Edna "E" Mode
is a fictional character in
Pixar
Pixar (), doing business as Pixar Animation Studios, is an American animation studio based in Emeryville, California, known for its critically and commercially successful computer-animated feature films. Pixar is a subsidiary of Walt Disney ...
's
animated
Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby image, still images are manipulated to create Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on cel, transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and e ...
superhero film
Superhero film/movie is a film genre categorized by the presence of superhero characters, individuals with extraordinary abilities who are dedicated to fighting crime, saving the world, or helping the innocent. It is sometimes considered a sub ...
''
The Incredibles
''The Incredibles'' is a 2004 American animated superhero film written and directed by Brad Bird. Produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures, the film stars the voices of Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Sarah Vowell, Spencer ...
'' (2004) and its sequel ''
Incredibles 2
''Incredibles 2'' is a 2018 American animated superhero film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. Written and directed by Brad Bird, it is the sequel to '' The Incredibles'' (2004) and the second full-length instal ...
'' (2018). She is an eccentric fashion designer renowned for creating the costumes of several famous superheroes, having worked particularly closely with
Mr. Incredible and
Elastigirl (Bob and Helen Parr), with whom she has remained friends. When the couple resumes their superhero careers after a fifteen-year hiatus, Edna is summoned out of retirement to help both characters – now parents – with their costumes, personal lives, and family matters.
Edna was created by writer and director
Brad Bird
Philip Bradley Bird (born September 24, 1957) is an American filmmaker, animator, and voice actor. He has had a career spanning over four decades in both animation and Live action, live-action.
Bird was born in Montana and grew up in Oregon. He ...
to explain how ''The Incredibles''
' superheroes obtain their costumes, a topic he believes is rarely explored in superhero films convincingly. Bird also decided to voice the character himself after several actresses originally considered for the role failed to replicate Edna's unique accent. The director understood that, in addition to fashion expertise, the character would need to demonstrate proficiency in science, engineering and technology in order to create costumes capable of withstanding the trials of superheroic activities, and ultimately conceived her as a short, confident character of both German and Japanese descent based on these countries' reputations as small yet powerful nations. Inspired by
Q from the ''
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...
'' franchise, Edna is widely believed to have been based primarily on costume designer
Edith Head
Edith Claire Head (née Posener, October 28, 1897 – October 24, 1981) was an American film costume designer who won a record eight Academy Awards for Academy Award for Best Costume Design, Best Costume Design between 1949 and 1973, making he ...
, although there continues to be constant speculation as to which celebrities inspired Edna, particularly ''
Vogue'' editor-in-chief
Anna Wintour
Dame Anna Wintour ( ; born 3 November 1949) is a British-American media executive, who has been serving as editor-in-chief of '' Vogue'' since 1988. Wintour has also served as global chief content officer of Condé Nast since 2020, where she o ...
, designer
Iris Apfel and actress
Linda Hunt
Linda Hunt (born Lydia Susanna Hunt; April 2, 1945) is an American actress. She made her film debut playing Mrs. Oxheart in Popeye (film), ''Popeye'' (1980). Her portrayal of the male character Billy Kwan in ''The Year of Living Dangerously (fil ...
.
Despite having only supporting roles in both films, Edna has since established herself as ''The Incredibles''
breakout character
A breakout character is a character (arts), character in Serial (literature), serial fiction, especially a member of an ensemble cast, who becomes much more prominent, popular, discussed, or imitated than expected by the creators. A breakout c ...
due to her popularity among fans. Film critics agree that Edna is a
scene-stealer, particularly praising her humor and dialogue; Bird has also been lauded for his voice acting, earning an
Annie Award
The Annie Awards are accolades which the Los Angeles branch of the International Animated Film Association, ASIFA-Hollywood, has presented each year since 1972 to recognize excellence in animation shown in American cinema and television. Origina ...
for
Voice Acting in a Feature Production for his performance as the character. Edna has been recognized as one of Pixar's greatest characters by several prominent media publications.
Development
Creation

Edna Mode was created for ''
The Incredibles
''The Incredibles'' is a 2004 American animated superhero film written and directed by Brad Bird. Produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures, the film stars the voices of Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Sarah Vowell, Spencer ...
'' by writer and director
Brad Bird
Philip Bradley Bird (born September 24, 1957) is an American filmmaker, animator, and voice actor. He has had a career spanning over four decades in both animation and Live action, live-action.
Bird was born in Montana and grew up in Oregon. He ...
.
Having watched several
superhero-themed films and television shows prior to developing ''The Incredibles'', Bird had often found himself wondering who is responsible for making the superheroes' elaborate costumes. Bird conceived Edna upon discovering that, despite featuring characters dressed in fancy, extravagant costumes, traditional
superhero film
Superhero film/movie is a film genre categorized by the presence of superhero characters, individuals with extraordinary abilities who are dedicated to fighting crime, saving the world, or helping the innocent. It is sometimes considered a sub ...
s rarely offer plausible explanations as to how superheroes come to obtain these outfits, or who provides them in the first place.
The director wanted to debunk the
trope of muscular superheroes sewing their own costumes, finding it hard to believe that superheroes would suddenly develop a strong enough interest in fashion and textiles to design their own outfits.
Therefore, Bird decided that if the world was populated with superheroes, there would naturally also be people responsible for designing their costumes who must also have a background in science and engineering,
thereby envisioning Edna as a scientist and technical genius in addition to being a fashion designer.
