woman may be the sole breadwinner or she may be earning more money than the male and that is okay". She asserted that only good could come from audiences seeing a woman lead and problem-solve. She considers Incredibles 2 a metaphor for working mothers, and Elastigirl fulfills many of society's yearning for strong female characters.

Helen's costumes were designed by Bryn Imagire. In Incredibles 2, she wears three different supersuits, in addition to her "everyday wardrobe". Her gymnast-like bodysuit was intentionally designed to be appropriate for the film's target audience. The supersuits in particular benefited from technological advancements that allowed for stretching and shrinking to accommodate her athleticism. Designers began by building one basic suit, then adjusting its shading and logos to create three distinct looks. For her newest supersuit, they drew inspiration from vintage wetsuits, and used darker colors to help her appear more inconspicuous at night, in contrast to her original red and white outfit. Created by Edna’s competitor, Alexander Galbacki, the suit was intentionally designed to be off-putting, serving as a commentary on how supersuits in modern superhero films have become less vibrant and colorful. The chosen palette, red and black, are also colors Bird enjoys himself. Character artists and costume designers based Helen's civilian wardrobe on 1950s and 1960s trends, particularly silhouettes worn by actresses Mary Tyler Moore, Marilyn Monroe, and Audrey Hepburn. While Helen’s body shape was exaggerated to emulate the comic book style of superheroines, features such as her waist size were adjusted so she would look more natural wearing civilian clothes.

They rewrote Helen's runaway train chase to be interrupted by a phone call from Dash searching for his sneakers, to reemphasize Helen's family. They extended the sequence to include more stunts for Helen, allowing her to keep up with the train without needing to slow it down prematurely. Meanwhile, the city itself was adjusted to accommodate Helen's navigation, including increasing the distance between buildings so she would appear less "haphazard" leaping between them. The "Elasticycle" was an extension of her own powers. Animator Kureha Yokoo, a former motorcyclist, was consulted about the vehicle's design, movement, and how they are ridden. However, they avoided researching other films to maintain originality, instead sourcing inspiration from various sports including motocross, water skiing, skateboarding, and Parkour, which they combined with Elastigirl's abilities. Simulation supervisor Tiffany Erickson Klohn said retaining Helen's hairstyle while "she's on top of a train going 200 miles per hour" was a significant challenge, requiring new hair simulation software. Story supervisor Ted Mathot said that, at times, they struggled to humanize Elastigirl because "she’s pretty close to perfect" in the first film, and worked to expose some of her flaws by having her struggle and make mistakes throughout the sequence. Director of photography Mahyar Abousaeedi used the camera to convey that Helen is a strategist and always "a couple steps ahead of the game", using her environment to her advantage, in contrast to Bob's approach.

Concept art for the character was designed by Bob Pauly and Tony Fucile. By Incredibles 2, the Incredibles' original animation system had grown obsolete, requiring the animators to rebuild returning characters such as Helen using new rigging tools. Mullins returned to supervise her animation and make sure animators understood the limits of her stretching. In addition to providing them with rubber bands for reference, Mullins explained that, like rubber bands, she weakens the further she stretches. Furthermore, he clarified that the character does not stretch unless required, resisting temptations to animate her stretching simply for the sake of it, while her head and face remain intact regardless of how far she stretches. Her expanded role brought new rigging opportunities animators, allowing them to stretch Helen in ways they had not in the first film, and technology granted greater secondary motion and articulation for a "softer" feel, particularly in her buttocks and thighs. According to supervising technical director Rick Sayre, feats in the first film that would have required "a laborious bit of hand work with deformation tools" became easier to achieve. The tentacle rigs for Hank in Finding Dory were used as inspiration in order for Helen to stretch beyond what she was capable of in the first film, which they applied to her second rig.

Powers and abilities

As Elastigirl, Helen's primary superpower is superhuman elasticity, which allows her to stretch and reshape her body into various sizes, lengths, and forms, while manipulating her own density and durability. She can mold her arms into arcs, curves, zigzags, and loop-the-loops. These abilities also extend to shapeshifting, which she uses to change her form into various shapes including boats, parachutes, and slingshots. The reported extent of her stretching has varied across different sources, with some such as the National Supers Agency (NSA) stating that she can elongate up to 100 feet in length and compress herself to a thickness of just 1 millimeter. However, Syndrome’s Operation Kronos database states she can stretch up to 300 feet. She has demonstrated some feats mimicking invulnerability and strength, such as leaping 80 feet and subduing stronger adversaries. However, she can still experience pain and discomfort, and Edna confirms she can injure herself if she stretches beyond her limit. The further she stretches, the less physically strong she becomes. One of her known weaknesses is exposure to sub-freezing temperatures. In Incredibles 2, Evelyn captures her and imprisons her in a refrigerated room, warning her that attempting to stretch in such conditions could cause her to "break". Bob Odenkirk, who voices Winston in Incredibles 2, described her as arguably "the most powerful character in the movie". Her powers are also shown to have practical applications "to meet the daily challenges of modern motherhood".

