Death (Puss in Boots) (2024)

Death, also known as the Wolf, is the overarching antagonist of DreamWorks' 43rd full-length animated film Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, a spin-off of the Shrek franchise.

As his name suggests, he is the physical embodiment of death who takes the form of a white wolf in a black hooded cloak. During the events of the film, Death is personally intent on killing the legendary Puss in Boots once and for all as punishment for the carelessness of wasting eight of his nine lives and thus starting a tormenting and psychological hunt against Puss, despite going against his duty and boundaries by his own admission.

He was voiced by Wagner Moura, who also played Pablo Escobar in Narcos and by Kenjiro Tsuda in the Japanese dub, who voiced Kai Chisaki in My Hero Academia, Ryuji Yamazaki in Fatal Fury and King of Fighters, Vinsmoke Yonji in One Piece, Seto Kaiba in Yu-Gi-Oh and Isshiki Ōtsutsuki in Boruto: Naruto Next Generations.

Physical appearance[]

Death appears to be an anthropomorphic, silvery-white wolf with an elongated snout, gray mask-like markings on his face, sharp teeth, and glaring sinister red eyes. He wears a black cloak with a built-in hood, and brown trousers under the cloak. He also has brownish-gray wraps around his wrists and calves, and carries a pair of razor-sharp sickles that can be combined at the handle and extended to form a double-bladed scythe. Each sickle can be bent inwards for compact holstering or be use as brass knuckles which he used to break one of the crystals. Both sickles have eight cat heads crossed out on them, referring to Puss's eight lives that the latter lost.

While characters such as Puss in Boots or the Three Bears Crime Family resemble real-life animals (cats and bears, respectively), in Death's case, however, he is much more anthropomorphic/humanoid than what a real-life wolf would look like, and his assumed form resembles less a wolf, but a more classical depiction of a werewolf.

Personality[]

Death is a cunning and sinister individual whose sole purpose is to take the souls of the dead. Although he waits in the shadows for people to die naturally, if someone angers or offends him enough, he will physically manifest in order to attempt to take their life by force.

Death is sad*stic and thrill-seeking, as he takes a degree of pride and pleasure in his job, and openly admits that he enjoys striking fear into his victims. This is shown by the pleasure he took in scaring and provoking Puss in Boots with his taunts, eerie whistling, and his very presence, and how he got especially excited when he managed to draw blood on the cat. Death also admits to having a dislike of cats and the fact that they all have nine lives, finding the very concept "absurd".

Despite his sad*stic and sinister nature, Death has a sense of honor and nobility, as his main reason for pursuing Puss in the first place was to punish the cat for arrogantly squandering eight of his nine lives with reckless abandon, concluding from this that it would be best to kill Puss before he wasted his final life. Not to mention Puss often declared that he "laughed in the face of death", therefore Death was insulted and disrespected by Puss for his claims of false immortality as well as his deeds in wasting his lives. This indicates that despite representing the end of mortal life, Death holds life sacred and is disgusted by those who don't treat their own lives with true appreciation or care and believe they live forever. He also has a sense of fair play, as he always gives Puss the chance to fight back whenever they encountered each other, even giving his old sword back to him for their final duel on the Wishing Star. This suggests Death prefers to give fair fights for those who challenge him, but his comments about how much he would enjoy taking Puss out from the realm of the living seems to indicate that he may have brought him his sword back just for sport, finding it more entertaining to see Puss fight rather than just surrender.

When Puss finally stops running from him and instead fights him while promising to respect his final life with his friends, Death, although initially enraged that Puss has changed and thus "ruined his hunt", quickly calms down and recognizes that killing him now would be pointless and unethical. Thus, Death honorably decides to let Puss live out his final life, respectfully biding the cat to live his last life well before warning him that they will meet again eventually when his life finally comes to a permanent end. This all but proves that Death isn't unbeatable, even if he's unavoidable in the long run.