The director elaborated, "The way I saw it, the costumes had to be created by somebody with a scientific and engineering background", thus conceiving Edna as "a half-German, half-Japanese, tiny powerhouse of a character".
''The Incredibles'' was the first
Pixar
Pixar (), doing business as Pixar Animation Studios, is an American animation studio based in Emeryville, California, known for its critically and commercially successful computer-animated feature films. Pixar is a subsidiary of Walt Disney ...
film to earn a
PG rating; Edna is considered to be one of the studio's earliest attempts at approaching "
darker, edgier comedy," which is particularly demonstrated by the scene in which the character cites several
graphic
Graphics () are visual images or designs on some surface, such as a wall, canvas, screen, paper, or stone, to inform, illustrate, or entertain. In contemporary usage, it includes a pictorial representation of the data, as in design and manufa ...
examples of capes directly resulting in the deaths of several superheroes, one of whom is shown being consumed and killed by a jet turbine.
According to Bird, the creation of Edna took the notion of superheroes wearing designed costumes "to a further extreme".
Edna was named after EMode, a software Pixar used at the time the film was made.
Bird identified Edna as the "most fun character" he created for the film.
Voice
Edna follows the tradition of Pixar directors voicing secondary characters in their films, which was based around Bird's
authoritarian
Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in democracy, separation of powers, civil liberties, and ...
voice during production.
Bird's voice for the character originated from story boarding sessions, during which various Pixar employees typically provide characters' voices temporarily.
Although these voices are usually eventually replaced with professional actors, there are some unique instances when the original voices are retained, as was the case with Bird's "Edna" performance.
Bird had also provided temporary voices for other characters during this time, including Bob Parr and Syndrome,
who were ultimately voiced by
Craig T. Nelson and
Jason Lee, respectively.
Several actresses were considered for the role of Edna, including a performer who repeatedly asked Bird to demonstrate her dialogue until eventually telling him to simply voice the character himself.
The role was also offered to actress and comedian
Lily Tomlin
Mary Jean "Lily" Tomlin (born September 1, 1939) is an American actress, comedian, writer, singer, and producer. Tomlin started her career in stand-up comedy and sketch comedy before transitioning her career to acting across stage and screen. ...
, who ultimately declined, relenting that she could never voice the character as funnily as the director.
Finally succumbing to "popular demand" from his staff, Bird joked that he was ultimately cast as Edna simply because he was both affordable and available at the time.
A similar approach was used for several other supporting characters in ''The Incredibles'': animator Bret Parker voices Kari, the Parr family's teenage babysitter; writer
Bud Luckey voices government agent
Rick Dicker;
and production designer
Lou Romano voices Bernie Kropp, Dash's teacher.
Bird described Edna's accent as a combination of Japanese and German, deciding to draw influence from these regions because "they're two small countries that have amazing design and amazing technology", citing cameras and cars as examples of technology they specialize in.
Although Bird's performance is considerably broad, he prevents Edna from becoming too much of a
caricature
A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, ...
in order to maintain the illusion that she is one of the film's smartest characters.
In the Italian and French-language
dubs of the film, Bird's comic accent is replaced by that of French entertainer
Amanda Lear
Amanda Lear (; born 18 June or 18 November 1939 or 1941 or 1946 or 1950) is a French singer, songwriter, painter, television presenter, actress and former model.
She began her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and went on ...
, who offers a more seductive, "biting" interpretation.
Lear said that dubbing Edna's voice was not an easy process, but accepted the job after being offered the role upon seeing the film at the
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world.
Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...
in order to fulfill her dream of having always wanted to voice a Disney character.
Edna was the first character Lear was hired to dub in Italian.
Personality, design, and influences
Bird believes he shares some of Edna's personality traits, specifically how he prefers to be involved in virtually every creative aspect of his projects.
Admitting both he and his character emanate immense self-confidence when it comes to their own work and opinions,
Bird identified Edna as one of the film's most difficult characters to design.
The character went through several different changes in appearance during the development process, ranging from taller and overweight to older, younger and thinner.
Inspired by the large impact countries such as Japan and Germany have on the world despite being comparatively small in size, Bird decided Edna would reflect this theme by being "a tiny character that dominates the room when she gets into it".
Her home, which uses high-end technology similar to what she incorporates into the outfits she creates,
was deliberately designed to be significantly larger than she is to further emphasize this theme of dominance.
Edna's small stature was also inspired by singer
Bette Midler
Bette Midler ( ;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American actress, comedian, singer, and author. Throughout her five-decade career Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Bette Midler, numero ...
, of whom Bird has always been a fan. The director recalled being surprised by Midler's height when he first met her "Because ... she absolutely dominates the screen. And it just struck me how much personality was in this small body."
In terms of animation, Bird wanted all of the film's characters to move differently from each other, providing Edna with a very confident walk to represent the fact that she has "never experienced doubt in her life."
The animators found the fact that Bird provided the character's voice himself to be very helpful as he would often act out the way in which the character acts and behaves himself, which helped in further defining the animators' vision of Edna.
According to Bird, Edna, despite her petite stature, is the only non-superhero in ''The Incredibles'' capable of making superheroes feel uncomfortable.
Bird described Edna as a character who is "not remotely intimidated by superheroes or anyone", refusing to accept the word "no" when it is used in opposition of her opinions or beliefs.
Describing Edna's physical attributes as "severe", Bird had envisioned the character with glasses and a pageboy haircut, while remaining modern and elegant.
