ABC summer TCA panel. August 4, 2013.
- Showrunners Eddie Kitsis, Adam Horowitz and Zach Estrin told the TCA that after the Knave of Hearts (Michael Socha) and White Rabbit (voiced by John Lithgow) break Alice (Sophie Lowe) out of the aslym her father committed her to, the premiere will “go into Wonderland, meet Jafar (Naveen Andrews) and see more Red Queen (Emma Rigby)”, adding to the 20-minute presentation filmed in April to make up the full pilot.
- The first 13 episodes will be one “focused” story arc and if picked up for a full season then more episodes will air next spring after a time-slot reality-series bridge is done.
- Showrunners described Once Upon a Time in Wonderland as a “psychedelic romance. It’s trippy, it’s weird, but it also has some real characters.” And their lead Alice will be kickass and never “a damsel in distress”
- While there are parallels to the Lewis Caroll classic with a White Rabbit, hookah-smoking Caterpillar (voiced by Roger Daltry) and Cheshire Cat, this is a typical Once Upon a Time mashup of classic fictional worlds with Alice in love with an Aladdin-like genie (Peter Gadiot).
- Once Upon a Time in Wonderland takes place concurrently with mother show Once Upon a time since these shows are” lands of story” or fictional worlds removed from time.
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Once Upon a Time in Wonderland hopes to have Barbara Hershey in flashbacks and Sebastian Stan as the Mad Hatter whenever his schedule allows which is unlikely this season on either show. “We’re never going to have a Mad Hatter that isn’t played by Sebastian,” Kitsis said.
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland debuts Thursday, October 23rd, on ABC.