Queen Lillian is the ruler of Far Far Away. She was the wife of King Harold (who also ruled the kingdom), and is the mother of Princess Fiona. She was also born into royalty, thus claiming her title when she married Harold.
Appearances
Early Life
Queen Lillian was born into royalty and raised in Far Far Away. As a young woman she met Harold and the two fell in love. They became married, and after Lillian's father died the two became king and queen of Far Far Away. Afterwards she gave birth to their daughter, Fiona.
While Fiona was still a girl, Lillian and Harold discovered that she had been cursed by a witch. Between sunset and sunrise she became an ogre, and the curse could only be broken by her true love's kiss. They did their best to hide her curse from the world, keeping Fiona home at night so that no one would discover her ogre form. Eventually they sought the help of Fairy Godmother, who had them lock Fiona away in a dragon-guarded castle to await her true love to rescue her. They had also agreed that Prince Charming would be the one to eventually rescue Fiona.
However as years passed and Fiona was yet to be rescued, Harold and Lillian became desperate and went to Rumpelstiltskin for help. They were going sign a magical contract that he promised would remove Fiona's curse in exchange of their kingdom. However, just as the they were about to sign it, they were interrupted with the news of Fiona's rescue and tore up the contract.
Shrek 2
Queen Lillian first appears in Shrek 2. Having heard the news of Fiona's rescue, Lillian and Harold send an invitation to Fiona and her husband to a royal ball in honor of their new marriage. Lillian, Harold, and nearly the whole kingdom of Far Far Away gather to greet Fiona and her husband. However, to everyone's shock, Fiona is still an ogre and is married to an ogre named Shrek. Though just as surprised as Harold, Lillian is still happy to see Fiona again. She is more inconclusive of Shrek than Harold and tries to get him to do the same. Lillian respects that Fiona has chosen a different path than they had both intended for her, and fears that by criticizing Fiona they will lose her forever.
Unbeknownst to Lillian, Harold is met by Fairy Godmother, who is furious that Fiona is married to Shrek instead of Prince Charming as they had agreed. Godmother schemes to get rid of Shrek and has Harold assist her. After a series of events, Shrek drinks a magical potion that not only turns him and Fiona into humans, but can make the change permanent if they kiss before midnight. Fairy Godmother takes advantage of the situation and has Charming pretend to be Shrek. Lillian is unaware of Charming's true identity, and finds his behavior odd. She is also suspicious of Harold as well, asking him if he had "anything to do with this" only for him to not answer.
At the royal ball a fight breaks out between Fairy Godmother, Prince Charming, and Shrek and his friends. Godmother tries to use her magic on Shrek and Fiona but Harold jumps in front of the spell, absorbing it and reflecting it back at her. Godmother is turned into bubbles, and at first everyone believes Harold to be dead. However he emerges from his clothing as a frog. and reveals that this is true identity. Before he had met Lillian, he had Fairy Godmother turn him into a human so that he could pursue Lillian. Harold expects Lillian to reject him, but she embraces him "worts and all". She is equally accepting when Shrek and Fiona decide to stay ogres.
Shrek the Third
She is widowed at the start of the film, even placing Harold's coffin (a "Ye Olde Foot Locker" shoe box) onto a lily pad. After this, she becomes a more determined character, leading the pack of princesses through a series of tunnels in the castle. When the pack is thrown in prison, she easily breaks two walls with her head, prompting their escape. However, she has a visible bruise and is told b Fiona to lay down. She rallies the other princesses from being damsels in distress to independent fighters.
It is revealed that Fiona inherited her fighting skills from her mother (Lillian asks "Well, you didn't think you got your fighting skills from your father, did you?"). After, Charming's defeat, Lillian is seen talking with her nephew Artie after he crowned himself king. Lillian is last seen in Shrek's swamp home, happily visiting her grandchildren and playing with Fergus, who vomits on her dress. At first, she looks distressed and a little disgusted, but this changes as she comes to find it adorable.
Shrek Forever After
Lillian is seen briefly in a number of flashbacks, showing her and King Harold's decision to visit Rumpelstiltskin to free Fiona from the curse before Shrek saved her. She insisted on visiting the dealer as she didn't trust Fairy Godmother and her plan. In the alternate universe, it is revealed Lillian and King Harold literally disappeared after signing over the kingdom to Rumpelstiltskin. Lillian's last appearance is at the end of the film, seen celebrating the triplets' birthday.
Non-canon Appearances
Shrek the Musical
During the beginning of "Big Bright Beautiful World," she and her husband Harold are seen escorting a Young Fiona to her tower. They pass by a Baby Shrek who waves at Fiona, with both parents appearing disgusted by the ogre. In early productions, her and Harold had dialogue exchanges when Fiona briefly interrupts the song to display her backstory. Future shows would either keep the scene, or alter their presence as silent cameos.
Personality
Decorous and loved by all, Queen Lillian is tolerant of her daughter's decision to marry an ogre if it will make her happy- a thought that initially stands in contrast to her husband's. She seems to be briefly shy and sad after King Harold's passing and doesn't say much. After a little while, she perks up and begins accepting life without her husband. This is especially true when she learns that she is going to be a grandmother as Fiona is pregnant and is shown to be very excited. She is determined and nothing means more to her than her family; as when they are in trouble, she does everything in her power to save them. Though gentle and nurturing for the most part, if threatened, she springs into action and demonstrates her considerable fighting talents.
Trivia
- In Shrek the Third when Queen Lillian hits the prison wall with her head, she starts to hum the song "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music and "Spoonful of Sugar" from Mary Poppins.
- Lillian is based on the princess from "The Frog Prince."
- She was inspired by Lillian Michelson, a researcher who worked on movies such as Fiddler on the roof, though was usually uncredited for all her work.
- In the original script of Shrek, she was the Queen of Duloc along with her husband. Their child, Fiona, was born a "monster" and locked away in the Dragon's Keep. They eventually died and left the kingdom in the hands of Lord Farquaad.