'Once Upon a Time' stars on Snow and Charming twist
Warning: This story contains major spoilers from Sunday’s episode of Once Upon a Time. Read at your own risk!
There’s some good news and bad news for the Charming family after Sunday’s episode of Once Upon a Time.
First, the good news: After weeks of being in a sleeping curse in which only one of them was awake at any given moment, Snow (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Charming (Josh Dallas) broke free of the curse thanks to the residents of Storybrooke all drinking a bit of the potion and diluting its magic.
The bad news: Their heartbreaking backstory is, well, even more heartbreaking than we already knew. During the first Dark Curse, Mary Margaret unwittingly delivered a flower with magical pixie dust that woke John Doe. That means Snow and Charming were actually together, but unable to reunite with their daughter, who was prophesied to return after 28 years to break the curse. Hence, they took a potion to once again wipe their memories and let fate take its course.
On the plus side, the Charmings have something to celebrate with the return of Hook (Colin O’Donoghue), who promptly and properly proposed to Emma (Jennifer Morrison) at the close of Sunday’s episode. Twist: Their wedding is the musical episode! (Get more details here.) Below, Goodwin and Dallas talk about the surprise twist in the Charmings’ past when EW hit the set ahead of the musical episode.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How did you react when you learned Snow and Charming did wake up during the curse?
JOSH DALLAS: It’s totally heartbreaking, and I think that goes back to that idea that they blame themselves, and he does a lot. He blames himself, “Maybe he could have done something different. Maybe she could have had a different life. Maybe she could have stayed in the Enchanted Forest. Maybe it would have been fine. She would have been that princess, and she would have had that life.” Yeah, I think that’s something he wrestles with a lot; it’s definitely something that impacts him deeply.
GINNIFER GOODWIN: It was hard for me to relate in real life because, especially now that I have children, I wholeheartedly, selfishly would have just taken care of myself and my immediate family, gross as that may be. So it was hard to find a more generous place in my spirit, but I found what Snow did to be of the utmost integrity and very Snow White-esque; very in keeping with her character.
Talk about Snow and David’s reunion after waking from the sleeping curse.
GOODWIN: It is like many Once Upon a Time reunions. It is dramatic and brief in elation in our realizing immediately that something else is going on.
Isn’t that how it always is in Storybrooke?
GOODWIN: It is how it always is.
DALLAS: Well it’s always good to see Snow White’s eyes, and to hold her, and she’s awake, and coherent. Yeah. It was nice to get out of it for sure.
How do Charming and Snow feel about their daughter getting married in the midst of the Black Fairy drama?
GOODWIN: What is the word for the bridezilla mom? Well, we’re going to invent one. She’s like Mother of the Bridezilla. No, she’s like Motherzilla of the Bride. She’s all things wedding all the time.
Does David agree with her?
GOODWIN: He’s going to have to if he wants peace at home.
Will this cause a divide between them?
GOODWIN: Yeah. It might cause some comedy.
DALLAS: Snow is pushing through, and she wants to have it, like, the public, the people, need this in order to keep hope alive. To see something good happening amongst all this badness; that is a great point, and there is something to it, but I feel David feels that, yeah, getting married to Snow was the best day of his life, but then what happened right after was the worst day of his life. It’s a very similar situation that’s happening here with the Final Battle, and then what’s going to happen? He doesn’t want that for her, and he wants her just to be able to get married, and be happy, and not have all this other stuff that’s going on like Snow and Charming had. He’s definitely reserved. He’s focused on getting all of that done and over with, so she can be free, and free to marry, and just live her life as opposed to going into this Final Battle.
What can you tease about the musical?
DALLAS: I’ve just been screeching away in my trailer trying to learn the stuff. The singing comes out of something. It’s not just arbitrary, like we’re just singing, so it’s part of something - could be a curse or could be a spell, it could be something that translates itself into song.
GOODWIN: I am singing, maybe much to everyone’s detriment I am singing. I asked them to put me in the background, and they did not, so we’ll just see what happens. I can’t karaoke. I’ve only pulled off singing when I’ve been animated, so this is going to be a very vulnerable experience for me.
Once Upon a Time airs Sundays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