Edna's ethnicity has been identified as
half-German and half-Japanese.
Edna's design, personality, and voice are widely believed to have been based on costume designer
Edith Head
Edith Claire Head (née Posener, October 28, 1897 – October 24, 1981) was an American film costume designer who won a record eight Academy Awards for Academy Award for Best Costume Design, Best Costume Design between 1949 and 1973, making he ...
,
with whom she shares her signature round glasses, black
bob cut
A bob cut, also known as a bob, is a short to medium length haircut, in which the hair is typically cut straight around the head at approximately jaw level, and no longer than shoulder-length, often with a fringe at the front. The standard bob ...
, and forthright demeanor.
Bird described Edna as a combination of Head and
Q, a character from the ''
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...
'' franchise.
The director has generally declined to confirm any direct influences on the character, insisting that Edna is not based on one specific person,
although Head continues to be considered the character's "most legitimate" alleged inspiration.
However, animator
Teddy Newton
Teddy Newton is an American animator and voice actor, best known for his work at Pixar, Pixar Animation Studios.
Career
Newton worked as a storyboard artist on ''2 Stupid Dogs'', ''The Iron Giant'', and ''Dexter's Laboratory.'' He was a charact ...
, who co-designed Edna with Bird, revealed he was inspired by the film ''
Unzipped'' (1995), a documentary exploring the petulance of fashion designer
Isaac Mizrahi and stylist
Polly Allen Mellen.
Critics and fans have long speculated about the real-life inspiration behind Edna's design and appearance.
Bird stated he has constantly been told by various fans and viewers that the character reminds them of at least 15 different celebrities since the character debuted in ''The Incredibles''.
Contributing to ''
Fashion
Fashion is a term used interchangeably to describe the creation of clothing, footwear, Fashion accessory, accessories, cosmetics, and jewellery of different cultural aesthetics and their mix and match into Clothing, outfits that depict distinct ...
'', Erin Dunlop described the character as "a supercharged hybrid of every fashion industry legend we can think of".
In an article discussing who Edna is based on, ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
''
's Steve Daly cited ''Vogue'' editor-in-chief
Anna Wintour
Dame Anna Wintour ( ; born 3 November 1949) is a British-American media executive, who has been serving as editor-in-chief of '' Vogue'' since 1988. Wintour has also served as global chief content officer of Condé Nast since 2020, where she o ...
, designer
Coco Chanel
Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel ( , ; 19 August 1883 – 10 January 1971) was a French fashion designer and Businessperson, businesswoman. The founder and namesake of the Chanel brand, she was credited in the post-World War I era with populari ...
and actress
Lotte Lenya
Lotte Lenya (born Karoline Wilhelmine Charlotte Blamauer; 18 October 1898 – 27 November 1981) was an Austrian-American singer, diseuse, and actress, long based in the United States. In the German-speaking and classical music world, she is be ...
as possible influences, while drawing similarities between the character's use of large-framed glasses to architect
Philip Johnson
Philip Cortelyou Johnson (July 8, 1906 – January 25, 2005) was an American architect who designed modern and postmodern architecture. Among his best-known designs are his modernist Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut; the postmodern 550 ...
, producer
Robert Evans
Robert Evans (born Robert J. Shapera; June 29, 1930 – October 26, 2019) was an American film producer who worked on ''Rosemary's Baby (film), Rosemary's Baby'' (1968), ''Love Story (1970 film), Love Story'' (1970), ''The Godfather'' (1972), ...
, talent agent
Swifty Lazar, studio executive
Lew Wasserman
Lewis Robert Wasserman (March 22, 1913 – June 3, 2002) was an American businessman and talent agent, described as "the last of the legendary movie moguls" and "arguably the most powerful and influential Hollywood titan in the four decades afte ...
, and fashion editor
Carrie Donovan.
Some critics have suspected that the character is also based on
Mary Quant and Una Jones. Acknowledging that there are several female fashion designers who wear glasses upon whom Edna could have been based, Bird admitted he drew inspiration from Head, author
Patricia Highsmith
Patricia Highsmith (born Mary Patricia Plangman; January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character T ...
, and actress
Linda Hunt
Linda Hunt (born Lydia Susanna Hunt; April 2, 1945) is an American actress. She made her film debut playing Mrs. Oxheart in Popeye (film), ''Popeye'' (1980). Her portrayal of the male character Billy Kwan in ''The Year of Living Dangerously (fil ...
.
For the sequel, in order to design costumes for a character who happens to be a designer herself, Imagire drew upon
art school
An art school is an educational institution with a primary focus on practice and related theory in the visual arts and design. This includes fine art – especially illustration, painting, contemporary art, sculpture, and graphic design. T ...
lessons, while imagining what the character might be thinking when designing her own clothes. Meanwhile, character artist Deanna Marsigliese's first assignment was to create an entire line of clothing designed by Edna.
Although ultimately the completed clothing line was not used in the final film, Marsigliese considered the experience "a study in (Edna's) character" nonetheless, and drew inspiration from Edna's wardrobe and belongings in the first film.
Although she was aware that Edna enjoys being dramatic, she acknowledges that designers do not necessarily have the same
aesthetic
Aesthetics (also spelled esthetics) is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature of beauty and taste, which in a broad sense incorporates the philosophy of art.Slater, B. H.Aesthetics ''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy,'' , acces ...
as their clients.