Overall, Death is best described as a harsh, but fair and reasonable spirit who takes his job seriously, enjoys a thrilling challenge and is more than happy to mete out severe punishment against those who disrespect him and his job, but doesn't kill just for the sake of doing so and is able to respect and spare those who prove him wrong.

Powers and Abilities[]

Being the physical embodiment of death, a natural universal phenomenon that is inevitable for every living thing, Death possesses vast physical and supernatural power. He is an exceptionally skilled and powerful fighter, being able to hold his own very well against the legendary swordsman Puss in Boots, and is one of the very few that can match the cat's speed and agility. In fact, Death is the only known individual who has ever managed to draw blood on Puss with a blade.

Death is very strong, being able to smash crystals with his blades and push one over with no effort at all, and has some amount of control over fire, which was shown by him conjuring a ring of fire around himself and Puss for their final duel. He is also unaffected by usually dangerous or lethal traps, shown by him being completely unaffected by the Dark Forest and effortlessly passing through the star wall, which totally vaporized one of the Baker's Dozen prior. He also has the ability to appear and disappear whenever and wherever he chooses. This is shown by how Death appears various times to Puss in Boots, with no sound other than his iconic whistle.

• Supernatural Strength: Death is shown to be very strong, being able to smash large crystals with his blades with no effort at all, and physically overpower Puss during their fights, even effortlessly restraining him with just one hand.
• Supernatural Durability: Death is also shown to be very durable, taking two direct attacks from Puss In Boots without injury.
• Supernatural Speed, Agility and Reflexes: Death is as fast as he is strong. His reactionary speed is great to where he is one of the very few that can match the cat's speed and agility, having outpaced him and even mocked him for his efforts during their first confrontation. Death's agility is also impressive given his wolf form is about 5 times Puss's small size.
• Sickle Proficiency: Perhaps his trademark ability is his skill with the dual sickles he wields. In battle, he swings his sickles with lethal force, able to cleave through wood and metal with little effort. He can also combine his sickles into a dual-headed glaive whenever he faces a worthy opponent. Death not only matches, but also exceeds Puss's swordsmanship. In fact, Death is the only known individual who has ever managed to draw blood from Puss with a blade.
• Weapon's Transmutation: Death's main choice of weaponry is two sickles he carries. When facing a worthy opponent, he has the ability to combine his sickles into a dual-headed glaive which replicates a double-blade scythe. Even when Puss broke his dual-headed glaive, Death managed to quickly transmit them back into two sickles.
• Pyrokinesis: Death has some amount of control over fire, which was shown by him conjuring a ring of fire around himself and Puss for their final duel.
• Soul Reading: Being the harvester of souls, Death has the power to peer into a person's soul and see who they truly are, however they might deny it or are ignorant of their own true natures, as he saw for himself that Puss in Boots, whom he had labeled an "arrogant little legend who he thought he was immortal", but no longer saw that in Puss at the end of their last duel.
• Invisibility: Being the harvester of souls, Death is shown to be invisible and soundless whenever he wants to be. This is shown multiple times during his encounters with Puss as the cat is often the only one who can see and hear him, until their final battle at the Wishing Star.
• Immortality: Being the literal embodiment of death means that he would have to existed from the very beginning of life. This makes it clear that Death isn't truly alive and cannot grow old or fall ill and has roughly existed for eons.
• Invincibility: Being the embodiment of an essential concept of the world, Death cannot be truly killed or destroyed. He completely ignores the normally lethal barrier around the Wishing Star and it can be presumed that the only reason Puss is able to fight back against him is because Death allows him to do so. Even then, Puss cannot truly defeat Death, something he freely admits, and Death leaves on his own terms after realizing that Puss has learned the value of life.
• Intimidation: Due to his appearance and power shown throughout the movie, Death is heavily feared literally and figuratively by mortals. He is the first character to make the legendary "fearless" hero Puss in Boots feel fear for the very first time. Due to his love to feel fear from his victims, he uses his powers to torment Puss the entire movie. One of his most prominent choices of fear tactics is done by what is referred to as "Death's Whistle."

