Development
Conception and writing
At the behest of Disney executives Michael Eisner and Jeffrey Katzenberg, director and screenwriter Ron Clements was among several film-makers 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. Clements eventually learned that Walt Disney himself had actually attempted to adapt the fairy tale into a feature-length animated film as early as the 1930s, but the project was ultimately shelved due in part to its sad ending. Clements suggested "The Little Mermaid" to Katzenberg, who finally Green-light, green-lit it after having first rejected it. Hardly present in Andersen's original story, the sea witch is not a prominent character and lacks a proper name. Among Clements' ideas to alter the story, the film-maker decided to "make the witch more of a villain", describing Ursula as "a fun character to develop" into such. In Andersen's tale, the sea witch is not a villainess as much as she is "a disreputable mermaid." JR Thorpe of ''Bustle (magazine), Bustle'' agreed that, in Andersen's story, "The sea witch isn't the enemy". Instead, "Human nature, human ... nature is." While the original sea witch is willing to help the little mermaid despite the fact that she openly disagrees with her motives, Ursula is only interested in helping Ariel in the hopes of ultimately overthrowing her father. Emma James of ''Teen Ink'' observed that in addition to giving the character the name "Ursula", the studio "changed her role as a catalyst in the tale, and morphed her actions into those of an antagonist." Unlike the sea witch, Ursula deliberately intervenes in an attempt to keep the mermaid from success. Lyricist, producer and writer Howard Ashman had originally envisioned Ursula's relationship with King Triton (The Little Mermaid), King Triton as a soap opera, and thus drew inspiration from soap opera actress Joan Collins. Ursula was originally conceived as Triton's sister, which would have naturally made the character Ariel's aunt, but the idea was ultimately abandoned. However, their blood relationship is still vaguely alluded to when the character mentions a time during which she actually lived in Triton's palace. Clements and Musker had originally intended for Ursula to remain her original size at the end of the film. However, Katzenberg had just recently seen the film ''Die Hard'' (1988), which inspired him to request a "bigger" ending for ''The Little Mermaid'', and thus he instructed the writers to have Ursula grow much larger in size during her Climax (narrative), climactic fight with Ariel and Eric.Voice and music
Pat Carroll was the voice actress of Ursula. She was the voice actress of this character from 1989 to her death in 2022. Her final role as Ursula was in ''Disney Dreamlight Valley'', that released posthumously. Carroll was not the filmmakers' first choice for the role; Clements, Musker and Ashman had long debated who should voice the villainess, the casting of whom was long and tedious, spanning an entire year. In his book ''Makin' Toons: Inside the Most Popular Animated TV Shows and Movies'', author Allan Neuwirth documented that the filmmakers searched "for just the right performer who could put across the deep-voiced, world-weary, deadpan villainess they had in mind–but never quite snaring their catch". While Ashman was interested in actress Joan Collins because he was a fan of her performance as Alexis Colby in the soap opera ''Dynasty (1981 TV series), Dynasty'', Clements and Musker favored actress Bea Arthur, for whom they had actually written the role, describing Ursula as "having a Bea Arthur-type Bass (voice type), basso voice" in early drafts of their screenplay. Clements and Musker expected Arthur to accept the role because she had already been working for Disney's Touchstone Television on the sitcom ''The Golden Girls''. However, Arthur's agent resented the directors-writers for insinuating that her client voice a witch, refusing to even present the script to the actress. With Arthur eliminated, Clements and Musker were forced to audition several other popular television actresses of the decade, including Nancy Marchand, Charlotte Rae and Roseanne Barr, the last of whom had originally auditioned for the supporting role of chambermaid Carlotta. Amused by her nasal voice, Howard invited the comedian to read for Ursula, but concluded that her approach was ultimately not suitable for the character. Jazz singer Nancy Wilson (jazz singer), Nancy Wilson also auditioned. Meanwhile, Ashman himself had been similarly unsuccessful in recruiting Collins because ''Dynasty'' producer Aaron Spelling feared that the actress' reputation would be jeopardized should she voice an animated character. Thus, Ashman pursued Musical theatre, Broadway veteran Elaine Stritch, of whom he had been a long-time fan. The audition process for Ursula required each hopeful to both recite a scene from the film and perform a Broadway-style song of their choice. The finalists became Clements and Musker's Rae versus Ashman's Stritch, the latter of whom ultimately