Tangled is a 2010 American animated musical adventure fantasy comedy film inspired by the German fairy tale Rapunzel and produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. Directed by Nathan Greno and Byron Howard, and written by Dan Fogelman, the film features Mandy Moore, Zachary Levi, and Donna Murphy. It follows the story of Rapunzel, a young princess with magical long blonde hair who wants to leave her hidden tower. She teams up with Flynn Rider, an outlaw, to explore the world beyond her tower.
The idea for Tangled was first created by Disney animator Glen Keane in 2001. It took six years to make and cost about $260 million, which would make it one of the most expensive films ever made. The film combined computer-generated imagery (CGI) with traditional animation and used a special technique to look like a painting. Composer Alan Menken, who worked on earlier Disney films, returned to create the music and songs for the film. The title was changed from Rapunzel to Tangled before its release to appeal to all audiences.
Tangled had its first showing at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on November 14, 2010, and was released on November 24 by Walt Disney Pictures. It earned $592 million and became the eighth-highest-grossing film of 2010. Critics praised the animation, and the film was nominated for awards, including Best Original Song at the 83rd Academy Awards. It was the final film role of Richard Kiel before his death in 2014.
Tangled led to a series of related projects, including a short film titled Tangled Ever After (2012), a video game, a stage musical, and a television series that began in 2017. A live-action version of the film is currently being developed.
Plot
A drop of sunlight falls from the sky and creates a magical flower that can heal people. For many years, a woman named Gothel uses the flower to stay young. One day, soldiers from the kingdom of Corona take the flower to help their sick queen, who is also pregnant. The queen gives birth to a girl named Rapunzel, whose golden hair holds the flower's magic. At night, Gothel secretly enters the castle and cuts a piece of Rapunzel’s hair, but it turns brown and loses its magic. Gothel then takes Rapunzel and raises her in a hidden tower in the forest, keeping Rapunzel’s magic for herself. Every year on Rapunzel’s birthday, the king and queen release sky lanterns, hoping they will lead Rapunzel back to them. Rapunzel grows up unaware of her royal identity and believes the tower is her only safe home.
As Rapunzel grows, she becomes curious about the lights released each year. On her 18th birthday, she asks to leave the tower to see them, but Gothel refuses, saying the outside world is too dangerous. Meanwhile, a thief named Flynn Rider steals the crown of the lost princess from the palace. He betrays his criminal partners, the Stabbington brothers, and is chased by a royal guard named Maximus. Flynn hides in Rapunzel’s tower, where she knocks him out and hides him. When Gothel scolds Rapunzel for talking about the lanterns again and refuses to let her leave, Rapunzel makes a plan. She asks Gothel for paint as a gift, sending her on a three-day journey. After hiding Flynn’s satchel, which contains the crown, Rapunzel agrees to help Flynn find the lanterns in exchange for him taking her to see them.
For the first time since she was a baby, Rapunzel goes outside. She feels both excited and guilty. Flynn takes her to a pub called the Snuggly Duckling, where criminals try to capture him. Rapunzel uses her kindness to make the criminals help her and Flynn escape. Later, Flynn and Rapunzel get trapped in a cave filling with water. Flynn reveals his real name, Eugene Fitzherbert. Rapunzel uses the magic glow of her hair to find a hidden underwater exit, and they escape. Meanwhile, Gothel returns to the tower and finds the satchel with the crown and a wanted poster for Eugene. She then meets the Stabbington brothers and makes a deal to find Rapunzel. That night, Gothel confronts Rapunzel alone and gives her the satchel, telling her to give it to Eugene to test his loyalty.
The next day, Maximus tracks Eugene and tries to arrest him. Rapunzel convinces them to make a peace agreement. Rapunzel and Eugene enter the kingdom and attend a festival celebrating the "lost princess." After the festival, they sail on a lake to watch the lanterns being released. Rapunzel gives Eugene the crown, and they admit they love each other. When Eugene sees the Stabbington brothers on the shore, he tries to apologize and offer them the crown. The brothers trick Rapunzel into thinking Eugene abandoned her and try to capture her. Gothel rescues Rapunzel by knocking out the brothers and takes her back to the tower.
