Development

The idea for a live-action adaptation of Winx Club dates back to 2011. Winx Club creator Iginio Straffi first proposed a live version in May 2011, several months after Viacom, owner of Nickelodeon, became a co-owner of his studio Rainbow and started financing his projects.^[5][15] At the Ischia Global Fest in 2013, Straffi stated that he was still planning a production "with the Winx in flesh and blood, played by real actors. Sooner or later it will be done."^[16] Straffi had only worked on animated productions at the time, so he transitioned his focus to live action, working as a producer for Nickelodeon's live-action show Club 57.^[6]

In February 2016, Iginio Straffi mentioned that a live-action movie concept was being considered in partnership with Hollywood Gang Productions, but the project never proceeded.^[17] In March 2018, the idea was revisited as a television series after Netflix ordered a young-adult version for its streaming service.^[18] Straffi was involved in the early planning stages, and he declined a suggestion from Netflix for the male characters to be given larger roles.^[19]

After a pilot episode was scripted, Nickelodeon's American crew members from the cartoon, including Bloom's voice actress, Molly Quinn,^[7] travelled to meet the Fate production team and review the script.^[7] Francesco Artibani, one of the Italian writers of the animated version, was brought in to read the storyline.^[20] Rainbow's Joanne Lee oversaw the first season as an executive producer.

The writers behind Fate are entirely new to the Winx franchise, and they were recruited from teen dramas like The Vampire Diaries.^[8] Brian Young, who worked on seven seasons of The Vampire Diaries,^[21] is the creator and showrunner of Fate: The Winx Saga.^[22] According to an interview with The Guardian, Young chose to "ditch the look" of the cartoon Winx fairies, who have big eyes and sparkling outfits. He said, "Look, again, I'm a massive manga anime fan... but nobody looks like that."^[8] Some episodes of the first season were directed by Lisa James Larsson and Hannah Quinn.^[23][3][22]

Casting

Casting calls were held in August 2019.^[24][25] Abigail Cowen was announced to be headlining the series as Bloom in September 2019.^[26] "Bloom is a fire fairy who grew up in the first world, so she did not grow up in the other world. And she finds out, kind of by accident, that she has these powers," said Cowen.^[27]

Hannah van der Westhuysen, who plays Stella, revealed "Stella is a very complex girl. She appears a certain way, but she's actually a lot softer and she has a lot of barriers that need to be broken down." Precious Mustapha, who plays Aisha, said, "Aisha is a water fairy. From the offset, she seems quite confident with her powers. But, 'cause she's a perfectionist, she doesn't think that's good enough. She wants to always be developing."

Eliot Salt, who plays Terra, added, "Terra's power is all plant based. It's growing things and sending them off after people. She is the most welcoming. She loves it. She loves to meet new people. She gives too much."

Elisha Applebaum, who portrays Musa, said, "Musa is an empath. Her power is to feel everyone's emotions, whether it's nature or anything around. She's just open and honest, but also she's not honest with herself and she's trying to learn how to do that."

Danny Griffin, Sadie Soverall, Freddie Thorp, Eve Best, and Robert James-Collier were cast to play Sky, Beatrix, Riven, Farah Dowling, and Saul Silva in the series.^[28]

Filming

Filming of the first season began in County Wicklow, Ireland, in September 2019^[22] and concluded in December 2019.^[29] The primary filming locations included Killruddery House and Ardmore Studios in Bray.^[30][31][32] Some indoor scenes of the series were shot at Ashford Studios.^[33] Griffin, who plays Sky, said, "We had an incredible stunt crew who would take us through the steps very slowly and were really patient in the beginning. But it's always a big struggle, because later it had to be fast and accurate."^[34] Cowen, who plays Bloom, said, "Playing Bloom was interesting. I think I put a lot of pressure on myself because I knew that so many people are fans of the original Winx. It was a nerve-wracking but exciting and exhilarating experience."^[35]

Westhuysen, who portrays Stella, revealed, "I made diaries, scrapbooks, and things like that. They are really nice to look back on and will be very helpful for filming season two."^[36] Salt, who plays Terra, said, "I think what jumped out for me was just the range that everybody gets to do in the show, which is, I guess, quite unusual for most parts, but I think especially when you're generally playing young women, and the fact that we get to do comedy and tragedy and action and there's a lot to get your teeth into, so that's what really stood out to me."^[37] Mustapha, who plays Aisha, added, "I think the power of female friendship was something that really struck a chord with me, and I was like, 'This will be really fun to do' because we don't often get shows that are centred around women, let alone five women, so that was something I was definitely really excited about being a part of."^[37]

Music

Fate: The Winx Saga's music score was composed by Anne Nikitin, and the official playlist is available on Spotify, including 33 songs from various artists.^[38] Netflix also released a playlist for each fairy – Bloom's Fire Playlist, Stella's Light Playlist, Musa's Mind Playlist, Aisha's Water Playlist, Terra's Earth Playlist, and Beatrix's Air Playlist – on Spotify.^[39]