Similarly, Imagire agreed that fashion designers such as Kawakubo, Ishioka, and Abe always dressed comfortably in comparison to their models, a contrast she wanted Edna to reflect.
Recalling that Edna dislikes models, the artist envisioned that the character would instead design her own clothing to serve as "a vehicle to celebrate superheroes and her powers".
Inspired by Italian fashion designer
Elsa Schiaparelli, Marsigliese created a "classic,
mid-century inspired silhouette" for Edna's costumes that were also bold and dramatic as though Edna herself had designed them, then rearranging the designs to ultimately give them a more surreal appearance.
Dubbing the character a "woman of the now", Marsigliese explained that, like Schiaparelli, Edna is "completely ahead of her time" despite living in the 1950s; "she used a lot of surrealist elements, a lot of fun surprises, and that was very inspiring for me."
Characterization
According to Matthew Brunson of ''
Creative Loafing
Creative Loafing is an Atlanta-based publisher of an arts and culture news and events newspaper/magazine. The company historically published a weekly publication that once had a 160,000 weekly circulation. While Creative Loafing is no longer p ...
'', Edna provides the majority of the film's
comic relief
Comic Relief is a British charity, founded in 1986 by the comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Sir Lenny Henry in response to the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. The concept of Comic Relief was to get British comedians to make t ...
.
Hischak believes Edna offers "a whole new viewpoint to the world of superheroes", in addition to demonstrating the film's "oddball silliness".
''
Vogue Italia
''Vogue Italia'' is the Italian edition of '' Vogue'' magazine owned by Condé Nast International. In publication since 1964, it has been called the top fashion magazine in the world. The publication is currently edited by Francesca Ragazzi and ...
'' published a biography of Edna, in which author Valentina Fabbri described her as a character who "knows she's the best and she doesn't hide it, and her lack of modesty is equalled only by her intuition", with whom it is virtually impossible to have a conversation because "she tends to dominate."
Due to her combination of genius-level intellect and "craziness," Fabbri identified Edna as "a fun, bubbly caricature of the magicians of fashion" by "embod
ing
Ing, ING or ing may refer to:
Art and media
* '' ...ing'', a 2003 Korean film
* i.n.g, a Taiwanese girl group
* The Ing, a race of dark creatures in the 2004 video game '' Metroid Prime 2: Echoes''
* "Ing", the first song on The Roches' 199 ...
their talent and charisma, their vices and virtues."
''
Screen Rant
''Screen Rant'' is an entertainment website that offers news in the fields of television, films, video games, and comic books. It is owned by Valnet, parent of publications including Comic Book Resources, Collider, MovieWeb and XDA Developers.
...
''s Victoria Robertson observed that the character "has a lot of personality packed into a small exterior, taking stereotypical traits often attributed to designers and making them her own", firstly remaining proud of her own work at all times.
Oliver Lyttelton of ''
IndieWire'' identified Edna as quite possibly the film's most intelligent character.
Edna's criticisms of fashion can come off as unpleasant at times, but are exaggerated to the point of which audiences find them to be comical.
Edna prefers to always think about the future, finding dwelling on the past to be distracting from the present, as demonstrated by her line "I never look back, dahling, it distracts from the now",
and thus has proven capable of determining the needs of her superhero clientele before they have the opportunity to finalize their ideas themselves.
Her personality has been described by ''
GamesRadar+
''GamesRadar+'' (formerly ''GamesRadar'') is an entertainment website for video game-related news, previews, and reviews. It is owned by Future plc. In late 2014, Future Publishing-owned sites ''Total Film'', '' SFX'', '' Edge'' and '' Compute ...
'' Joshua Winning as "brassy" and "no-nonsense".
Q13 Fox described Edna as "a gifted designer, an assertive life coach and a witty talker,"
using her mind and intelligence as a means of solving everyday issues.
''
BuddyTV
BuddyTV is an entertainment-based website, which generates content about television programs and sporting events. The website publishes information about celebrity and related entertainment news through a series of articles, entertainment profile ...
'' believes that the character's "bold and eccentric attitude" is rivaled only by her considerable talent.
According to Kevin Carr of
Film School Rejects
Film School Rejects is an American blog devoted to movie reviews, interviews, film industry
The film industry or motion picture industry comprises the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking, i.e., film production company, prod ...
, Edna "doesn't take crap from anyone" yet "she does so with poise and pride."
The ''
San Francisco Chronicle
The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...
'' Carla Meyer argues that Edna is "more a caricature than a character."

Scott Tobias of ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason.
The magazine was first known fo ...
'' called Edna "a reminder that the superhero suit needs to the perfect synthesis of form and function", without which "greatness as both a crimefighter and an icon is impossible".
According to Thomas S. Hischak, author of ''100 Greatest American and British Animated Films'', Edna is just as concerned with the appearance of the costumes she designs as she is about their use and practicality,
proving capable of designing outfits that can stretch, change their shape and resist oncoming attacks.
The character proves capable of designing a costume for Violet that can turn invisible whenever its wearer does.
She absolutely refuses to incorporate capes into her new designs due to the accessory having a history of contributing to the deaths of superheroes in the past, among them Dynaguy, Thunderhead, Stratogale, Meta-Man and Splashdown,
presenting them as a "montage of superhero couture
faux-pas". Ultimately, her belief in the dangers of capes is confirmed by the death of the film's villain
Syndrome
A syndrome is a set of medical signs and symptoms which are correlated with each other and often associated with a particular disease or disorder. The word derives from the Greek language, Greek σύνδρομον, meaning "concurrence". When a sy ...
