_This article is about the _**_television show_**_.
For the __Authors' book__ owned by __Henry__, see _**_Henry's Once Upon a Time book_**_.
For the book written by Henry, see _**_Once Upon a Time _****_(novel)_**_.
For the __Underworld__ book, see _**_Underworld Once Upon a Time _****_(book)_**_._

__

_"It's titled Once Upon a Time and it's the story of us. [...] I wish the world could know the story of my family, how it was all true, how every moment of it happened. And you may think this is just a story. But that's the thing about stories. They're more than words. They live inside of us. They make us who we are. And, as long as someone believes that, there will always be __magic__."_

HENRY MILLS' ESSAY

**_Once Upon a Time_** is a television show on ABC. It is produced and created by Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis.

Season One premiered on October 23, 2011, and concluded on May 13, 2012. The soundtrack for the first season was released on May 1, 2012. The full-disc DVD/Blu-ray set of Season One was released on August 28, 2012.

Season Two premiered on September 30, 2012, and concluded on May 12, 2013. The soundtrack and the full-disc DVD/Blu-ray set of Season Two were released on August 13, 2013.

Season Three premiered on September 29, 2013, and concluded on May 11, 2014. The full-disc DVD/Blu-ray set of Season Three was released on August 19, 2014.

Season Four premiered on September 28, 2014, and concluded on May 10, 2015. The full-disc DVD/Blu-ray set of Season Four was released on August 18, 2015.

Season Five premiered on September 27, 2015, and concluded on May 15, 2016. The full-disc DVD/Blu-ray set of Season Five was released on August 16, 2016.

Season Six premiered on September 25, 2016, and concluded on May 14, 2017. The full-disc DVD/Blu-ray set of Season Six was released on August 15, 2017.

Season Seven premiered on October 6, 2017, and concluded on May 18, 2018. The full-disc DVD/Blu-ray set of Season Seven was released on August 28, 2018.

_Once Upon a Time_ was cancelled on February 6, 2018, after seven seasons.[1]

In June 2023, Carlyle retrospectively admitted in an interview with _The A.V. Club_ that he felt that the series "ran for too long" and felt that the first four seasons were "as good as anything [he had] been involved in".[2] In February 2024, O'Donoghue spoke with _Collider_ about the possibility of a revival, stating that he had "spoken to [Kitsis and Horowitz] and a few other people about it."[3][4]

Synopsis

From the inventive minds of _Lost_ executive producers Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis comes a bold new imagining of the world, where fairy tales and the modern-day are about to collide.

And they all lived happily ever after - or so everyone was led to believe. Emma Swan knows how to take care of herself. She's a 28-year-old bail bonds collector who's been on her own ever since she was abandoned as a baby. But when the son she gave up years ago finds her, everything starts to change. Henry is now 10 years old and in desperate need of Emma's help. He believes that Emma actually comes from an alternate world and is Snow White and Prince Charming's missing daughter. According to his book of fairy tales, they sent her away to protect her from the Evil Queen's curse, which trapped the fairy-tale world forever, frozen in time, and brought them into our modern world.

Of course, Emma doesn't believe a word, but when she brings Henry back to Storybrooke, she finds herself drawn to this unusual boy and his strange New England town. Concerned for Henry, she decides to stay for a while, but she soon suspects that Storybrooke is more than it seems. It's a place where magic has been forgotten but is still powerfully close... where fairy tale characters are alive, even though they don't remember who they once were. The epic battle for the future of all worlds is beginning, but for good to win, Emma will have to accept her destiny and fight like hell.[5]

Story

Season One

Season Two

Season Three

Season Four

Season Five

Season Six

Season Seven

Development

_Once Upon a Time_ has been conceived by Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis in 2004 before joining the writing staff of _Lost_, but they wanted to wait until that series was over to focus on their project. _Lost_ co-creator Damon Lindelof helped in the development of the series as a consultant. Eventually, they sold the pilot to ABC on October 28, 2010.[8] On February 1, 2011, the network gave a pilot order to the series.[9]On March 4, 2011, it was announced that Damon Lindelof was no longer involved in the project.[10]

On May 13, 2011, the series is picked up by ABC,[11] and it premiered on October 23, 2011.[12] On November 3, 2011, _Once Upon a Time_ received a first full season order,[13] and concluded its Season One on May 13, 2012.[14]

Three days before, the series was renewed for a second season,[15] which premiered on September 30, 2012.[16] On May 10, 2013, _Once Upon a Time_ was renewed for Season Three,[17] as the second season ended on May 12, 2013.[18] The third season premiered on September 29, 2013.[19]

As the series concluded its third season on May 11, 2014,[20] ABC renewed it three days before on May 8, 2014, for the fourth season.[21] It premiered on September 28, 2014,.[22] On May 7, 2015, the series was renewed for Season Five,[23] as Season Four ended on May 10, 2015.[23]

The fifth season premiered on September 27, 2015.[24]On March 3, 2016, the series got an early renewal for its sixth season.[25] _Once Upon a Time'_s one hundredth episode is titled "Souls of the Departed" and aired on March 6, 2016.[26] Season Five ended on May 15, 2016.[27]

The sixth season premiered on September 25, 2016.[28] On May 7, 2017, the series aired its highly anticipated musical episode, entitled "The Song in Your Heart."[29] Four days later, _Once Upon a Time_ was renewed for its seventh season.[30] Season Six ended on May 14, 2017.[31]

The seventh season premiered on October 6, 2017.[32]On February 6, 2018, it was announced that the series would be ending after its seventh season.[1] Season Seven and the series concluded on May 18, 2018, with "Leaving Storybrooke."[33