won the role over Rae with her preferred rendition of Ursula's song "Poor Unfortunate Souls". Musker described Stritch's approach to Ursula as "an eccentric, loopy reading". However, Stritch and Ashman soon began to experience creative differences over "Poor Unfortunate Souls" because the actress refused to follow the lyricist's "very specific directions". After refusing to perform the song at Ashman's preferred tempo (combined with her alcoholism), the songwriter fired Stritch from the project, thus forcing Clements and Musker to find a replacement with yet another round of auditions. Carroll first learned of ''The Little Mermaid'' from her agent, and immediately agreed to audition for Ursula because she had always wanted to voice a Disney character. However, the actress felt that her chances were slim to none upon realizing that her competition largely consisted of famous film and television actresses. Musker described Carroll's audition approach as a hybrid of actors Maurice Evans (actor), Maurice Evans and Tallulah Bankhead. Although confident in both her acting and singing auditions, Carroll did not hear back from her agent about the role until a year afterward, by which time she had already forgotten she had ever auditioned. Upon being cast, Carroll was entirely committed to the role, giving it complete precedence over all other jobs and projects at the time. Carroll's first task was to record "Poor Unfortunate Souls", her approach to which was remarkably different than Stritch's, first asking Howard to demonstrate exactly how he would like her to perform the song before attempting it. Carroll completely credits Ashman with her delivery, explaining, "I got the whole attitude from him ... and his shoulders would twitch a certain way, and his eyes would go a certain way ... I got more about that character from Howard singing that song than from anything else." Carroll also borrowed Ursula's habit of saying "innit" instead of "isn't it" from Ashman. Despite their strong working relationship, Carroll described working with Ashman and composer Alan Menken as a "brutal" experience because of the songwriters' "military" approach; she would often return home from recording sessions with blown vocal chords. Carroll recalled her daughter, filmmaker Tara Karsian, reassuring her that "you're in something that fifty years from now may be shown ... What you're working on now will be seen by our children, and our grandchildren, and our great-grandchildren" after complaining to her about one of her recording sessions. Describing her own performance as William Shakespeare, Shakespearean, Carroll perceived Ursula as an "ex-Shakespearean actress who now sold cars", which inspired her dry, theatrical interpretation. Carroll also deepened her own voice for the role. When Carroll watched the completed film for the first time, she was frightened by her own performance, comparing it to actress Margaret Hamilton (actress), Margaret Hamilton's performance as the Wicked Witch of the West in the film ''The Wizard of Oz (1939 film), The Wizard of Oz'' (1939). Actress Jodi Benson, who voices Ariel, briefly provides the voice of "Vanessa", Ursula's beautiful human Alter ego, alter-ego, in lieu of Carroll. With the writing and recording of "Poor Unfortunate Souls", Ursula became the first Disney villainess to receive her own song. On June 28, 2019, it was announced that Melissa McCarthy was in talks to play Ursula in the upcoming live-action remake of ''The Little Mermaid (2023 film), The Little Mermaid'', set to be directed by Rob Marshall. On February 18, 2020, McCarthy confirmed her casting as the villainess during an interview on ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'': “I play Ursula, the sea witch. It is so fun, we're just in rehearsals. It's been an absolute blast. Stepping into the world of Rob Marshall, it's like a fever dream, I just went to London for a week, I was like, ‘I don't get to go to dance camp for a week.’ All day he's like, ‘Do you want to slide down this 40-foot clamshell?’ I'm like, ‘Yes! Of course, I do. What are you, crazy?’ It's been wildly creative.” In December 2020, McCarthy stated that she would hopefully begin filming the movie in January 2021. McCarthy eventually began filming her scenes in April 2021. Later that year, McCarthy described the experience of playing Ursula as "glorious" and adding, "The world of Disney and (director) Rob Marshall is a world that I wish everyone could experience because it's so creative, kind and lovely. Going to singing class every day ... I got to record with an orchestra, which is a mind-bender for someone who is not a singer ... but it was such a fun process. It's going to be incredible ... To me, Ursula is everything. She's one of my absolute favorite villains so to play her was delicious."Design