Biography[]

Meeting Puss and First Duel[]

After Puss in Boots defeats the Sleeping Giant of Del Mar to save some of the townsfolk and their governor, he tries to celebrate his victory with a song, only to end up crushed underneath the town bell, costing him his eighth life.

When warned by the town doctor that he was down to his last life and must go into retirement, Puss ignores him and goes down to the town's tavern to relax and drink some milk to avoid his problems. His attempts to deflect the serious news was then suddenly interrupted by a sinister, melodic whistle. The source of that whistle is coming from a mysterious hooded wolf, who appears seemingly out of nowhere, sitting right next to Puss. At first, the menacing figure claims to be a fan of Puss in Boots, disturbing the cat with his eerie compliments, but when he asks Puss to sign a wanted poster specifically where it says "dead", it's clear that he's got something else in mind. Believing the Wolf is just another bounty hunter trying to collect a reward on him, Puss once again claims to laugh at death (which visibly annoys the wolf), and warns that he will not be defeated so easily. The wolf, however, calmly retorts by cryptically stating that while everyone he's hunted thought they could best him, not one of them has ever succeeded in escaping him.

Expecting an easy fight, Puss triumphantly draws his sword, only to have it immediately swatted away by the Wolf. The two then begin their duel, but Puss is on the losing side the entire time, with the wolf somehow calculating and predicting every single move he makes while belittling his combat performance. After the Wolf deflects Puss's sword with his sickles, Puss tries to do his signature air spin attack on him, but the wolf easily grabs him from the air by the neck and whispers into his ear that he is not living up to the legend. He then drags the cat across the bar and throws him at a table chair. Going on the offensive, the wolf continues to strike at Puss with his sickles, slicing one table cleanly in two. After a few more strikes, the wolf grazes Puss's forehead with one of his sickles, causing the cat to drop his rapier and hat, and also drawing a stream of blood which drips down Puss's face (according to the legend, Puss in Boots was never touched by a blade prior).

As the terrifying realization that his demise will be permanent finally dawns on Puss, the wolf picks up the scent of his fear and gets eerily excited to dispatch the cat, dragging his twin sickles across the floor as sparks fly. This causes Puss to experience a review of his life, to which the Wolf mockingly asks what is happening. The horrific beast then kicks Puss's sword towards its owner and demands the cat retrieve it so they can finish their duel. But instead, Puss succumbs to his fear, picks up his hat and flees into the tavern restroom without his weapon. Taking delight in striking terror into the supposed fearless hero, the wolf licks his chops and begins whistling his tune again while slowly walking towards the restroom. Puss locks the door, but knows that this will not stop him, especially after seeing the wolf's shadow somehow appear through the door. Upon breaking the lock with his sickle, the wolf opens the door, only to find his prey missing, having escaped through the tavern's sewage system. Amused by this, the wolf rhetorically tells Puss to run as far as he can, for he will not stop hunting the cat until he has succeeded in ending him.

Hunting and Haunting Puss[]

After the fight at the tavern, Puss became traumatized by the near-death experience. Heeding the doctor's word's, he goes to a cat sanctuary to spend the rest of his days in retirement. Then one day, he witnesses some shadowy creature through the window and sniffing at the bottom of the door. Assuming it to be the wolf he fought with prior, he tries to hide, but then sees it was actually one of the Three Bears Crime Family led by the infamous Goldilocks, who came in search of Puss so they can recruit him in stealing the map to the fabled Wishing Star from the terrible crime lord, Big Jack Horner. Realizing that the star could grant him his old lives again, Puss sets out to steal the map for himself.