Eugene is arrested, but Maximus and the pub criminals help him escape. Rapunzel realizes she has unknowingly drawn the kingdom’s symbol, a golden sun, in her artwork. She finally understands she is the "lost princess" and confronts Gothel, rejecting her. Without the ability to fake love, Gothel reveals her true nature. Eugene arrives at the tower but is tricked and hurt by Gothel with a dagger. Gothel tries to take Rapunzel away, but Rapunzel promises to keep trying to escape unless Gothel helps save Eugene. Gothel agrees, but Eugene, knowing Rapunzel would be trapped forever, cuts off her long hair before she can heal him. Rapunzel’s hair turns brown, and Gothel suddenly ages rapidly before falling from the tower and turning to dust. Eugene dies in Rapunzel’s arms, but one of her tears, still holding some of the flower’s magic, brings him back to life.
Rapunzel and Eugene return to Corona, where Rapunzel is reunited with her birth parents, and Eugene is forgiven for his crimes. The kingdom celebrates, and Rapunzel and Eugene eventually marry.
Voice cast
- Mandy Moore as Rapunzel and Delaney Rose Stein as young Rapunzel
- Zachary Levi as Eugene "Flynn Rider" Fitzherbert
- Donna Murphy as Mother Gothel
- Brad Garrett as Hook Hand Thug
- Ron Perlman as Stabbington Brother
- Jeffrey Tambor as Big Nose Thug
- Richard Kiel as Vlad
- M. C. Gainey as Captain of the Guard
- Paul F. Tompkins as Short Thug
Non-speaking animal characters include Rapunzel's pet chameleon Pascal and Maximus, the horse of the leader of the palace guard. Other non-speaking roles include Rapunzel's parents (the Queen and King of Corona), the other Stabbington brother, and Ulf the Mime Thug.
Production
Walt Disney first tried to make a movie based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale Rapunzel in the 1930s and 1940s. However, the story was considered too simple, and Disney’s plan did not happen. The idea for Tangled came from Glen Keane, a lead animator at The Walt Disney Company, in 1996. In 2001, Keane shared the idea with then-Disney CEO Michael Eisner, who approved it but wanted the film to use computer animation. Keane was unsure because he believed traditional animation was smoother and more natural.
In October 2003, the film was named Rapunzel Unbraided and planned for a 2007 release. Keane described it as similar to the movie Shrek. Ed Catmull, a Disney executive, said Eisner had suggested setting the story in modern-day San Francisco. At first, the story focused on two teenagers, Claire and Vince, who lived in San Francisco and were transported into the fairy tale world. In that world, they took the forms of Rapunzel and her prince, Beau, who were turned into a squirrel and a dog.
In July 2004, Reese Witherspoon and Kristin Chenoweth were considered for roles, with Chenoweth set to voice Rapunzel. In October 2005, Dan Fogler was chosen to provide a voice.
Keane later said the original story was fun but not sincere enough. He believed the film should return to the roots of the fairy tale. In November 2005, the release date was pushed to 2009 to give Keane more time to improve the story. In January 2006, the project was paused just before Catmull and John Lasseter took leadership roles at the studio. They decided to restart the film and asked Keane to continue.
In April 2007, Dean Wellins, an animator and story artist, was chosen to co-direct the film with Keane.
In October 2008, Keane and Wellins stepped down as directors due to other work. They were replaced by Byron Howard and Nathan Greno, who had worked on Disney’s Bolt (2008). Keane remained as an executive producer and animation supervisor, while Wellins later directed Tick Tock Tale (2010). Keane later said he left the director role in 2008 after having a heart attack.
The directors auditioned many young actresses for Rapunzel’s voice, including Idina Menzel and Kristen Bell, but they were not chosen. In September 2009, Mandy Moore was cast as Rapunzel, and Zachary Levi was chosen as Flynn Rider. For Flynn’s role, the studio only allowed British actors to audition, but Levi, an American, used his natural accent after impressing producers with his voice. Moore learned about the project through an audition and said the role fulfilled her childhood dream of being a Disney princess. She described herself as a fan of classic Disney films like The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast.
Because Tangled was a musical, all auditionees had to read scenes and sing songs. Moore chose “Help Me” by Joni Mitchell, a song she had covered on her album Coverage (2003). She said the audition process was fun but competitive. When she received the role, she was very excited.
The film cost more than $260 million to make.
Mandy Moore described Rapunzel as a strong, independent woman who does not know she is a princess until the end of the story. She said Rapunzel is curious and wants to explore the world beyond her tower. Moore added that she had little influence on the character’s development.
Nathan Greno said one of the hardest challenges was figuring out how to get Rapunzel out of her tower without ending the story. Animator John Ripa suggested the idea of mysterious floating lanterns, which became a key part of the plot.
