Mother Gothel Mother Gothel Mother Gothel is a fictional character who appears in Walt Disney Pictures' 50th animated feature film "Tangled "(2010). The character is voiced by actress and singer Donna Murphy in her voice acting debut; Murphy auditioned for the role spontaneously upon learning from her agent that Disney was auditioning actresses for the film's villainous role. Loosely based on Dame Gothel 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 for several years. When the flower is harvested in order
Mother Knows Best (song) can continue exploiting her hair's regenerating abilities to remain youthful. "Mother Knows Best" is eventually reprised in a more sinister, vengeful manner by Gothel after Rapunzel, having left the tower, openly defies her for the first time. Menken and Slater deliberately wrote "Mother Knows Best" in the style of an old-fashioned Broadway musical number after directors Byron Howard and Nathan Greno specifically asked that they provide the film with one. Musically, "Mother Knows Best" directly contrasts with the more pop-oriented singer-songwriter style of Rapunzel's songs, which are performed by pop singer Mandy Moore. A Tony Award-winning Broadway performer, Murphy recorded