Her powers are similar those of Mister Fantastic (Reed Richards) from the Fantastic Four, and Elasti-Girl (Rita Farr) from Doom Patrol. However, Frank Esposito of Plastic News argued that her closest pop culture comparison would be DC Comics superhero Plastic Man. Comic book historian Peter Sanderson said Helen's powers "lend themselves to more active, aggressive uses, and hence are more appropriate for a contemporary superheroine" than her daughter, Violet. He noted that while she shares Mister Fantastic's powers, her emotional maturity is more similar to that of his wife, the Invisible Woman (Sue Storm), which possibly alludes to Helen telling Bob at the beginning of the first film that he should try being more flexible. Hunter believes the competitiveness shown in Helen and Bob's superpowers speaks to a certain equality they share in their relationship. Hunter said that Helen performs superhero duties and problem-solving "very differently from Mr. Incredible", including typically causing less collateral damage. S.E. Fleenor of Syfy Wire observed that her flexibility extends beyond her superpowers to adaptability, demonstrating a willingness to change her mind when needed and a meticulousness in her decision-making. In addition to her powers, Elastigirl is shown to be a skilled pilot and tactician.

In order to determine the Parr family's superpowers, Bird drew inspiration from the roles of typical nuclear family members. Helen's powers mirror society's expectations of a mother, who according to Bird is "always juggling a million things and pulled in a million directions".

Reception

Helen has been mostly positively received by critics. Journalist and film critic Anthony Lane called her "the best character in the best film that Pixar has yet made". Colin Low of Slant Magazine found the character to have the film's most interesting arc. Film critic Peter Bradshaw and Michael Boyle of /Film highlighted the downing of her jet as an engaging action sequence. Film critics Todd McCarthy and Jennifer Frey were among reviewers who praised the animation, versatility, and in-universe applications of Helen's superpowers. Film critic Dana Stevens said she never tires of revisiting the film to rewatch "Elastigirl stretching to her full length", and film critic Devin Faraci expected her elasticity to be far superior to Mr. Fantastic's in Fantastic Four. Helen's introductory interview, in which she expresses little interest in settling down and asserts her confidence as a female superhero excelling in her field, has attracted commentary. Caroline Grant of Literary Mama believes quieter moments in her rant imply "a glimmer of doubt creeping into her thinking", but Helen eventually learns her value by realizing mother and superhero are not mutually exclusive identities. Film critic Stuart Klawans said Helen falls victim to inflated stereotypes about women when, despite uttering "one or two semi-feminist wisecracks", she "readily gives up her career for a house and kids". Meanwhile, Carla Meyer of the San Francisco Chronicle felt the film risks alienating female audiences by depicting Helen as a content homemaker over longing for superhero work. She concluded that the character's revelation arrives "almost, but not quite, too late". Collider reported that some critics accused the character of lacking a prominent role until the film's third act.

Reviewers generally praised the decision to center Incredibles 2 around Helen. S.E. Fleenor of Syfy Wire credited the sequel with finally highlighting "the real hero of both films", describing Helen as "a rare example of an alternative type of superhero: someone careful, interdependent, and flexible". The character's action sequences in Incredibles 2 were praised by critics, particularly for the way her superpowers were showcased. William Hughes of The A.V. Club lauded Helen's proficiency in the runaway train scene, which he deemed "Incredibles 2’s best action set piece". Sam Machkovech of Ars Technica described her as "an absolute marvel of abilities, movement, and silliness", and declared the same scene one of the 20 best action film sequences. Slant Magazine's Keith Watson found her powers more entertaining than those of other characters and said "it’s refreshing to see a film such as this place a female hero at the center of all its skirmishes". However, McCarthy complained that watching Helen constantly battle different runaway vehicles can grow repetitive by the end of the film. In 2018, Helen was nominated for the Visual Effects Society Award for Outstanding Animated Character in an Animated Feature. Helen's role reversal in Incredibles 2 drew a range of feminist analyses from critics and audiences. Moya Crockett of Stylist appreciated the film for highlighting both Helen's strengths and flaws to create an empowered yet complex heroine. Anna Smith of The Guardian expressed excitement "to see an animation that bucked tired gender cliches even more than the first film had", but found the sequel still lacking in compelling women compared to men. Writing for Bustle, Rachel Simon said although the film may appear relevant to "the current push for more female superheroes and gender equality on-screen", she cautioned audiences that Incredibles 2 is not necessarily "meant to be an ode to female empowerment", despite being set near the women's liberation movement. Some outlets criticized the film for centering Helen's role as part of what they perceived to be a feminist agenda.