.
In terms of her own appearance, Edna is costumed in "
futuristic black" attire, wearing a black dress that boasts square lines.
Estimating her height to be of approximately three feet, ''
The Tyee
The Tyee is an independent daily news website based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It was founded in November 2003 as an alternative to corporate media. Articles in The Tyee focus on politics, culture, and life.
The Tyee was founded b ...
'' Dorothy Woodend wrote that Edna is dressed in
Issey Miyake
was a Japanese fashion designer. He was known for his technology-driven clothing designs, exhibitions and fragrances, such as '' L'eau d'Issey'', which became his best-known product.
Early life and education
Miyake was born on 22 April 1938 i ...
pleats while being of "indeterminate gender".
''
VPRO
The VPRO (stylized vpro; originally an acronym for ''Vrijzinnig Protestantse Radio Omroep'', lit. 'Liberal Protestant Radio Broadcaster', nowadays known as ''Omroepvereniging VPRO'') is a Netherlands, Dutch Public broadcasting, public broadca ...
'' drew similarities between the character's hairstyle and personality to that of ''Vogue'' editor Anna Wintour,
the resemblance to whom Tech Times' Katherine Derla identified as "The first thing viewers are likely to remember upon seeing" the character.
According to ''STATUS'' magazine, Edna is often mistaken for the magazine editor largely due to her "snappy sass and iconic bob". ''
/Film
''/Film'', also spelled ''SlashFilm'', is a blog that covers movie news, reviews, interviews, and trailers. It was founded by Peter Sciretta in August 2005. The site's reviews appear on Rotten Tomatoes, and as of 2024, two of its leading film cr ...
''s Angie Han joked that Edna's "no-nonsense demeanor" would leave Wintour "quaking in her Chanel boots."
When asked about the alleged similarities between her and the character, Wintour revealed that she has yet to see the film.
Derla also wrote that Edna is capable of "run
ing
Ing, ING or ing may refer to:
Art and media
* '' ...ing'', a 2003 Korean film
* i.n.g, a Taiwanese girl group
* The Ing, a race of dark creatures in the 2004 video game '' Metroid Prime 2: Echoes''
* "Ing", the first song on The Roches' 199 ...
the world" but opts to operate from behind the scenes instead.
The term "diminutive" is often used to describe the character's height.
Revering herself as "too talented" to design clothes for humans,
Edna resents having been forced to resort to designing for
supermodel
A supermodel is a highly paid fashion model who has a worldwide reputation and background in ''haute couture'' and commercial modeling. The term became popular in the 1990s.
Supermodels usually work for prominent fashion designers and clothin ...
s during the 15-year absence of superheroes,
dismissing models as spoiled, self-centered "stick figures" after working with them in Milan and Paris.
She jokes that there is nothing "super" about supermodels, despite their name.
Edna likens designing for superheroes to designing for
gods
A deity or god is a supernatural being considered to be sacred and worthy of worship due to having authority over some aspect of the universe and/or life. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines ''deity'' as a God (male deity), god or god ...
, and thus considers herself far superior to other fashion designers.
Despite her success as one of the world's most sought-after designers,
Edna longs to return to working with superheroes so she can challenge her designs by fusing them with the latest technology.
Despite designing elaborate costumes for a living, Edna prefers a more simple aesthetic for herself, generally avoiding nail polish and accessories.
Rackeds Carlye Wisel observed that although the sequel "may have deep roots in midcentury-modern design ... Edna remains true to her forward-looking style, wearing a red silk kimono".
In addition to designing their clothes, she offers her clients advice whenever she feels they require it,
demonstrating a "zero-tolerance policy for emotional weakness" which, according to ''
The Dissolve
''The Dissolve'' was a film review, news, and commentary website which was operated by Pitchfork and based in Chicago, Illinois. The site was focused on reviews, commentary, interviews, and news about contemporary and classic films.{{cite web, url ...
'' Charles Bramesco, echoes Bird's "lament
ngregular folks' tendency to impede awesome people from being awesome". Edna is known to refer to her clients as "dahling",
who affectionately call her "E".
In addition to citing her resemblance to Wintour, journalist
Hadley Freeman
Hadley Clare Freeman (born 15 May 1978) is an American British journalist. She writes for ''The Sunday Times'', having previously written for ''The Guardian''.
In 2024 she won Broadsheet Columnist of the Year from The Press Awards.
Early l ...
of ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' believes Edna's use of fashion in the film represents "The highest pinnacle of human achievement", without whom the world would end".
Appearances
Edna first appears in ''The Incredibles'' as a fashion designer to superheroes and close friend of the titular characters.
During the "golden age of superheroes",
Edna is one of a few elite guests who attend the private wedding ceremony of Bob and Helen Parr, then better-known to the public as the superheroes Mr. Incredible and Elastigirl. After all superheroes have been
outlaw
An outlaw, in its original and legal meaning, is a person declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, all legal protection was withdrawn from the criminal, so anyone was legally empowered to persecute or kill them. ...
ed and forced to retire following a series of lawsuits,
Edna is also forced to retire from superhero work due to government restrictions.
Later, Edna is unexpectedly visited by Bob, who has resumed superhero work undercover. Bob initially asks Edna to simply repair a tear in his original super suit, but she ultimately convinces him to allow her to design an entirely new outfit, on the condition that capes not be incorporated whatsoever due to numerous safety concerns.
