Movie and TV moms often have all the answers and are able to expertly handle every situation. Even when they’re crumbling under the pressure, they still manage to crack jokes and deliver award-worthy performances. However, they’re not all perfect. Hollywood has given us plenty of absolutely terrible mothers. These are the women you wouldn’t trust your goldfish with, let along a child.
Suggested Reading
From Mo’Nique in “Precious,” to Chip Fields in “Good Times,” to Lynn Whitfield in “Madea’s Family Reunion,” there are no shortage of awful moms for us to analyze. So as you’re settling in for a Mother’s Day brunch and you think you mom, auntie, grandmother, or mother-in-law is too nosy, bossy or judgmental, remember, it could be worse. You could have one of the worst moms in TV and movies to run your life.
Mother Jefferson - The Jeffersons
Mother Jefferson is the definition of an awful mother-in-law. She babies George and thinks he can do no wrong, acting like an innocent, sweet old lady when he’s around. But when it’s just her and Louise, she becomes a complete savage. As terrible as she is, her insults are an artform.
Zelma Bullock - What’s Love Got to Do With It
In one of her many roles as Black Hollywood’s mother, Jenifer Lewis plays Tina Turner’s mom in the classic film starring Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne. First she leaves Tina when she’s just a child, and later she seems more concerned with how much money she can make from Tina’s rising career than her daughter’s well being.
Cruella de Vil - Descendants
“Descendants” follows the teenage children of famous Disney villains as they leave home and go to school with the kids of their parents’ rival heroes. Wendy Raquel Robinson is fabulously over the top as Cruella de Vil, spending most of her scenes talking to a stuffed dog.
Lynnetta Gordon - Good Times
Lynnetta a.k.a. Penny’s biological mother on Good Times, wasn’t just abusive, she was selfish and manipulative. After Penny established a nice life with Willona, she tried to come back and get custody, not for Penny’s well being, but just because she wanted it. Thank God Penny had Willona and the Evans.
Lettie Mae - True Blood
Lettie Mae was the worst kind of hypocrite. Nothing Tara ever did was good enough, or righteous enough for her. Of course, she was busy sinning all over Bon Temps, but she never let that stop her from endlessly condemning her daughter to hell.
Maya Lewis - Scandal
Olivia Pope thought her mother died in a plane crash, but she actually was a terrorist who caused the crash. She returned to ruin Olivia’s life by going after Fitz, who was the love of her daughter’s life.
Scarlet Witch - Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Let’s be very clear, Scarlet Witch is the bad guy, not Wanda. She thought she was trying to save her children, but she was really just ruining the life of another universe’s Wanda. In the end, Wanda was able to overpower Scarlet Witch and be a hero one last time.
Briana Barksdale - The Wire
D’Angelo wanted out of the life. He was ready to move on. But, his mother manipulated him into staying, setting him on a path that would ultimately lead to his death.
Michonne - The Walking Dead
Danai Gurira’s Michonne is a hero in all aspects of her life, except as a mother. I know this is controversial, but abandoning her children during the zombie apocalypse on the off chance that Rick is alive is irresponsible. Maybe the family will be reunited in the new spinoff series starring Gurira and Andrew Lincoln?
Lady Mae - Greenleaf
Mae never met an insult she didn’t like, proving that nobody knows how to cut you down like a church lady.
Olivia King - Double Platinum
Olivia King knew she was destined to be a star. Unfortunately, being a mother wasn’t also part of that destiny and she left her family behind. Though she and her daughter were able to eventually reconcile, she can never make up for all the time she missed.
Victoria Breaux - Madea’s Family Reunion
Victoria was more concerned with appearances than her daughters’ trauma. Even when they directly confronted her with it, she still didn’t want to admit what was happening.
Alma - Encanto
Her children and grandchildren having superpowers isn’t good enough for Alma, and she lets them know it constantly. She’s so awful to poor Bruno, he spends his life living behind a secret wall in the house. And Mirabel is a nobody without powers. She doesn’t deserve all the forgiveness she gets.
Cersei Lannister - Game of Thrones
Cersei is obviously a narcissistic psychopath, but she did love her children. The problem is she loved them too much. When Tommen starts listening to his wife, Margaery, and the High Sparrow instead of her, she arranges to BLOW UP EVERYONE! Seems like a bit of an overreaction.
Mary - Precious
Do you know how bad of a mother you are to be the worst on a list with Cersei Lannister and an actual evil witch? Mary blamed Precious for everything that was wrong with her life, never even pretending to care about the harm she was doing to her child. That being said, Mo’Nique earned every last bit of that Oscar.
In memory of one of our best writers at the Root, Stephanie. We miss you.
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