Will Scarlet

"Bloody hell!"

Will Scarlet, also known as the Knave of Hearts, is one of the main characters of Once Upon a Time in Wonderland and Once Upon a Time. Formerly a thief, Will made his way to Wonderland to provide a better, dreamy life for his lover, but things didn't go entirely as planned and eventually she left him to pursue her personal aspirations. Will then lost his heart - quite literally - and became the Knave of Hearts. He met Alice and became her friend, and was transported to Storybrooke, Maine when the Dark Curse hit. However, the White Rabbit summoned him to rescue Alice from an asylum and sent them on a chase to find Cyrus, Alice's one true love, in Wonderland. Will reluctantly agreed, out of loyalty to his friend... and the offer of one of her wishes. Ultimately, he and Alice succeed and he ends up happily ruling over Wonderland at Anastasia's side as the White King.

Before the Curse
"I love you, Anastasia."

Will grew up with a competitive sister named Penelope and the two of them would spend every winter playing on the frozen lake near their house; unfortunately, one year, Penelope falls through a thin patch of ice and dies, much to her brother's dismay. Having just been arrested by a guard in the land of Oz, Will meets Robin of Loxley (later Robin Hood), who comes through a portal door and knocks out the aforementioned guard by accident. He sets Will free and reveals that he's on a mission set by Rumplestiltskin to steal an elixir capable of emotionally and physically curing hearts of whatever ails them, which is in the possession of the Wicked Witch. Will sees this as a death wish, but Robin needs Rumple's gold to save his tavern, and Will deduces that there must be a woman involved if Robin is willing to risk his life. There is - Robin's wife - and Will requests that Robin steal him some of the elixir as well so that he can sell it. Robin tries, but only manages to get one vial, learning upon his return that Will wanted to drink the elixir himself so that he could move on from the death of his sister. Robin gives him the potion before he leaves, feeling sorry for him, and forsakes his tavern in favor of a life of robbing from the rich and giving to the poor.

After Will helps the Merry Men pull off a heist, he is accepted amongst their ranks by their leader, Robin Hood. Here, he is taught by Robin that the Merry Men are not thieves as they do not steal for themselves, they steal for others. Will suggests that they break into Maleficent's castle and steal her gold, as rumor has it it's enough to end poverty in the entire kingdom. Knowing how dangerous Maleficent is, Robin is reluctant, but he eventually agrees to do so. Will then returns home and tells his true love, Anastasia, that he's managed to fool the Merry Men into believing that he agrees with their cause, and that they'll finally get what they're looking for after the heist of Maleficent's castle. The Merry Men manage to break in and steal the gold, however, when inside, Will steals something else also. He is seen celebrating with the rest of the group when the heist is successful, however, Maleficent uses her magic to project her voice and tell them to keep the gold if they must, but to return the other item they stole, or there shall be consequences. An incredibly angered Robin Hood asks who stole something else, and a guilty Will doesn't own up. When Will tries to leave, he is approached by Robin who realizes he stole for himself in Maleficent's castle, and he is bitterly disappointed in him, telling him that he is going to do to him the worst thing of all: nothing. Will then rides his horse back to Anastasia, who is later to become the Red Queen, and reveals that the thing he stole was a Looking Glass. The two of them then use the Looking Glass to open a portal that leads to Wonderland.

Before Will and Anastasia can jump through the Looking Glass portal, the latter's mother enters the small home in order to talk them out of it, but they jump anyway. They spend a few weeks in Wonderland and become very hungry, being too poor to pay for food and not being able to find good sustenance in nature. When looking for berries to eat, they see a carriage full of bread drive past and learn that it's for the upcoming royal ball, and so they decide to rob noble attire and attend. Whilst there, Will is caught stealing food and gets him and Anastasia thrown out, much to Ana's dismay as she was having a nice time, chatting to the king. Now hating her life as a pauper, Ana suggests that the two of them steal the crown jewels and return home to the Enchanted Forest, where they will have escaped their crime and be rich. Will agrees to engage in this one final heist, and waits at the bottom of the tower for Anastasia, who's inside, to steal the jewels from their case and drop them down to him. Whilst inside, however, Ana is approached by the king, who has taken a shine to her and offers to make her his wife and Queen. Will is then shocked when the king turns up on the balcony with his new fiancée on his arm - Anastasia.

