When it comes to live action remakes, sometimes there is only so much directors/writers can do to keep as close to the original as possible. In the end, changes always need to be made. Here are the main differences between the animated and live action films of One Hundred and One Dalmatians.
The Dogs Do Not Talk
In the 1996 live action film, real Dalmatian actors were used- 230 puppies and 40 adults! Disney could have implemented technology to give them the appearance of talking or just have their voices speak like in Homeward Bound, but instead viewers rely on body language and natural dog noises (like barks and whimpers) to infer their feelings.
Roger
Let’s first address the elephant in the room…in the live action remake, Roger is not British! He is not a struggling musician, but rather a struggling video game creator, AND his last name is Dearly (the last name of the characters in the book) not Radcliffe.
Fun Fact- Jeff had to rub raw hot dog on his face to get the puppies to lick him.
Anita
Instead of former classmates, soft spoken Anita worked for Cruella as a fashion designer. In fact, it is her design that inspires Cruella’s desire for a Dalmatian coat.
In the film Anita becomes pregnant (although you never see her with a pregnant belly) and she is the one who gives the final “the puppies are not for sale” line to Cruella.
Wedding
Roger and Anita have a grand wedding, very different from the elopement Roger and Anita have in the cartoon. Despite the difference in each, both films show Pongo and Perdita being married in their own right!
Cruella de Vil
Glenn Close does an incredible job portraying the narcissistic villain. The main difference between the two films is we are able to see more of Cruella’s backstory in the live action. Cruella is a fashion mogul with her own business called “House of DeVil”. I loved seeing this part of her story. It gives her more depth rather than the animated version where this fur obsessed lady pops up out of no where and is willing to murder dogs for a coat.
Cruella’s car is also different. It took on the book’s description of a black and white car. Both films have Cruella driving herself rather than being driven by a chauffeur.
Fun fact the car is a 1974 Panther DeVille!
Puppies
In both films we never learn the names of all 15 pups! In the live action, the dogs are named Lucky, Jewel, Dipstick, Fidget, Two Tone and Whizzer while the animated film had: Penny, Lucky, Rolly, Patch, Pepper, and Freckles.
During one scene, the dogs are watching TV. Filmmakers changed the shows to something more modern that viewers would recognize- The Aristocats and Homeward Bound.
Dognapping
Several changes were made for the climax of the film. First we find out that Jasper and Horace stole all the puppies and a man named Skinner would be doing, well…the skinning.
For fun, my favorite part of the movie! All I can think is “Moley, moley” from Austin Powers 
You had one job Horace!
Anita is the one who figures out it was Cruella who stole the puppies and calls the police. The police raid Cruella’s home and find the skin of a missing Siberian tiger. They find out she has another home in Suffolk and alert authorities.
Lucky gets left behind at Hell Hall while the other 98 puppies escape. Kipper, an Airedale Terrier saves him and brings him to the police.
The pups never have to cover themselves in soot to hide from Cruella, Jasper, and Horace. Cruella tracks them down to the barn they stayed the night in and basically gets the snot kicked out of her by all the barn animals.
Which is exactly where the police find her! In the animated version, Cruella goes absolutely feral and crashes her car. We never see her arrested and as far as we know, Anita & Roger never figure out who took the puppies.
In the live action, Cruella, Skinner, Jasper, and Horace get their dues! Ironically, after the night of torture Jasper and Horace have, they are relieved to be arrested. After they are all gathered up, Cruella goes off on them, telling them they all won the Gold, Bronze, and Silver for being morons. Dimwitted Horace wants to know who one the gold
In the end, both Rogers finally have a big break with their careers. Animated Roger Radcliffe’s writes the famous song we all know and love, while live action Roger Dearly finally sells his video game after he finds a proper villain, the queen of fur, Cruella. In the end we see the magnificent mansion Roger & Anita bought, whom they share with their daughter (and we learn another is on the way!), Pongo & Perdy’s children, their children’s children, and so on. As a kid, it looks amazing, as an adult, it is the situation that nightmares are made of: all the barking, all the POOP!
I have to say, I had a blast rewatching these movies. They are both amazing in their own way. Do you prefer the animated version or live action?
