Development of Hercules began in 1992 following a pitch adaptation of the Heracles

mythological stories by animator Joe Haidar. Meanwhile, Ron Clements and John Musker re-
developed their idea for Treasure Planet following the critical and commercial success of
Aladdin. Their project was removed from development in 1993, and Musker and Clements
joined Hercules later that same year. Following an unused treatment by Haidar, Clements and
Musker studied multiple interpretations of Greek mythology before abandoning Zeus's
adulterous affair with Alcmene. The project underwent multiple story treatments and a first script
draft was inspired by the screwball comedy films of the classic Hollywood era and popular
culture of the 1990s. Donald McEnery, Bob Shaw, and Irene Mecchi were brought on board to
shorten the script. British cartoonist Gerald Scarfe was recruited as production designer and
produced over seven hundred visualization designs of the characters. Research trips to Greece
and Turkey provided inspiration for the background designs. Animation for the film was done in
California and Paris. Computer animation was utilized in several scenes, predominantly in the
Hydra battle sequence.

Hercules was released on June 27, 1997 to positive reviews from film reviewers who praised
James Woods's portrayal of Hades.[3] Despite the positive critical reception, the film under-
performed in its theatrical release notably in comparison to its predecessors before ultimately
earning $252.7 million in box office revenue worldwide.[2] Hercules was later followed by the
direct-to-video prequel Hercules: Zero to Hero, which served as the pilot to Hercules: The
Animated Series, a syndicated Disney TV series focusing on Hercules during his time at the
Prometheus academy.