One thinks of mothers as the epitome of love and warmth. But these movie moms prove how vicious this particular relationship can be. From the strikingly excellent ideas of the writers to the convincing performances of the actors, these characters need to be remembered this Mother’s Day. Here are 5 movie moms from hell.

1. Mother Gothel From Tangled

Mother Gothel may seem like a protective maternal figure, but she has ulterior motives of her own. Stealing away baby Rapunzel from her biological parents and keeping her locked in a remote tower in the woods, all to keep the healing powers of Rapunzel’s hair to herself, just proves how selfish and ruthless Mother Gothel is. Because of Gothel’s emotional manipulation and passive-aggressiveness, Rapunzel grows up sheltered, naïve, unknown to the vast world, and has a hard time standing up for herself. 

2. The Other Mother From Coraline

Neglected by her overworked and ambitious parents, Coraline craves the warm feeling of a real home. The Other Mother, posing as the dutiful and thoughtful mother, coaxes Coraline into a perfect world; a mirror image of her reality, sans the fact that everyone has buttons for eyes. Creepy and cunning, the Other Mother fulfills Coraline’s dreams of a perfect family but wants to trap Coraline in this seemingly infinite dream forever, by sewing buttons into her eyes, and eating her soul. Ouch.

3. Ellen-Taper-Leigh From Hereditary

While she isn’t in the majority of the movie since Hereditary opens with her funeral, it’s safe to say that Ellen-Taper-Leigh set up the horrific plot for her daughter and grandchildren to be sacrificed to a demon. Whatever turmoil the Graham family is put through throughout the film, is the doing of Ellen and her cult practices. One can say, she’s pretty up there in the ranking of “Bad Moms in Films”.

4. Ruth DeWitt From Titanic

Some might argue that Ruth DeWitt is smart, but putting her daughter’s life on the line, all for money, power, and status is appalling and the complete opposite of how a mother should act. Being a widow and penniless single mother, the snobbish and controlling Ruth doesn’t care for Rose’s opinion and even pushes her to marry a callous, arrogant but wealthy man, Cal, for her financial security. You can’t blame Rose for wanting to jump off the deck of the Titanic for nothing now, can you? Her life was miserable because of her mother.

5. Mrs. Wormwood From Matilda

Here comes another controlling mother, and it’s none other than the self-obsessed Zinnia Wormwood. Mrs. Wormwood is the definition of a “bad parent”. She refuses to acknowledge the genius that’s her daughter, doesn’t stand up for her, and thinks of Matilda as a burden. This leads to the poor child feeling understandably angry and helpless. She’s deathly obsessed with Bingo, watching soap operas, and maintaining her so-called “stunning” appearance.

Whether it’s an egotistical high or a power trip, these matriarchs have their priorities straight in the worst way. No wonder they’re the worst moms in cinematic history.