While escaping from Jack's headquarters with the map on a horse cart, alongside his old companion-turned-rival Kitty Softpaws and a nameless dog he unintentionally befriended, Puss created a barrier of people to stop Jack's henchmen from chasing them by kicking gold unto the streets for them to grab. However, he then hears the whistle he heard from when he first fought the Wolf and sees the supposed bounty hunter within the crowd cheering for him (on the occasion, the Wolf places two coins on his eyes to send a message to Puss). Terrified, Puss orders the dog to speed up the cart, which he does. Then, within the dark forest near a river, during a three-way fight between Puss's group, Jack and his Baker's Dozen and the Three Bears, Puss attempts to recover the map, but then hears the whistle again and turns around to find the Wolf standing on a rock formation with his sickles ready, causing Puss to run away in terror. While running through the trees, Puss sees visages of the Wolf everywhere he looks until stopping at a tree. He then suffers from a panic attack until the nameless dog manages to calm him down.

Puss then gets trapped in the Cave of Lost Souls, where he meets all of his previous lives on crystal reflections, who attempt to persuade him to abandon his team to get to the star alone. Repulsed at how selfish and narcissistic he was before, Puss leaves in a huff, but as he walks away, the Wolf suddenly appears from the shadows in front of him, shocking him. The Wolf then begins smashing up the stalagmites showing the images of Puss's past lives while revealing that he has personally witnessed every one of his deaths while marking each one on his sickle. He then mocks Puss for being ignorant of his presence due to his claims of always "laughing in the face of death". Hearing these words, Puss realizes with horror that the individual in front of him is not a bounty hunter seeking money or fame, but in fact the physical embodiment of death itself, to which the Wolf, now identified as Death, confirms. When Puss questions why he has come after him while he is still alive, Death expresses how he dislikes cats for how they can prolong death with nine lives, especially when they waste away their lives without a care like Puss has with his original eight, and has decided to punish the cat by taking his last life. After Death smashes up the final crystal, Puss starts running for his life, with Death goading him to do so it will make the hunt more amusing for him. As Puss runs his way out of the cave, he sees multiple reflections of Death laughing at him on the crystals. When gets close to the exit, Death grabs him by the cape, causing it to tear and Puss to trip. But Puss continues to run away, with Death echoing for him to continue.

Final Duel[]

Soon, with Puss's friends and his enemies watching from the various points of the fabled Wishing Star (except for Big Jack Horner, who is trapped in his bottomless bag) they witness a final showdown between the fearless hero and the Grim Reaper, where the harbinger of death slashes the ground with his sickles to summon a ring of fire around himself and Puss, to make sure he doesn't escape and that his friends don't intervene to backup Puss. Death admits he has enjoyed the chase thus far, but grown tired of the cheap novelty and is ready to make that final notch on his sickle. He gives Puss his sword back for a proper climactic battle. This time, Puss is ready to face the powerful enemy, now having true friends to protect and a last life he wishes to cherish.

Puss rises to the occasion and disarms his foe, mirroring the scene where they first met, where Death taunted Puss to pick up his weapon but with Puss now the one taunting Death, not out of arrogance, but out of mutual respect. Puss states that while he'll never truly be able to defeat Death, he will never stop fighting him so he can cherish this one life before it later reaches its end. Frustrated, but also impressed when Puss shows no fear of him as they stare each other down, Death curses in Spanish out of rage and tells Puss he is ruining his hunt.

Death tells Puss that he came to claim the life of "an arrogant little legend who thought he was immortal", but doesn't see that in Puss anymore. Knowing now that Puss understands the importance about the end of life, Death accepts defeat by telling Puss to live his last life well, reminding that they will meet again once Puss dies or passes away from natural causes. Puss accepts this by saying that he will accept whatever fate has planned for him when they meet each other again. Satisfied by Puss's response, Death happily departs from the Wishing Star, whistling that familiar tune as he walks off with a newfound respect for Puss, disappearing into the barrier.

