The Maleficent cast turned a classic Disney villain into one of the studio’s most layered live-action characters. Across the 2014 origin story and its 2019 sequel, Mistress of Evil, a mix of Oscar nominees, stage veterans, and rising stars retold Sleeping Beauty from the fairy’s side. Here is who played whom, and why each casting choice worked.
Biography Table
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Franchise | Maleficent (live-action retelling of Sleeping Beauty) |
| Films | Maleficent (2014), Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019) |
| Release Dates | May 30, 2014; October 18, 2019 |
| Directors | Robert Stromberg (2014), Joachim Rønning (2019) |
| Studio | Walt Disney Pictures |
| Lead Star | Angelina Jolie as Maleficent |
| Co-Lead | Elle Fanning as Princess Aurora |
| Genre/Field | Fantasy, adventure, family |
| Setting | The Moors and the human kingdoms bordering them |
| Box Office | About $758 million (2014); about $491 million (2019) |
| Notable Recast | Prince Phillip, played by Brenton Thwaites, then Harris Dickinson |
Maleficent Cast and Characters at a Glance
Before looking at each actor, it helps to see the full lineup in one place. Some actors appear in both films, some only in the first, and a few were new additions for the sequel. The table below sorts that out quickly.
| Actor | Character | Film(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Angelina Jolie | Maleficent | Both films |
| Elle Fanning | Princess Aurora | Both films |
| Sam Riley | Diaval | Both films |
| Imelda Staunton | Knotgrass | Both films |
| Juno Temple | Thistlewit | Both films |
| Lesley Manville | Flittle | Both films |
| Sharlto Copley | King Stefan | 2014 |
| Brenton Thwaites | Prince Phillip | 2014 |
| Kenneth Cranham | King Henry | 2014 |
| Hannah New | Princess Leila | 2014 |
| Ella Purnell | Teenage Maleficent | 2014 |
| Isobelle Molloy | Young Maleficent | 2014 |
| Harris Dickinson | Prince Phillip | 2019 |
| Michelle Pfeiffer | Queen Ingrith | 2019 |
| Chiwetel Ejiofor | Conall | 2019 |
| Ed Skrein | Borra | 2019 |
| Robert Lindsay | King John | 2019 |
The core of the franchise is small. Six actors carry through both films: Jolie, Fanning, Riley, and the three pixie actresses. Everyone else serves one chapter of the story, which is why the two movies feel so different in tone.
The first film is a revenge story built around Stefan’s betrayal. The sequel shifts to politics, with Queen Ingrith trying to divide humans and fairies. That change in focus explains why the supporting cast almost entirely turned over between films.
Angelina Jolie as Maleficent
Angelina Jolie plays Maleficent, a powerful fairy whose wings are stolen by the man she loved. Instead of the pure villain from the 1959 animated film, Jolie presents a misunderstood fairy who curses baby Aurora out of pain, then slowly grows to love her.
Jolie has said Maleficent was her favorite Disney character as a child, and that affection shows. She balances menace with dry humor, and her scenes with young Aurora are some of the warmest in either film. Having rewatched both back to back, the first film’s final act lands mainly because of her restraint.
Born June 4, 1975, in Los Angeles to actor Jon Voight and Marcheline Bertrand, Jolie won an Oscar for Girl, Interrupted and later received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. She was also one of Hollywood’s highest-paid actresses during the years these films were made.
Her filmography is wide-ranging. It covers early work like Hackers and Gia, action hits like Tomb Raider, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Wanted, and Salt, dramas like Changeling and A Mighty Heart, voice work in Kung Fu Panda, and later roles such as Thena in Eternals.
Outside acting, Jolie has directed films such as In the Land of Blood and Honey, Unbroken, and First They Killed My Father. Her long work with UNHCR on refugees and children’s rights also shaped her public image during the franchise’s run.
Young Maleficent Cast: Ella Purnell and Isobelle Molloy
The young Maleficent cast includes two actresses. Isobelle Molloy plays the child Maleficent flying freely over the Moors, while Ella Purnell plays the teenage version who falls for young Stefan. Both appear only in the 2014 film’s opening sections.
