A Shift in Focus: The Evil Queen Takes Center Stage
Last week’s series premiere of Once Upon a Time had a heavy focus on Snow White and Prince Charming in the fairytale world, but tonight the show will be focusing on the Evil Queen. Lest you think that the Queen somehow managed to pull the curse off on her own, know that even evildoers have friends. True Blood’s Kristen Bauer will be guest starring in tonight’s episode as the witch Maleficent. When we visited the set of Once Upon a Time recently in Vancouver, Lana Parrilla (the Queen/Regina) explained that Maleficent is ‘almost like a big sister’ to the Queen. She has definitely schooled the Queen in tricks and spells. But tonight’s episode is not just about girlfriends getting together to work magic: ‘When [the Queen] does visit [Maleficent], it’s not necessarily coming from a friendly place. She needs something from her. That’s the purpose of the visit’.
Rumplestiltskin’s Advice and the Queen’s Motivations
Parrilla’s character will also be visiting Rumplestiltskin tonight, who gives her some valuable advice on how to gain enough power for the curse. Expect to learn a great deal more about the Queen’s motivations. Parrilla said ‘Episode 2 will tell you a lot about the curse and her need for this curse to be successful and how she goes about getting it.’ Could her need for the curse to be successful be related to Snow White? More than likely. There is a deep history between these women that will be explored as the series progresses.
Thus far, Parrilla has very much enjoyed playing the Queen, even when it comes to displaying the woman’s vulnerabilities. And believe us, she does have them. ‘We will see a vulnerable side to the Queen and how people relate to her on a human level. What I’ve been trying to show is not the hatred for Snow White, but where it derives from. It’s not so surfaced. That brings a vulnerability to the character. You’ll see into her history and that exposes her in a very vulnerable way as well.’
Storybrooke’s Complicated Relationships
Back in Storybrooke, Regina also takes center stage, especially as Emma tries to figure out how to deal with her son’s adopted mother. Jennifer Morrison (Emma) shared her thoughts on how Emma views the situation: ‘[Emma and Regina have] a complicated relationship. Emma’s used to dealing with people who are in a tremendous amount of conflict with her and want to hurt her in some way, so she writes [this situation] off as something that’s not nearly as dangerous as it possibly could be. She’s been abused, kicked around in juvie and she says ‘�what are you gonna do to me?’ to [Regina]. I think that she doesn’t quite comprehend the stakes that are involved with this woman and also doesn’t understand why she’s constantly being put in conflict with her. She’s kind of constantly roped into conflict with this woman and it’s frustrating for Emma’.
For Emma, her desire to remain in Storybrooke at this point is just to make sure that Henry is alright. As she connects more with her son, even if she has no desire to take him away, her conflict with Regina intensifies.
Regina’s Struggles with Motherhood and Love
The entire situation is frustrating for all involved. Parrilla thinks that Henry relates far better to Emma than to his adoptive mother and that really frustrates Regina. But Parrilla believes that Regina has a heart, even if it is a cold one, and that ‘She may have a cold heart, but I think she really, genuinely loves her son. She doesn’t think of him as an adopted son, she thinks of him as her son.’ Of course, that doesn’t mean Parrilla’s characters will start being all warm and cuddly. Despite whatever vulnerabilities and layers they have, they are still the villains of this story.
Don’t miss an all new episode of One Upon a Time tonight at 8/7c on ABC. You can watch an exclusive extended sneak peek here and also view four other sneak peeks below.
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