Quotes[]

Audio Samples[]

The Whistle of Death[]

Trivia[]

• Death is based on the folkloric character of the Grim Reaper, whereas the tune he whistles is based on El Silbón, a legend associated with the Los Llanos region of Colombia and Venezuela about a tall skeletal man whistling as a sign of death.
  • This is the first character in the Shrek universe to be based on folklore, unlike other characters who were based on fairy tales and nursery rhymes.
• Since the Grim Reaper/Death is normally portrayed as humanoid, it's possible that Death can shape-shift and specifically chose to take the form of a wolf, since the individual he is targeting, Puss in Boots, is a cat, mainly because dogs and wolves are related in the Canidae family genus.
  • Ironically in ancient times, wolves were often considered the embodiment of death by certain cultures, mainly because of its savagery and fury, as well as the Cadejo, a dog/wolf ghost in Spanish folklore.
  • Another possible connection is in Tupi-Guarani mythology, the indigenous peoples of Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, and Argentina, there is a figure called Luison. He is described as being a wolf-man or werewolf and is at times considered the God of Death, or has the same functions as the Grim Reaper.
• In order to not spoil Death's true identity, which isn't revealed until much later, he is credited as the "Big Bad Wolf" (or at least "the Wolf") in promotional material, although he is never referred to as such in the film. He also doesn't have any connections with the original Big Bad Wolf from the Shrek films, who is voiced by Aron Warner.
• The dual sickles he wields are likely a reference to the aforementioned Grim Reaper's scythe, both being farming equipment turned into weapons.
• Death was Wagner Moura's second vocal work.
• Death's design is inspired by Spaghetti Westerns, a European genre of western primarily made with Italian directors.
  • He uses two sickles that he is depicted spinning and sheathing numerous times, which is a reference to a cowboy wielding two revolvers.
  • His main article of clothing is a poncho, a popular trait found in characters of Spaghetti Westerns.
  • His lower arms are wrapped in leather bands, which could be in reference to the leather gun shooting wrist cuffs worn by Spaghetti Western characters (A popular example of this is Clint Eastwood and his character The Man with No Name.)
• When Death first shows up, Puss In Boots believes he is a bounty hunter, but Death neither confirms nor denies this claim until later.
• Death admitted that he hated that cats have nine lives, considering it to be absurd, and he held a personal contempt for Puss, who arrogantly squandered eight of his lives, in reckless abandon all the while claiming he "laughs in the face of death". This basically means that Puss was insulting Death every time he said this remark.
• When Death crosses his sickles on his chest, it makes him appear similar to Anubis, the Egyptian God of the Dead. Fittingly, they are both canines and embodiments of death itself.

  

• Death is the only character completely unaffected by the Dark Forest, appearing inside a crystal trap that isolated Puss in Boots and showing the ability to effortlessly pass through the star wall. This is because he is not a mortal being, but instead the personification of death itself, the end of mortal existence.