Molloy’s scenes set up the innocence of the Moors. She shows Maleficent as a curious, trusting guardian of the forest. That early warmth matters, because the audience needs to see what Stefan later destroys when he takes her wings.
The Maleficent cast Ella Purnell searches usually come from fans who recognized her later work. Purnell, born in London in 1996, went on to Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, voiced Jinx in Arcane, and starred in Yellowjackets and Fallout. Her short turn here was an early sign of her range.
Purnell carries the story’s emotional hinge. Her scenes with young Stefan include the promise of true love’s kiss, which the film later reverses in a clever way. When Jolie takes over, the hurt feels earned because Purnell made that bond believable.
The young Stefan roles were split as well, with Michael Higgins as the boy and Jackson Bews as the teenager. Together, these young actors do quiet but essential work before the main cast arrives.
Elle Fanning as Princess Aurora
Elle Fanning plays Princess Aurora in both films. Her Aurora is bright, kind, and unafraid of the Moors, which makes her the natural bridge between humans and fairies. In the sequel, she accepts Phillip’s proposal and tries to hold two worlds together.
Fanning was born April 9, 1998, in Conyers, Georgia, and is the younger sister of Dakota Fanning. She made her debut in I Am Sam, playing a younger version of Dakota’s character, and later played young Daisy in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.
Younger Aurora roles went to other actresses. Vivienne Jolie-Pitt, Angelina’s daughter, appears as five-year-old Aurora, and Eleanor Worthington-Cox plays her at eight. Fanning takes over once Aurora turns into the teen raised in the woods.
Her career after Maleficent grew fast. Highlights include:
- Super 8 and We Bought a Zoo as a young lead
- The Neon Demon, The Beguiled with Sofia Coppola, and 20th Century Women
- Mary Shelley and All the Bright Places
- The Great on Hulu as Catherine, earning Golden Globe nominations
- The Girl From Plainville
In 2019, the same year as the sequel, Fanning became the youngest-ever member of the Cannes jury. That timing shows how far she had come since first playing Aurora five years earlier.
Sharlto Copley as King Stefan
Sharlto Copley plays King Stefan, the main antagonist of the 2014 film. Stefan begins as a poor boy who befriends Maleficent, then cuts off her wings to win the crown. He grows cruel and paranoid, especially as Aurora’s sixteenth birthday approaches.
Copley plays Stefan as a man eaten alive by guilt and ambition. He is manipulative but also clearly broken, which keeps him from being a cartoon. His final battle with Maleficent is the payoff of the whole first film.
Born November 27, 1973, in Johannesburg, Copley broke out with District 9. He followed it with The A-Team, Elysium, Europa Report, Oldboy (2013), Chappie, Hardcore Henry, and Free Fire, plus the TV series Powers.
Stefan does not return for Mistress of Evil, since he dies at the end of the first film. That leaves the sequel without a returning villain, which is why a new antagonist had to be built from scratch.
Diaval Maleficent Cast: Sam Riley as the Loyal Raven
In the Diaval Maleficent cast slot, Sam Riley plays the raven Maleficent rescues from a farmer by turning him into a man. From then on, Diaval serves as her shapeshifting servant, her spy, and, after the loss of her wings, a kind of replacement for them.
Riley gives Diaval a dry, teasing voice that cuts through Maleficent’s gloom. He is devoted but never spineless, and he openly argues with her about Aurora. For many viewers, their bickering is the franchise’s best running relationship.
Born January 8, 1980, in West Yorkshire, Riley first worked as a singer before acting. His breakthrough came playing Ian Curtis in Control, which earned a BAFTA Rising Star nomination and BIFA Most Promising Newcomer recognition.
His other work includes On the Road, Byzantium, Suite Française, Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Free Fire, Radioactive, and Jack Favell in Rebecca. He also appeared on TV in SS-GB. Riley returns in both films, keeping Diaval at Maleficent’s side throughout.
The Three Pixies of the Moors
Three pixies raise Aurora in a cottage in the woods, hiding her from Stefan’s curse. They are loosely based on the good fairies of the animated film, but here they are comically bad at caring for a child. All three actresses return for the sequel.
