Despite his skill with animal anatomy and caricature, Davis and Milt Kahl were stuck with over a decade of "difficult-to-draw" and "dull" human characters.

"[15] Voice actors for Maleficent, Briar Rose, and Cruella De Vil have all discussed the influence on Davis's animation of their respective characters.

In an interview Costa described working with Davis at Disney: "Marc would sit in the sound booth and sketch my every gesture and expression."

"[17] When it came to Cruella, one of the only characters to ever be completely controlled by a single animator, Davis claimed his greatest inspiration was the vocal performance of Betty Lou Gerson.

[18] Gerson commented in an interview how Davis incorporated her high cheekbones into Cruella's face and how closely she had to work with him to perfect "the laugh.

Though he followed the live-action reference footage, "Davis exaggerated the foreshortening and sweeping arcs of the arms," making an artistic choice, rather than one from reality, that made the princess look "more appealing.

"[20] Fellow animator Frank Thomas criticized Davis for going "overboard" with Cruella De Vil, making the villain's face more "of a skull."

"[18] Another example of this talent is how Davis perfectly captured and articulated Tinker Bell's notorious sass and personality through pantomime and facial expression alone.

[11] Margaret Kerry, the live-action reference for the fairy, remembered asking Davis for guidance on who he wanted Tinker Bell to be and getting a response that she described as "wonderful."

Davis instructed his wife, Alice, on how he wanted the princess's dress to flow so she could make the correct costume for when the live-action model arrived.

[24] Starting in 1994, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has annually presented the Marc Davis Lecture on Animation series featuring noted creators and luminaries in the industry.

In 2014, the Walt Disney Family Museum presented the exhibition Leading Ladies and Femmes Fatales: The Art of Marc Davis.

[37][38][39] It was followed by the September 2020 release of Marc Davis in His Own Words: Imagineering the Disney Parks ISBN 978-1484755754, a two-volume hardcover set covering his work at WED.