Casting news for Once Upon a Time‘s Wonderland-themed spin-off is coming in left and right, and today we’ve learned who will be playing the Red Queen!
According to Deadline, Emma Rigby is the lucky lady who will be portraying the antagonist known both as the Red Queen and as Iracebeth. In the book by Lewis Carroll, the Red Queen, “has a short temper and is merciless against her enemies and those who have betrayed her.” The most recent actress to bring this character to life was Helena Bonham Carter in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland film that debuted in 2010.
Rigby is best known for the television series Hollyoaks, where she won the British Soap Opera award for Best Actress in 2008, and the films A Kingdom Without a King and Demons Never Die.
The Once Upon a Time spin-off show has recently undergone several name changes. Previously, it was being referred to as Once: Wonderland, although fans didn’t seem too keen on the name. A simple Wonderland title was not available, as NBC currently has its own Alice-themed pilot in the works.
However, the show is now being referred to as Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, which – while quite long – definitely sets it apart from NBC’s pilot and still makes it recognizable as a Once Upon a Time spin-off show. The story is set in Wonderland prior to Regina’s curse that transported many of the fairy tale characters from their world and into ours, landing them in Storybrooke, Maine, well before Emma showed up and began breaking the curse in season 1. Once Upon a Time in Wonderland will begin filming this weekend, on April 7, in Vancouver.
Recent additions to Once Upon a Time in Wonderland include Sophie Lowe as Alice and Peter Gadiot as Cyrus, Alice’s love interest. We’ve also previously learned that Michael Socha will play the Knave of Hearts.