Will approaches Anastasia soon before her wedding by intruding her castle, begging her to tell him that this is all one big heist and that the two of them will soon be returning to the Enchanted Forest with the Red King's stolen riches, but she tries to assure him that she's doing what's best for the both of them. Will doesn't believe this, but has little time to argue with his true love for the royal guards approach to arrest him. He quickly tells her to meet him the next day outside their old wagon, before leaping from her balcony and managing to evade capture. The next day, he waits outside his wagon for Anastasia, but only Cora, the Queen of Hearts, turns up, having overheard his meeting with the soon-to-be Red Queen. She claims to be meeting him on Anastasia's behalf and tells him that she has no desire to get back together with him, being royalty now. Will's heart is broken by this, and so he requests that Cora remove it from his body. She does so, and his heartache vanishes; he is then told to relocate himself, and he merrily sets off alone. This makes it look as thought Will did not turn up to the meeting either, which makes it even easier for Cora to manipulate Ana into leaving her old life behind entirely.

With Cora having obtained Will's heart and locked it away in her vault, he becomes her Knave of Hearts and is helping her other soldiers as they track a supposed murderer. He soon finds her whilst hunting alone only to discover that it's a young woman by the name of Alice, who's entirely innocent. She manages to escape, but the Knave soon finds her as she sleeps and approaches, being caught in a net she earlier set up. She wonders why he wants to kill her, and he reveals his heart predicament, explaining that he has to do whatever the Queen of Hearts wants. Alice offers to get his heart back for him, but he doubts her abilities. Regardless, she leaves him in the net and sets off for the Queen's palace, returning with Will's heart in tow. She cuts him free and tells him to stop hunting her, realizing that she can make him do whatever she wants. She orders him to help her find proof of Wonderland's existence so that her father doesn't think she's crazy, and he is forced into submission; the two of them later find themselves at a bar, chugging drinks, and Will tells his new friend about his sister, Penelope, who died when he was young. Alice offers her condolences, knowing what it's like to lose someone, and ends up returning the Knave's heart to him, feeling too guilty about controlling him. He thanks her, but stays with her anyway, later helping her battle her way through the Queen's maze. She leaves with a piece of magic mushroom and the White Rabbit, who is to serve as her proof. Alice wonders what she'll do without Will, but he assures her that she'll soon find someone to keep her company - and she does, because in the maze, Alice goes on to meet Cyrus. He later ends up in Storybrooke when the Evil Queen's curse is cast.

Once Upon a Time in Wonderland
"You know as well as I do, Alice. Nothing's impossible in Wonderland."

In the town of Storybrooke, Maine, Will Scarlet is seen walking into Granny's Diner during a storm and making himself a cup of tea. When he is doing so, however, there is an earth-tremor and the White Rabbit appears via portal, telling Will that Alice needs his help. Will travels to another land with the White Rabbit in order to break into the asylum Alice is currently confined to. He knocks out some guards and makes it to her cell, telling her that Cyrus, her true love, is still alive and she needs to come with him to Wonderland. With each other's help, Alice and Will escape the asylum and go down a portal created by the White Rabbit. Upon returning to Wonderland, the two of them become stuck in the mallowmarsh and have to use fire-breathing dragonflies in order to toast the surface and use this segment as a platform to escape. They soon realize that the Rabbit is gone, after being disappointed to learn that he didn't actually see Cyrus in the Mad Hatter's house, but in fact heard it from the untrustworthy Dormouse. The Knave does not wish to go any further, but Alice offers to pay him with the three wishes she received from Cyrus should he help her find him. Alice removes her shoes in order to climb a tree, thus gaining a view of the Hatter's house, but Will decides to steal her shoes and run away, as the wishes are hidden in the heel. When Alice is attacked by the Cheshire Cat however, Will steps on his tail and throws some mushroom into his mouth, which shrinks him. Alice tells him that it was silly to steal the wishes as they have to be granted by a genie in order to come true, and Will proceeds to accompany Alice to the Hatter's house. When they arrive, they find no sign of Cyrus, but Alice discovers his magical necklace and takes this to mean that he's still alive somewhere. When the White Rabbit shows up again, he, Alice and a reluctant Will continue to journey through Wonderland in order to rescue Cyrus.