Helen soon discovers that Bob's original super suit has received a
patch job; determining that the only person capable of repairing a super suit would be Edna,
a suspicious Helen visits Edna in the hopes of finding out more information about Bob's actions. She discovers that Edna, mistakenly assuming that Helen and the children know of Bob's new work, has created a complete matching set of super suits for the entire Parr family.
Although their reunion is brief, Edna provides an initially distraught Helen with the encouragement she needs to resume her identity as Elastigirl in order to save her husband (and their marriage). A homing device Edna built into Bob's suit helps Helen to track him down and rescue him from Syndrome's containment unit.
Edna appears in the film's sequel, ''
Incredibles 2
''Incredibles 2'' is a 2018 American animated superhero film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. Written and directed by Brad Bird, it is the sequel to '' The Incredibles'' (2004) and the second full-length instal ...
'' (2018). When Helen is recruited by a pair of entrepreneurs to change the public's perception of superheroes, and resumes her alter-identity of Elastigirl,
Edna is upset to learn that Helen is being forced to wear a new costume created by a rival designer as part of the publicity stunt. Bob eventually becomes overwhelmed by Jack-Jack's emerging superpowers, and recruits Edna for assistance with controlling him. Although Edna is initially reluctant to
babysit Jack-Jack,
she develops a strong liking for the baby once she discovers how many powers he has, and enjoys the challenge of creating a sensor-filled suit that anticipates and mitigates the dangers associated with Jack-Jack's lack of control over his powers. She also explains to Bob that it is not uncommon for children to have multiple superpowers when young, as babies by nature have unlimited potential.
She gives the enhanced suit to Bob in a custom shopping bag, which bears a logo for her services that incorporates her signature eyeglasses into its lettering.
Edna also appears in
Disney on Ice's adaptation of the film: ''The Incredibles in a Magic Kingdom Adventure''. The time that Edna spends looking after Jack-Jack is the focus of the animated short ''Auntie Edna''.
Reception
The public was immediately captivated by Edna upon her debut, expressing fascination with the character's irreverence and sulkiness.
Edna instantly established herself as a fan favorite in 2004, which ''Racked''s Carlye Wisel attributed to the character's combination of wit and style.
Several critics have described Edna as a
scene-stealer.
Dubbing Edna "One of the great scene-stealing characters in ''The Incredibles''", ''
HowStuffWorks
HowStuffWorks is an American commercial infotainment website founded by professor and author Marshall Brain, to provide its target audience an insight into the way many things work. The site uses various media to explain complex concepts, term ...
'' contributor Vicki Arkoff called her "deliciously
deadpan
Deadpan, dry humour, or dry-wit humour is the deliberate display of emotional neutrality or no emotion, commonly as a form of Comedy, comedic delivery to contrast with the ridiculousness or absurdity of the subject matter. The delivery is meant t ...
".
Ken Hanke, writing for the ''
Mountain Xpress'', considers Edna to be among the film's most delightful gags, particularly highlighting the character's anti-cape monologue while deeming her "worth the price of admission". Film critic
Peter Bradshaw
Peter Nicholas Bradshaw (born 19 June 1962) is a British writer and film critic. He has been chief film critic at ''The Guardian'' since 1999, and is a contributing editor at ''Esquire'' magazine.
Early life and education
Bradshaw was educat ...
, contributing to ''
The Irish Times
''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...
'', described Edna as "a joy with her wonderful and appropriate maxim: 'I never look back, darling. It distracts from the now.'" Dorothy Woodend, writing for ''The Tyee'', found Edna "more interesting ... than all the Incredibles put together".
Referred to as one of the film's "high point
, Kevin Lally of ''
Film Journal International
''Film Journal International'' was a motion-picture industry trade magazine published by the American company Prometheus Global Media. It was a sister publication of '' Adweek'', '' Billboard'', ''The Hollywood Reporter'', and other periodical ...
'' described the character's anti-cape montage as "pricelessly funny", a sentiment with which Matt Brunson of Creative Loafing agreed.
The ''
National Post
The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper and the flagship publication of the American-owned Postmedia Network. It is published Mondays through Saturdays, with Monday released as a digital e-edition only. '' described Edna as "exactly the kind of person you want at your dinner party".
Notable Biographies identified Edna as "one of the audience's favorite characters".
Bird has also received widespread acclaim for his voice acting.
Nell Minow
Nell Minow is an American movie critic and corporate governance scholar and expert who writes and speaks frequently on film, media, corporate governance, and investing. Minow was named one of the 20 most influential people in corporate governance ...
of
Common Sense Media
Common Sense Media (CSM) is an American nonprofit organization that reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children. said Bird "plays the funniest character in the film", while ''
AllMovie
AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, television series, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne.
History
AllMovie was ...
''s Perry Seibert described his performance as "screamingly funny". Pete Vonder Haar of ''
Film Threat
''Film Threat'' is an American online film review publication, and earlier, a national magazine that focused primarily on independent film, although it also reviewed videos and DVDs of mainstream films, as well as Hollywood movies in theaters. ...
'' said Bird deliver's the film's best voice acting and dialogue, calling the character's rant about the "idiocy" of capes "priceless". Scott Chitwood, writing for
ComingSoon.net, agreed that Bird is "absolutely hilarious as Edna". ''
Empire
An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...
'' Colin Kennedy dubbed Bird's voice work "an unmistakable highlight".