During production of ''The Little Mermaid'', Ursula's design evolved and transformed dramatically. Animator Glen Keane's earliest sketches of Ursula were drawn to resemble Rae, specifically based on the actress' audition for the role. The short-lived casting of Stritch as Ursula and her subsequent performance eventually inspired the animators to design the character as "a tall, thin regal-looking sea witch" based on manta rays and Scorpaeniformes, scorpion fish, complete with a long cape. At one point, Ursula had also been drawn with spikes to resemble a Spikefish, spinefish. Ursula's appearance was largely inspired by American actor and drag queen Divine (actor), Divine, who was best known for his frequent appearances in several films directed by filmmaker John Waters. Similarities were first drawn between the character and the actor after animator Rob Minkoff sketched "a vampy overweight matron", to which Ashman responded, "She looks like a Miami Beach, Florida, Miami Beach matron ... playing Mahjong, Mah Jong by the pool.” The character shares Divine's signature eye makeup, jewelry and body type while originally sporting a Mohawk hairstyle, Mohawk, the last of which was borrowed from the actor's ''Pink Flamingos, Pink Flamingo''Pink Flamingos, s (1972) character Babs Johnson. However, Minkoff had been drawing the character with a shark's tail at the time. Clements eventually decided to place Ursula's head on top of the body of an octopus instead, which ultimately resulted in her current design. The animators then studied the way in which octopuses move, explaining, "There was a very kind of seductive and yet scary aspect", which they incorporated into the character's own gait. The ''Pink Flamingos''-inspired Mohawk was ultimately discarded because Disney felt that the hairstyle was "too over-the-top" for the film. Additionally, Ursula's face was also inspired by that of Madame Medusa from Disney's ''The Rescuers'' (1977)''.'' According to ''The Gospel according to Disney: Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust'' author Mark I. Pinsky, Ursula became "the most Grotesque body, grotesque characterization Disney ... have created for a female villain" at that time. Having animated previous Disney villains, Keane was originally approached to be the supervising animator of Ursula, but declined in favor of animating Ariel because he longed to do something different. Thus, Keane was replaced by Ruben A. Aquino. The character was originally drawn with a full set of eight tentacles similar to a real-life octopus, which were eventually reduced to a more manageable six because the original amount would have been too difficult and costly to animate. According to Carroll, this modification actually makes the character more similar to a squid than an octopus; whether or not Ursula is an octopus continues to be debated among both critics and devout fans, some of whom believe that the character's pair of arms actually account for the remaining two tentacles. Clements admitted that the character's six tentacles made animating her a challenge nonetheless. Ursula was intentionally designed to instill fear in ''The Little Mermaid''Characterization and themes
About.com's David Nusair observed that "There's no limit to how low Ursula will stoop to achieve her goals"; the character often relies on a combination of Witchcraft, sorcery and deception to achieve them. "A bargainer of the worst kind", Ursula only agrees to help the less fortunate when she's confident that she can gain something from them in return. Identifying Ursula as Ariel's binary due to the character's experience and authority, ''Collision of Realities: Establishing Research on the Fantastic in Europe'' author Lars Schmeink described Ursula as a "more complex and mature character" than Ariel, embodying everything that the mermaid can potentially become. To Ariel, Ursula represents "the matronly image" who "instigate[s] the young princess' epic journey" as she longs to achieve the witch's "Sage (philosophy), sage-like knowledge and power". Ursula teaches Ariel about womanhood, a theme ''From Mouse to Mermaid: The Politics of Film, Gender, and Culture'' author Elizabeth Belle noticed is absent in Anderson's story. According to Bell, "Ursula can retrieve Ariel from her destined alliance with patriarchy", observing that the witch actually "teaches Ariel that performance and voice and manifestations" are "liberations of gender". ''Teen Ink''Appearances
''The Little Mermaid'' (1989)
Ursula debuted in the The Little Mermaid (1989 film), 1989 adaptation of ''The Little Mermaid'' (where she is voiced by Pat Carroll), as a sea witch who is scheming to take advantage of the ambitions of King Triton's youngest daughter Princess Ariel in order to usurp the throne and turning merpeople into seaweed for her garden. When Ariel saves and falls in love with a human named Prince Eric much to her father's chagrin, Ursula temporarily grants Ariel's wish to live as a human for three days in return for her voice. If she successfully earns a kiss from Eric by the end of the third day, Ariel will remain human permanently; if she fails, she will turn back into a mermaid and belong to Ursula forever. However, Ursula is determined to sabotage Ariel's and Eric's