Amazon will be releasing The Wheel of Time on November 19; Credits: HypeAbout
Who says only the big screens are meant to impress audiences at a larger scale. TV productions in recent years have served quite a lot of masterpieces in recent years, with Game of Thrones taking the pie for being one of the best, if not the best, overall constructed TV shows to ever exist. While the fantasy epic couldn't last forever and took its leave, Jeff Bezos' streaming service is ready to bring a new fantasy epic to your screens which possibly could put the iconic GoT to shame.
Dubbed as The Wheel of Time, the Amazon Prime show has already budgeted at millions of dollars, as the set creators have taken to build and destroy elaborately constructed sets at a quarry near Prague. The fake town, Two Rivers, in the show, features everything you would imagine a medieval place to have, ranging from a town in to two-story stone houses. But, all is burned just days later, with smoke billowing out from the half-burned buildings. The images such a series could conjure can be far more captivating than anything we have seen before.
Here's everything about 'Wheel of Time' to let you know of the next cinematic masterpiece to premiere on your screens.
The Amazon series is based on a novel series by Robert Jordan. The first book, The Eye of the World, was published in 1990, which led to the rise of a fantastic book series up until 2007 when Jordan died. But he left behind his notes about the ideas where he wanted to take the books, and Brandon Sanderson then took the notes to finish the series in 2013.
With the Hollywood industry long looking for a series worthy of a big adaptation just as the GoT franchise, Wheel of Time made the cut and will soon be seen on TV. Read further to know more.
When is the series set to be released?
A still from The Wheel of Time; Credits: The Wheel of Time, Instagram
Creators have been working on the series from before 2019, constructing enormous sets, and utilizing as much as $10 million per episode for the production. Now that the series has finally come into a coherent shape in May 2021, after the shooting pause owing to the pandemic, the series is set to be released on November 19, 2021. The series is to be exclusively streamed on Amazon Prime. Season one will run for eight episodes and the production of season 2 is already underway.
The Wheel of Time trailer
After years of speculations about what the first look of the series is going to be like, Amazon finally dropped a trailer for the show. Released in early September this year, the trailer spans over a chaotic ensemble of characters leading to powerful performances and uncountable tense moments. The series has shared several snippets teasing the scenes from the anticipated show. The trailer and snippets feature the legendary heron sword, the ruby-hilted dagger of Shadar Logoth, and even teases Moiraine using the One Power.
Will the show come forward with Season 2?
While the first season hasn't aired yet, Amazon has already renewed the show for the second season as of May 20, 2021. The quick beginning of the second season's production can be owed to all the halts that the pandemic brought for the series.
A piece of good news was shared by Rafe Judkins when he made a surprise visit during the Robert Jordan convention, JordanCONline in 2020. Even back in spring 2020, the series had faced many issues on the legal and production front meaning the creation of the show was slow-paced at best. Judkins had revealed that the writeup for the further stages was already processing, and season 2 would make its way to your screens shortly after season 1.
Recently Judkins shared, "The nice thing about the quarantine hold on production is that we will now have all eight scripts going into prep for Season 2, which will let us do such a better job with it and it lets me focus more on the scripts and the editing that we’re doing right now because we're not shooting." The filming for season 2 is also underway in Prague.
What is the series about?
The series spans over time thousands of years from now in the future and yet mirrors the medieval past we associate with Europe as the series contend with a cyclic movement of time. The series takes place in "Third Age," which is three millennia ahead of now and when the world as we see it today ceases to exist due to "The Breaking of the World." Technology comes to an end, and so does the "age of Legends," a term used to name the age of advanced technological feats. There is magic in this new world which is known as 'channeling.'
The first season takes after Jordan's first book, The Eye of the World, and revolves around Moiraine Damodred, a member of the Aes Sedai, an exclusive female-only magic club. Moiraine takes it on herself to find Dragon Reborn, a character who is predestined to shape the future of humanity for better or worse. She finds her way to the city of Two Rivers, and it is here she meets Rand Al'Thor, Mat Cauthon, and Perrin Aybara, one of whom could be the person she is looking for.
But she is not the only one looking for the Dragon Reborn. A sinister force, the Dark One, is also in the search of the prophesied character, and the adventure spans over Moiraine trying to take these people with her back to Aes Sedai and evading the notice of the dark force.
The series is majorly based on the books, and while TV shows can sometimes take a life of their own, Rafe Judkins has made sure to work with Robert Jordan's widow Harriet McDougal, assistant Maria Simons, and Brandon Sanderson, who eventually concluded the book series. The shoemaker also immersed himself in all of Jordan's interviews so he could get the show right in all its essence, along with the names of the characters and the places.
Time of Wheel Cast:
The cast of The Wheel of Time; Credits: The Wheel of Time, Instagram
The series will be led by Rosamund Pike from Gone Girl in the first season who plays Moiraine. The character mentors and teaches young members of Aes Sedai, and is the one to go looking for Dragon Reborn. Rand Al'Thor is played by Josha Stradowski from Just friends, Perrin Aybara by Marcus Rutherford from Obey, and Mat Cauthon by Barney Harris from Billionaire Boys Club.
Other members include Zoe Robins from The Killian Curse and Madeleine Madden from Dora and the Lost City of Gold. Game of Thrones actor Michael McElhatton who played Roose Bolton will play Tam Al'Thor, Daniel Henny, Alvaro Morte from Money Heist, and Hammed Animashaun.
