Mr. Freeze is a DC Comics supervillain, an enemy of Batman. He first appeared in Batman #121 (1959).

Like most Batman villains, Mr. Freeze plans his crimes about a specific theme; in his case, ice and cold. He freezes areas around him using special weapons and equipment. In darker incarnations of the Batman mythos, Mr. Freeze’s obsession with ice stems from personal tragedy and his crimes are attempts to make the world as cold and miserable as he.

Originally called Mr. Zero, Mr. Freeze was renamed and popularized in the 1960s Batman television series. In the 1990s, the animated series revised his origin and character and he starred in the direct-to-video off-shoot of the series Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero, at the same time Arnold Schwarzenegger portrayed the character in the 1997 film Batman and Robin.

Full History and Origin Story

From the time of his first appearance in 1960 onward, Mr. Freeze was portrayed as one of many "joke" villains (see also, Killer Moth , The Mad Hatter) cast as stock enemies of Batman. Originally called Mr. Zero, the producers of the 1960's Batman televison series renamed him Mr. Freeze, and the name quickly carried over to the comic books.

Nearly thirty years later, Mr. Freeze would owe even more to television. In Batman: The Animated Series's "Heart of Ice" episode, backstory and motivations were created that led to a more complex, tragic character. This version of Mr. Freeze was enthusiastically accepted by fans, and has become the standard portrayal. The following is Mr. Freeze's origin as established by "Heart of Ice" and subsequent episodes.

Victor Fries was fascinated with freezing animals as a child. He was sent to a strict boarding school by his father. Victor there met Nora, an attractive girl, and subsequently they got married.

Unfortunately, Nora got sick, and started to die from a disease. He took on a job working for a large company, working on cryogenics. Victor did not like the job but needed money to help Nora.

Victor discovered a way to freeze Nora and did so, trying to sustain her until a cure could be found. Victor's boss attempted to stop him from keeping Nora frozen. A struggle ensued, in which his boss kicked Fries into a table full of chemicals and as a result. This had a strange effect: his body temperature was lowered. He survived, but could only live at sub-zero temperatures and had to wear a special refrigerating suit to keep him cool.

Mr. Freeze's crimes tend to involve freezing everyone and everything he runs into, rather nasty and pointless, except they seem to satisfy his urge to get even with a hard, cruel world. He also hardly ever forges alliances with the other criminals in Gotham City. He prefers to work alone.

In other Media

In the 1960's Batman television series, Mr. Freeze was played by George Sanders, Otto Preminger, and Eli Wallach. In Batman: The Animated Series and its spin-offs, Mr. Freeze is voiced by Michael Ansara . He was played by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the film Batman and Robin.