Amazon’s Time of Wheel Showrunner asked GoT Creators for advice
We are entering a strange and dark phase of intellectual property boom. Hollywood has completely run out of fantasy material that can be easily adapted. Out of desperation comes the opportunity, and it will therefore be Amazon Prime Video that will try the impossible … to adapt the beloved – but complicated – fantasy book series The wheel of time. Never fear, George RR Martin Game of Thrones was also once considered unfit before it became the most popular TV series in the world. So the fearless hero in this news article, The wheel of time showrunner Rafe Judkins, turned to GoT creators David Benioff and Dan Weiss for advice. (At least The wheel of time books are all written so they do not have to risk posing a terrible ending that does not make sense.)
Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson’s massive high fantasy book series, spanning more than 14 volumes published between 1990-2013, is a huge task for Amazon Prime Video. As such, Judkins utilizes all the resources at his disposal.
In a recent GQ history, Judkins revealed that he was looking for advice on creating an epic fantasy series that made the books fair, stood alone as an attractive new big budget series for an average audience and carved its own unique niche in a crowded fantasy entertainment space.
“Just do what you want to do, it Game of Thrones duo advised him pr. outlet. “You know what this is. You have to believe in it. That kind of thing has to have an extraordinary clarity of sight in order to work.”
Sci-fi and fantasy have always contained potential for both broad appeal and costly mischief. You need significant resources to bring to life amazing new worlds filled with magic and a dedicated explanation to explain the rules. It’s a difficult balancing act that fails more often than it succeeds in Hollywood. Amazon has made the rare decision to hand out a season 2 order The wheel of time, which takes place in a world where only women can exploit magic and a powerful order seek out a prophesied savior before season 1 premieres. This provides a safety net for the rooking series, while doubling the pressure to deliver. That’s what makes the big budget play such a fascinating television experiment.
The first three sections of The wheel of time Season 1 debuts on Amazon Prime Video on November 19th.
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