Cora

"Love is weakness."

- Cora's iconic phrase

Princess Cora, also known as the Queen of Hearts, is a character on ABC's Once Upon a Time and Once Upon a Time in Wonderland. She débuts in the seventeenth episode of the first season of Once Upon a Time. She is portrayed by guest stars Barbara Hershey and Rose McGowan, and by co-star Jennifer Koenig. She does not have a Storybrooke counterpart.

Cora is based on the Miller's Daughter from the fairytale "Rumpelstiltskin", and the Queen of Hearts from the novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Trivia
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Etymology

 * The name "Cora" is of Greek origin derived from the name "Korë" that means "maiden". It is also another name for the Greek goddess Persephone.
 * Cora's name is a reference to the Latin word for "heart".
 * Rumplestiltskin alludes to this when he says that her name "sounds like something breaking".

Character Notes

 * Among the numerous fairytale illustrations in Henry's room, is an illustration by the American illustrator Jessie Willcox Smith, from Nora Archibald Smith's book Boys and Girls of Bookland (1923). It features Alice in a scene from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, surrounded by the characters of Wonderland, including the Queen of Hearts, the Mad Hatter (although we only see his hat) and the White Rabbit.
 * The illustration also appears in "The New Neverland"; however, in this episode, the Queen of Hearts and the Mad Hatter have been cropped off.
 * The clasps on Cora's coat in "The Stable Boy" have hearts on them.
 * Before Rumplestiltskin was imprisoned, he fought Cora and won. It is implied that she came close to winning.
 * The mask she holds resembles the baton that the Queen of Hearts carries in the Disney film Alice in Wonderland.
 * In the Storybrooke Graveyard, Cora's dead body is kept in Regina's vault under the name of "Cora Mills". Regina's cursed surname is Mills.
 * The graffiti on a gate, which young Emma and Lily pass as they run from Lily's father, has "Cora" written on it.
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Production Notes

 * Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz revealed in the podcast for "Queen of Hearts" that it was actually Barbara Hershey who voiced the Queen of Hearts in the episode "Hat Trick", in which Jennifer Koenig portrayed the character. This is also confirmed in the DVD and Blu-ray audio commentary.
 * Cora's necklace is a Silver Grey Gardens Petal Necklace By Alexis Bittar, which she wears during "We Are Both", "Lady of the Lake", "The Crocodile", "Into the Deep", "Queen of Hearts" and "In the Name of the Brother".

Appearances
Note: "Archive" denotes archive footage.
 * Cora's photo appears in a locket in "Welcome to Storybrooke".