History Main / EvilMatriarch

** ''Series/HouseOfTheDragon'': Alicent Hightower is also a deconstruction. She does take ruling seriously as TheWomanWearingTheQueenlyMask, but she also ''both'' overprotected her son Aegon --a SerialRapist-- and neglected his education to the point he's expected by the Hightower side of his family to be king despite not wanting and not being fir for this one bit. And she also wanted to literally take an eye from her former BestFriend's son for slashing one from one of her own sons.

* ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'' has [[spoiler:Lucrezia Mongfish, aka the Other, who is both the heroine Agatha's mother and the comic's BigBad]]. It is heavely hinted that she sired her child just to be a vessel to use for DemonicPossession.

* The titular character in the 2020 RPG horror game ''[[VideoGame/MotherHorrorShopGames Mother]]''. [[spoiler:Once she realizes there’s not enough food for her and her four children, she kills off her children one by one and feeds the dead child to her remaining children. When the player character finds out what happened to their siblings, she attempts to justify her actions by saying it’s better to die by her hands than starve and freeze to death.]]

* The titular character in the RPG horror game ''VideoGame/Mother2020''. [[spoiler:Once she realizes there’s not enough food for her and her four children, she kills off her children one by one and feeds the dead child to her remaining children. When the player character finds out what happened to their siblings, she attempts to justify her actions by saying it’s better to die by her hands than starve and freeze to death.]]

* ''Film/AWedding1978'': Nettie Sloan employs a doctor who supplies one of her daughters with heroin, forces said daughter's husband to hide the fact that he used to be a waiter and never see his family, and forbids one of her other daughters and her African-American lover from spending time together in public.

* Leyla and Nina's mother in ''Film/WhenDarknessFalls''. It wasn't the family's father who set up murdering Nina to regain the family's honor, but her. Leyla later explains to a police officer why her mother did this:
-->'''Leyla''': If you gave birth to a whore you are a whore yourself. But if this whore doesn't exist, if she never existed...

* ''VideoGame/TheBindingOfIsaac'' has Isaac's mother, who one day has an epiphany from God (likely due to watching too much Christian broadcasting) and decides to sacrifice her son to the lord. It's implied that she's done this before with other children.

* In the DarkFic ''Webcomic/ThePowerpuffGirlsReimagined'', [[TheVamp Sedusa]] was Franchise/ThePowerpuffGirls' biological mother and CameBackWrong as a result of his experimentation with [[AppliedPhlebotinum Chemical X]], with her SplitPersonality turning into a SuperpoweredEvilSide that causes her to attempt OffingTheOffspring while [[BreakThemByTalking using their fears and insecurities against them]].

* In the DarkFic ''Webcomic/ThePowerpuffGirlsReimagined'', [[TheVamp Sedusa]] was Franchise/ThePowerpuffGirls' biological mother and CameBackWrong as a result of his experimentation with [[AppliedPhlebotinum]], with her SplitPersonality turning into a SuperpoweredEvilSide that causes her to attempt OffingTheOffspring while [[BreakThemByTalking using their fears and insecurities against them]].

* The mother of the Peacock family (Ma Barker meets Deliverance) in ''Series/TheXFiles'' episode "Home".

* Princess Celestia from ''Fanfic/HowILostMyMother'' who in this story is revealed to be the mother of [[VillainProtagonist Cozy Glow]]: whom Celestia had banished just days before Lunas' return along with erasing all knowledge pertaining to her daughter from the public in order to protect Equestria from a vision of Cozy destroying Equestria. Only afterwards did she realize that the Prophecy was of the [[SelfFulfillingProphecy Self-Fulfilling nature]], and that by doing this actually drove her daughter [[GoMadFromTheIsolation to the brink of insanity]]; coupled with Celestias' ''[[DiggindYourselfDeeper constant attempts]]'' to prevent her relationship with Cozy Glow from being discovered through her strict adherence to both BlueAndOrangeMorality and OutOfSightOutOfMind slowly building up to a point where [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen all of Equestria will eventually turn on her]] and [[AHouseDivided Luna eventually abandoning her]] for not being able to change since 1000 years.

* ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'' has [[spoiler:Lucrezia Mongfish, aka the Other, who is both the heroine Agatha's mother and the comic's BigBad]]. It is heavely hinted that she sired her child just to be a vessel for DemonicPossession.

* ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'' has [[spoiler:Lucrezia Mongfish, aka the Other, who is both the heroine Agatha's mother and the comic's BigBad]].

'''Comedic''': Usually used in the DomCom, this variety is usually the mother of one of the two parents on the show who comes to visit every so often, and someone on the cast dreads it. Usually (though not always) this variety of Evil Matriarch is a {{meddling parent|s}}, often to an [[KnightTemplarParent irrational extreme]]. Classically, this is [[ObnoxiousInLaws a Mother-in-Law situation]], but from time to time, [[ParentalIssues the kids themselves, or even the child of the mother is the one that dreads it]]. In some cases, everyone hates the Evil Matriarch, like in ''Series/MalcolmInTheMiddle'' where everyone dreads Lois's mother coming to visit. In other cases, her visit is appreciated by everyone but the daughter or son of the Evil Matriarch, like in ''Series/FamilyTies'', where the matriarch is evil because her daughter feels [[StepfordSmiler she can't live up to mom's perfection]]. Expect this variety of Evil Matriarch to have PowerHair and other FashionableEvil.

'''Dramatic''': This variety, which shows up in more dramatic media, is truly evil in a traditional sense, and is one of the worst villains one can face, especially if one of {{the Hero}}es or LoveInterests is one of her children (or if she's married into his or her family as a [[WickedStepmother stepmother]]). Many such Evil Matriarchs are completely convinced that they, and ''only'' they, know what's best for their children, and can be very [[MyBelovedSmother controlling]], {{manipulative|Bastard}}, and perfectly willing to do anything they deem necessary for their children's sake, no matter how evil or destructive it may be. The most vicious examples of this variety of Evil Matriarch ''despise'' their children (or at least the one they've singled out as TheUnfavorite) and are often [[AbusiveParents physically or emotionally abusive]] towards them, and many of them are not above OffingTheOffspring.

The SpearCounterpart of this character type is ArchnemesisDad, and it's actually quite rare for an Evil Matriarch to be paired up with one. In the off-chance that she's indeed the wife of an ArchnemesisDad, [[BigScrewedUpFamily their children are definitely screwed]] (and things will probably [[MurderInTheFamily get bloody]] by the story's end). The inversion is AntagonisticOffspring. See AbusiveParents and ParentalNeglect for the more mundane versions. See OffingTheOffspring and/or {{Matricide}} for what this might lead to if the kids fight back, or HatesTheirParent, for how the kid likely feels about them. AbusiveOffspring is the inverse, where the child is abusive to the mother.

If the mother's antics [[HanlonsRazor stem from incompetence rather than malice]], she's MaternallyChallenged. If a villainess [[SubvertedTrope tones down or outright abandons her wickedness]] upon becoming a mother, that's DeliverUsFromEvil.

If the mother's antics [[HanlonsRazor stem from incompetence rather than malice]], she's MaternallyChallenged. If a villainess [[AvertedTrope tones down or outright abandons her wickedness]] upon becoming a mother, that's DeliverUsFromEvil.

But if the character is really unlucky and isn't suffering from ParentalAbandonment, the character's mother will be an Evil Matriarch and chances are, she will make that character's life a living hell.

The SpearCounterpart of this character type is ArchnemesisDad, and it's actually quite rare for an Evil Matriarch to be paired up with one. In the off-chance that she's indeed the wife of an ArchnemesisDad, [[BigScrewedUpFamily their children are definitely screwed]] (and things will probably [[MurderInTheFamily get bloody]] by the story's end). The inversion is AntagonisticOffspring. See AbusiveParents and ParentalNeglect for the more mundane versions. See OffingTheOffspring and/or {{Matricide}} for what this might lead to if the kids fight back, or HatesTheirParent, for how the kid likely feels about them. AbusiveOffspring is the inverse: whether the child is abusive to the mother.