budding romance at any cost; when she realizes that Ariel and Eric are falling in love, Ursula transforms herself into a beautiful young woman named "Vanessa" and hypnotizes Eric, tricking him into agreeing to marry her instead. Ariel manages to thwart Ursula and Eric's wedding. Eric realizes that it was Ariel who saved him when her voice returns to her and is about to kiss her, but as the sun sets Ariel transforms back into a mermaid and is captured by Ursula. Triton confronts Ursula and agrees to give up himself and his magical trident in return for Ariel's freedom. Ursula then uses the trident to expand into monstrous proportions and attempts to kill Ariel and Eric, but Eric manages to impale Ursula with the splintered bowsprit of a wrecked ship, and she dies. With Ursula gone, her powers cease, the merpeople turn back to normal, Triton's power is restored, and Ariel marries Eric once she is permanently transformed into a human.''The Little Mermaid'' TV series
Ursula appears as the antagonist in four episodes of ''The Little Mermaid (TV series), The Little Mermaid'' prequel television series: "Against the Tide", "Tail of Two Crabs", "Heroes" and "Ariel's Treasures". In all four episodes, she executes various plans to antagonize King Triton and take over Atlantica, but all fail.''The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea''
Due to her death in the original film, Ursula does not appear in the direct-to-video sequel ''The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea'', but she is mentioned many times, mostly by her younger sister Morgana (The Little Mermaid), Morgana (also voiced by Pat Carroll). Her image does appear in a photograph that Morgana has of Ursula. In the family portrait during the cut song "Gonna Get My Wish", Ursula was also depicted as a young girl with light green skin similar to Morgana and their mother.In other media
Video games
In the ''Kingdom Hearts (video game), Kingdom Hearts'' video game, Ursula appears as one of Maleficent (Disney), Maleficent's co-conspirators, using the power of the Heartless (Kingdom Hearts), Heartless to attack Atlantica and gain power. In this version of events, the official walkthrough states that Ursula was King Triton's fortuneteller before she was banished. Ursula is eventually defeated by Sora (Kingdom Hearts), Sora, Ariel, Donald Duck and Goofy. In ''Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories'', she appears as a facsimile created from Sora's memories. In ''Kingdom Hearts II'', Ursula mysteriously returns through the powers of darkness and appears to Ariel, and recreates her film role. As the film's storyline is retold in the game, Ursula does not recognize Sora and company, and Ariel makes no mention of her defeat in the original ''Kingdom Hearts''. In fact, when Ursula arrives to make the deal with Ariel, the latter reacts as though she has seen Ursula for the first time. Sora, however, does note that Ursula "got what she deserved" in the first game. At the story's climax, she is defeated when Eric hurls the trident straight through Ursula's chest, destroying her seemingly once and for all. However, she reappears in the ''Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance'', confronting Sora and Riku out at sea in her giant form from the end of the movie. The game gives conflicting hints on whether or not this Ursula is the "real one," and serves a very small role, providing the tutorial to the game's battle system and delivering a line that foreshadows the plot of the game's main antagonist, Xehanort. She is again voiced by Pat Carroll in the games She has appeared for the concept art from ''Epic Mickey'' in 2010. When Ursula tries to kidnap Gremlin Gus, Mickey comes to the rescue and saved him from trying to let go of her clutches. Ursula appears as a playable character to unlock for a limited time in ''Disney Magic Kingdoms''.Theme park attractions
Ursula appears in Disney park attractions such as the ''Fantasmic!'' show debuted in 1992 at Disneyland Park, as one of the Disney Villains summoned to destroy Mickey Mouse. A massive Ursula Audio-Animatronics, Audio-Animatronic appears in The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel's Undersea Adventure, a dark ride at Disney California Adventure, and Magic Kingdom. Ursula is a central character in the annual Halloween-themed fireworks show HalloWishes at the Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom ''Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party'' "hard ticket" event. Ursula also appears at the tail end of the ''Little Mermaid'' unit in Walt Disney's Parade of Dreams at Disneyland.Literature
