Jafar (Arabic: جعفر) is a character on ABC's Once Upon a Time and a main character on ABC's Once Upon a Time in Wonderland.
A sorcerer from Agrabah, he goes to Wonderland to find a certain genie's bottle so he can break the laws of magic. Jafar is portrayed by Oded Fehr, having been previously portrayed by Naveen Andrews, with his younger self portrayed by Anthony Keyvan.
Biography
Background
The bastard son of the Sultan of Agrabah, Jafar lived with his mother until she died. He goes to the palace in order to meet his father, however the Sultan does not accept him as a son and has him work as a servant. When Jafar speaks out of term in public and nearly calls the Sultan "father", the Sultan later drowns and kills Jafar, before having his corpse dumped out of the kingdom. However, through unknown means, Jafar comes back to life and seeks revenge against his father. He meets a sorceress named Amara who teaches him dark magic. The two apparently have some sort of relationship, until Jafar betrays Amara and transforms her into a golden snake staff in order to store his magic and use Amara's magic for his own nefarious purposes. Having disposed of his father, Jafar takes control of the new Sultan, becoming his vizier. With his influence over the Sultan, Jafar controls Agrabah and enforces strict penalties for thievery whilst allowing the peasants to starve.
Jafar's brutality causes the Sultan's daughter Princess Jasmine to seek out Aladdin, who she correctly believes is a Savior. When Jasmine confronts Jafar, he tries to kill her, although he is thwarted by Aladdin who also breaks Jafar's hold over the Sultan. Jafar flees, and Aladdin attempts to defeat him, although Jafar gives him a pair of magical shears that can sever Aladdin's position as "Savior". Aladdin refrains from using them, but over time the strain of being a Savior is too much. Jafar later confronts a weakened and pathetic Aladdin and gloats over him, allowing him to live and claiming that this is the fate of all Saviors. With Aladdin out of the way, Jafar returns to confront Jasmine, and tells her that she must marry him, or he will destroy Agrabah. Desperate to save Agrabah, Jasmine submits to him, but Jafar reveals that he was just bluffing so that she would give him the ring of Agrabah, which had an enchantment that protected Agrabah. Jafar then traps Agrabah inside the ring.
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland
Jafar travels to Wonderland, forms an unsteady partnership with Anastasia and fakes Cyrus' death. Jafar keeps Cyrus imprisoned until he escapes and finds his fiancee, Alice. When Anastasia discovers Tweedledee is actually Jafar's spy, she has him beheaded and his severed head sent to Jafar, before fleeing her palace. Jafar summons a storm to kill her, although she survives it, and takes over Anastasia's palace as self-proclaimed king of Wonderland. With the Caterpillar's knowledge, Jafar learns of a being known as the Jabberwocky and forms a dangerous alliance with her to obtain all three genies and change the laws of magic. However, it doesn't work because one of the genies, Will Scarlet, has no heart. After obtaining the heart from Alice but losing his staff in the process, Jafar returns Will's heart to his body, restoring Will's love for Anastasia before Jafar kills her. Jafar then resurrects and makes her fall in love with him. When he learns Alice, Cyrus and Amara are going to the Well of Wonders to return the water Amara consumed, which would free the genies and Jafar would no longer be all-powerful, Jafar stops them and takes the water. However, Jafar is shocked when Nyx rises from the Well. After claiming that Jafar has stolen the water for his own desires, Nyx states that Jafar shall now serve the desires of others, before trapping Jafar as a genie in a bottle, which vanishes all the way to Hangman's Island.
Jafar, imprisoned as a staff.
Season 6
On Hangman's Island, Jafar's bottle is found and collected by the mermaid, Ariel, who gives it to Jasmine, who is looking for a way to restore Agrabah. When Jasmine releases Jafar from the bottle, Jafar immediately frees himself from being a genie, and plans to exact revenge on those who imprisoned him, but not without the ring containing Agrabah. However, Jafar is stopped by Jasmine, who throws a magic powder at the sorcerer, trapping Jafar into the form of a wooden staff. The staff is given to one of the markets in Agrabah.
Family/Relationships
- The Sultan (deceased father)
- Ulima (deceased mother)
- Mirza (deceased half-brother)
Status: Alive, transformed
Trivia
- Jafar is based on the evil sorcerer in the tale of Aladdin.
- His primary mode of transportation is a magic flying carpet.
Behind the Scenes
- Jafar is one of the two main antagonists of Once Upon a Time in Wonderland.
Appearances
- S6, E01: "The Savior" (flashback)
- S6, E05: "Street Rats" (flashback)
- S6, E15: "A Wondrous Place"