Will wakes up to Alice practicing with her sword, telling the Knave that she has a plan to rescue Cyrus: first, find his bottle (which she says is buried in Mimsy Meadows), and then wish for something minor, and he shall appear to grant said wish. They go to carry this plan out, leaving the White Rabbit behind them, but Will is horrified to discover that the way to Mimsy Meadows is across a large lake as he is afraid of water and unable to swim. Alice suggests that they call upon the lake's fairy, something which Will is also hesitant about, but eventually, after the two of them clap a summons, the fairy Silvermist arrives. Upon seeing the Knave, she slaps him multiple times, the two of them clearly having a bad history. She agrees to fly the two of them across the lake using her magic, but as she's doing so, she lets Will drop into the water. Alice then jumps in to save him and the two of them find themselves on a small island in the middle of the lake. When the island bucks them off, Alice realizes that it's not an island at all, but a large turtle. By threatening it with her sword, Alice convinces it to sail them to Mimsy Meadows, and Will sits effortlessly on the turtle's back as it swims across the lake. After another run in with Silvermist where Will ends up apologizing for whatever he did to her, they arrive where the bottle is supposed to be buried, they see that the evil wizard Jafar is already digging. At this point, Alice reveals that the bottle was never buried there and that she merely wanted to know who she's up against by letting word spread of the bottle's supposed whereabouts. However, when she leads Will to where the bottle is really buried, she discovers that it has already been dug up, which leads her and Will to think Cyrus has moved on. But later, an enchanted paper swan with a message from Cyrus arrives for Alice, and now filled with hope, she sends a message back, telling her true love that she's coming for him.

When Alice is speculating as to who stole Cyrus' bottle, Will suggests that the two of them use the Forget-Me-Knot, a magical rope that, when tied in a loop, makes one able to see the last thing that happened in the location it's pointed at, to find out. He says that retrieving it will be the difficult part as it's currently in possession of the Caterpillar, and so the two of them visit him in the Underland of Wonderland. Will tells the humongous insect that, if he gives him the Forget-Me-Knot, then he'll be able to pay back double what he owes, but Alice soon deciphers that the Caterpillar doesn't have it. He tells the Knave that the Knot is with the Grendel, and gives him its location; he then says that if Will tries to cheat him out of a deal, then he'll become one of the screaming heads on his desk. On their way to the Grendel's house, the two of them fall into one of his traps, knocking them unconscious. They awaken a while later, tied up in the Grendel's kitchen, where the ugly beast is waiting to eat them. Whilst held prisoner, they locate the Forget-Me-Knot, but notice that the Grendel is using to look into his past; watching a beautiful woman and his former handsome self. Will realizes it's the Grendel's lost love, so tries to relate to him and persuade him to move on, however, this only aggravates the beast more. Alice soon manages to cut herself loose using her wishes' sharp edges, and then she and Will make their exit, however, they soon find themselves trapped between a Bandersnatch outside and the Grendel inside. The Bandersnatch breaks in and rampages through the house, but Alice manages to get it trapped in the Forget-Me-Knot and Will stabs it, killing it. Now that Grendel can no longer use the Knot to look at his wife, as all he sees is the Bandersnatch's attack; he therefore gives it to a grateful Alice and Will. They then make their way to Greener Pastures, where the bottle was buried, and use the Forget-Me-Knot to see that the White Rabbit is the one who stole it and gave it to the Red Queen. Will later decides to burn the Forget-Me-Knot as oppose to using it to clear his name, as that way he didn't steal it for him, he stole it for Alice.

Will and Alice are walking through the woods and wondering what to do now that they know the White Rabbit betrayed them to the Red Queen; Will believes that they should play the fact that they know to their advantage, but before the conversation can end, the two of them are chased through the woods by the Caterpillar's "collectors". Alice and Will soon split up and the latter is almost ambushed by collectors, however, the group of thugs are soon knocked out by the Red Queen, who takes the Knave of Hearts as her prisoner. Jafar insists that Will be executed, but the Red Queen is hesitant about having her former love killed, and so she offers him passage out of Wonderland via the White Rabbit. But Will taunts Anastasia, telling her she can't kill him, which pushes her into going ahead with the public beheading. Will is soon escorted outside where his head is placed on the chopping block and Wonderland's villagers are all excited to see some decapitating, however, when the executioner swings the axe, what they actually do is cut the rope that binds the Knave's hands, freeing him. The executioner is then revealed to have been Alice in disguise, and she and Will escape by using the catapult meant for the latter's head to be sent over the palace walls. They attempt to escape alongside Lizard, Will's former comrade in crime, but are soon faced with Jafar and the Red Queen. Jafar attempts to choke Will to death, forcing Alice to make one of her wishes; she wishes for her own death, should Will die, which makes Jafar stop. Now not being able to kill either of them, the dark magician informs Alice that there are much worse fates than death, and proceeds to magically turn Will to stone (still keeping him alive). Jafar assures Alice that he will keep coming after the people she loves until all her wishes are used up, and the girl is forced to abandon Will in the maze, where he continues to stand as a statue.