In Tangled, voice actors recorded their lines separately to avoid overlapping sounds. Moore said she only met Zachary Levi once during recording and did not meet Donna Murphy, who voiced Mother Gothel. She found it fun to use her imagination during recording. For action scenes, actors jogged slightly to make their voices sound realistic. For songs, Moore and Levi recorded with a 65-piece orchestra under composer Alan Menken’s direction. They sang live with the orchestra to get a feel for the music before recording the final tracks.
To help animators, filmmakers interviewed voice actors and filmed their facial expressions during recording. Disney films usually match animation to recorded dialogue, not the other way around. Moore found recording difficult because she only had sketches, not completed animations.
Because of scheduling conflicts, Moore and Levi did not record their lines in the same order as the final film. Levi said they sometimes recorded the same scene multiple times. After seeing the finished film, Moore felt her voice sounded too high-pitched, and Levi thought his voice sounded too nasal.
The film was released in 2010.
Music
The musical score and soundtrack album were created by Alan Menken, with lyrics written by Glenn Slater. This work marked Menken's return to composing music for animated films after he had previously done so repeatedly for several Disney Animation films until Home on the Range (2004). Due to changes in leadership at Disney and differences in creative styles, Menken considered this project his biggest challenge. He explained that his main goal was to combine musical-theater storytelling with the storytelling style used by Pixar. Menken worked to blend medieval music with 1960s folk rock to create the songs and score. The music and soundtrack were recorded over a period of two-and-a-half years.
Several songs were written but later removed from the final film. For example, the song "When Will My Life Begin?" replaced an earlier version called "What More Could I Ever Need?" Menken mentioned that the opening song went through five or six different versions before being finalized. Originally, there was a love song titled "You Are My Forever," sung by Mother Gothel to Rapunzel in a motherly way, and later by Flynn Rider in a romantic way. This idea was changed, and the two songs "Mother Knows Best" and "I See the Light" were used instead. The song "Something That I Want," written and performed by Grace Potter from Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, appears in the closing credits. A Latin American Spanish version of the song, titled "Algo quiero querer," was recorded by Colombian pop-singer Fanny Lú.
The soundtrack was released by Walt Disney Records on November 16, 2010. It reached number 44 on the Billboard 200 chart, number 7 on the Soundtrack chart, and number 3 on the Kid Albums chart. Four years later, on March 21, 2014, a double LP picture disc titled Songs from Tangled was released.
Release
Tangled first showed in Paris on November 17. It was only played at the Grand Rex theater two weeks before its full release in France. On its opening day, more than 3,800 tickets were sold, which set a new record for the most tickets sold in one theater for a movie. As part of Disney's 100th anniversary, Tangled was shown again in Helios theaters across Poland on October 21, 2023.
Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment released Tangled as a four-disc combo pack on March 29, 2011. The combo pack includes a Blu-ray 3D, standard Blu-ray, DVD, and digital copy. Other options available are a two-disc Blu-ray/DVD combo pack and a single DVD. The Blu-ray includes bonus features such as deleted scenes, two alternate opening sequences, two extended songs, and a behind-the-scenes look at how the film was made. The DVD includes only the two Original Storybook Openings and the 50th Animated Feature Countdown.
In the United States and Canada, Tangled sold more than $95 million in DVD and Blu-ray sales, making it the highest-grossing DVD of 2011. Its home video sales were higher than the film's earnings during its first week in theaters. The film sold a record 2,970,052 units (worth $44,521,079) in its first week in North America, the largest opening for a 2011 DVD. It was the top-selling DVD for two weeks and sold 6,657,331 units ($102,154,692) by July 18, 2012. By May 29, 2011, it had sold 2,518,522 Blu-ray units ($59,220,275). As of January 20, 2016, the film earned $215 million in home video sales in the United States and Canada ($155 million from DVD sales and $60 million from Blu-ray sales). Tangled was released on Ultra HD Blu-ray on November 5, 2019.
Reception
Tangled had a worldwide opening weekend of $86.1 million and reached the top of the worldwide box office chart once, on its eleventh weekend (Feb 4–6, 2011), with $24.9 million. The film earned $200.8 million in North America and $391.6 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $592.5 million. This made it the third-highest-grossing animated film of 2010, behind Shrek Forever After and Toy Story 3, and the eighth-highest-grossing film of 2010. It was the third Disney film in the Top 10 films of 2010. As of 2017, it was the sixth-highest-grossing film worldwide produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, behind Frozen, Zootopia, The Lion King, Big Hero 6, and Moana.
