Jane Porter is the deuteragonist of Disney's Tarzan franchise.
She is the artistic daughter of Archimedes Q. Porter who, alongside him, visited the equatorial region of Africa for primatological studies with the help of Clayton, their supposed tour guide. There, she met the franchise's titular character, and her life would change after he met him and his adoptive family, transforming her from a sophisticated lady into an adventurous woman. She is also the wife of Tarzan, and the adoptive daughter-in-law of both the late Kerchack and Kala.
In the original 1999 film, she was voiced by Minnie Driver.
In Tarzan & Jane and The Legend of Tarzan, she was voiced by Olivia d'Abo.
In the video games Tarzan Action Game, Tarzan Untamed, and Kingdom Hearts, she was voiced by Naia Kelly.
In the Japanese dubs of all her appearances, she was voiced by Mayumi Suzuki, who also voiced Ariel and Fa Mulan.
Appearances[]
Tarzan (1999)[]
Jane is a young bookworm who arrives to Africa with her father and their guide, Clayton, where they intend to study gorillas. While out walking, Jane steps into a gorilla's nest. She and her father soon discover more nests which leads the two to believe that the animals live in family groups. As they continue their journey, Jane sees a baby baboon and begins to draw it in her sketchbook. However, the baboon snatches the book from her, and she pursues him in an attempt to retrieve it. As she chases the baboon, she is unaware that Tarzan is following her quietly.
The baboon finds his own picture and refuses to give it back. Jane finally manages to steal it back, making the baby baboon cry. Jane turns around and sees the baby's angry baboon family and they begin to pursue her. As Jane runs, she is grabbed by Tarzan and swung up in the air. One of the baboons holds onto her foot, but she manages to kick it off, losing one of her boots in the process. Finally, after falling through vines, Jane and Tarzan finally land in a tree where the baby and another baboon float down to them. Tarzan speaks to them in monkey talk and takes the picture from Jane and gives it to them, much to Jane's surprise.
Tarzan is fascinated by Jane, as he has never seen another human-like himself before. Tarzan tells her his name but it takes a bit for Jane to teach him her name. They then hear a gunshot in the distance, fired by Clayton, so Jane asks Tarzan to take her to her camp. Tarzan does so, repeating the gunshot thinking that's what Clayton is.
When they arrive at the camp, Jane sees Tarzan's gorilla friends, but Kerchak and Kala show up and escort Tarzan away. Soon after, Professor Porter and Clayton, who had been looking for Jane, arrive. Jane tells them about seeing gorillas as well as Tarzan the Ape Man rescuing her from the baboons. The next day, Jane draws a picture of Tarzan on the blackboard, while telling her father they can learn things from Tarzan about gorillas and that they should find him. Her description of him makes it seem like she is fascinated by him, as well as what he could tell them about gorillas. However, Clayton doesn't believe Jane until Tarzan suddenly arrives. Clayton tries to show Tarzan what a gorilla is by drawing one on the blackboard, but Tarzan doesn't understand so Jane decides to teach him about human life. Jane, along with her father, teaches Tarzan how to speak English, as well as about human culture. Meanwhile, Tarzan begins to fall in love with Jane and she with him.
Soon, a ship arrives to take Jane and her father back to London, and Jane asks Tarzan to come with her to London. In return, Tarzan asks her to stay in Africa with her, but she refuses and runs away crying. Taking advantage of the situation, Clayton tells Tarzan that if Tarzan shows them the gorillas, Jane will stay with him in Africa. While Tarzan's friends Terk and Tantor distract Kerchak, the Leader of the Gorillas, Tarzan shows Jane, Porter, and Clayton the Gorillas. Tarzan also teaches Jane how to speak gorilla. When Jane asks what she said, Tarzan replies "That Jane will stay with Tarzan." Before Jane can reply, Terk and Tantor arrive as does Kerchak, who tries to chase the humans away. Tarzan manages to hold him off while Jane, Porter, and Clayton run away to safety. The incident leads Tarzan to agree to go to London with Jane and her father.
The next day, Jane prepares to head back to London now accompanied by Tarzan, dressed in a suit that belonged to his deceased father. Before they get on Jane tells Tarzan that he'll see the world. Kings and scientists and famous writers will want to meet him, but Tarzan is happy just to be with Jane. But when Jane and Tarzan climb aboard the ship, they are taken in by the ship's crew. Clayton reveals that he tricked Tarzan into telling him where the gorillas are in order to capture them, take them to London, and sell them for money.
While trapped in the cargo holder Jane apologizes to Tarzan for what happened, but the group is soon rescued by Terk and Tantor. While Tarzan swings in the vines, Jane and her father ride on Tantor, return to the Gorillas' nests and save them from the crew. While Jane and Tarzan are trying to release Kala from her cage, Clayton shoots Tarzan in the arm. Kerchak steps in the way and takes the second bullet. Clayton goes after Tarzan next, Jane tries to stop Clayton, but he knocks her out. Tarzan fights off Clayton and defeats the evil hunter, who accidentally hangs himself as a result of a vine snapping his neck.