Ursula has appeared in various Disney Press novels and tie-ins for the franchise. A comic book series, ''Disney's The Little Mermaid'', was released in 1992, revolving around the adventures of Ariel living under the sea as a mermaid. Ursula appears in a few issues, notably "Serpent Teen", which depicts how Ursula obtained the sea serpent carcass that makes her home. ''My Side of the Story: Ursula'' (2004) retells the plot of the film from Ursula's point of view, and depicts Ursula having romantic feelings for Triton. ''The Villain Files'' (2005) depicts Ursula's youth living in Triton's castle while Ariel was a baby. Ursula is a main character in the 2016 young adult fiction, young adult novel ''Poor Unfortunate Soul: A Tale of the Sea Witch'' by Serena Valentino. The novel is the third entry of the "Villains" series, a shared universe that Crossover (fiction), crosses over various theatrical Disney films including ''Beauty and the Beast (1991 film), Beauty and the Beast'', ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film), Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'' and ''Sleeping Beauty (1959 film), Sleeping Beauty''. In this novel, Ursula is King Triton's younger sister who was betrayed by him as a child for choosing a tentacled form instead of a mermaid's tail, and grew up as a human in the town of Ipswich with an adoptive human father. Ursula returned to the sea when her adopted father was killed by the townsfolk for protecting her, befriending Athena, Queen of Atlantica, but was denied her inheritance by Triton and banished to the shadows. Ursula conspires with three other witches to steal Triton's soul and become ruler of all the seas, but is ultimately defeated. Ursula is the villain in the 2020 children's horror novel ''Part of Your Nightmare'' by Vera Strange, which is the first book of the ''Disney Chills'' series. The novel's setting is modern day, in a beach city named Triton Bay where eleven-year-old Shelly Anderson has just moved to a new school. Shelly struggles to fit in and especially wants the approval of Kendall, the popular captain of their school's swim team. Shelly first encounters Ursula at the aquarium owned by the Anderson family, and afterward has sleeping and waking nightmares of Ursula offering her a deal where that Shelly can be the "fastest swimmer ever", if Shelly does her a small favor in return.Broadway musical
In the The Little Mermaid (musical), musical version of the original film, Sherie Rene Scott originated the live role, which she played until January 25, 2009. Scott's performance earned her a nomination for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical at the Outer Critics Circle Awards. Other actresses who played the role incluse Heidi Blickenstaff and Faith Prince. In this version, Ursula is King Triton's sister, a concept for the original film that was eventually dropped. When Ursula and Triton's father died, the pair were given equal share of the sea plus two magical items. Triton received the trident while Ursula received the magic Nautilus shell. Though the two were meant to rule the seas together, Ursula's greed and use of dark magic to usurp Triton led to her being banished. The desire for revenge and power is her motivation for the show. The musical's plot is similar to the film, with the exception that Ursula doesn't transform into Vanessa, and she is ultimately defeated by Ariel rather than Eric, when the mermaid destroys the Nautilus shell that contains Ursula's power. In the revamped version of the musical developed by Glenn Casale in 2012, Ursula and Triton's backstory was changed, making them the seventh and eighth of eight siblings respectively. Ursula killed their older siblings one by one until she became a queen, and she forgot about Triton until he became old enough to depose her and become king. Ursula's motivation for revenge otherwise remains similar to the original book of the musical, with the addition that she was the one who killed Ariel's mother. In addition to her song from the film, Alan Menken and Glenn Slater wrote new songs for Ursula: "I Want the Good Times Back", which introduces Ursula and her backstory, "I Want the Good Times Back (reprise)", where Ursula orders Flotsam and Jetsam to sabotage Ariel's attempt to get Eric to kiss her, and a reprise of "Poor Unfortunate Souls", where Ursula forces Triton to sign a deal and claims the trident. In the workshop stage, Ursula had a different introductory song: "Wasting Away", and its reprise featured Ursula preparing to transform into Vanessa. Emily Skinner (actress, born 1970), Emily Skinner provided vocals for Ursula in the workshop. In the 2012 revamped version of the musical, "I Want the Good Times Back" is replaced with a new song, "Daddy's Little Angel".Other stage productions
In 2016, Rebel Wilson performed the role of Ursula at a stripped-down concert version of ''The Little Mermaid'' at the Hollywood Bowl, which featured the songs from the film and four songs from the Broadway musical. Wilson was praised for her performance, which was described by ''The Huffington Post'' as "pitch perfect." Queen Latifah portrayed Ursula in the 2019 television special, ''The Little Mermaid Live!'' which used a similar format of the live concerts at the Hollywood Bowl, by combining a screening of the film with live accompaniment by guest musicians and celebrities.''Disney's House of Mouse''
