'Maleficent: Mistress of Evil' trailer: The mother of all battles is brewing between Angelina Jolie and Michelle Pfeiffer

Before being promoted to the Halloween-adjacent release date of Oct. 18, the Disney sequel Maleficent: Mistress of Evil was originally slated to premiere in the merry merry month of May 2020. A just-released trailer reveals why that was an ideal month for the return of one of the Mouse House’s greatest villains. After all, May is home to Mother’s Day and Mistress of Evil is shaping up to be a battle between two major league mommas: Angelina Jolie and Michelle Pfeiffer. (Watch the trailer above.)

Jolie, of course, is reprising her role as horned fairy Maleficent from the eponymous 2014 blockbuster, while Pfeiffer makes her debut as Queen Ingrith. At the center of their turf way is young Aurora (Elle Fanning), five years removed from her stint as Sleeping Beauty. She’s set to marry Ingrith’s son, Prince Phillip (Harris Dickinson), and like all weddings, this one is accompanied by plenty of drama. Maleficent is against the idea from the start, warning Aurora that “Love doesn’t always end well.” That’s a lesson she knows all too well, having had to fight her own childhood sweetheart, Stefan (Sharlto Copley), in the last movie.

Elle Fanning is Aurora and Angelina Jolie is Maleficent in 'Maleficent: Mistress of Evil' (Photo: Disney)
Elle Fanning is Aurora and Angelina Jolie is Maleficent in 'Maleficent: Mistress of Evil' (Photo: Disney)

Ingrith, meanwhile, is eager to welcome a daughter into her family ... but doesn’t want the baggage of her other mother. “You have done an admirable job, going against your own nature to raise this child,” the Queen passive-aggressively tells Maleficent, touching on the third rail of her flashes of violence. “But now, she will finally get the love of a real mother.” To say that Maleficent reacts badly to that needling would be an understatement. “There will be no union!” she declares at the royal banquet table, letting loose a flurry of green flame for emphasis.

Michelle Pfeiffer is Queen Ingrith in 'Maleficent: Mistress of Evil' (Photo: Disney)
Michelle Pfeiffer is Queen Ingrith in 'Maleficent: Mistress of Evil' (Photo: Disney)

And thus, the battle lines are drawn Mama Maleficent and Mama Ingrith, and neither one is willing to cede any ground. In the immediate aftermath of Maleficent’s outburst, Aurora sides with her new mom, who promises to protect her from the “threat” of the furious fairy. And she’s initially successful in that promise, fending off her rival’s siege on her castle. But Maleficent soon discovers she’s not necessarily a one-woman army, rescued from near-death by a previously-hidden group of horned fairies led by Connal (Chiwetel Ejiofor). “You’ve spent years caring for a human,” he tells her. “Now it’s time to care for your own.”

Chiwetel Ejiofor is Connal in 'Maleficent: Mistress of Evil' (Photo: Disney)
Chiwetel Ejiofor is Connal in 'Maleficent: Mistress of Evil' (Photo: Disney)

The new Mistress of Evil trailer completes a trifecta of big Disney reveals that also included the announcement of Halle Bailey as the new Little Mermaid and our first look at the live-action Mulan. And like both of those pieces of news, Maleficent is taking over Twitter.

If Disney doesn’t immediately cast Cher in the third Maleficent, what is this franchise even for?

Maleficent: Mistress of Evil bows in theaters on Oct. 18.

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