Ursula (The Little Mermaid) the studio's strongest and most powerful villains in several years. Film critic Roger Ebert dubbed Ursula Disney's "most satisfying villainess since" "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"' Evil Queen, who debuted in 1937. Critics agree that Ursula played an important role in the overall success of "The Little Mermaid". Samantha Rullo of "Bustle" reviewed Ursula as a "way more interesting" character than Ariel herself, while praising her for "rocking the best hair and makeup of any Disney villain." Also writing for "Bustle", Caitlyn Callegari appreciated Ursula for "tell[ing] it like it is." Jay Boyar of the "Orlando Sentinel" hailed Ursula
Ursula (The Little Mermaid) Disney's strongest villain in decades. Meanwhile, Carroll's performance has garnered similar acclaim to the point that the role has eclipsed her previous body of work, ultimately becoming virtually synonymous with the character. At the behest of Disney executives Michael Eisner and Jeffrey Katzenberg, director and screenwriter Ron Clements was among several filmmakers instructed to research new story ideas that could potentially be adapted into the studio's next major animated film release. Clements first discovered Hans Christian Andersen's classic fairy tale "The Little Mermaid" at a local bookstore, and began deliberating why Disney had never attempted to adapt the story before.