When "Once Upon a Time" Season 12 returns to the small screens, viewers will see a familiar face aside from Robin Hood (Sean Maguire) and other beloved characters. Pinocchio (Eion Bailey) will return to the ABC series and may play an important role in helping Emma (Jennifer Morrison) and Regina (Lana Parrilla) find their way back to Storybrooke.
The midseason finale of "Once Upon a Time" Season 12 featured Emma and Regina losing their chance to go back to Storybrooke. After Regina saw the Wish Realm version of her dead beloved Robin Hood, she opted to rush towards the said character instead of entering the portal with Emma.
With the two protagonists trapped in the Wish Realm, finding another portal that will bring them back home will be very challenging. However, Pinocchio may have the solution to Emma and Regina's problem.
An exclusive photo released to TVLine offered a first glimpse at the said returning character. In the said picture, Pinocchio, also known as August Booth, appears to be inspecting a wood carving with other materials strewn around him.
At this point, it is still unclear if the Pinocchio seen in said image is a Wish Realm version of the character. The last time that viewers saw Booth was during the final episode of the ABC show's Season 4.
In an interview with the same news site, showrunner Adam Horowitz commented that Pinocchio will be appearing in various realms and worlds in the back half of "Once Upon a Time" Season 12. He also expressed his excitement on how they were able to reintroduce some of the characters that previously appeared in the ABC series.
Meanwhile, avid fans of the series should expect to see beloved characters spending time in various worlds and realms in upcoming episodes. Horowitz shared in an earlier interview with Entertainment Weekly that the second half of Season 12 will feature episodes set in Storybrooke, Agrabah, the Wish Realm and the Dark Realm.
The showrunner also highlighted how the upcoming episodes will focus on a central plot that links all of the said locations together. He explained, "There's a unifying theme at play in the second half, but it's not about location, it's about this story and the conflict between characters."
"Once Upon a Time" Season 12 will air its midseason premiere in March 2017 on ABC. Watch the teaser clip for the said episode below: