The Grinch (2000)

“	All right, you're a reindeer. Here's your motivation: Your name is Rudolph, you're a freak with a red nose, and no one likes you. Then, one day, Santa picks you and you save Christmas. No, forget that part. We'll improvise... just keep it kind of loosey-goosey. You HATE Christmas! You're gonna steal it. Saving Christmas is a lousy ending, way too commercial. ACTION!	„
	― The Grinch talking to Max The Dog

The Grinch serves as the titular protagonist and redeemed villain in the 2000 live-action adaptation of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas. The character is brought to life by Jim Carrey as an adult, while Josh Ryan Evans portrays the Grinch as an 8-year-old in his childhood (marking Evans' final theatrical role).

In Whoville, the townsfolk revel in the joy and festivities of Christmas—everyone, that is, except the Grinch, who harbors a deep resentment for both the holiday and the Whos.

Names	The Grinch
Gender	Male
Race	Grinch, Whovillian
Occupation	Santa, Thief
Origin	How the Grinch Stole Christmas (November 8, 2000)
Alignment	Mixed
Age	Over 53
Created By	Jeffrey Price, Peter S. Seaman, Ron Howard
Height	187 cm (6ft 2in)

Appearance

The Grinch is a green, furry humanoid creature with a lanky, wiry build. His fur is shaggy and uneven, covering his entire body, including his face, giving him a distinctly animalistic appearance. His expressive face is marked by a wide, mischievous grin with sharp, uneven teeth, yellow eyes with red irises, and bushy, curved eyebrows.

He has a long, slender nose and a slightly hunched posture that emphasizes his quirky and exaggerated movements. His fingers are thin and claw-like, further adding to his somewhat sinister yet comical appearance.

Throughout the film, the Grinch wears various outfits, most notably his homemade Santa Claus suit. This red ensemble includes a fluffy white trim and a matching Santa hat, designed as part of his scheme to steal Christmas. Despite his disheveled and peculiar look, the Grinch's appearance becomes more endearing as his character undergoes a transformation, reflecting his growth and redemption.

Personality

The Grinch is portrayed as a complex character, embodying a blend of mean-spiritedness, eccentricity, and surprising depth.

As described in the iconic narration, his hatred for Christmas stems from an unknown source, humorously speculated to be due to physical quirks like "his head not being screwed on just right" or "his shoes being too tight." However, the most probable cause is attributed to his heart being "two sizes too small."

True to his original counterpart, the Grinch is mean-tempered, bitter, and selfish. He exhibits odious and wrathful behavior, often pranking the Whoville citizens with acts like tampering with their mail, making prank calls, or scaring away trespassers from his lair. While he occasionally lashes out at his loyal dog Max, he demonstrates genuine care for him, such as praising Max for warding off intruders and carefully holding him to avoid danger.

The root of the Grinch's bitterness lies in his childhood experiences. As a young boy, he was ostracized, bullied, and ridiculed, particularly by his classmate Augustus Maywho. These experiences drove him to reject Christmas and the Whos entirely, though his childhood crush, Martha May Whovier, was the sole exception, showing him kindness amidst the cruelty.

Despite his abrasive exterior, the Grinch harbors deep insecurities, viewing himself as a hated monster due to his appearance and actions. However, the intervention of Cindy Lou Who and his realization of the true meaning of Christmas lead him to an epiphany. He ultimately recognizes his love for Max and feels remorse for his actions, returning the stolen gifts and decorations to the Whos.

This version of the Grinch is notably more unhinged, eccentric, and cartoonish than previous incarnations. His behavior mirrors a combination of childlike tantrums and exaggerated, clown-like energy, making him a highly animated character. He also demonstrates remarkable creativity and intelligence, as seen in his ability to build a functional flying sleigh and craft intricate decorations, even as a child.

The Grinch’s insightfulness adds another layer to his character. He perceives the Whos as overly materialistic and wasteful, criticizing their commercialized approach to Christmas. In the end, the Whos acknowledge this truth and forgive the Grinch, appreciating his heartfelt apology and their shared realization of the holiday's true spirit.

