'Wheel Of Time' Season 2 Begins Filming Months Before Season 1 Even Arrives On Amazon
Looks like the Wheel is going to keep on turning at Amazon Prime Video. The company, which appears to be going all-in on fantasy storytelling, has already started production on The Wheel of Time season 2, despite the fact that the first season of the anticipated genre show is still months away from premiering.
What is The Wheel of Time?
Amazon's Wheel of Time is based on the popular series of fantasy novels, most of which were written by acclaimed author Robert Jordan. There are a total of 14 novels in the series; after Jordan died in 2007, the final three books were completed by Brandon Sanderson based on Jordan's detailed notes and outlines. The story is set in a fantasy kingdom in which only women can use magic and centers on Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl) as Moiraine, "a member of the shadowy and influential all-female organization called the 'Aes Sedai' as she arrives in the small town of Two Rivers. There, she embarks on a dangerous, world-spanning journey with five young men and women, one of whom is prophesied to be the Dragon Reborn, who will either save or destroy humanity."
Yesterday, the show's Twitter feed published a photo of a clapboard from the set and announced, "And the wheel keeps weaving...Filming for Season 2 of our series kicks off today!" Thomas Napper, who helmed 2017's indie boxing drama Jawbone and served as the second unit director on recent live-action Disney movies like Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, and Mary Poppins Returns, is directing.
Is Amazon Putting the Cart Before the Horse?
"Getting a second season order before the first season has even premiered is such a vote of confidence in the work we are doing and the property itself, and we couldn't be happier to be able to continue to live and work in the world Robert Jordan created," showrunner Rafe Judkins (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) said when the show was renewed for a second season. It's clear Amazon is not afraid to spend huge sums of money on fantasy properties, as evidenced by the mountain of cash it dropped for the rights to make its upcoming The Lord of the Rings show. Someone at Amazon must be convinced that audiences are not only hungry for fantasy stories but that they'll be able to compete in a serious way with HBO, who is ramping back up in the Game of Thrones universe with several spin-offs and prequels in the works.
I'm increasingly curious to see if the company's gamble pays off. Remember, this isn't the only Wheel of Time-related project in the works: last week, we learned that a trilogy of movies is in development (with no studio or distributor attached yet). Each film is set in that same universe, and the trilogy will kick off with a prequel called Age of Legends.