Two live-action television series based on epic fantasy literature are on their way to Amazon Prime Video. While The Lord of the Rings is a household name with a built-in following, the lesser-known The Wheel of Time is coming first, and showrunner Rafe Judkins knew that it had to establish its niche in the first season.
“The way I approached it was by thinking of [Season 1] as an adaptation of the entire series,” Judkins said in an interview with Empire Magazine, shared on Twitter by The Wheel of Time podcast Talk’aran’rhiod. “I tried to take the spine of the first book, and then infuse it with all the elements that make The Wheel of Time so unique.”
The Wheel of Time is based on a lengthy series of high fantasy books by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson, first published in the 1990s. Although influences from J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth are evident, the world that the series takes place in also has major differences. There are no Elves or Dwarves, and the human societies are still recovering after an ancient catastrophe called the Breaking of the World — and preparing for another one when the so-called Dragon is reborn.
Judkins’ remarks on his strategy reiterate his recent explanation that The Wheel of Time will take a non-linear approach to adapting the first few books. It’s also shown in the newly released teaser trailer for the series, which focuses on the all-female magic-wielding organization of the Aes Sedai. This is a marked contrast from the first book in the series, which had only one Aes Sedai character playing an important role, but the early introduction of one unique element from The Wheel of Time may go a long way toward showing viewers that this isn’t Tolkien’s world.
With The Wheel of Time premiering in November and The Lord of the Rings coming a year later, fans of epic fantasy will have a lot to look forward to watching on Amazon, but they shouldn’t expect to see the same show twice.
Executive produced and written by Rafe Judkins, The Wheel of Time premieres this Nov. 19 on Amazon Prime Video. Developed by J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay, The Lord of the Rings will premiere on Amazon Prime on Sept. 2, 2022.
KEEP READING: The Wheel of Time Season 1 Plot, Trailer and News to Know
Source: Empire Magazine via Twitter
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