Mother Gothel of the film's villain based solely on the expectation that the unfamiliar experience would be "fun". Almost immediately, Murphy developed a strong liking towards Gothel because of the character's complexity. Known for her award-winning Broadway performances, Murphy prepared herself for her "Tangled "audition similar to the way in which the actress would have prepared for a Broadway audition. Refusing to rely solely on her voice, Murphy also provided Gothel with an additional background that "flush[ed] out the moments beyond what we see in the film." Although Greno and Howard had already held Murphy in high regard as "a spectacular singer",
Mother Knows Best (song) Gothel as an abusive mother, writing, "she is manipulative, dishonest, and dedicated to undermining her daughter's independence. This is shown consistently through all her appearances in the film, but comes out clearly very early indeed, with the song 'Mother Knows Best'. Critics have often identified the sequence as one of the film's darkest and edgiest moments. Acknowledging the song's "extremely dark undertone", Anthony Falco of Film Class Junkies wrote, "This song rues in the fact that a child is impressionable; Rapunzel believes that Mother Gothel has the best intentions, but obviously, the evil witch is using the princess for her