Alice returns to Will, who is still living as a stone statue in the Red Queen's palace maze, and drapes a blanket over his head in order to protect him from rain, snow or anything else that might fall from the sky in Wonderland. She is soon approached by the Queen, who offers Alice an exchange: if she helps her get magic dust that will defend her against Jafar's magic, then she will tell her where Cyrus is being kept. Alice takes this deal and retrieves the magic dust for the Queen, but Anastasia does not fulfill her end of the bargain, and returns to Will alone, not having told Alice a thing. Instead of using the dust to protect herself however, the Red Queen pours it over the statue that once was Will, and leaves. The dust's magic then returns Will to his regular human form, and he leaves the maze, very confused as to what happened.

After having been returned to his human form from stone, Will wonders away from the Red Queen's palace and makes his way through the woods of Wonderland. Here, he comes across two thieves who he previously made the acquaintance of in his stealing days, and they tell him that the girl he's traveling with, Alice, has wondered into the dark forest. Will makes his way through the same dark area and eventually comes out in a beautiful wooded area, filled with trees and flowers that emit magic dust, where he finds Alice, who's become intoxicated on the aforementioned dust. He tries to snap her out of it, but she seems to have completely forgotten her troubles, including Cyrus, and has already surrendered her sword and necklace. When Will sees that the people who come across the area and don't want to leave become trees, he tries very hard to warn Alice, but she seems to have forgotten herself as well. Her legs soon begin turning to wood, her whole body becoming plant, and Will is unable to help her due to her tendril-like vines that keep him at bay. However, he is able to throw her the necklace and remind her of what she's looking for, and when Cyrus returns to Alice's head, she becomes aware of what is truly happening to her, and uses her sword to cut herself out of her current predicament. Her and Will then leave the area, and the Knave thanks Alice for turning him back from stone, but the girl soon reveals that she had nothing to do with it, and that Anastasia had some magic dust, meaning she must have freed him. This maddens Will, who doesn't want to be in the Red Queen's debt, and he goes on to tell Alice that, despite all the trouble she went to to get back his heart, he never put it back inside his body, as if he did, all the pain he felt when Anastasia left him would come rushing back, and the fact that he has no heart in his chest is the reason that the magical wooded area that Alice became trapped in had no effect on him.

Alice and Will continue trekking through the woods of Wonderland to Jafar's tower, but are horrified to discover that it's not atop a mountain, but in fact a floating island in the sky. Alice is soon gladdened to find a magic tree with the ability to fly, and believes that if she and the Knave were able to fashion a basket, they could attach it to the branch and use it to fly up to Jafar's tower like a hot air balloon. As the basket's construction is underway, Alice's father Edwin emerges from the woods, having been in Wonderland a while and looking for his daughter. Alice is shocked, and her father attempts to make amends with her, starting by helping Will construct a basket; as they do this, Edwin asks Alice's friend if he thinks she'll forgive him, and Will tells him that she will, because she always does the right thing. It's not long before a dragon swoops down from Jafar's tower and attacks them, and Alice is forced to rescue her father from its clutches by killing it, which gives her a new perspective on her love for him; she decides to forgive him for all he's done. As the three of them eat the slain dragon, Alice realizes that the man with her and Will is an impostor and not her father as her father always says grace before eating even a morsel of food. Knowing he's been dumbfounded, Edwin turns back into Jafar, who was disguised and in fact summoned the dragon, and the dark magician collects the real Edwin from his dungeon. He threatens his life in front of Alice and Will, wanting the former to make a wish, and she does so when her father is dropped from a cliff, wishing for him to return home after the two of them made amends. However, before this happened, Edwin revealed that Cyrus is alive and looking for her on the ground, which makes Alice very happy as the holes left by her genie and her father are now filled. But Will reminds his friend that wishes always have consequences, and asks what the price shall be for wishing her father's return to England.

Will and Alice see that the Red Queen's soldiers are still searching for Cyrus in the woods of Wonderland, meaning they haven't found him yet, and Alice knows the one place her genie would meet her - but first, they must stop at the White Rabbit's house for help. When they get there, the Rabbit apologizes for betraying Alice, explaining that he only did the Queen's bidding because his wife and children were being threatened, and Will believes he knows where she may have hidden them. He, Alice and the Rabbit head to his old wagon, which he used to share with Anastasia, and sees that the Queen has already collected Cyrus' bottle from here. He then discovers Mrs. Rabbit and her children locked in a cage, and reunites the family with their husband and father. Alice and Will then go to the invisible home the former shared with her true love, which Cyrus soon approaches... with the Red Queen in tow. She reveals that the magical storm on the horizon was cast by Jafar, who betrayed her, and is on its way to kill her. She tells the Rabbit to dig, but Alice and Will refuse to trust the Queen; re-adopting her native accent, she assures the two of them that she's telling the truth, and tells Will that the only reason she was in league with Jafar was because she wanted to change the past and go back to a time when she and him were happy together. Cyrus decides to trust the Queen, being able to read people, and Alice orders the Rabbit to dig, however, Will is struck down by the storm, which causes Alice to collapse also due to the first wish she made that tied her fate to the Knave's. As Will and Alice die in their respective true love's arms, the Knave uses Alice's last wish, which was given to him upon her reunion with Cyrus, to end Alice's suffering. This saves her from the brink of death and frees Cyrus from his duties as a genie - but this comes at a cost. Will, now a genie in Cyrus' old binds, becomes trapped in the bottle, which heads down a waterfall.