Several critics found aspects of the sequel's gender politics to be outdated. Slate's Inkoo Kang's enjoyment of Helen was limited to two scenes, but otherwise felt the sequel was too focused on "Elastigirl’s guilt about being apart from her children". Similarly, cultural critic Glen Weldon believes "one of the film's singular joys lies in watching her relish her heroic life so thoroughly". He argued that while the first film establishes Helen as unconstrained by gender norms of the time period and the superior hero to Bob, the sequel regresses by only conveying her agency during action scenes. Writing for Epigram, Danny Shaw said any of the sequel's progress about feminism, gender roles, and relationships is undone by Helen ultimately failing her mission and needing to be rescued, and the Chicago Reader's Andrea Thompson accused the film of treating Helen as "no more than an extension of her family", which she deemed regressive. Patricia Puentes of CNET lamented that, despite the sequel's efforts to challenge gender stereotypes, Helen's eagerness to return to homemaking "feels like a step backward". Eric Seitz of The Vindicator felt that the first film established Helen as a competent superhero but accused the sequel of poor female representation by "Reducing Helen’s time in the spotlight to a simple retreading of Bob’s footsteps". Both Kang and Charles Pulliam-Moore of Gizmodo agreed that Bob was underserving of Helen's loyalty due to his behavior in the sequel, and Romper's Samantha Darby argued that Bob's behavior only reinforces the idea that Helen was responsible for the majority of the parenting in the first film.

Hunter's performance in both films was well-received. Bradshaw deemed it "a genuine career highlight", and Scott Chitwood of ComingSoon.net praised her effortlessness in transitioning "from heroine to mom". While Frey said Helen is enriched by Hunter's "earthy voice", the Boston Herald's James Verniere said the actress possesses "the sexiest voice in Hollywood". Jeff Vice of the Deseret News said Hunter delivers the standout performance among the film's cast. James Berardinelli argued that while her voice may be "a little too recognizable ... it doesn't take long for us to forget the actress as the character comes to life". Anne Kelly-Saxenmeyer of Backstage said her performance "makes us wonder why Hunter hasn't been cast in more voiceover roles". On her work in the sequel, film critic Peter Travers said Hunter "makes the newly emboldened character resonate onscreen like nobody’s business". IndieWire ranked her Pixar's third-best performance, complimenting Hunter's emotional range, and Entertainment Weekly ranked her sixth. ScreenCrush ranked her the ninth greatest voice acting performance in animation history. Backstage included Hunter's performance from both films among "14 of the Best Voice Acting Performances of All Time". GoldDerby ranked it the third-best performance of her career, and Collider ranked it seventh, describing it as integral to both the film and "the creation of an icon". Variety ranked Hunter the 36th greatest acting performance from a superhero film, and gave her an honorable mention in recognition of the "13 Best Disney Voice Performances".

Impact

Legacy and commendations

Helen has been consistently acknowledged in media retrospectives and rankings as one of Pixar’s standout characters. Rolling Stone ranked Helen Pixar's 14th best character and second highest-ranking Incredibles character, behind Edna (ninth). In 2017, Vanessa Bogart of /Film named Helen her favorite Pixar character. She noted that she would not have chosen her upon the film's initial release, but came to appreciate and relate to her more deeply after becoming a wife herself. Helen has been described by several publications as one of the greatest fictional mothers depicted on screen, including Time, The Los Vegas Review-Journal, Catholic Digest, Today, Today's Parent, the Cape Cod Times, and The Birmingham News. The Liberty Champion ranked her the top Pixar mom, while Collider ranked her the third-best Disney mom. In a master’s dissertation published by the University of Jaén, Helen was described by professor Alejandra Franjo Calvo as arguably "one of the most fantastic mothers in cinema history". The Minnesota Star Tribune included Helen among the seven most memorable on-screen mothers. In a listicle celebrating the 25 most memorable moms in television and film history, author Rick Suter of USA Today said she "land[s] near the top tier". In the context of animated films, Progga Paromita of Bdnews24.com recognized Helen as an example of a mother who has a deep, compelling story arc, despite her secondary role, while proving that "we never needed men to save the world". She has also been described as a positive female role model by outlets such as the San Francisco Chronicle and CNET.

