The Evil Queen, also referred to as Queen Grimhilde in some early Disney materials, debuted as the primary antagonist in Walt Disney Productions' pioneering animated feature film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, released in 1937. This marked the character's first appearance and established her as the inaugural villain in Disney's animated canon, as well as the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history. Voiced by Lucille La Verne, who performed both the Queen's regal tones and the rasping cackle of her disguised form, the character was conceived as a stately, beautiful figure whose elegance masked profound malevolence, drawing from the Brothers Grimm fairy tale while adapting it for a broader audience.
Obsessed with maintaining her status as the "fairest one of all," the Evil Queen regularly consults her Magic Mirror, only to become consumed by jealousy when informed that her stepdaughter, Snow White, has surpassed her in beauty. She initially commands a huntsman to kill Snow White and deliver her heart in a box, but upon discovering the deception, the Queen brews a potion to transform herself into a hideous old hag. In this disguise, she crafts a poisoned apple designed to induce a "Sleeping Death," successfully tempting Snow White to take a bite, which represents a pivotal escalation in her villainy as she sacrifices her own beauty to ensure her rival's demise.
The Queen's arc culminates in her dramatic downfall when, still in hag form, she attempts to dislodge a boulder upon the pursuing Seven Dwarfs, only to plummet from a cliff during a storm, struck by lightning. As Disney's archetypal villain, she set the template for future antagonists through her blend of vanity, cruelty, and resourcefulness. Her influence persists in Disney attractions, merchandise, and extended media, including appearances in the Descendants franchise as the mother of Evie and various theme park spectacles, solidifying her enduring status as an iconic embodiment of envy and wickedness.