The series was developed as a spin-off of Once Upon a Time starting in February 2013, created by Edward Kitsis, Adam Horowitz, Zack Estrin, and Jane Espenson, focusing on Lewis Carroll's Wonderland.

Creators Kitsis and Horowitz intentionally planned the show not to be stretched into a long-running 22-episode format, aiming instead to tell a complete story with a beginning, middle, and end, similar to a miniseries.

It was initially reported that the Mad Hatter, played by Sebastian Stan in the parent series, would be recast for the spin-off due to Stan's commitment to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Bucky Barnes. However, due to fan backlash and respect for Stan's performance, the character was dropped from the series entirely rather than recast.

Paul Reubens was originally cast as the voice of the White Rabbit in April 2013, but was replaced by John Lithgow when the series was officially greenlit in May 2013.

Iggy Pop was cast as the voice of the Caterpillar, replacing Roger Daltrey, who had voiced the character as a guest star on Once Upon a Time.

Barbara Hershey reprised her Once Upon a Time role as Cora / Queen of Hearts in one episode of the spin-off.

Michael Socha later reprised his Wonderland role as Will Scarlet / Knave of Hearts in Once Upon a Time, joining as a series regular for its fourth season.

The series was canceled after just one season on March 27, 2014, with its finale airing about a week later.