The Sultan is a character featured on ABC's Once Upon a Time in Wonderland. He is portrayed by Brian George, and his younger self is portrayed by Amir Arison.
Biography[]
Background[]
At some point he had a relationship with a woman named Ulima, though the relationship fails he leaves her with a ring. Unknown to him she is pregnant.
Years later he discovers that he has another son, Jafar, he is disgusted at having an illegitimate child and refuses to even acknowledge him as a son. But out of admiration for having the courage to see him, decides to let him stay at the royal palace, but as a servant sternly telling him not to call him father. He already has another son, Mirza, who is to become prince. When Jafar eventually speaks out of term in a public gathering, the Sultan later allows and encourages Mirza to slap Jafar across the face, telling Mirza that if he is to eventually become Sultan one day, then he must make the people fear him. He returns and apologizes to Jafar for the abuse from Mirza, but then before Jafar has the slightest idea of what is going on, he sticks Jafar's head underwater and drowns him. He has Jafar's body dumped outside the kingdom. Years later, an adult Jafar returns somehow, but he is now equipped with dark magic and kills Mirza, who attempts to flee. The Sultan tells Jafar that he will never love him.
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland[]
When Jafar travels to Wonderland, he takes his father with him, as a prisoner. In Jafar's tower, the Sultan is in a large cage suspended over a pit just like Cyrus. Jafar eventually takes over the Red Queen's castle, and his father is locked in the dungeons. After Jafar gains the ability to break and change the laws of magic, he makes the Sultan love him. His father tells him that he is all a father could ask for, and dotes upon him. However, Jafar finds that he isn't satisfied with this, and decides that he wants the Sultan to know what it feels like to be killed by a loved one. As a sort of twisted reversal, Jafar magically causes the Sultan to drown, killing him.
Personality[]
As the Sultan, having absolute power, he had very little moral restraint and was a cold, ruthless and heartless tyrant who only cared about his son Mirza. He believed that power is achieved through fear and thus enforced it through beating servants who displeased him or murdering them, even if that servant was a ten year old boy and/or his illegitimate child. He was also selfish and uncaring, refusing to take in his bastard child and ignore his dead girlfriends last wish simply because he already had a son. He refused to even let Jafar call him father. Treating the ten year old boy like a servant, having him beaten by his legitimate son and even tried to drown him over an innocent mistake he promised wouldn't happen again. He was also shown to have complete disrespect for others by having Jafars body dumped in the garbage saying that he was 'refuse' (garbage).
He believed that love, even between family had to be earned not given, thus why he did not love Jafar as he never even gave him a chance. He also respected courage which is why he let Jafar in the palace.
After loosing his only beloved son, kingdom and subject to torture he has gained a greater understanding of mercy and is much warmer and kinder to others. He was also selfless dropping the keys to his freedom so he wouldn't slow Cyrus down and was concerned for Alice when she was in pain showing he has become a much more caring individual. Despite this he has no regrets for the way he treated Jafar, though this is more because of how monstrous he has become than his previous reasons (even if he never admits to others or to himself that he is partly responsible for what Jafar has become).
Family[]
Status: Deceased
Trivia[]
- He is the father of the sorcerer from the story Aladdin.
Appearances[]
- W, E02: "Trust Me"
- W, E03: "Forget Me Not"
- W, E04: "The Serpent"
- W, E05: "Heart of Stone"
- W, E06: "Who's Alice?"
- W, E07: "Bad Blood"
- W, E09: "Nothing to Fear"
- W, E11: "Heart of the Matter"
- W, E12: "To Catch a Thief"
- W, E13: "And They Lived..."