Ursula appeared occasionally in the animated television series ''Disney's House of Mouse'' (2001) as one of Mickey's guests at the nightclub. In the feature film ''Mickey's House of Villains'' she is one if the main villains as one of Jafar (Aladdin), Jafar's sidekicks, and participated in the musical number "It's Our House Now" alongside other Disney villains.''Once Upon a Time''
Two live-action versions of Ursula appear in the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television series ''Once Upon a Time (TV series), Once Upon a Time''. ;"The Sea Goddess" Ursula the Sea Goddess appears in the Once Upon a Time (season 3), third season, where she is voiced by Yvette Nicole Brown. In the episode "Ariel (Once Upon a Time), Ariel", Ursula is described as a sea goddess whom no one has seen for a thousand years. According to Ariel, Ursula gave merfolk the ability to gain legs once a year, when the tide is highest. Ariel uses this ability to visit Prince Eric at his castle, where he is having a ball honoring Ursula. Later, the Evil Queen (Disney), Evil Queen (Lana Parrilla) disguises herself as Ursula in order to make a deal with Ariel and trick her into capturing Snow White. This physical disguise includes short white hair and tentacles, similar to Ursula's animated appearance. Although the Queen considers Ursula to be "a long-dead octopus", she is shocked when the real Ursula possesses a statue and warns the queen not to impersonate her again. ;"The Sea Witch" Ursula the Sea Witch appears as an antagonist of the second half of the Once Upon a Time (season 4), fourth season, where she is portrayed as an adult by Merrin Dungey, and as a teenager by Tiffany Boone. The episode "Poor Unfortunate Soul (Once Upon a Time), Poor Unfortunate Soul" contains further flashbacks to Ursula's youth, when she was a teenage mermaid living under the sea with her father King Poseidon (Ernie Hudson). Ursula was gifted with a beautiful voice, which Poseidon wanted her to use to lure pirates to their death, in order to avenge the murder of Ursula's mother at the hands of an unnamed pirate. Ursula refused and instead befriended a pirate, Captain Hook (Colin O'Donoghue), who supported her desire for freedom. Ursula and Hook's friendship fell apart when Hook sealed Ursula's singing voice inside an enchanted shell, in order to punish Poseidon for destroying a weapon Hook wanted for himself. Ursula, angered and disappointed with both merfolk and humans, used Poseidon's trident to transform her tail into tentacles, emulating the ancient sea goddess that she was named after. The episodes "Heroes and Villains (Once Upon a Time), Heroes and Villains" and "Darkness on the Edge of Town (Once Upon a Time), Darkness on the Edge of Town" contain flashbacks to the Enchanted Forest past, where Ursula teamed up with fellow witches Maleficent#Once Upon a Time, Maleficent (Kristin Bauer van Straten) and Cruella de Vil#Once Upon a Time, Cruella De Vil (Victoria Smurfit). The three of them worked together to try to defeat the heroes and find their happy endings, but failed. In the episode "Best Laid Plans (Once Upon a Time), Best Laid Plans", while trying to rescue Maleficent's baby from Snow and Charming, Ursula and Cruella fell into a portal that lead into the non-magical world. Three decades later, in modern-day New York, Ursula is working as a cleaner in an aquarium when she is recruited by Rumplestiltskin, who also reunites her with Cruella. Ursula, Cruella and Rumplestiltskin then trick their way into entering the magical town of Storybrooke. In the episode "Unforgiven (Once Upon a Time), Unforgiven", they resurrect Maleficent to join their group. In the episode "Best Laid Plans (Once Upon a Time), Best Laid Plans", flashbacks show how she and Cruella were sent from the Enchanted Forest before the first Dark Curse to the Land Without Magic because of Snow White (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Prince Charming (Josh Dallas)'s actions. In the present day plotline of "Poor Unfortunate Soul", a remorseful Hook makes a deal with Ursula to get her singing voice back. They are only successful when Ariel intercedes, bringing Poseidon to Storybrooke so that he and Ursula can reconcile, and the enchantment is broken. Having achieved her happy ending, Ursula then tells Hook the full plan Rumplestiltskin has for the heroes, and afterward returns to the sea with her father.''Descendants 2''
Ursula makes an appearance in the 2017 television film, voiced by Whoopi Goldberg. Twenty years prior to the film, Ursula had been banished on the Isle of the Lost with other villains. In the film, her daughter Uma is the main antagonist, portrayed by China Anne McClain. During one scene, Ursula whips her tentacle out from the kitchen of her Fish and Chips shop and yells at Uma to stop singing and come to wash the dishes.''The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse''
