Frank "Skipper" Wolff, born Francisco Lopez de Heredia is a major character from the 2021 Jungle Cruise movie, and is referenced in the Jungle Cruise attractions. He was portrayed by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
History[]
Background[]
Origins[]
Francisco Lopez de Heredia was a 16th century spaniard who was the son of a mercenary in Aguirre. When Francisco's father died, he was adopted and raised by his father's Basque noble employers where he became adoptive-brother to Lope de Aguirre. Francisco became a cartographer and assisted Lope in his 1556 expedition to find the mystical Tears of the Moon tree in the Amazon rainforest, only for Lope's crimes against the Indigenous Puka Michuna tribe to have them all cursed as immortals; bound to the jungle.
As Francisco attempted to save the Indigenous peoples from Lope's wrath, Lope became convinced that his brother was a traitor and the two quarrelled. Eventually, Francisco trapped Lope and his cursed loyalists in a cave away from the jungle where the turned to stone as a result of their curse. Since then, Francisco changed his name to, "Frank Wolff" and by the 1910s, became a skipper for the colonial Jungle Navigation Company aboard his ramshackle boat La Quilla. As a skipper, Frank used machines, trained animals and hired performers to con tourists. All the while, Frank planned to undo his curse so that he could commit suicide and end his immortal life.
Tears of the Moon[]
In 1911, Frank's services were enlisted by Dr. Lily Houghton and her brother MacGregor to seek after the Tears of the Moon tree. All the while, Frank planned to steal her Puka Michuna arrowhead which lead to the Tears of the Moon, hoping to use it for himself. At the same time, Lily's rival Prince Joachim of Prussia released Lope and his conquistadors to hunt down the party.
Pursued by Lope and the Germans, Frank and Lily became close and eventually garnered a romance. They managed to find the Tears of the Moon tree in a temple where Frank sacrificed himself by crashing La Quilla into the wall, cutting off the cursed conquistadors from the jungle to defeat them while turning them all into stone. Lily saved Frank using the healing powers of the tree, and the two left for London to be together.
Rivers of Adventure[]
After being freed from his curse, Frank created a map of the waterways in the mystical realm of Adventureland for Jungle Navigation Company founder, Dr. Albert Falls. This involved passing through the Amazon rainforest, gorilla territory in the Congo, the African veldt, hippo pool, Chimp Country and Schweitzer Falls along the Nile river in North Africa, through a flooded Cambodian temple, and back to the Amazon.
Appearances[]
Disneyland[]
Jungle Cruise[]
Frank's jacket appears next to Lily Houghton's in the boathouse and the old map of the Amazon which he made is framed on the wall. Wolff's map of Adventureland appears held by chimpanzees aboard the Mekong Maiden.
Magic Kingdom[]
Jungle Cruise[]
In the queue, there is a map of the Rivers of Adventure created by Frank Wolff (F.W.) for Jungle Navigation Company founder, Dr. Albert Falls; which has since been annotated by Alberta Falls. Notes to Dr. Falls from Frank appear on the map including, "To Albert, Here's to many more adventures of a life-time- F.W.", and "Here is adventure, here is romance, here is mystery", finished by Alberta as, "Here is the World Famous Jungle Cruise". Frank's hat and map of the Amazon also appear within Alberta's office.
Trivia[]
- The words, " Here is adventure, here is romance, here is mystery", "Here is the World Famous Jungle Cruise" is a reference to Walt Disney's Adventureland quote, " Here is adventure. Here is romance. Here is mystery. Tropical rivers- silently flowing into the unknown. The unbelievable splendor of exotic flowers...the eerie sound of the jungle...with eyes that are always watching. This is Adventureland".
- Frank's map in the ride has a compass with the logo for the Society of Explorers and Adventurers.
- Wolff's map of Adventureland implies he would have had to pass through the territory of the Headhunter Tribe.
External links[]
- Frank Wolff on the Jungle Cruise wiki.