Conception Adam Horowitz and
Edward Kitsis conceived
Once Upon a Time in 2004 before joining the writing staff of
Lost but wanted to wait until that series was over to focus on this project. Eight years before the pilot began development (the two had just completed their work on
Felicity, in 2002), Kitsis and Horowitz became inspired to write fairy tales out of a love of "mystery and excitement of exploring lots of different worlds." They presented the premise to numerous networks, but were refused due to its fantastical nature. They explained, As people, you've got to see what the void in their heart or their lives is to care about them ... For us, this was as much about the character journeys and seeing what was ripped from them in coming to Storybrooke – going at it that way as opposed to making it the 'break-the-curse show.' Despite the comparisons and similarities to
Lost, the writers intend them to be very different shows.
Lost co-creator
Damon Lindelof aided in the development of the series as an uncredited consultant. Kitsis and Horowitz called him a "godfather" to the series. To differentiate the storytelling from what the audience already knew, the writing staff decided to begin the pilot with the end of the typical Snow White fairytale. The pilot is meant to be the "template of the series". The characters from
Frozen and
Brave ultimately appeared as supporting characters in the fourth and fifth seasons, respectively. The general premise, importing the Snow White core characters into the "real world", was previously seen on ABC television in the short-lived 1980s comedy
The Charmings. The show also has a similar premise to
Bill Willingham's ten-year-old comic series
Fables, to which ABC bought the rights in 2008 but never made it past planning stages. After
Fables fans raised controversy over possible appropriation, the show writers initially denied a link, but later said they may have "read a couple of issues" of the comic book and while the two concepts are "in the same playground", they are "telling a different story."
Casting The secondary character casting director Samuel Forsyth started the casting process in 2010. Horowitz stated that everyone they initially wanted for roles in the series accepted their roles after being sent a script. who appreciated that she would be playing a strong character that was fleshed out for the audience. Goodwin had stated in interviews that she would love to play Snow White, and called her acceptance of the role "a no-brainer." Both Kitsis and Horowitz are self-described big fans of Goodwin's previous series,
Big Love, and wrote the part of Snow White with her in mind. The actress explained her character as someone who "help[s] her son Henry whom she abandoned when he was a baby and who seems like he's a little bit emotionally dysfunctional", but noted that Emma does not start out believing in the fairytale universe. The role of Rumplestiltskin / Mr. Gold was given to
Robert Carlyle, after having been written with him in mind, though the writers initially thought he would not accept the part. while
Eion Bailey was cast as Pinocchio / August Wayne Booth in a recurring role, starting with the ninth episode, "True North", where he was credited as "Stranger". He was promoted to series regular status for the fifteenth episode, "Red-Handed".
Raphael Sbarge portrayed Jiminy Cricket / Dr. Archie Hopper. and
Belle / Lacey respectively, while Bailey made guest appearances in two episodes and Sbarge joined the recurring cast.
Colin O'Donoghue was cast as
Captain Killian "Hook" Jones, initially in a recurring role, before being promoted to the main cast starting from the fourteenth episode. Additionally, Dornan made a guest appearance in the seventeenth episode. For the third season, Michael Raymond-James was promoted to series regular status as Neal Cassidy, while Ory did not return as a regular due to commitments to the
CBS series
Intelligence. Ory continued to make recurring appearances throughout the season. For the fourth season,
Michael Socha was brought onto the series as Will Scarlet / Knave of Hearts from the spin-off
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, while Raymond-James exited the regular cast after his character was killed off in the previous season. Bailey returned in a recurring arc towards the end of the season after being absent since the second season. For the fifth season,
Rebecca Mader and
Sean Maguire were promoted to series regular status as Zelena /
Wicked Witch of the West and
Robin Hood respectively, while Socha exited the main cast. Ory also returned in a recurring capacity after being absent since the third season. Additionally, Raymond-James made a guest appearance in the twelfth episode. For the sixth season, Maguire exited the main cast after his character was killed off in the previous season but remained in a recurring capacity as an alternate version of the character. Sbarge and Bailey also returned in recurring capacities, both having been absent since the fourth season. The seventh and final season marked a major cast overhaul for the series, with original cast members Goodwin, Morrison, Dallas and Gilmore as well as long-time cast members De Ravin and Mader all exiting as regulars. Gilmore and Mader joined the recurring cast for the season, while Goodwin, Morrison, Dallas and De Ravin all made guest appearances, particularly in the finale. Along with departures,
Andrew J. West and
Alison Fernandez joined the main cast for the season as an older Henry and his daughter Lucy, respectively, after guest starring in the previous season's finale.
Dania Ramirez and
Gabrielle Anwar joined the main cast as new iterations of
Cinderella and
Lady Tremaine, respectively; Anwar exited after the eleventh episode, where her character was killed off.
Mekia Cox, who portrays
Tiana, was promoted to the main cast after initially joining as recurring. Additionally, Sbarge and Maguire made guest appearances in the finale.
Filming doubles as the town of Storybrooke, Maine.
Principal photography for the series takes place in
Vancouver,
British Columbia. The village of
Steveston in the adjacent city of
Richmond doubles as Storybrooke for the series, with props and exterior sets disguising the existing businesses and buildings. During filming, all brightly colored objects (flowers, etc.) are hidden to reinforce the fictional town's spell-subdued character. Certain sets are additionally filmed in separate studios, including the interior of Mr. Gold's pawn shop and the clock tower, which are not found in Steveston. Downtown Vancouver doubles as other major cities such as
New York City,
Boston and
Seattle. ==Setting==