• There are several subtle hints about Death's true identity throughout the film:
  • The numbered cards during the death montage feature a hooded wolf with sickles at the four corners.
  • He makes his very first entrance by suddenly appearing right next to Puss with ghostly silence.
    • Prior to that, he could be seen in the top left corner of the screen as the camera pans over the villagers of Del Mar watching Puss as he battles the giant. Unlike everyone else, he is not cheering for the cat and is instead ominously staring at him.
  • His weapons are a pair of sickles, and his attire is a pitch-black cowl/poncho, which bare a strong resemblance to the Grim Reaper's scythe and cloak respectively. Also, his appearance as a silvery-white, bipedal wolf with a gray mark on his face is likely a reference to how the Grim Reaper is usually depicted as a be-robbed skeleton in folklore.
  • When Puss encounters Death in the bar, Puss claims that he "laughs in the face of death". In response to this, Death can be seen tearing his wanted poster with his claw, a subtle hint that he's taken offense to Puss's statement.
  • Before fighting Puss, Death says to the cat "Everyone thinks they'll be the one to defeat me, but no one's escaped me yet.", meaning that death is inevitable for every mortal being.
  • When Puss, Kitty, and Perrito escape from Big Jack Horner's henchmen, Death puts two stray coins over his eyes as he watches him leave, making him appear to be a corpse. This is also a reference as to how Ancient Greeks buried the dead with coins over their eyes so they would have money for passage to the Underworld.
  • When Puss sees Death for the first time in the Dark Forest, the scenery surrounding him resembles a skull.
  • Though Puss is shown being able to see Death and hear him, for most of the film, no other character is able to sense his presence until the final battle at the Wishing Star. This implies that Death is a supernatural being and not a normal mortal being.
  • While every other major character is introduced with a wanted poster (excluding Perrito, who has an "unwanted" poster), he isn't. While at first glance it appears this was done to not giveaway who he really is, this lampshades how Death is not a criminal and merely wanted to hunt down Puss specifically for wasting his lives.
  • During Puss's visit to the vet, his death is emphasized to him by the vet blowing out a candle. Likewise, shortly before Death appears in the bar, one of the candles on the chandelier above extinguishes, foreshadowing him coming to end Puss's life.
• In order to emphasize his true nature, the cracks in the crystal Death smashes when he reveals his identity are shaped like a wolf's skull, exemplifying his role as the personification of a mortal existence's end.
• Death's infamous whistle is eight beats long, mirroring how he's already taken eight of Puss's lives. During his fight with Puss when he summons the ring of fire, this melody lasts for nine beats until he starts talking instead, showing how Death is fully intent on taking the cat's last life. Likewise, when Death spares Puss and leaves the whistle's notes are higher, giving it a less menacing tone as he now respects Puss and wishes to let him live his life well.
• Death's quick rant in Spanish (¡¿POR QUÉ DIABLOS FUI A JUGAR CON MI COMIDA!?) roughly translates into English "WHY THE HELL DID I PLAY WITH MY FOOD?!?", likely showing his disappointment in toying with Puss over the course of his journey instead of killing him when given the chance.
• Death is the second antagonist to be an anthropomorphic wolf with supernatural powers Puss faced off with, the first being Bloodwolf from the Netflix series The Adventures of Puss in Boots.
• He serves as a lesson to Puss in Boots, as he, as Death said himself, didn't value any of his eight lives out of an arrogant belief he'd always have another life, which is why Death personally hunts Puss for his last life in the first place. It's only when Puss finally shows willingness to respect and fight for his last life for his friends that Death decides to spare him.
• Death never hunted Puss when he went into retirement as one of Mama Luna's cats, even though he had clear knowledge of his whereabouts. Considering Puss's misery and indignity as a house cat named "Pickles", Death likely figured he was leaving him to a fate worse than death or a slow and painful death after killing his adventurous spirit. When Puss decided to search for the Wishing Star to regain his lives, Death resumed his pursuit, not wanting to allow Puss more chances to cheat death than cats should.
• As he is the living embodiment of Death and speaks Spanish a few times in the film whose events started in Spain, Death can be seen as an evil counterpart to Santa Muerte, a Spanish folk character who also personifies Death. The difference is that Santa Muerte is depicted as a benevolent figure, while Death is sad*stic and resentful.
• After the movie was released, DreamWorks posted a joke video on their social media where Death is animated dancing to "Walk The Night", in reference to the movie M3GAN.

External links[]

• Death on the DreamWorks Wiki
• Death on the Shrek Wiki
• Death on the Universal Studios Wiki
• Death on the Puss in Boots Wiki
• Death on the Magnificent Baddie Wiki

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San Ricardo Jack and Jill | Humpty Alexander Dumpty | Raoul Jack Horner Pie Co. Big Jack Horner (Novelization) | Baker's Dozen | Serpent Sisters Netherworld Bloodwolf |Bloodwolf Avatars |Evil Puss |Evil Dulcinea |Blueberry |Tiny Tuffs (Tiny Queen) San Lorenzo Uli |Fartholomew Fishflinger |duch*ess |El Moco |Thieves | Brandt, Dom, Chad and Lamar Others Death |Goldilocks | Three Bears |Perrito’s Former Owners |Governor of Del Mar |Sleeping Giant of Del Mar |Pirate Captain |Le Chuchoteur |Three Diablos |The Evil Queen |No |Red Shivra |Malaranea |Maliflua |Jack Sprat |Beast |Scimitar (Evil Dulcinea) See Also Shrek Villains