If you ask anyone what my favorite show is, to this day, it's still Once Upon a Time. The premise of the series, especially those first three seasons, was so unique and wonderful. It was a world that allowed you to escape into the fairytale stories where many were changed in inventive ways that surprised us all.
The show went on for seven seasons, from 2011 to 2018 on ABC, though I'd say that for most fans no matter who your favorite character was or what relationship you shipped the hardest, OUAT season 7 was completely unnecessary and honestly erased from most of our minds. I at least ignore the fact that it was a thing.
It's been a few years now since the series finale aired, and that makes us fans nostalgic for the show. That does mean that the actors are already being asked about whether they'd like to see and be involved in a revival or reboot. Most recently, it was Jennifer Morrison, aka the wonderful savior Emma Swan, who shared her thoughts about bringing the series back.
In speaking with The New York Post, the actress shared that she would support a reboot of Once Upon a Time, but she believes it would need to be with a new set of cast and characters as the writers took the original members "as far as you could take it, in terms of kind of squeezing all the story out of that main cast." Here's what else she had to say:
“I think that they should reboot it, probably with new people. Eddy Kitsis and Adam Horowitz were showrunners and creators of that. They had such a brilliant concept of this idea of the crossover of all the fairy-tale characters and the curse and all these things. And I think that they are filled with endless stories that fill in that kind of vibe. I would be in full support of seeing a reboot with a whole new group of people or a new group of fairy-tale characters who are in their own mess, in their own situation, with their own savior."
Why a Once Upon a Time reboot wouldn't work
We appreciate Morrison's words and support of this. She even went as far as saying she would come back and direct, which she has done for a while now successfully in her career. Though I'll be real with you guys. As much as I love this magical series, I would not want a reboot at all. Especially with new characters. That's basically what the seventh and final season tried to do, with the riduclous lore of giving us different versions of already established characters like Cinderella.
And it did not work at all. Even though there were some OG cast members including Colin O'Donoghue as Captain Hook/Killian Jones, Robert Carlyle as Mr. Gold/Rumplestiltskin, Lana Parrilla as Regina Mils/Evil Queen, and Rebecca Mader as Zelena/Wicked Witch. We already had a reboot of sorts, and we do not need another one. You could argue perhaps season 7 didn't work with fans because it was right after the journey we'd taken in the first six seasons and the beloved characters we'd become attached to.
But even if years have passed now and there was a new version of OUAT happening, I really doubt any of us would want to see that. I certainly do not. And I do agree with Morrison that I think all of the stories of the main characters has been told well at this point. And that penultimate final scene in season 6 with everyone gathered around the table at Granny's was perfection.
The one reason I'd support a reboot is if the original cast members came back. Even if it was for a shortened one season just to catch up on what everyone is up to. Sort of what we got in the season 7 finale like the reveal that Belle and Rumple are finally reunited in the afterlife, Emma and Killian now have a baby girl, Hope, etc.
It would even be nice to have a movie! That's what many shows are doing, and it's not too much commitment on the actors' end who might have busy schedules. But it would be a chance for us to see the cast we all fell in love with together again as they reunite onscreen. As for a reboot with new cast members and characters, please Eddy, Adam, and ABC, do not do it.
All seven seasons of Once Upon a Time are streaming on Hulu and Disney+.