Imelda Staunton as Knotgrass
Imelda Staunton plays Knotgrass, the sternest and self-appointed wisest of the three. She tries to lead the group but often squabbles with the others. The joke works because Staunton plays it with total seriousness.
Born in London in 1956 and trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Staunton is one of Britain’s most decorated stage actors, with four Olivier Awards. She earned an Oscar nomination for Vera Drake and a Golden Globe nomination as well.
Screen audiences know her as Dolores Umbridge in Harry Potter. Her credits also include Sense and Sensibility, Shakespeare in Love, Nanny McPhee, Cranford, Downton Abbey, Paddington, and Queen Elizabeth II in The Crown.
Juno Temple as Thistlewit
Juno Temple plays Thistlewit, the youngest and most carefree of the pixies. She is scatterbrained and cheerful, which makes her the comic spark in their scenes together.
Born July 21, 1989, Temple won the 2013 BAFTA Rising Star award. Her early work includes Atonement, Notes on a Scandal, St. Trinian’s, and The Other Boleyn Girl, followed by Killer Joe, The Dark Knight Rises, and Horns.
She later became widely known on TV, playing Veronica Newell in Dirty John and Keeley Jones in Ted Lasso, a role that brought her Emmy nominations. Vinyl, Wonder Wheel, and Black Mass round out a varied résumé.
Lesley Manville as Flittle
Lesley Manville plays Flittle, the third pixie. She is cheery and a little thoughtless, often forgetting what Aurora actually needs. Her timing with Staunton and Temple makes the trio feel like a real, if chaotic, family.
Born March 12, 1956, in Brighton, Manville is known for long work with director Mike Leigh, including High Hopes, Secrets & Lies, Topsy-Turvy, All or Nothing, Vera Drake, and Another Year. She was made an OBE in 2015.
She earned an Oscar nomination for Phantom Thread and played Princess Margaret in The Crown. Her TV work includes Cranford, Harlots, and Mum, and she led Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris.
Maleficent Cast Prince Philip: Brenton Thwaites and Harris Dickinson
The Maleficent cast Prince Philip question has two answers. Brenton Thwaites plays Prince Phillip in the 2014 film, and Harris Dickinson took over the role in Mistress of Evil. It is the franchise’s only major recast.
Thwaites, born August 10, 1989, is Australian and started on Home and Away. In the first film, Phillip is a pleasant but minor figure, and his kiss famously fails to break the curse. His career continued with Oculus, The Giver, Gods of Egypt, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, and Dick Grayson in Titans.
In the sequel, Phillip becomes far more important. He proposes to Aurora and tries to broker human–fairy peace, which needed an actor who could carry more screen time. Thwaites was reportedly unavailable, and Dickinson was cast.
Dickinson had voiced Gurjin in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance around the same period. His Phillip is steadier and more committed, standing against his own mother’s schemes. The change is noticeable, but the character’s growth makes it feel natural.
The Human Royals of the Maleficent Films
Beyond Stefan and Phillip, a few royal characters shape both stories. Their screen time is short, but each one sets a plot point in motion. They also show how the human kingdoms change between films.
Kenneth Cranham as King Henry
Kenneth Cranham plays King Henry, the power-hungry ruler who tries to conquer the Moors. After his defeat, he promises his throne to whoever kills Maleficent, which pushes Stefan into betrayal.
Cranham, a Scottish actor born in 1944, has worked since the 1960s. His credits include Oliver!, Shine on Harvey Moon, Hellraiser II, Layer Cake, Hot Fuzz, Valkyrie, and Rome, and he won an Olivier Award for his stage work.
Later roles include The Father, Official Secrets, The White Princess, The Spanish Princess, and Finding Alice. As King Henry, he brings the weight of an old ruler who cannot accept defeat.
Hannah New as Princess Leila
Hannah New plays Princess Leila, King Henry’s daughter, who marries Stefan and becomes Aurora’s mother. The role is short, as Leila dies while Aurora is in hiding.
New is best known as Eleanor Guthrie on Black Sails. She has also appeared in The Time in Between, Fuga de cerebros 2, and Trust, and has worked as a producer.
Her brief scenes show Stefan’s growing neglect of his family. That makes his obsession with Maleficent feel even more destructive.