Helen’s expanded role in Incredibles 2 was widely regarded as timely and culturally resonant, aligning with ongoing conversations about female representation and gender parity. Incredibles 2's release coincided with an increase in central female superheroes and action heroes in media. Chris Hayner of GameSpot wrote that the Incredibles franchise elevated the trend by "putting its female hero front-and-center, over her male counterpart ... send[ing] a powerful message to young viewers who still aren't used to seeing a female hero taking charge and leading the way". Several critics noted that Helen contributed to addressing Pixar's then-criticized lack of female representation. Writer and cartoonist Michael Cavna compared Pixar's promotional strategy for Incredibles 2 to the DC Extended Universe’s emphasis on Wonder Woman as its "strongest recent move", noting that this perspective is also reflected by characters within the sequel. In 2018, Marc Snetiker of Entertainment Weekly said the character was underappreciated "for being a game-changing movie superhero back in 2004". Carla Meyer of the San Francisco Chronicle described her as the greatest female character from the superhero film genre until Wonder Woman (2017), and the genre's most well-written female superhero since Catwoman in Batman Returns (1992). Meyer also recognized Elastigirl for succeeding where female-fronted superhero films such as Catwoman (2004) and Elektra (2005) had failed. Journalists have also highlighted Helen's distinct role as a mother at the center of her film's narrative, particularly within the traditionally male-dominated action genre. Jack Shepherd of The Independent noted that, despite the ubiquity of superhero media by 2018, Helen remained "incredibly unique" as arguably the only mother to serve as the focus of one of the genre's films, as well as one of the few leading superheroines "in recent cinematic history". Romper's Samantha Darby reported that in 2004 audiences embraced the character "after finding out that, oh, she wasn't just a regular mom; she was a bonafide superhero", and The Michigan Daily called her "the most iconic superhero mom of all time".

Media outlets have frequently recognized Helen's significance as a female character in both film and animation, with Fandango naming her the bravest, strongest woman in Pixar history. Collider ranked her Pixar's second strongest female character. Writing for the same publication, Daniela Gama declared Helen "one of the earliest and most memorable female action heroes in animated movies", and ranked her the 25th "Best Action Movie Heroine of All Time". Rolling Stone ranked Elastigirl the eighth greatest movie superhero, and GameSpot ranked her the 30th most important superhero across all mediums. The Guardian recognized her as one of the 10 greatest action heroines, and Rotten Tomatoes ranked her the 26th most fearless and inspiring film heroine.

Body image and sexualization

Incredibles 2's release generated media discussion surrounding the portrayal and evolution of Helen's physique compared to the first film. Film critic David Edelstein said the character "has a big derriere to match her musclebound husband’s barrel chest". Many fans expressed admiration for Helen’s curvier body shape on social media, often describing it using the slang term "thicc". Internet searches for "Elastigirl thicc" and "Elastigirl dumb thicc" dramatically increased after the film's release, and scenes featuring the character's buttocks inspired various memes, GIFs, and YouTube videos. After seeing the film himself, professional football player JuJu Smith-Schuster voiced his romantic interest in Helen on his social media accounts. Attempting to rationalize the public's infatuation with her body, Jodi Walker of The Ringer and stop motion animator Bona Bones theorized that Helen's physique was designed not primarily to be sexually appealing, but rather to convey her role as a maternal figure through the use of common visual tropes. Walker attributed the public’s increased fascination with Helen’s figure to its alignment with contemporary beauty standards—particularly the emphasis on wide hips and small waists—which had become more desirable by the time of the sequel’s release, in contrast to the limited attention the character received in 2004. Writers for The Michigan Daily observed that the emphasis on Helen’s figure reflected evolving beauty standards, noting that Pixar’s updated animation style, particularly in the depiction of motherly characters, aligned with these trends. They also described Helen as a “MILF”, referencing her popularity in internet culture. Similarly, Vice's Nicole Clark argued that the trend stemmed from Helen's resemblance to "the living embodiment of our 2018 Instagram-influenced dreams—thicc, flexible, often walking with a hip swivel", and suggested that her design was not intended to sexualize, but rather to symbolize liberation from her former role as a stay-at-home mother.

