Bolger

In the first season of Once Upon a Time, Maleficent played an important role on two seperate occasions with one being a very crucial part in the season finale. And while we saw the villain for a good portion, we never got to see her princess rival. Now on the heels of the news that the series has cast new heroine Mulan, it’s been revealed that the hit fairy tale drama will be taking in another new female protagonist.

TV Line reports that Once Upon a Time has cast Irish actress Sarah Bolger will be playing the recurring role of Princess Aurora. Bolger’s most recent role includes that in the Showtime series The Borgias, which she collected an Irish Film and Television award for her performance.

Not too many details are given, but there’s a chance we could explore Aurora’s beginnings in how she became cursed with a sleeping spell after all, and even managing to wind up in the crosshairs of Maleficent. There is no word yet as to how long she’ll be staying on the show.

But with Aurora obviously being included this could mean great news for fans of Kristin Bauer van Straten. While the actress has been lighting it up on True Blood this season so far, her character of Maleficent was a fan-favorite that some still hope to have back one day. With this latest development, there’s a great chance that Straten could return to be the antagonist in Aurora’s story. However, it should be noted that at this time nothing has been revealed in terms of her return.

Bolger joins Jamie Chung who was just cast as Mulan, along with all-new series regulars Emilie de Ravin (Belle) and Meghan Ory (Red Riding Hood) who will reprise their roles with new promotions.

Once Upon a Time is set to premiere this fall on ABC Sundays at 8PM.