Robert Lindsay as King John
Robert Lindsay plays King John in Mistress of Evil. He is Phillip’s father and Queen Ingrith’s husband, a gentle king who supports the marriage and wants peace.
When King John falls under a curse at the engagement dinner, Maleficent is falsely blamed. In truth, Ingrith is behind it, and her husband turns out to hold little real power in his own castle.
British audiences know Lindsay best as Ben Harper in My Family. His warmth makes King John sympathetic, which sharpens the contrast with his scheming wife.
Maleficent Cast 2: New Faces in Mistress of Evil
The Maleficent cast 2 lineup added heavyweight names to replace the villain gap Stefan left behind. The sequel also introduced the Dark Fey, winged fairies of Maleficent’s own kind, which expanded the world well beyond the Moors.
Michelle Pfeiffer as Queen Ingrith
Michelle Pfeiffer plays Queen Ingrith, Phillip’s mother and the sequel’s villain. She welcomes Aurora on the surface while secretly planning to exterminate the fairies, whom she sees as a threat.
Pfeiffer makes Ingrith smart and formidable, not just cold. Her dinner-table clash with Jolie is a highlight, and Jolie said she was impressed working opposite her. Ingrith’s plot fails, and she ends up turned into a goat.
Pfeiffer brought a long résumé to the part, including Grease 2, Dangerous Liaisons, Batman Returns, Hairspray, Murder on the Orient Express, and Ant-Man and the Wasp.
Chiwetel Ejiofor as Conall
Chiwetel Ejiofor plays Conall, a horned Dark Fey leader who rescues Maleficent after an assassination attempt. He believes humans and fairies can coexist, unlike his more warlike allies.
Conall sacrifices himself to save Maleficent, which gives the sequel its emotional core. Ejiofor has said the film’s themes felt relevant today, and he brought a quiet lightness to a serious role.
He earned an Oscar nomination for 12 Years a Slave and appeared in The Martian, Serenity, Salt with Jolie, as Mordo in the MCU, and as Scar in The Lion King (2019).
Ed Skrein as Borra
Ed Skrein plays Borra, a Dark Fey warrior who wants open war with humans. He acts as a counterweight to Conall and pushes the fairy army toward battle.
Skrein, who grew up in multicultural East London, described the film as a celebration of otherness. He linked that theme to the mixed neighborhood he grew up in.
Angelina Jolie’s Role as Producer
Jolie was not just the star. She served as an executive producer on the 2014 film and a producer on the sequel, shaping how Maleficent’s story was told.
Her castmates praised her hands-on producing style. Several said she was deeply involved in character choices, tone, and set atmosphere, while still keeping the shoot fun for the younger performers.
The sequel’s mixed reviews and softer box office led many to say it underperformed compared with the first film. Still, Jolie’s role behind the camera kept the character’s voice consistent across both movies, which is a big reason fans still treat the pair as one complete story.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who played young Maleficent in the 2014 movie?
Two actresses shared the role. Isobelle Molloy played Maleficent as a small child, and Ella Purnell played her as a teenager. Angelina Jolie took over once the character reached adulthood.
Why was Prince Phillip recast in Maleficent: Mistress of Evil?
Brenton Thwaites was reportedly unavailable due to other commitments. Harris Dickinson took over the role, which had grown much larger in the sequel since Phillip’s engagement to Aurora drives the plot.
Is Diaval played by the same actor in both films?
Yes. Sam Riley plays Diaval in both Maleficent and Mistress of Evil, making him one of the few actors to stay with the franchise from start to finish.
Which cast members are in both Maleficent movies?
Angelina Jolie, Elle Fanning, Sam Riley, Imelda Staunton, Juno Temple, and Lesley Manville appear in both films. Most other roles belong to only one chapter of the story.
Did Angelina Jolie’s daughter appear in Maleficent?
Yes. Vivienne Jolie-Pitt played five-year-old Aurora in the 2014 film. She was reportedly cast partly because other young children on set were frightened by Jolie in full costume.
Who is the villain in Maleficent 2?
Queen Ingrith, played by Michelle Pfeiffer, is the main villain. She pretends to support peace but secretly plans to wipe out the fairies.
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