A cosplayer of Elastigirl in 2022 Supanova

Some reactions to the phenomenon were positive, and Helen's exaggerated hourglass figure became an unexpected source of body inspiration on social media. Brinton Parker of PopSugar reported that some women claimed the character helped them learn to love their own bodies, while USA Today's Carly Mallenbaum opined that, despite Helen's unrealistic proportions, the combination of her body type and confidence "shows a step in the right direction toward female inclusion on-screen", especially in contrast to members of Disney's own princess franchise. Joe reported that "In fairness it seems to be mainly women who are admiring Elastigirl’s dumb thiccness". Rebecca Jennings of Racked expressed appreciation for the positive response to Helen’s design, observing that her exaggerated body type was embraced by both straight and queer women, as a celebration of a physique rarely represented or attainable in reality. She predicted that the character will eventually be "inaugurated into the sexy queer character canon". However, Danny Shaw of Epigram countered that her appearance "seems designed only to fulfil the whimsical, sexual desires" of male cinephiles.

Film critic Anthony Lane's Incredibles 2 review in The New Yorker was widely criticized for its perceived oversexualization of Helen. The critic had first alluded to the character's sexuality in a 2011 Pixar profile, in which he implied that Helen's flexibility was an asset to sexual activity, and suggested that audiences had been suppressing sexual fantasies about her since 2004. In the same article, he described her as "a living joke about society’s expectation that women should have it all, or do it all, and never take a break". Gabriella Paiella of The Cut and Clark said the internet's fetishization of Helen was hardly limited to Lane's remarks, with Clark reporting that Lane's review only exposed lewd comments fans had already been sharing about the character on social media. Paiella criticized Lane for including overtly sexual commentary about an animated character in a review intended for a respected, mainstream publication. Critics generally agreed that Lane’s opinions were more suitable for social media, like those of other fans, but deemed them inappropriate for a platform of The New Yorker’s prestige. Writer Jeet Heer offered a more nuanced take that Lane had poorly articulated an otherwise "decent point" about the gradual pornification of comic book art, which they believe was supported by the impossible anatomy Incredibles 2's female characters. Kang concurred that Lane's review was in poor taste but argued that the backlash it received was disproportionate, noting that sexualized excerpts were disproportionately emphasized and overshadowed Lane's commentary on other aspects of the character. Jennings observed that those expressing similar sentiments on social media lacked access to "one of the world’s most respected magazines", and argued that women who shared these views reclaimed the platform from what "could otherwise be a very depressing place".

In other media

To avoid licensing issues with DC, Disney often markets the character as "Mrs. Incredible" instead of "Elastgirl" on much of the merchandise and promotional tie-ins for The Incredibles. Several toys, action figures, and collectables based on the character's likeness have been released to support both films. Consumer goods corporation Procter & Gamble promoted several of their home care brands using the character as the embodiment of "a multitasking supermom" completing chores while fighting crime, featuring the tagline "mom to the rescue". To promote Incredibles 2 and its accompanying toy line, in May 2018, Disney released a vintage-style television commercial highlighting Elastigirl, which features her own theme song.

Fortnite screenshot of Elastigirl skin descending from the Battle Bus.

Elastigirl appears as a playable character in the 2004 video game adaptation of The Incredibles, with her solo missions largely emphasizing solving puzzles by stretching across distances over direct combat. She is a playable character in Lego The Incredibles (2018), in which she can stretch to access remote areas and transform herself into objects such as bouncy balls and trampolines. Beginning in 2024, the character is playable in the kart racing game Disney Speedstorm (2023). She is also a playable character in the Disney Infinity toys-to-life video game series, and has a non-speaking cameo in the opening cutscene of The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer (2005). In 2024, Elastigirl, Mr. Incredible, and Frozone were added to Fortnite Battle Royale as purchasable skins. A Lego variant of the character was also available.

In Boom! Studios' comic book series that served as a sequel to The Incredibles, the character Xerek reused as the story's antagonist and Helen's ex-boyfriend, but Incredibles 2 rendered him non-canonical and obsolete. In 2018, the book Incredibles 2: A Real Stretch: An Elastigirl Prequel Story was published. It was written by Carla Jablonski and explores Helen's crime-fighting days during the golden age of Supers, prior to the events of The Incredibles. Rapper and singer Lisa included a song, "Elastigirl", on her debut studio album, Alter Ego (2025), inspired by the character.

Elastigirl is a popular choice for cosplay and fan art. Performers appear as the character at various Disney Parks establishments, including Pixar Plaza at Disney's Hollywood Studios.

External links

• Elastigirl at Pixar.com