Biography

The Grinch's arrival in Whoville was an accident, as he was mistakenly delivered there as a baby. He was adopted and lovingly raised by two elderly sisters, who provided him with a kind and nurturing upbringing. Despite this, his sadistic tendencies occasionally emerged even as a child.

At school, the Grinch was treated as an outcast due to his green, hairy appearance, enduring relentless bullying from classmates, particularly Augustus Maywho. Among his peers, only Martha May Whovier, his childhood crush, showed him genuine kindness.

When the Grinch was eight years old, he decided to make a heartfelt gift for Martha during the Christmas season—a handcrafted angel tree topper. However, after recalling cruel comments about his appearance, he tried to shave his face, cutting himself in the process. The next day, when he arrived at school with his face covered in shaving tape, his classmates mocked him mercilessly. Martha, however, glared at the bullies in disapproval.

The humiliation and ridicule became too much for the young Grinch to bear. Enraged and humiliated, he went on a destructive rampage, tearing down the class Christmas tree and destroying their presents. In his fury, he declared, "I Hate Christmas!" before running away from Whoville to live in isolation atop Mt. Crumpit. This event marked the beginning of his disdain for Christmas and his resentment toward the Whos.

Over the years, the Grinch secluded himself in a vast cave on Mt. Crumpit, becoming an urban legend in Whoville due to occasional sightings. His disdain for Christmas and the Whos grew stronger, fueled by memories of their mockery. Despite this bitterness, he found and adopted a lost dog, Max, who became his loyal companion.

Meanwhile, six-year-old Cindy Lou Who began questioning the true meaning of Christmas, feeling the holiday had become overly focused on material gifts and festivities. After a chance encounter with the Grinch at the post office, where he saved her from being crushed by a machine (at Max’s insistence), Cindy grew curious about his past. She learned about his tragic history through conversations with the townspeople, discovering his childhood experiences of bullying and alienation.

Moved by his story, Cindy decided to make the Grinch the guest of honor at the Whobilation, a Christmas celebration. Despite Mayor Augustus Maywho’s objections, the townspeople supported her idea. When Cindy personally invited the Grinch to attend, he initially refused but reconsidered, tempted by the promise of an award, the chance to see Martha May Whovier, and the opportunity to irk the Mayor.

At the Whobilation, the Grinch momentarily enjoyed himself, participating in contests and games. However, his joy turned to anger when Augustus presented him with an electric shaver as a gift, mocking his childhood humiliation. Augustus further humiliated the Grinch by proposing to Martha in front of everyone, offering her a car as an incentive. The painful reminder of his past caused the Grinch to snap. He lashed out, accusing the Whos of valuing materialism over the true spirit of Christmas. In his rage, he burned the Christmas tree with a makeshift flamethrower and stormed off.

Despite his actions, the Whos quickly erected a spare tree, which the Grinch saw before retreating to his cave. Enraged and determined to ruin their holiday, he devised a plan to steal Christmas entirely. Crafting a Santa suit and a sleigh, with Max disguised as a reindeer, the Grinch infiltrated Whoville on Christmas Eve, stealing all the gifts, decorations, and food while the Whos slept. Although he was briefly confronted by Cindy Lou, he managed to deceive her and continue his heist.

The next morning, the Grinch triumphantly transported the stolen items to the summit of Mt. Crumpit, ready to destroy them. Meanwhile, in Whoville, Augustus blamed Cindy Lou for the disaster. However, Cindy’s father, Lou Lou Who, defended her and reminded everyone of the true meaning of Christmas—cherishing loved ones over material possessions. Inspired, the Whos decided to celebrate without gifts, singing joyfully together.

Hearing their singing, the Grinch initially grew furious at his plan’s failure but soon experienced an epiphany about the true meaning of Christmas. This realization touched him deeply, causing his heart to grow three sizes. When the sleigh began sliding off the cliff, the Grinch found the strength to save it, along with Cindy Lou, who had come to see him.

