Characters / Where The Wild Things Are - TV Tropes

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Max A lonely kid with a big imagination

• Adaptational Jerkass: Downplayed but his mischievous personality and impulsive tendencies are more emphasized in the movie. He even bites his own mother at one point. He gets better though.
• Annoying Younger Sibling: His sister, Claire, views him as this.
• Character Development: In the film, Max starts off as a lonely young boy who feels misunderstood at home and at school. As a result, he frequently lashes out at others (especially his mother). After his adventures with the Wild Things, however, he learns that this type of behavior is not acceptable and that just because you're going through hard times doesn't mean you have to lash out at others.
• The Chosen One: The Wild Things view him as this when he becomes their king.
• Disappeared Dad: His parents are divorced and he lives with his mom.
• My God, What Have I Done?: His shocked/scared reaction to biting his mother and why he runs away.
• Odd Name Out: His name beginning with an "M", while his mother and sister's names begin with "Cs"
• The Storyteller: This trope is how he's able to lie under pressure to the wild things. Earlier, we see him telling stories to his mother.

Connie Max and Claire's overwhelmed divorced mother

• Adaptation Expansion: Her relationship with her son and her personality are explored more in the film.
• Ascended Extra: She was just a minor character in the book and only existed simply to send Max to bed. In the film, she gets much more screentime. In addition, she was The Faceless in the book while we get to see her in person in the movie.
• Named by the Adaptation: She was unnamed in the book but the movie gives her name Connie.
• Parents as People: She isn't perfect, but it's only because she's trying so hard to provide for her family that she has less time for them.
• Parent with New Paramour: We briefly see that she has a boyfriend, to whom Max objects to.
• Struggling Single Mother: She's tired and overwhelmed much of the time, all while dealing with how to raise her two children in the wake of the divorce.

Claire Max's older sister

• Accomplice by Inaction: When her friends wreck Max's snow fort, she doesn't intervene.
• Aloof Big Sister: From what we can guess, her and Max used to be pretty close but they grew apart. Now, she's just apathetic to him.
• Canon Foreigner: She's not in the original children's book.
• Cool Big Sis: She was once this, but has become distant as she and Max are in very different places in life.
• Kick the Dog: How Max views her friends wrecking his snow fort and her not helping or cheering him up after.

The Wild Things

Carol Voiced by: James GandolfiniA horned wild thing with quite a temper

• Berserk Button: Really, it's easier to list what doesn't send Carol into a rage but the biggest examples are mentioning any idea that could imply breaking up the clan of monsters, and being lied to.
• Big Brother Bully: Carol towards the rest of the Wild Things. It becomes clear towards the end of the film that he's exactly the kind of person Max will become if he doesn't try to fix his problems; a self-centered, bitter Mood-Swinger whose bursts of violence bring harm to his family.
• Four-Philosophy Ensemble: The Optimist. He's very idealistic and doesn't take it well when his ideals about how the world should be are shaken or contradicted.
• Hair-Trigger Temper: Downplayed but he has been known to throw tantrums at few provocations.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite his obvious flaws, he does have good intentions, and only wants everyone to be happy.
• Manchild: Given that he clearly is supposed to represent Max, he comes off as this way. He turns into a Psychopathic Manchild when he tries to eat Max in a fit of rage but gets over it.

KW Voiced by: Lauren Ambrose (English), Charlotte Gainsbourg (French dub)

A long-haired wild thing, who's always away.

• Cool Big Sis: She quickly warms to Max and often sides with him in the Things' conflicts.
• Four-Philosophy Ensemble: The Apathetic. She's aloof and busy, being elsewhere or hanging out with her owl friends "Bob and Terry". Given Carol's antics, she has a reason to be this
• The Heart: If the other tropes aren't an indication, she plays this role. Likewise, some of the conflict in the film is because of her absences.
• Loved by All: All the Wild Things like and want to spend time with her but lay off in case they drive her further away. Max also warms up to her quickly.
• Only Sane Man: She has a playful, childlike side, but otherwise is easily the most rational, adult Wild Thing of the bunch.
• Team Mom: The others, especially Carol, seem to view her as this in a way, which makes sense, given how similar she is to Max's mom and big sister.