Character Relationship Map: Maleficent

Characters

• Maleficent (played by Angelina Jolie) — protagonist

  Powerful fairy protector of the Moors who curses Aurora but later becomes her guardian.

• Princess Aurora (played by Elle Fanning) — protagonist

  Kind-hearted princess cursed to sleep, raised by fairies, bridges humans and magical creatures.

• Knotgrass (played by Imelda Staunton) — supporting

  Practical and cautious fairy who helps raise Aurora in the forest.

• Stefan (played by Sharlto Copley) — supporting

  Ambitious human who betrays Maleficent to become king, driven by greed.

• Flittle (played by Lesley Manville) — supporting

  Eccentric and easily distracted fairy who helps care for Aurora.

• Diaval (played by Sam Riley) — supporting

  Maleficent's loyal shapeshifting raven companion and trusted advisor.

• King Henry (played by Kenneth Cranham) — supporting

  Aggressive king who attempts to conquer the Moors.

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Stefan → Flittle (Professional Assigned Guardian) — Flittle serves under Stefan's protective arrangement.

  Stefan orders the pixies, including Flittle, to protect the child in the forest cottage.

• Stefan → Knotgrass (Professional Assigned Guardian) — Stefan gives Knotgrass a formal protective duty.

  Stefan orders the pixies to hide and protect his daughter in a forest cottage until after her sixteenth birthday.

• Knotgrass → Flittle (Professional Caretaking Colleague) — They share responsibility for Aurora's upbringing.

  Knotgrass and Flittle are both identified as pixies who help raise and protect Aurora in the forest cottage.

• King Henry → Stefan (Power Kingmaker) — Henry's final decree creates the opportunity that motivates Stefan's betrayal.

  On his deathbed, King Henry declares that whoever kills Maleficent will become king.

• Maleficent → Stefan (Romantic Former Lover) — Their former love becomes the emotional foundation of the betrayal and later conflict.

  The plot states that Maleficent and Stefan meet as children and fall in love, but later grow apart as Stefan becomes focused on becoming king.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Princess Aurora → Maleficent (related)
• Diaval → Flittle (Alliance Protective Collaborator) — Both contribute to Aurora's protection through different means.

  Diaval watches over Aurora with Maleficent, while Flittle helps care for Aurora in the cottage.

• Diaval → Knotgrass (Alliance Protective Collaborator) — They are connected through overlapping efforts to monitor or protect Aurora.

  Diaval and Maleficent observe Aurora's growth, while Knotgrass helps raise her in the forest cottage.

• Maleficent → Flittle (Conflict Protective Rival) — Their approaches to protecting Aurora differ, though both are involved in her care.

  Flittle is one of the pixies assigned to protect Aurora, but Maleficent begins secretly caring for Aurora because the pixies are ineffective.

• Maleficent → Knotgrass (Conflict Protective Rival) — They occupy competing protective roles around Aurora's upbringing.

  Knotgrass helps raise the child in the forest, while Maleficent secretly takes over much of the child's care after observing the pixies' incompetence.

• Maleficent → King Henry (Conflict Territorial Enemy) — Their confrontation establishes the threat posed to the Moors.

  King Henry attempts to conquer the Moors, and Maleficent mortally wounds him while defending the realm.

• Diaval → Stefan (Conflict Informational Opponent) — Diaval indirectly challenges Stefan by exposing information about his rise to power.

  Diaval tells Maleficent about Stefan's coronation, helping her understand the consequences of Stefan's betrayal.

• Maleficent → Diaval (Alliance Rescuer) — Maleficent's intervention creates their enduring partnership.

  Maleficent saves Diaval from a farmer and transforms him into human form.

Story Analysis

A betrayed protector transforms hatred into maternal love and restores peace between the Moors and the human kingdom.

Plot Progression

1. Love Before Betrayal — Maleficent protects the Moors and once shares love with Stefan. King Henry's attack and Stefan's ambition transform that relationship into betrayal.
2. The Thornbound Kingdom — After losing her wings, Maleficent becomes bitter and learns that Stefan has become king. She responds to his military threat by sealing the Moors behind a wall of thorns.
3. The Curse Takes Root — Maleficent curses Stefan's newborn daughter at the christening. Stefan hides the child with the pixies and prepares the kingdom for a long campaign against Maleficent.
4. A Guardian's Change — Maleficent and Diaval secretly watch over the growing child, and affection gradually replaces hatred. Maleficent discovers that she cannot undo the curse she created.
5. The Sleeping Curse — The child's lineage and curse are revealed, causing her to leave the Moors and return to the castle. The curse activates in the dungeon and places her in a death-like sleep.
6. Wings and Reconciliation — Maleficent attempts a castle rescue, and her remorseful kiss awakens the sleeping child through maternal love. Her wings return, allowing her to defeat Stefan and restore the Moors.