The Grinch returned the sleigh and its contents to Whoville, where he confessed to his crimes and apologized, prepared to face the consequences. However, the Whos forgave him, having learned their own lesson about the holiday's meaning. Martha rejected Augustus’ proposal, declaring her love for the Grinch, who was overjoyed. Augustus reluctantly shook the Grinch’s hand, though the Grinch teased him with a laugh, reminding him to lighten up for the holidays.

In a moment of unity, the Grinch lit the Christmas tree, and the Whos gathered to sing together. Cindy Lou gave him a kiss on the cheek and wished him a Merry Christmas. The Grinch embraced his new life, celebrating the holiday feast with the Whos in his cave. He even let Max enjoy the first slice of roast beast, delighting his loyal companion. Beside him, Martha started a romantic relationship with the Grinch, holding his arm as they shared the Christmas feast together.

Powers and Statistics

Tier: 11-B, higher with equipment

Powers and Abilities: Breaking the Fourth Wall (Could interact with the narrator to a limited degree; when entering a house, he asked the narrator to speak quietly, and when the narrator stated that the Grinch "slunk to the fridge", he commented "Slunk?"), Stealth Mastery, Vehicular Mastery (Rocket Powered Sleigh), Flight (Rocket Powered Sleigh), Dream Manipulation (Shown stealing items from children’s dreams), Sleep Manipulation (Burps can knock Whos out cold), Fire Manipulation via Flamethrower (With a lighter and alcohol), Surface Scaling (Grinch has the ability to adhere himself to walls), Resistance to Freezing temperatures (Lives around ice and snow without any effects) and High temperatures (Uses extreme hot objects for food), and Pain (Can eat glass and suffer extreme pain situations with not really shows off it),

Attack Potency: Microscopic level physically (The whole story takes place within a single snowflake), higher with equipment

Speed: Microscopic level, higher with equipment

Lifting Strength: Microscopic level (Lifted the entire sleigh of Whoville's presents)

Striking Strength: Microscopic level, higher with equipment

Durability: Microscopic level, higher with equipment

Stamina: Superhuman

Range: Microscopic level range

Standard Equipment: His inventions

Intelligence: Genius (Invents his own advanced tech with just trash, skilled liar and manipulator, He's also a skilled architect, having built his sleigh and many of the contraptions within his cave himself)

Weaknesses: Some equipment requires preparation time to use (Ex. Santa sled), signs of affection.

Note: This profile only covers the "2000 Movie and Game" version of The Grinch. This excludes his appearances that were created or directed by Dr. Seuss, or the 2018 film.

Trivia

• Unlike the original book or the 1966 and 2018 adaptations, where the Grinch is portrayed as a calculating, manipulative schemer, the 2000 film reimagines him as an eccentric, whimsical, and comically insane character while retaining his scheming tendencies.
• In the film, the Grinch never references "53 years" of enduring Christmas as in the book. Instead, he vaguely states "year after year," leaving the exact timeline ambiguous.
• The Mayor of Whoville is portrayed as an antagonist in the film, arguably worse than the Grinch, as he relentlessly bullies him. His actions include encouraging others to mock the Grinch, presenting him with a razor as a cruel reminder of his childhood humiliation. The Mayor’s constant bullying is portrayed as a major factor in shaping the Grinch’s cold-hearted and vengeful nature, driving him to attempt to "steal" Christmas by taking gifts, decorations, and food.
• The original Grinch, as depicted in Dr. Seuss’ book, wasn’t green. He was illustrated in black and white with red and pink accents. Jim Carrey’s Grinch was initially designed to match this depiction, but director Ron Howard opted to adapt the Chuck Jones cartoon’s iconic green look instead.
• Several high-profile actors were considered for the role of the Grinch before Jim Carrey was cast. These included Jack Nicholson, Eddie Murphy, Dustin Hoffman, Alec Baldwin, Tim Curry, Tom Hanks, and Robin Williams.
• The memorable scene where the Grinch pulls a tablecloth off a table filled with objects was supposed to result in the items falling to the ground. However, Jim Carrey unexpectedly performed the stunt perfectly, leaving everything intact. He humorously improvised by knocking everything over afterward, which stayed in the final cut.