Development

On 18 February 2021, Netflix renewed the series for a second season to consist of eight episodes.^[10] "The six episodes in season one only scratched the surface of this incredibly rich world and the powerful fairies who inhabit it. As Bloom’s story continues to evolve, I can't wait for you to learn even more about Aisha, Stella, Terra, and Musa! And you never know who might show up at Alfea next term…" said showrunner Brian Young.^[40] The second season, which ultimately consisted of seven episodes, released on 16 September 2022.^[11]

Young revealed the audience can expect Icy and Darcy, two of the Trix trio, if the show gets renewed for a season three.^[41]

Young added, "The benefit of a season 2 show is it gives you the ability to sort of expand the things that made season 1 great. We had more second-unit days, we had more VFX, more everything to be completely honest. We were able to really make the VFX sing to make the show feel like it's the best version of itself that it can be."^[42] Visual Effects supervisor David Houghton said, "In COVID times, it is difficult to rally as many extras as you would normally be able to. With some VFX help and some clever filming, we're able to fill out our world."

On Terra's coming out moment, Salt said, "I was told it was going to happen quite early on in Season 1. So I knew that whole time, and I kept it quiet-ish. It's so important, now more than ever, to see queer joy depicted on screen. In a setting where there's so much else going on, it was nice to put all of that aside for a moment to say that this is great."^[43] Young added, "Having Terra not be a canon character from the series gave us a little more leeway with her on the show. Audiences need to see people struggling, then coming out, then having a group of friends loving and supporting them. There's wish fulfillment in that."^[43]

Casting

On 20 July 2021, Paulina Chávez, Brandon Grace and Éanna Hardwicke were announced to be joining the series's second season as Flora, Grey and Sebastian.^[44] Chávez said about Flora, "She's very much a person that cares about people a lot, and that's what makes her so easily lovable. She really controls the room when she's in it, and that's something that I had to learn to do. I'm a little shy."^[45] She further recalled, "I remember when they actually announced it and there was a comment just like, 'Guys, she's Mexican. We won.'" Chávez said, "This is a big win for the Latino community. I'm in Ireland, what the hell?! Who would've thought this girl from El Paso would be here? It's pretty cool."^[42] Despite the whitewashing controversy, Applebaum returned as Musa.^[46]

On 27 July 2022, Miranda Richardson and Daniel Betts were announced to be replacing Lesley Sharp and Alex Macqueen as Rosalind Hale and Professor Ben Harvey, respectively.^[47] Sharp was not able to return to the series as she had other commitments scheduled and could not make the filming dates work.^[48]

Filming

The second season began filming in Ireland in July 2021, with filming concluding in November 2021.^[49] The Dublin Hellfire Club was one of the filming locations for the season. The scene featuring Cowen and Best in episode six was filmed with a body double. Farah's lines were played through a massive speaker as Best was not present on set at the moment. Weeks later, she filmed her own parts in London in front of a green screen because of COVID-related hurdles.^[42] Houghton added, "Their wings aren't just wings. Their kind of wings are made of various elemental forces, like water or light. They have to fly and then, at the end of it, they use their magical powers to blast the villain, who also has a magical effect all over his body. There were all those different elements in a scene that we had to shoot in 2 or 3 days on a set and then have green screen elements on top of that." He revealed, "Every visual effect shot costs around £310,000, depending on the complexity of it."^[42]

Cowen, who plays Bloom, said, "Everything is just kind of amped up. Through our costumes, our hair, our makeup, our characters feel more sure about themselves and are really coming into their own. New secrets are revealed, and it’s going to be really, really awesome. I've seen little clips, and it's very cinematic. We're really excited." Mustapha, who plays Aisha, added, "I feel like this season, in particular, everyone has their own story. We're not always together, and I think that's gonna be really exciting to watch because I've not seen some of the things others have done."^[42]

Westhuysen, who portrays Stella, revealed, "We'll sometimes have two different crews at the same time, so in one day you could film a scene from episodes 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 just doting between two different crews. And that's a testament to how brilliant the crew is on this."^[42] Applebaum, who portrays Musa, said, "Some of the stunt-y scenes I've had to do have been a bit more challenging because they’re not things I've done before. It's definitely straining on the body. I've gone home and had an Epsom salt bath every single time I've done one, and then it's off to the next."

Talking about the fairy transformations in the final episode, Salt, who plays Terra, said, "It was so much fun. Going up in the little strings and having a man in a green suit spin me around with his hands was one of the most surreal things that has ever happened to me, and I enjoyed every second."^[50] Thorp, who plays Riven, said, "I spend a lot of time with our stunt team, who are fantastic and all very experienced, in martial arts, stunt driving, and sword fighting." About the fight scene in the ruins, he said, "It was amazing and epic to shoot because we did it in these old ruins, on top of this hill. It used to be where the Hellfire group used to meet, which is an old cult that had meetings in Ireland."^[51]

Music

"Dark Side" by Neoni was used in the trailer of the second season.^[52] Taylor Swift's "Wildest Dreams" was featured in a scene where Bloom and Sky are horse riding in a field.^[53]