Tangled earned $11.9 million on its opening Wednesday, breaking the record for the highest opening on a Wednesday before Thanksgiving, a record previously held by Disney·Pixar's Toy Story 2. In its first weekend of release, it earned $48.8 million, the highest opening for Walt Disney Animation Studios, surpassing The Lion King ($40.9 million). Later, this record was surpassed by Wreck-It Ralph ($49 million) and Frozen ($67.4 million). Tangled placed second for the period behind Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1, which earned $49.1 million. It had the sixth-highest opening weekend for a film that did not debut at #1. Over the traditional Wednesday–Sunday Thanksgiving holiday period, it earned $68.7 million, finishing in second place. Tangled also marked the second-largest 3-day and 5-day Thanksgiving opening after Toy Story 2. During its second weekend (post-Thanksgiving), Tangled declined 56% to $21.6 million, although it jumped to first place at the box office. With a final gross of $200.8 million, it is the tenth-highest-grossing film of 2010 and the tenth 2010 film to pass the $200 million mark. It was the fourth-slowest film to reach this mark. Unadjusted for inflation, it is the ninth-highest-grossing film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, behind The Lion King ($422.8 million), Frozen ($400.7 million), Zootopia ($341.3 million), Moana ($248.7 million), Big Hero 6 ($221.3 million), Beauty and the Beast ($219 million), Aladdin ($217.4 million), and Ralph Breaks the Internet ($201.1 million).
On its opening weekend, it earned $17.4 million in eight territories and ranked second for the weekend behind Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 ($117.3 million). It reached first place at the weekend box office outside North America three times in 2011. It marked the seventh-highest-grossing 2010 film and the third-highest-grossing 2010 animated film. In Russia and the CIS, it set an opening-weekend record among non-sequel animated films (first surpassed by Rio) and among Walt Disney Animation Studios films (surpassed by Frozen). Its highest-grossing markets outside North America were Germany ($44.2 million), where it is the highest-grossing 2010 animated film, followed by France and the Maghreb region ($39.4 million) and the UK, Ireland, and Malta ($32.9 million).
Tangled received largely positive reviews from critics upon release. Rotten Tomatoes reported an 89% approval rating based on 227 reviews and an average score of 7.5/10. The website's critical consensus stated: "While far from Disney's greatest film, Tangled is a visually stunning, thoroughly entertaining addition to the studio's classic animated canon." Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score based on reviews from mainstream film critics, calculated a score of 71/100 based on 34 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews." Audiences polled by CinemaScore during the opening weekend gave the film a rare "A+" grade on an A+ to F scale.
A. O. Scott of The New York Times positively reviewed the film as "the 50th animated feature from Disney, and its look and spirit convey a modified, updated but nonetheless sincere and unmistakable quality of old-fashioned Disneyness." Time film critic Richard Corliss wrote that Tangled "wades into the DreamWorks style of sitcom gags and anachronistic sass," while praising the film for achieving "the complex mix of romance, comedy, adventure, and heart that defines the best Disney features." Corliss included Tangled at 19 in a list of top 25 All-time Best Animated films. Kenneth Turan from the Los Angeles Times awarded the film four stars out of five; he described the film as a "gorgeous computer-animated look that features rich landscapes and characters that look fuller and more lifelike than they have in the past." Sandie Angulo Chen of Common Sense Media gave the film five out of five stars, writing, "Fantastic princess adventure is fun, with great messages." Gael Cooper of NBC News expressed that Tangled may be the best Disney film of all time.
James Berardinelli commented on his review website ReelViews that the film is "entertaining and enjoyable, but not groundbreaking." He also stated Rapunzel is "not as memorable as Snow White, Ariel, or Belle" and noted "the songs are neither catchy nor memorable." Todd McCarthy, film reviewer for The Hollywood Reporter, opened his review with, "It would have been nice if Disney's self-touted 50th animated feature were one of its best, a film that could stand with the studio's classics, but the world will have to make do with Tangled, a passably entertaining hodgepodge of old and new animation techniques, mixed sensibilities, and hedged commercial calculations."
The film was nominated for several awards. Hollywood Foreign Press Association nominated Tangled for two Golden Globe Awards, for Best Animated Feature Film and Best Original Song for "I See the Light," but lost to Toy Story 3 and Burlesque, respectively. It also received an Oscar nomination for the Best Original Song, "I See the
Other media
A video game based on the film was released on November 23, 2010, for Nintendo DS, Wii, and PC platforms by Disney Interactive Studios.