Jane and her father watch sadly as Kerchak makes Tarzan the new ape leader before dying. The next day Jane tells Tarzan goodbye and gets into the rowboat with her father. As they're being rowed out, Porter tells Jane that she should stay with the man that she deeply cares for and loves. Encouraged, Jane jumps out of the rowboat, and returns to shore, followed by her father. Jane, in gorilla talk, says that she will stay in Africa with them. In the ending, Tarzan and Jane swing and surf through the trees, now ruling as the king and queen of the jungle.
Tarzan & Jane[]
Jane is shown trying to think of a proper gift for Tarzan, as it is their first anniversary. She considers a party but then remembers a disaster that happened earlier when her friends visited the island. Her next idea is jewelry, but she then remembers that some diamond prospectors had once tried to take advantage of Tarzan. Her final idea is a night of dancing, but this leads to a memory of a young man named Bobby, one of her childhood friends. He had come to the island earlier, but was revealed to be a German spy during World War I. Disappointed that none of her ideas work, Jane goes home, where she finds that Tarzan has planned a surprise for her.
The Legend of Tarzan[]
In the series, The Legend of Tarzan, Jane is now married to Tarzan. The young couple lives in the treehouse that had been built by Tarzan's late human parents. Throughout the series, Jane is shown to have adjusted quite well to her new life in the jungle with Tarzan but sometimes begins to miss her old life in England. As a result, she would try to get Tarzan to act more "civilized", which sometimes poses as a problem to Tarzan's morals. Her appearance and human actions often cause some members of Tarzan's Gorilla Troop to both have doubts about her and question Tarzan's "leadership".
She is usually the damsel in distress of the series, often being kidnapped or held hostage by antagonists so Tarzan can come to rescue her. However, she's not afraid of stepping up to rescue Tarzan, in return, whenever he is in danger.
Kingdom Hearts[]
Jane appears in the first title of the series in her home world of Deep Jungle alongside Tarzan, Clayton, Kerchak, Kala, and Terk, along with several unnamed gorillas that are part of Kerchak's pack.
She is first seen when Tarzan brings Sora back to her camp after helping Sora fend off Sabor in the treehouse. Upon seeing that Sora speaks fluent English like her, she knows Sora is not related to Tarzan and wonders if he is here to study the gorillas with her. Clayton then arrives with Donald and Goofy, but Sora and Donald are still at odds with each other over an earlier argument on the Gummi Ship regarding if King Mickey or Sora's friends were in Deep Jungle. After Jane tells off Clayton for mentioning hunting gorillas when they are doing research, not hunting them, she tells Sora and the others to make themselves at home. She then offers to help Sora out with trying to find his friends by offering use of her slide projector, but that comes up empty when inquiring Tarzan if he knows anything about Riku and Kairi. Tarzan agrees to take Sora to see Kerchak, despite Jane's concern, and Clayton offers to come along as an escort.
Later, when Tarzan and Sora return, they reveal to Jane that they caught Clayton trying to kill Terk at the treehouse and stopped him just in time. Furious at his actions, Jane forbids Clayton from going near the gorillas again. He's left to storm out of the tent seething in annoyance and frustration at them, swearing to hunt down the gorillas one way or another, which causes his heart to fill with darkness and summon the Heartless to his aid. When Sora and Tarzan have just slain Sabor for good, Jane is startled when Terk runs into the tent and crashes into her while the tent is surrounded by Heartless. As Terk seeks Jane for protection, someone enters the tent, and Jane is terrified of whoever it was that came in.
She and Terk are imprisoned in the Climbing Trees by a large purple fruit that keeps spawning Heartless until Sora either opens all the flowers in the area with magic to stop the Heartless from spawning, or destroys the fruit that is the source of what is keeping Jane and Terk imprisoned. Once the fruit is destroyed, Jane and Terk are freed, and Jane explains it was Clayton who did it. Tarzan realizes the rest of the gorillas are in danger, and Jane realizes they have to help them. Tarzan and Sora locate Clayton in the Cliffs just as he was about to shoot Kala as Heartless pounced on Kerchak, and stop him, buying time for the gorillas to retreat.
Jane and Terk later rejoin Tarzan and Sora after they've located the Keyhole for Deep Jungle in a secret cave behind the waterfalls after being led there by Kerchak as thanks for protecting him, Kala, and the other gorillas from Clayton and the Stealth Sneak Heartless. It is there that Jane figures out the gorilla word that Tarzan had been saying to Sora earlier, translating it to mean "heart". As Sora and Donald then apologize and make amends, Sora seals the Keyhole with his Keyblade, receiving a Navigation Gummi piece from the Keyhole after it is sealed. Jane then takes a moment to pick on poor Donald when it appears Terk has taken a shining to him, causing Donald to freak out about what would happen if Daisy found out.
Jane returns to her camp afterwards where she can always be found in her tent, alongside a Save Point.
Heroes
