‘Once Upon A Time’ Spoilers: The Villain For Season 5B’s Trip To The Underworld Has Been Confirmed

Considering there was already the tease of “hell” for Once Upon a Time season 5B, it was easy to then guess who the upcoming villain would be. However, up until now, it has been only that – a guess. Well, the guessing game can end now, as the villain has been confirmed for the second half of the season, which will see Emma, Mary Margaret, David, Henry, Regina, Robin Hood, and Mr. Gold head to the Underworld to try to save Hook.

The Once Upon a Time mid-season finale saw the Dark One arc come to a head when, following the reveal that Hook had in fact also gone dark, he helped the original, Nimue, with her plan to bring all the Dark Ones back. In order to do so, others needed to be marked for the Underworld – and that’s where all of Emma’s loved ones came in, only that wasn’t the end of it. Instead, Emma’s original plan, to put the darkness into Zelena and kill her, therefore snuffing it out for good, came into play, only, the Wicked Witch wasn’t on the other end of the sword. (She had been sent back to Oz, thanks to Regina.) It was Hook, who sacrificed himself and forced Emma to kill him.

The only problem was that they didn’t have the entire story. Emma was back to being the savior, and to her surprise, there was still a Dark One: Mr. Gold. Upon learning that the man she loved had sacrificed himself for nothing, she decided to save him, by forcing Gold to take her to the Underworld, and of course, the others tagged along because that’s how it always goes with them.

Before it had been revealed that the second half of the season would include a trip to the Underworld, TVLine had reported that starting with episode 100 (which is also the mid-season premiere, airing March 6), Greg Germann would be recurring as “The Distinguished Gentleman … a mysterious figure with god-like powers who is always clad in a perfectly tailored suit” and could “strike fear into people just by being friendly,” as well as “the last person you ever want to share a drink with.” That casting news was from back in November, when “hell” was the only word being used to describe Once Upon a Time season 5B, and since then, it has been speculated that Germann would be playing Hades. After all, who else could that be?

Well, now Entertainment Weekly has confirmed that this character is Hades, who will show up “right away” in the first episode back in March. Executive producer Adam Horowitz has called their version “both inspired by a myth and by the Disney movie version,” along with the series’ usual “spin.” Furthermore, as should be no surprise given how everyone in Storybrooke is connected, executive producer Edward Kitsis has teased that Hades “has a surprising connection to one of our cast,” but “he’s not related to anyone.”

Though a promo that aired after the OUAT mid-season finale offered a look at Underworld and some of the familiar faces that the group will be running into, there has yet to be a photo or video footage of Germann as Hades. That’s going to have to wait. However, as you can see, the Underworld looks a lot like Storybrooke, but with a twist. (Oh, and Hook has a grave, which would probably be more worrisome if they weren’t going to the Underworld and seeing the dead.)

The underworld awaits! https://t.co/0WiEPParfJ

— Once Upon A Time (@OnceABC) December 8, 2015

Finally, in other Once Upon a Time news, TVLine has reported that episode 15 will see a new character, Captain Silver, “the commanding (and sometimes bullying) boss of a merchant ship.” The role has not yet been cast.

Once Upon a Time Season 5 returns Sunday, March 6 at 8 p.m. on ABC.

[Image via ABC]