Rose McIver, a relatively unknown actress to U.S. audiences, is set to play Tinkerbell on Once Upon a Time.
Even though Rose McIver isn’t widely known in the U.S., she has been a regular in several series in her native New Zealand. Aside from a few guest starring roles in the U.S on shows like C.S.I., she is probably best know for her role in The Lovely Bones where she played Lindsay Salmon, the sister of the crime victim from the title.
McIver should be more than capable of handling the physical swashbuckling that the role is likely to entail. She was on a New Zealand-based version of The Power Rangers for a season. She’s also good at fantasy, after having done Legend of the Seeker for a season back in 2009. You can see her first scene from that series below.
During Comic-Con this year, showrunners Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis stated that Tinkerbell was going to be a darker character than what is ordinarily depicted in the Disney movies. Also, further picking up on the book mythology, they stated that believing in Tinkerbell, and the power of faith is going to be central to her story-line.
They mentioned that Tinkerbell would have a surprising connection to a member of the Comic-Con panel that included the characters of Rumpelstiltskin, Regina, Snow White, Prince Charming, Emma, Belle, and Neil. The panel also included Captain Hook, but Horowitz and Kitsis made an effort to reiterate that it was a “surprising connection”.
Additionally, Horowitz and Kitsis confirmed that other characters from the Peter Pan universe would be making appearances, or re-appearances. They cited the Darling family, but they didn’t mention specific names. Hopefully this means Wendy, her brothers, and parents. Who knows, it could even mean the dog, Nana.