Ursula appeared in the episode "Keep on Rollin'" of the Disney+ series ''The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse'', with Carroll reprising her role, where together with Pete (Disney), Pete and the Beagle Boys they confront Mickey Mouse and his friends for being the skating rink where the characters meet. This would be the final time Carroll reprised her role before her death on July 30, 2022.''The Little Mermaid'' (live-action film)
Ursula will be played by Melissa McCarthy in the upcoming 2023 live action remake of ''The Little Mermaid (2023 film), The Little Mermaid'', directed by Rob Marshall.Welcome to the Club (The Simpsons), ''The Simpsons: Welcome to the Club''
In this Disney+ short, Ursula and other Disney villains welcome Lisa Simpson to "Disney Villain Land," and persuade her to become evil. Ursula was voiced by Dawnn Lewis, due to Pat Carroll's sudden death happening during the short's production.Books
''Poor Unfortunate Soul: A Tale of the Sea Witch''
Ursula is mentioned and appears in the second book of the Villains series by Serena Valentino, ''The Beast Within: A Tale of Beauty's Prince'', appearing before the Odd Sisters. She is the main character in the third book. Prior to the events of the book, Ursula appears in the English town of Ipswich and proceeds to inflict pain on the citizens of the town and turn them into twisted sea creatures before being stopped by King Triton. Years later, Ursula, in her guise as Vanessa, goes to the Odd Sisters and asks for their help to defeat Triton, who in the book is Ursula's brother and therefore makes Ursula Ariel's aunt, in exchange for helping them find their sister, Circe. Unknown to the Odd Sisters, Ursula has turned Circe into one of her polyps and is keeping her captive in her cavern. Initially the Odd Sisters help her, but upon discovering that Ursula is keeping Circe captive, they turn on her and use their magic to influence Eric's ship to impale Ursula and kill her as revenge for keeping Circe captive. Circe is freed after this and discovers Ursula's golden shell. After finding out that her sisters killed Ursula, she banishes them to sleep to keep them from harming anyone else. In the fourth book ''Mistress of All Evil: A Tale of the Dark Fairy'', Circe and Nanny gather Ursula's remains and give her a burial at sea prior to Maleficent's arrival.''Part Of Your World: A Twisted Tale''
The fifth book in the A Twisted Tale series and written by author Liz Braswell, it addresses the question ''What if Ariel had never defeated Ursula?'' In the book Ursula, in her guise as Vanessa, ultimately wed Prince Eric and still possesses Ariel's voice five years later, and uses Eric's connections to go to war with neighboring kingdoms and expand the territory of Eric's kingdom. She maintains a beautiful appearance and a rich lifestyle. She is ultimately overthrown, by Ariel and Eric. In this book Braswell describes Ursula's species as “cecaelia,” a term created by fans in the late 2000s. This was the first Disney-published work to use the name.''Part of Your Nightmare''
Ursula is the primary antagonist in the first book of the Disney Chills series, written by author Jennifer Brody under the name of Vera Strange. In the book, Ursula agrees to make protagonist Shelley more popular at her school. However, Shelley soon discovers that this deal comes with a price, one she may not be willing to pay.Reception
Critical response
Ursula has earned a positive reception from entertainment critics. When ''The Little Mermaid'' was first released in 1989, film critics and audiences alike immediately embraced Ursula as one of Disney's best villains, as well as one of 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 (1937 film), Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs''Accolades and legacy
Revered as a fan favorite, Ursula has established herself as one of Disney's most iconic characters; she is widely regarded as one of the studio's "classic" villains. Author Corey Sandler described Ursula as a popular "anti-favorite" in his book ''Econoguide Disneyland Resort, Universal Studios Hollywood: And Other Major Southern California Attractions Including Disney's California Adventure''. The character's impact as a villainness has ultimately eclipsed those of her predecessors. According to Laura Rosenfeld of Tech Times, Ursula has had the most profound influence out of all animated characters in the Disney canon. The character is considered to be one of the greatest Disney villains of all-time, and continues to be ranked highly on Countdown, countdown lists compiled by various publications. Ursula topped E!'s Disney villains ranking; author John Boone concluded that "There will never be a Disney villain more wickedly wonderful than" Ursula. Yahoo! Movies ranked Ursula third, praising her "for being the first female Disney baddie to get her own song." On ''The Huffington Post''See also
* Sissy villainNotes
References
{{The Little Mermaid Disney animated villains Female characters in animated films Female film villains Fictional human hybrids Fictional kidnappers Fictional shapeshifters Fictional witches Film characters introduced in 1989 The Little Mermaid (franchise) characters