The SpearCounterpart of this character type is ArchnemesisDad, and it's actually quite rare for an Evil Matriarch to be paired up with one. In the off-chance that she's indeed the wife of an ArchnemesisDad, [[MurderInTheFamily their children are definitely screwed]]. The inversion is AntagonisticOffspring. See AbusiveParents and ParentalNeglect for the more mundane versions. See OffingTheOffspring and/or {{Matricide}} for what this might lead to if the kids fight back, or HatesTheirParent, for how the kid likely feels about them. AbusiveOffspring is the inverse: whether the child is abusive to the mother.

* In [[Anime/FullmetalAlchemist the 2003 anime version]] of ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'', Sloth is [[spoiler:the failed resurrection of the Elric brothers' mother, Trisha. As such, she attempts to kill her previous incarnation's children to assert her own individuality and convince herself that she is '''''not''''' Trisha -- all while Wrath, a child Homonculus who's the failed resurrection of Izumi Curtis' unborn son, sees ''her'' as a mother figure. She ''may'' have decided otherwise right before dying, if her last words are a signal]].

* Lady Imperia, the aunt of Prince Gerard, who in ''WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs'' episode "The Clockwork Smurf" attempts to be coronated as queen in her nephew's place.

* Eleanor Iselin in ''Film/TheManchurianCandidate''.

* Malory Archer, the mother of Sterling ''WesternAnimation/{{Archer}}'', who is the reason why [[HilariouslyAbusiveChildhood Archer]] is...[[{{Jerkass}} Archer]]. Malory has set up many awful and stupid acts (like killing the Prime Minister of Italy, or not paying her employees enough), and uses ISIS own money for her excesses. Worst of all, she's trying to pass down her worst traits to her infant granddaughter.

* Beatrice Horseman from ''WesternAnimation/BojackHorseman'', mother of the eponymous protagonist, blames her son's birth for ruining her life and leaving her stranded in a horrible loveless marriage, which led her to becoming a horrible abusive mother and heavily contributing towards Bojack becoming an extremely messed up individual with deep emotional scars. Season 4 goes into great detail explaining her backstory and humanizing her, but the show still makes it clear that regardless of what happened to her, the way she treated her son was not acceptable simply because she had a difficult life.

* Odalia Blight from ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'' is a powerful and amoral businesswoman who controls every aspect of her children's lives, including Amity's social life--she interferes with any friendship she deems detrimental to Amity, which is literally ''any'' genuine friendship Amity makes, leaving the poor girl stuck in a clique of bullies she can't stand being around until a horrible mistake with Willow's memories causes her to be dragged into Luz's circle of friends. [[spoiler:She's also emotionally abusive to her husband, overworking him in Blight Industries under threat of getting the kids involved and showing no regard for his opinions. It's eventually discovered that she knew Emperor Belos was a genocial witch hunter all along, but went along with [[FinalSolution the Day of Unity]] anyway because she thought the Blights would somehow be spared, and she's downright ''[[EvilCannotComprehendGood baffled]]'' when this revelation causes her family to sever all ties with her.]]

** ''Literature/{{Dogsbody}}'': [[FriendToAllLivingThings Kathleen]] lives with her uncle, his family, and her evil step aunt who works her like a dog, verbally abuses her, and threatens to kill her [[BalefulPolymorph dog]] on a regular basis.

* Kreia/[[ObviousJudas Darth Traya]] in ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublicIITheSithLords'' was an EvilMentor and surrogate mother to the PlayerCharacter, TheExile [[spoiler:and the actual mother of their companion the Handmaiden]]. [[spoiler:Kreia [[LikeASonToMe genuinely loved the Exile]] and spent the entirety of the game grooming them to be a ManipulativeBastard like her, while [[WhyAreYouNotMySon seeing her biological daughter as nothing but a pawn]] [[OffingTheOffspring to be used and potentially discarded]] for the sake of Exile's development.]]