The bottle continues to head down the river with Will, the new genie, in it, until it's eventually found by Lizard who's come to the river to wash. She frees Will, making her his master, and he hands over her wishes three. Once she's dressed, the two of them head to the village and Lizard offers to wish for whatever Will would like, for old time's sake. Knowing there's consequences in wishes, Will wishes for something small, conjuring up beers for everyone in the village. The Knave is happy to receive such thanks for his gift but he soon leaves the celebrations to join Lizard in a nearby house. Noticing her sadness and having already told her that he can't make people fall in love, he realizes that there's a boy she fancies and so offers to help make him notice her. She asks him what he likes in a woman, and so he lists off all the qualities he finds attractive, leading Lizard to wish to be exactly like that. Once the wish is granted, Lizard becomes clothed in a beautiful dress, and Will suggests they go and find the man she loves, but she reveals that she loves him, much to his surprise. He apologizes for not realizing sooner and tells her that he's literally incapable of reciprocating her feelings for he has no heart. She says that she doesn't need him to love her... but she wishes he felt something. This inadvertently causes Will to grant her third wish, and he becomes trapped in the bottle as Lizard dies. He watches with great sorrow as she again utters she wanted him to feel something, and her death causes him to feel despair. The dead girl and the bottle are soon found by Anastasia and she brings him to Alice and Cyrus, rubbing the bottle herself so that she may be the one to receive three wishes. The four of them decide it's best to vacate Wonderland for Jafar could become unstoppable with the power of three genies, but Cyrus realizes that the other two genies that Jafar has prisoner are his brothers, and so the four of them embark on yet another rescue mission.

In Alice and Cyrus' home in the Outlands, Will is complaining about the bottle whilst the reunited couple decide they should go to Wonderland's well of wonders in order to obtain magical water to break the curse that keeps Will a genie. Meanwhile, Will and Anastasia visit the White Rabbit and the former Queen begs his forgiveness for what she did to his family, leading him to warn her that Jafar has released the Jabberwocky. This frightens her to her core, and when she and Will are trekking through the forest, she senses danger and forces him back into his bottle. The Jabberwocky then ambushes Ana and takes her and Will back to Jafar, who locks the two of them up and silences the former Queen so that she cannot wish for anything without his permission. She allows the Jabberwocky to mess with her head, and the powerful being soon goads the Queen into wishing for her crown and then wishing for her jewels, digging deep into her head and discovering her weaknesses. The Jabber then tells Ana to wish for her to stop, and a distraught Red Queen obliges, meaning Will returns to his bottle with all three wishes of his former mistress used up. Ana is locked up in her own dungeon whereas Will's bottle is put with Cyrus' brothers' bottles and Jafar begins to cast the spell he's able to achieve with the power of the three genies.

Jafar attempts to cast his spell with the power of all three genies but is unable to due to something not being right with Will. He frees the Knave from his bottle and the Jabberwocky attempts to read his fears, however, she can't. They decide to pay Anastasia a visit down in the dungeon, thinking she's cast some sort of protection spell on him, but she doesn't know what's wrong with Will. The Jabberwocky soon deduces that Will doesn't have a heart, having learnt this by reading the fears of Alice, who's hiding in the dungeon with Cyrus. The two of them escape to find Will's heart before Jafar does and hide it, whilst Jafar threatens Anastasia's life in exchange for information. Not wanting her to die, Will admits that his heart is hidden in the town of Storybrooke, but Jafar is saved a trip by Alice and Cyrus, who return to Wonderland with the heart and have it stolen from them by the villainous wizard. Meanwhile, Ana and Will talk in the dungeons and she expresses her regret that he felt the need to part with his heart because of her, apologizing for all the mistakes she made and explaining that she would have never gone to Wonderland with him if she was able to change the past with Jafar's spell to break the laws of magic. The dark sorcerer soon returns with Will's heart in tow and he places it back in the genie's body, causing all his feelings for Ana to come rushing back. The two of them share a passionate kiss, but the Jabberwocky soon pulls them apart, locking Will back in his cell. Anastasia is then freed, but Jafar says he'd like to test that Will's heart definitely works, stabbing the former Red Queen in the back with his knife and bringing about her death, leaving the Knave completely distraught.

