Mr. Freeze
Mr. Freeze is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Dave Wood and artists Sheldon Moldoff and Bob Kane, the character initially debuted in Batman #121 (February 1959) as Mr. Zero, a mad scientist turned ice-based criminal and an adversary of the superhero Batman, but was later renamed "Mr. Freeze" after the version adapted for the 1966 Batman television series.
Mr. Freeze | |
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Mr. Freeze, as depicted in Batman #525 (December 1995). Art by Kelley Jones (pencils) and John Beatty (inks). | |
Publication information | |
Publisher | DC Comics |
First appearance | As Mr. Zero: Batman #121 (February 1959) As Mr. Freeze: "Instant Freeze" Batman (February 2, 1966) As Victor Fries: "Heart of Ice" Batman: The Animated Series (September 7, 1992) |
Created by | As Mr. Zero: Dave Wood Sheldon Moldoff Bob Kane As Victor Fries: Paul Dini Bruce Timm Mike Mignola |
In-story information | |
Alter ego | Dr. Victor Fries |
Species | Metahuman |
Place of origin | Gotham City |
Team affiliations | Injustice League Secret Society of Super Villains Legion of Doom Suicide Squad GothCorp |
Notable aliases | Mr. Zero |
Abilities |
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In 1992, Mr. Freeze was reinvented as a tragic villain by writer Paul Dini, producer Bruce Timm, and artist Mike Mignola for Batman: The Animated Series, which portrayed Dr. Victor Fries (pronounced "freeze") as a scientist in Gotham City who suffers a lab accident while trying to cryogenically preserve his terminally ill wife, Nora. As a result, he is mutated and forced to live in sub-zero temperatures. Using a special "cryo-suit" and cold-themed weaponry, he turns to crime to fund his research in his obsessive quest to cure Nora by any means necessary, which brings him into conflict with Batman.
Batman: The Animated Series' revamped depiction of Mr. Freeze received widespread acclaim and redefined the character, providing such a burst in his popularity that DC Comics retroactively changed his origin story in the mainstream comic book continuity to match the one conceived by Dini, which has become the standard backstory for Mr. Freeze in almost every incarnation of the Batman franchise.
As one of Batman's most enduring enemies belonging to the collective of adversaries that make up his rogues gallery, Mr. Freeze has been adapted in various media incarnations. He has been portrayed in film by Arnold Schwarzenegger in Batman & Robin (1997), and in television by George Sanders, Otto Preminger, and Eli Wallach in the 1966 Batman series, and Nathan Darrow in Gotham. Michael Ansara, Clancy Brown, Maurice LaMarche, and others have provided the character's voice in animation and video games.