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
's Stella Papamichael agreed that the director "steals the show" as Edna. Carla Meyer, writing for the ''San Francisco Chronicle'', said Bird's performance as Edna demonstrates his versatility.
In 2005, Bird won an
Annie Award
The Annie Awards are accolades which the Los Angeles branch of the International Animated Film Association, ASIFA-Hollywood, has presented each year since 1972 to recognize excellence in animation shown in American cinema and television. Origina ...
for
Voice Acting in a Feature Production at the
32nd Annie Awards for his performance as Edna, in addition to being rewarded for writing and directing the film. Bird was rewarded over actor
Samuel L. Jackson, who had been nominated in the same category for his role as
Frozone. Wisel appreciated Edna's cameo in the sequel, describing it as "perfect in its restraint".
''
Vulture
A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to Nort ...
'' ranked Bird's Edna the fourth-greatest performance in an animated film, calling it "a scene- and movie-stealing performance".
Similarly, ''Entertainment Weekly'' placed Edna fourth on their ranking of "The 10 greatest Pixar voice performances", with author Marc Snetiker calling it "an all-too-short but memorably delicious appearance" in which Bird "left an indelible mark on his own universe".
Snetiker called the character "overwhelmingly funny thanks to Bird's unrestrained efforts on even the simplest lines".
''IndieWire'' ranked Bird's performance as Edna the 14th "30 Best Voice Performances In Pixar Movies".
Kiko Martinez of the ''
San Antonio Current'' found Bird's performance to be worthy of an
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...
. Bird revealed that fans tend to be more impressed by the fact that he provides Edna's voice than his success as a director and writer,
explaining, "If I say a line in Edna's voice, that's far more delightful than the fact that I spent four years wrestling something into being."
Impact and legacy
Edna's popularity established her as the film's
breakout character
A breakout character is a character (arts), character in Serial (literature), serial fiction, especially a member of an ensemble cast, who becomes much more prominent, popular, discussed, or imitated than expected by the creators. A breakout c ...
.
''Screen Rant''s Alex Welch attributes this designation to both her
comedic rapport with the titular family and passion for superhero costumes.
''
HelloGiggles
HelloGiggles.com is an entertainment and lifestyle website launched in May 2011. It has not been updated since 2023 but is still live. It was founded by actress/musician Zooey Deschanel, TV producer Sophia Rivka Rossi and writer Molly McAleer. ...
'' writer Sydney Bucksbaum crowned her the film's "real hero".
''
Vogue Italia
''Vogue Italia'' is the Italian edition of '' Vogue'' magazine owned by Condé Nast International. In publication since 1964, it has been called the top fashion magazine in the world. The publication is currently edited by Francesca Ragazzi and ...
'' contributor Valentina Fabbri said Edna ended the trope of "superheroes
ressedin homemade outfits".
According to Fabbri, Edna is one of Pixar's most beloved characters,
while ''
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood ...
''s Julia Emmanuele dubbed her "one of the most memorable Pixar characters of all time" who has ultimately "become the film's enduring legacy", despite her supporting role.
''
Uproxx
Uproxx Studios (stylized as ''UPROXX'') is an American music, entertainment and popular culture website and content studio. It was founded in 2008 by Jarret Myer and Brian Brater. The website was acquired in 2014 by Woven Digital (which later ...
'' contributor Donna Dickens wrote that the character "went down in
pop culture history" from the moment she uttered "No capes!"
Media publications consistently rank Edna among Pixar's greatest characters.
In their article "Top 10 Pixar Movie Characters", ''Tech Times'' ranked Edna seventh.
''
IGN
''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
'' ranked Edna eighth in their countdown of the "Top 10 Pixar Characters", calling her "a pint-sized fashionista" with "a flair that only a superhero could truly appreciate." ''Rolling Stone'' placed her ninth on the website's list of the "25 Best Pixar Movie Characters", ranking her ahead of Mr. Incredible (24th), Violet Parr (20th) and Elastigirl (14th).
Contributor Scott Tobias wrote that the character "stops the action cold just to have a sequence about appropriate action-wear for the specially abled, culminating in a brilliant screed on the impracticality of capes."
Including Edna among the studio's 20 best characters, Victoria Robertson of ''Screen Rant'' cited her as "proof of how important even the most minor characters in a film can be."
''GamesRadar+'' included Edna among Pixar's "50 Greatest Pixar Characters Of All Time", with author George Wales crowning her "One of Pixar's finest comic creations". Additionally, the same publication ranked Edna among Pixar's 12 greatest supporting characters.
D23.com recognized Edna as one of Pixar's "23 Favorite ... Supporting Characters", deeming her "An icon in her own right".
/Film ranked Edna Pixar's sixth best female character, crowning her "the wisest character in the entire Incredibles universe" due to her anti-cape stance, which author Angie Han has described as the film's "most valuable piece of advice".
''GamesRadar+'' ranked Edna's introductory scene the 12th best moment in a Pixar film, deeming her "the perfect embodiment of the film's tongue-in-cheek approach to realism". ''Entertainment Weekly'' ranked Edna's anti-capes speech the 12th best Pixar moment.
In 2015,
E! ranked Edna 10th on their list of "11 Forgotten Disney Characters Who Should Totally Be Your Favorites".
In 2015, ''
Empire
An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...
'' ranked the character the hundredth greatest film character of all time.
In 2013, ''Screen Rant'' crowned Edna "The world's greatest fashion designer".