Will watches as Anastasia is redressed and put in a glass coffin, mocked by Jafar. The dark wizard soon offers the genie the chance to bring back his true love, reminding him that the spell he seeks to cast has to ability to raise the dead, and so Will is sent on a mission to retrieve Jafar's staff. He meets Alice and Cyrus in the Outlands, the latter of which has the staff, and he begins to trek with them to the Well of Wonders. However, on the way, Will tries to steal the staff but is stopped by Cyrus, who tries to appeal to his better nature, but the Knave ends up punching Cyrus in the face and leaving with the staff anyway. He is later found by Alice, who he accuses of being selfish for not wanting Anastasia to come back, but when she falls into the river below, he jumps in and rescues her. With their friendship patched up, Alice, Cyrus and Will continue their trek, but are interrupted by the Jabberwocky. She promises them away to destroy Jafar and bring back the Red Queen, if they help to free her. To do this, Cyrus is taken "prisoner" whilst Will and Alice break into the dungeons. Will gets caught and purpose and distracts the soldiers by running, meaning Alice is able to free the former Sultan of Agrabah and make their own way to Jafar, who, in the meantime, has Cyrus prisoner and calls upon Will, his genie, thus rescuing him from the pursuing guards. Amara soon returns, having been freed from the staff, and she and Jafar begin to face off. He soon realizes that she is Cyrus' mother and so stabs the former genie with a shard of the Red Queen's smashed mirror, killing him. Will watches from his bottle as Amara helps cast the spell - for it needs two sorcerers - to bring back Cyrus and Anastasia, whilst Alice is devastated to find Cyrus' body. The spell is soon complete.

With Jafar and Amara having changed the laws of magic, Will remains in his bottle whilst Cyrus' body is taken away by his mother and Alice, the former of which uses her new powers to resurrect him. Meanwhile, Jafar uses his own powers to make his father love him, before killing him, and he then lets Will out of his bottle. The Knave realizes he's trapped in a triangular force field and cannot escape, whilst Jafar tells him that he upheld his end of the bargain and resurrected Anastasia, who then walks in. Will is ecstatic, but he soon learns that Jafar has also used his magic to make Ana love him, going as far as to kiss her passionately in front of her ex-boyfriend, who remains devastated. Alice is soon taken prisoner and Jafar threatens to change the past and make it so she never met Cyrus, unless she tells him where Amara is headed. She refuses, remaining strong, but one of Jafar's guards soon mentions the two red doors Amara and Cyrus were seen going through, and Anastasia tells her new love that they lead to the Well of Wonders. Jafar leaves to deal with them, and the White Rabbit sneaks in to free Alice. However, he is soon seen by Anastasia, who tries to stop him. Will begs her to see the truth, assuring her that she doesn't love Jafar, despite her claims that she does. He tells her that real love is different to what she feels right now, before using all his strength to reach a hand through the force field, grab Anastasia and kiss her - a kiss of true love. This breaks Jafar's spell, and the former Red Queen frees Alice before telling her to hurry up and defeat the dark wizard who killed her in the first place. Alice does so, managing to eradicate Jafar's powers by returning the water Cyrus stole to the Well of Wonders, thus revoking the curse of the genie and freeing Will, along with Cyrus' brothers. Whilst Jafar is trapped in his own bottle to serve eternity as a genie himself, Alice returns to the castle, where Anastasia's dead body is lying on an open coffin. When Jafar's magic was stripped, the spell he used to resurrect Ana was undone also, meaning she died again. However, Alice and Cyrus reveal that Nyx - the well's guardian - gave them some magic water to use on her, for whereas the Red Queen was meant to die, Anastasia's story goes on. Will gives Ana's body some of the water, and she wakes up, much to his delight. The two of them later attend Alice and Cyrus' wedding in England and return to Wonderland together, but not before Alice and Will part ways with a heartfelt hug. Here, Will and Anastasia rule happily together as the White King and Queen.

