Mekia Cox Clears Up 'Princess & The Frog' Questions on 'Once Upon A Time'

Earlier this summer, we were all wondering about how Tiana’s story (from The Princess and the Frog) would fit into Once Upon a Time this season, and we didn’t get a great answer.

“We’re not redoing the movie, but we’re taking it as a jumping off point,” executive producer Adam Horowitz shared at the time. “We have a OUAT spin.”

However, Mekia Cox, who plays Tiana/Sabine in the upcoming season, is making it all good again for us.

“When I first auditioned, I asked that same question, and they said that they would like to meld The Princess and the Frog from Disney’s Princess and the Frog with the real Princess and the Frog stories, so they’re taking bits and pieces of it all,” she shared with EW.

She adds, “I mean, her name is Tiana, and they have bits of the bayou and all of that in there, but then they’re also taking pieces from other portions of the actual fairy tale, the Princess and the Frog story.”

Okay, so our Princess and the Frog hearts are a lot better now. Especially since we know that cooking is still part of her.

“Her main thing is she has her eyes on this goal of hers, which is cooking,” Mekia says. “She has always loved cooking, and you go back and you see how she gained this entrepreneurial spirit that she has; and that is brought into the real world.”

Once Upon a Time premieres Friday, October 6th on ABC.