ABC is gearing up for the midseason return of Once Upon A Time, and what better way to celebrate the show than with a poster of some of the drama’s most egregious villains? After wrapping up the Frozen-oriented storyline this December, Once Upon A Time has villains on the brain, including a sneaky sea urchin, a villain with a penchant for rocking dramatic headwear, and a fur lover. That’s right, check out Ursula, Maleficent and the one and only Cruella De Vil, below.
I love the way the ladies are decked out in sequins and startling red lipstick. I also can’t wait for ABC to release a preview for the rest of the season, but for now the brand new poster at least gives us a little bit of a reason to get excited for the drama’s return.
While Maleficent has been on Once Upon A Time plenty of times in the past, the actresses playing Cruella De Vil and Ursula were only added to the cast of the fantasy this season. A couple of months ago, Dracula actress Victoria Smurfit was signed on to play Cruella De Vil. Soon after, the ABC drama also signed on Merrin Dungey to play Ursula, although it should be noted that Ursula was briefly voiced by Yvette Nicole Brown during a Season 3 episode featuring Ariel. All three characters appeared in the midseason winter finale, but will play more prominent roles once the show returns.
It’s difficult to believe that ABC’s hit Sunday night series Once Upon a Time won’t be returning to the schedule until March. Part of the problem is that last year ABC had the failed Once Upon A Time In Wonderland airing during the show’s hiatus, although in that show’s case, expectations certainly exceeded actual ratings. Regardless, Once Upon A Time In Wonderland provided something for fan’s to be excited for during the gap.
Clever promotional materials like this should do largely the same thing this year. After all, while it may be the Disney princesses that draw the most attention, it's probably the villains who people obsess over most. I still remember the first time I ever saw Cruella De Vil as a child. It was terrifying. The green smoke haunted my dreams. Very few characters have ever done that to me. Hopefully, these new versions will have close to the same impact.
Once Upon A Time airs on Sunday evenings at 8 PM ET. It returns on March 1st.