A world inspired by the film, called Kingdom of Corona, appears in the game Kingdom Hearts III, which was released on January 29, 2019, for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The story in this game takes place in a different version of the events shown in the movie.
In the video game Disney Magic Kingdoms, Rapunzel, Flynn, Maximus, Mother Gothel, and Pascal are characters players can control. Rapunzel's Tower and Snuggly Duckling are also included as attractions in the game. The story of the characters in the game is nearly the same as the plot in the film.
Rapunzel, Flynn Rider, Maximus, and Mother Gothel are playable characters in Disney Heroes: Battle Mode. The Stabbington brothers also appear in a special ability related to Mother Gothel.
Mother Gothel is also a character in the game Disney Dreamlight Valley.
Tangled Ever After is a short sequel released in 2012. The story focuses on the wedding of Rapunzel and Eugene. Pascal and Maximus lose the wedding rings and chase them, causing damage along the way.
A manga version of the film, with artwork by Shiori Kanaki, was released in Japan on March 25, 2011, to help promote the film’s release there. It was later released in the United States on September 12, 2017.
In Descendants: School of Secrets, Rapunzel and Eugene have an unnamed daughter (played by Teresa Decher) who appears as a recurring character. In the novel The Isle of the Lost, Mother Gothel is one of the villains imprisoned on the titular island. She works as a teacher in Dragon Hall and has a daughter named Ginny. In Descendants: Wicked World, Rapunzel’s daughter, Ruby, appears, though only her hair is shown. In the novel Escape from the Isle of the Lost, Eugene is introduced as the representative of Corona in the National Association of Far Far Away. Originally, Rapunzel was going to appear in Descendants: The Rise of Red as a teenager named Zellie (played by Sam Morelos), but she was removed from the final version of the film. This change caused Zellie to be rewritten as a cameo character named Meadow.
A shortened stage version of the story, titled Tangled: The Musical, premiered on the Disney Magic cruise ship in November 2015. It included three new songs written by Alan Menken and Glenn Slater.
In February 2024, it was reported that Disney Theatrical Group was creating a new stage adaptation of the film, with a workshop already underway. In April 2026, the musical was announced to be moving forward, with Julia Mattison writing the story, Ashley Rodbro as the director, and an Equity Principal Audition being held.
Tangled: Before Ever After, a television movie set between the original film and the short Tangled Ever After, aired on March 10, 2017. It introduced a continuing series later renamed Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure, which began airing on Disney Channel on March 24, 2017. The series ran for three seasons and 60 episodes until March 2020.
In December 2014, Tangled’s producer, Roy Conli, said the production team had been strongly encouraged to create a sequel to the film. However, when the writers and directors discussed making one, they realized, “she cut her hair. It’s over!” Conli explained that at Disney Animation, filmmakers decide whether to make a sequel, not marketing or merchandising teams. In January 2015, Conli repeated this explanation and added that directors Greno and Howard were not interested in continuing the story.
Upcoming live-action remake
In May 2020, Hannah Shaw-Williams from Screen Rant asked if a sequel to the movie Tangled (other than the short film Tangled Ever After) would be made. She said there was no news about a sequel being developed, but Disney was working on a live-action movie about Rapunzel. She also said it might take several years for the movie to be shown in theaters. In December 2024, it was confirmed that the live-action film was in development. Later, Michael Gracey was considered to direct the film, and Jennifer Kaytin Robinson was writing the script. In April 2025, development on the film was paused because the movie Snow White (2025) did not do well in theaters. In October 2025, the film’s development started again after the movie Lilo & Stitch (2025) was successful. Scarlett Johansson was considered to play Mother Gothel. In December 2025, The Hollywood Reporter said that Sarah Catherine Hook, Teagan Croft, Freya Skye, and Olivia-Mai Barrett tried out for the role of Rapunzel. Milo Manheim, Charlie Gillespie, and Gillie Jones tried out for the role of Flynn Rider. It also said Johansson turned down the part of Mother Gothel because of scheduling issues, and filming was planned to begin in June 2026 in England and Burgos, Castile and León, Spain. On January 7, 2026, Teagan Croft and Milo Manheim were officially cast as Rapunzel and Flynn Rider. The next day, Kathryn Hahn joined talks to play Mother Gothel. On March 10, 2026, Hahn confirmed her role. Filming will take place in Spain for 8 months, starting in June 2026. The cities chosen for filming are Alicante, Valencia, Girona, and Burgos.