Season 4
When Storybrooke has a mysterious villain capable of magically controlling ice and snow in its midst, Emma Swan - the sheriff - comes across Will Scarlet scrounging through Robin Hood's tent. He tries running away, but David - Emma's father, the other sheriff - quickly subdues him, and Will is forced to admit that he's a former Merry Man and he was simply stopping by because he heard about the ice curse Marian is currently under. They begin questioning him and he tells them that he's a thief; as such, during the recent blackout, he was out looting and discovered that none of the ice cream at the local ice cream shop melted, despite a lack of working freezers. He and the two sheriffs then head to this ice cream shop where they discover that everything is being run off of ice magic, meaning that the place is owned by the villain they're tracking. Just as they concede Will was right, however, he steals the money from the cash register when their backs are turned and runs away. They go on to find the Snow Queen and confront her briefly, whilst Regina - the former Mayor - finds a way to stall Marian's deadly affliction.

Will decides to celebrate the fact that he eluded the town's two sheriffs by treating himself to a drink at a local restaurant. Unfortunately, he soon spots Emma and a date with Hook and decides to slip out quietly, accidentally making it so food spills all over her. Hook grabs him and threatens him, but Will soon manages to get away and is later seen to be drunkenly attempting to break into the library. Hook, heading home from his date, discovers this and tries to get Will to stop, however, Will refuses to listen and the pirate ends up punching him hard in the face. He then says that Will shall die if he tells anyone, and the former Knave of Hearts continues to go about getting into the library. The next morning, Belle finds him passed out with a book in his hand and calls Emma, who promptly arrests him. She wonders why he took a copy of "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland", and why a clipping of the Red Queen was in his pocket, but he refuses to talk. She then wonders how his face became injured (due to Hook's punch), but still Will refuses to say anything, fearing the pirate's retaliation. He remains in the cell of the Sheriff's Station.

Will grows complacent within his jail cell and annoys all those around him, none more than Sheriff Swan. Later, Mary Margaret and David stop by the station only to realize that the thief has escaped. David suggests tracking and capturing him, to his wife's confusion, but he points out that it will be like the old days: Snow White and Prince Charming on an adventure but without the Evil Queen on their backs. The two of them then head off in search of the thief, but Mary Margaret wants to go home whilst David continues to search. He goes on, whilst she almost immediately spots Will digging something up nearby. She approaches to find that he's searching for his travel bag, which is buried along with the map he needs to find his travel bag. Not believing anyone could be so stupid, Mary Margaret deduces that David actually set this man free so that she could feel good about capturing him. She gets Will to admit all of this in exchange for a pardon, and he walks away a free man. Back at their apartment, David returns home and his wife reveals that she "caught" the thief, going on to explain that she knows all about his plan. However, David reveals that Will really did escape and really is that stupid and lied to her to get a pardon. This stuns Mary Margaret, but David urges that maybe Will earned his pardon if it means it's helped her find that part of herself again.

Robin Hood is drunkenly playing darts over at Granny's Diner when Will enters, unable to go unnoticed by the famed thief. The two of them end up grabbing a drink together, and Robin asks his old friend, after yelling at him initially for almost getting he and all his Merry Men killed, if he ever told him the story of how he met Marian. Will confirms that he's heard said story at least three dozen times, but Robin tells it again anyway, recounting how he stole her family's horse back when he was nothing but a hapless thief but felt so bad that he gave her two of his own and, from that day on, he became a man with a code and only stole from the rich to give to the poor. Will reveals that he once asked Marian how she handled living as an outlaw, for she didn't always enjoy it, but she told him that it was easy remaining with her true love and that she had to do it because, when you see the good in someone, you have to stay with them, especially if they're incapable of seeing that good in themselves. Robin is touched to hear this, and Will goes on to say that a person is definitely worth throwing your beliefs away for if you're willing to change your whole life to be with them any way, thus persuading him to abandon his moral code and kiss Regina, his true love.

At Granny's Diner, Will is pouring copious amounts of alcohol into his coffee cup when Robin Hood enters and sits opposite, taking away the cup which his former Merry Man claims to be his breakfast, lunch and dinner. Robin explains that he needs Will sober if he is to perform the task needed, presenting him with Henry's storybook which he stole from Regina, proclaiming that she needs their help in finding out its origin. Will explains that the center of magic in Storybrooke seems to be its clock tower, underneath which is a library, so that is the logical place to start. However, Will refuses to leave without his breakfast, lunch and dinner, and so Robin hands him back his alcoholic mug before the two of them set off on their mission. Will tries breaking into the library the same way he did before, until Robin simply pushes the door open, pointing out that they haven't reached closing hours yet. The two men search for anything that might clue them in on the storybook, but find nothing. That is until Robin discovers a page in his satchel that wasn't originally there which partially rectifies his situation, depicting what would have happened if he and Regina had met earlier. He calls Regina over to show her and makes her feel better about her no-longer-seemingly locked fate.