''Fashion'' ranked Edna among the magazine's "10 coolest fashion industry pros".
In their "critical assessment of 7 fictional fashion designers", Mary Sollosi of ''Entertainment Weekly'' wrote that she is "consistently impressed by Ms. Mode's truly groundbreaking textile work" despite feeling that she tends to limit herself to familiar silhouettes, joking, "we are perplexed by her stubborn refusal to incorporate new design features — most notably capes." In June 2018, Carlye Wisel of ''Racked'' crowned Edna "Film's greatest fashion character", deeming her "the best fictional fashion personality ever to exist, animated or not". She prefers her over ''
The Devil Wears Prada'' Miranda Priestly (
Meryl Streep
Mary Louise "Meryl" Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an American actress. Known for her versatility and adept accent work, she has been described as "the best actress of her generation". She has received numerous accolades throughout her career ...
), insisting that Edna "feels more grounded and true" than Miranda, a fictional magazine editor who is frequently touted the "best-ever fashion character".
Describing her as "effortless and memorable," Wisel concluded, "at a time when a label like Gucci is exploding its brand with misspellings and magpie tendencies to draw attention, she remains classic. Edna is never anything but fully herself — all hair, accent, and attitude."
Edna's
catchphrase
A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...
against using capes in superhero costumes has become one of the most popular phrases among superhero fans.
Edna has become so popular that fans have begun to demand a
spin-off
Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media
*Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work
*''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine
* ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...
film revolving around the character. ''Screen Rant'' ranked Edna the third Pixar heroine who deserves her own film, with author Wednesday Lee Friday writing, "There are so many things Pixar could do with Edna, she might be worthy of a trilogy."
At the
77th Academy Awards
The 77th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), took place on February 27, 2005, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST. Durin ...
in 2005, Edna presented the
Academy Award for Best Costume Design
The Academy Award for Best Costume Design is one of the Academy Awards presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) for achievement in film costume design.
The award was first given in 1949, for films made in 1948 ...
alongside actor
Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brendan Brosnan (born 16 May 1953) is an Irish actor and film producer. He was the fifth actor to play the fictional secret agent Portrayal of James Bond in film, James Bond in the List of James Bond films, James Bond film series, starri ...
.
In 2013, the D23 Expo hosted its first official cosplay competition, naming it "Heroes and Villains à la Mode" in honor of Edna; contestants competed in five categories, with the winners being awarded miniature statuettes of the character. To promote the film's sequel in which Edna appeared, Disney released a
mockumentary
A mockumentary (a portmanteau of ''mock'' and ''documentary'') is a type of film or television show depicting fictional events, but presented as a Documentary film, documentary. Mockumentaries are often used to analyze or comment on current event ...
-style teaser trailer that features various celebrities involved in the fashion industry paying tribute to Edna and describing ways in which the character has influenced them over the years ever since she decided to venture into
haute couture
(; ; French for 'high sewing', 'high dressmaking') is the creation of exclusive custom-fitted high-end fashion design. The term ''haute couture'' generally refers to a specific type of upper garment common in Europe during the 16th to the ...
.
Disney revealed the trailer at the
D23 Expo in 2017.
A statuette of Edna Mode was also seen at the display of
Art Ludique. Fashion models
Heidi Klum
Heidi Klum (; born 1 June 1973) is a German and American model, television personality, producer, and businesswoman. She appeared on the cover of the ''Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue'' in 1998 and was the first German model to become a Vict ...
,
Kendall Jenner
Kendall Nicole Jenner (born November 3, 1995) is an American model, socialite and media personality. She rose to fame in the reality television show ''Keeping Up with the Kardashians,'' in which she starred for 20 seasons and nearly 15 years ...
and
Rachel Zoe
Rachel Zoe Rosenzweig (born September 1, 1971) is an American fashion designer, businesswoman and author who rose to prominence as a celebrity wardrobe stylist. She has been credited with the creation of "the boho-meets-rock chic look that came ...
are among the celebrities who speak about Edna's influence on the fashion industry. Impressed by their commitment to pretending Edna is real, Halle Kiefer of Vulture.com joked that the tribute features some of the participants' "most impressive onscreen roles to date". Rachel Kolb of Uproxx wrote that having Edna design new costumes for the family in ''Incredibles 2'' would be one way to ensure that the sequel is better than the original.
Beginning in 2018, Edna has been used heavily in ''Incredibles 2'' first
advertising campaign
An advertising campaign or marketing campaign is a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme which make up an integrated marketing communication (IMC). An IMC is a platform in which a group of people can group their ide ...
.
In February 2018, the character's likeness was used heavily on several bus and subway posters within Manhattan, New York surrounding
New York Fashion Week
New York Fashion Week (NYFW), held in February and September of each year, is a semi-annual series of events in Manhattan typically spanning seven to nine days when international Fashion design, fashion collections are shown to buyers, the pres ...
.
Disney-Pixar's announced on their Twitter account: "If you thought she'd miss #NYFW, you thought wrong, dahling".
The poster features a black and white closeup image of the character with only her lips colored red,
accompanied by the caption "It's been too long, dahlings."
Bucksbaum called the poster "stunning".
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mode, Edna
Animated characters introduced in 2004
Animated human characters
Female characters in animated films
Fictional characters with dwarfism
Fictional fashion designers
Fictional female scientists
Fictional inventors
Fictional hāfu
Film characters introduced in 2004
The Incredibles characters