Created by co-writers and directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, Elsa is loosely based on the title character of "The Snow Queen", a Danish fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen.

Joined by a rugged, thrill-seeking outdoorsman, his one-antlered reindeer and a hapless snowman, Anna must race against time, conquer the elements and battle an army of menacing snowmen if she ever hopes to melt her frozen heart.

At one point during a table read, they sang a ballad (later revealed as "Wind Beneath My Wings"[30]) back and forth to one another with so much sentiment that it reportedly left everyone who was present with tears in their eyes.

[25] Director Jennifer Lee stated that Elsa is largely driven by fear throughout the film,[34] while Menzel added that she was also struggling with her potential to be "a strong, powerful, extraordinary woman".

[31] The final lyrics and Menzel's "ability to be so fragile and vulnerable and then break into this powerhouse voice" turned the plot around and led to Elsa being revised as a "good" character.

[46] Lasseter reportedly influenced the creation of the character's much softer final appearance, particularly in regards to her very thick platinum blonde hair, which animators found difficult to design.

Art director Michael Giaimo said that while a number of strategies were proposed for Elsa's hair, Lasseter would push the animation team to continue making improvements, saying, "It's not aspirational enough.

"[47] During a research trip, producers found that "there are lots of braids" worn by women in Norway; they then hired a stylist from New York named "Danilo" who helped to create a style that would reflect that while still being "a little different".

"[57] Since Elsa is introduced as a young child at the beginning of the film, animators wanted the first glimpse of her powers to reflect her innocent and fanciful state of mind at the time.

[58][59] The palace is initially beautiful; however, after she is made aware of the destruction she has inadvertently caused, and as she is increasingly vilified and hunted by others, it becomes darker and more distorted, with jagged icicles forming on the walls.

While the traditional Norwegian rosemaling was the inspiration for her costuming early in the film, her ice gown was designed similarly to her palace, with snowflakes heavily influencing the style.

[60][61] Rick Dempsey, senior executive at Disney Character Voices International regarded the process as "exceptionally challenging", explaining, "It's a difficult juggling act to get the right intent of the lyrics and also have it match rhythmically to the music.

"[62] Just like Idina Menzel, three of Elsa's dubbers also played the role of Elphaba in Wicked, that is: Maria Lucia Rosenberg (Danish),[63] Willemijn Verkaik (Dutch and German),[64][65] and Hyena Park [ko] (Korean).

[69] On the wake of the success of international versions of the first movie, on February 9, 2020, when Menzel and Aurora performed the song "Into the Unknown" during the 92nd Academy Awards, nine of Elsa's international dubbers were also called to sing one line each in as many different languages: Maria Lucia Rosenberg in Danish, Willemijn Verkaik in German, Takako Matsu in Japanese, Carmen Sarahí in Latin American Spanish, Lisa Stokke in Norwegian, Kasia Łaska in Polish, Anna Buturlina in Russian, Gisela in European Spanish and Gam Wichayanee in Thai.

Meanwhile, Anna grows progressively weaker and Kristoff takes her back to the trolls, who tell them that her heart is slowly freezing but that only an "act of true love" can save her life.

[88] In February 2014, these meet-and-greet sessions were extended indefinitely, with wait time to meet the princesses frequently exceeding two hours, which is longer than any previous Disney characters.

[92] On April 20, 2014, Anna and Elsa moved from Epcot to the Princess Fairytale Hall at Magic Kingdom, with wait time to see the characters amounted to three hours, compared to Cinderella's and Rapunzel's 15 minutes.

[111][112] Beginning May 22, 2015, Disneyland debuted a new nighttime parade called "Paint the Night", which includes a Frozen float featuring Anna, Elsa, and Olaf, as part of the park's 60th anniversary celebration.

Matt Goldberg of Collider.com commented that she was "an incredibly sympathetic character",[125] while Deepanjana Pal of Firstpost praised the decision to rewrite her as a protagonist and said, "Elsa is no evil, frosty vision of twisted and toxic maternity like the original Snow Queen.

Cheat Sheet, said that the scenes depicting Elsa gaining confidence and individuality delivered "an exciting message to send to young girls looking for a new princess role model".

"[129] Travis Bean of Cedar Falls Times suggested that Elsa's ice powers, a "personal oddity" that made her self-conscious, as well as her selflessness in withdrawing into isolation in order to avoid hurting others allowed children to connect more with the plot of Frozen.

"[134] Emma Koonse of Christian Post opined that together the sisters were Disney's "most lovable and charismatic characters yet",[45] and Debbie Lynn Elias of Culver City Observer commented, "Elsa and Anna are like two sides of a coin, both strong, albeit one through power and confidence and the other through clumsy sticktuitiveness and love.

ABS-CBN writer Fred Hawson described Elsa as "an incredible character with a unique and interesting predicament because of the powers she possessed" and expressed the opinion that Frozen should have focused more on her rather than Anna.

[137] Samra Muslim of The Express Tribune wrote that it was her presence that kept viewers "hooked" throughout the movie, elaborating, "Her character is complex and sympathetic and deserved to be explored even further.

[140] Slate's Dana Stevens wrote that "it's impossible not to thrill to Elsa's surging sense of power" but criticized the choice to illustrate her growing confidence by changing her appearance; Stevens further expressed concern that the switch from the character's modest coronation gown to "a slinky, slit-to-the-thigh dress with a transparent snowflake-patterned train and a pair of silver-white high heels" and a hairstyle that suggested "come-hither bad-girl seduction" was overly sexual.

[143] Reviewers frequently focused on her performance of "Let It Go", described by Entertainment Weekly's Marc Snetiker as "an incredible anthem of liberation" in which Elsa decides to no longer fear her powers.

"[146] Donald Clark of Irish Times added, "Elsa's flight to the glaciers triggers a song that, in its defiant paean to self-reliance, could play comfortably beside camp showtune anthems such as I Am What I Am and Don't Rain on My Parade.

"[152][153] Psychologist Nadia Ali of The Washington Post states that Elsa's behavior was strongly identical to her patients, trying to control and hide the evidence of their struggles for mental health – and the loneliness they often feel in doing so.

"[154] "Self-isolating, immobilized by the weight of personal expectations, and largely unable to experience joy, Elsa is the Anxious Girl's heroine", stated Jenny Singer of Glamour magazine.

"Cinderella is an indentured servant, Moana is tasked with saving her people from mass starvation, and Belle is both a kidnapping victim and an adult literacy instructor, but they each maintain the cheeriness of Mrs. Maisel after an extra-large cold brew.