Mother Gothel

Mother Gothel
Tangled character
Mother Gothel as she appears in Tangled (2010).
First appearance	Tangled (2010)
Created by	Nathan Greno Byron Howard
Voiced by	Donna Murphy
Information
Species	Human
Gender	Female
Children	Rapunzel (foster-daughter)

Mother Gothel is a fictional character who appears in Walt Disney Pictures' 50th animated feature film Tangled (2010) as the main antagonist. The character is voiced by American actress and singer Donna Murphy in her voice-acting debut, prior to which she was predominantly known as a stage actress. Upon learning from her agent that Disney was auditioning potentials for the antagonistic role of Mother Gothel, Murphy decided to audition for the part spontaneously. Loosely based on the witch character in the German fairy tale "Rapunzel", Mother Gothel is a vain old woman who hoards the healing powers of a magical flower in order to remain young and beautiful forever. When the flower is suddenly harvested by the kingdom in order to heal its ailing queen, its rejuvenating powers are inherited by the king and the queen's daughter, Princess Rapunzel, stripping Gothel of her access to it. With her life suddenly endangered, Gothel kidnaps the baby, imprisoning the young Princess Rapunzel in an isolated tower for eighteen years while masquerading as her mother.

Inspired by the Evil Queen in Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and Lady Tremaine in Disney's Cinderella (1950), Gothel was developed by directors Nathan Greno and Byron Howard into a much more complex villain than the fairy tale witch upon whom she is based because the character is forced to rely solely on her wit, charisma and intelligence as opposed to sorcery in order to survive. The film's most difficult character to develop, Gothel's exotic appearance, whose beauty, dark curly hair and voluptuous figure were deliberately drawn to serve as a foil to Rapunzel's, was inspired by both Murphy and American singer Cher.