The Snow Queen has successfully cast the spell of Shattered Sight over Storybrooke, which will make it so every one of its citizens turns against one another come sundown. Will is hanging out at the Merry Men's camp when Regina arrives to warn Robin Hood of what's occurring, advising he and his band of thieves to hide their weapons and stay well away from one another, in case a blood bath ensues. Robin calls out for Will, which causes the former Knave of Hearts to emerge from his tent and point out that there's no need to yell, for he's right there. Robin then tells him that there's an emergency and that he is to break camp, and so Will exits the tent and takes Roland with him when he vacates the area along with the rest of the Merry Men, each one of them heading off in a separate direction. Roland is later hidden away along with Marian, and it isn't long before glass begins raining down from the magic storm cloud above the entirety of the town. The Spell of Shattered Sight is complete, and everyone's darkest side begins to surface.

With the spell of Shattered Sight complete, everyone in Storybrooke is only capable of seeing the very worst in one another, including Will. As the townspeople brawl, Will can be seen robbing an unconscious man, and later makes his way up to Regina's office in order to confront Hook. He tells the pirate that he wishes to repay him for that shiner he gave him, asking how tough he really is without his girlfriend around, but when Will attempts and attack, Hook simply grabs him and subdues him with blatant ease, leaving the thief knocked out in the mayoral building. Later, the Snow Queen sacrifices herself in order to break the spell and all the townspeople are returned to their normal selves.

Following the Snow Queen's death, Elsa is finally able to use her powers to remove the ice wall surrounding Storybrooke; however, due to some leftover magic, there is now a curse on the town line which makes it so that anyone who leaves cannot return. It also seems that the curse on Marian has ended... that is, until she collapses thanks to some remnant of the spell still residing within her. Regina realizes that Marian will be saved if she leaves town and steps into a land without magic, but she will need someone to go with her: Robin and Roland. Will and the rest of the Merry Men stand there as Marian leaves with her son, and they witness Robin share one last kiss with Regina before leaving as well, unable to return ever again.

Will comes into Granny's Diner one morning while Cruella De Vil and Ursula are insulting the old woman and he orders his usual, at which Granny cheerily grabs two cups of to-go coffee and hands them to him, sending him merrily on his way. That night, Rumplestiltskin - who's re-entered town after having been banished by Belle - watches his true love from across the street as she works in his shop, however, he soon sees that she's with Will, and the two of them kiss, signifying that they've entered into a relationship with one another in the six weeks during which the Dark One has been away. He appears deeply hurt by this, for he still loves Belle in spite of what happened, while she and Will, unaware of their watcher, simply enjoy a quiet evening in each others' company.

Will and his new girlfriend, Belle, are seen enjoying a date together at Granny's Diner, where she is telling him about the cake he has to try. It isn't long, however, until their date is interrupted by Hook and, based on their interactions, Belle concludes that the two of them have met before... and that they didn't particularly get along. Will doesn't want to fight in front of the lady, who Hook is there to see (although he wouldn't mind "bloodying" Will again), and he soon engages in a private talk with the beauty. However, this is actually Rumplestiltskin in disguise, and he pulls on elaborate ruse on his wife in order to regain his dagger and return to full magical strength. As Hook, he asks her about her budding new romance, and she says that she will never truly be over Rumple... but for now it's nice to have someone who makes her smile.

It is learned through Regina's undercover mission with the Queens of Darkness that Rumplestiltskin is back in Storybrooke, and Emma, Mary Margaret, David and Hook quickly rush over to the Dark One's old shop in order to warn Belle of this, all well as advise her to hide the dagger. She is confused, having already hidden it with Hook, but Hook reveals that that wasn't him, and Emma deduces that Gold tricked his wife with a magical disguise. Later, Belle is with Will in the shop, the two of them spending time together, when Hook enters with Ursula the Sea Witch. Belle wonders if she can trust that Hook really is who he says he is, at which Ursula points out that if he were Rumple then "lover boy" (Will) would be dead already. Will trusts that this is probably correct, and Hook goes on to explain that he's in a predicament, for he needs to retrieve something from his ship, the Jolly Roger, but it's been shrunken and stuffed in a bottle. After mocking the size of the captain's ship - something Hook says is never wise -, Will is asked to help regrow it; Hook thinks that he will be helpful due to the fact that he's spent more time in Wonderland than anyone he knows. Will thinks he might have just the thing, and goes on to provide them with a mushroom extract which successfully returns the ship to its proper size.

Gallery
Gallery of photographic stills released to promote the character.