Ursula (The Little Mermaid) she can ultimately replace the mermaid's father King Triton as ruler over Atlantica. Created by directors and screenwriters Ron Clements and John Musker, Ursula is based on the sea witch character who appears in the fairy tale "The Little Mermaid" by Hans Christian Andersen. However, her minor role was greatly expanded into that of a much more prominent villain for the film. Disney had struggled to cast Ursula for a year, during which the role was well sought after by several coveted television actresses at the time. Clements and Musker disagreed with lyricist Howard Ashman about who should voice the
Ursula (The Little Mermaid) The Most Horrific Disney Villain Deaths". In the wake of the release of "Maleficent" (2014), a live-action remake of Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" (1959) told from the perspective of the film's villain, several publications voted for Ursula among Disney villains who deserve to star in their own films, including Yahoo! Movies, MTV, "Bustle" and the "New York Post." David Crow of Den of Geek selected actor John Travolta as his first choice for the role of Ursula because of his drag performance as Edna Turnblad in the film "Hairspray" (2007), a role actually originated by Divine, the actor upon whose appearance