Fantasy fans thought they had hit the big time when Prime Video became the home of both a Lord of the Rings series and an adaptation of Robert Jordan’s sprawling The Wheel of Time saga. However, while the Tolkien-based show has had its own issues to deal with, Prime Video is sticking by The Rings of Power through thick and thin, but The Wheel of Time was unfairly canceled after three seasons. Star Rosamund Pike has a fair idea why the show didn’t make it beyond its third season.
Speaking to Collider ahead of her new movie, Now You See Me, Now You Don’t, Pike shared her thoughts on the series becoming a victim of the “terrible churn” on streaming platforms and everyone’s need to have “new things.” She said:
“The fans said season 1 wasn’t good enough, which I think I agree with, for multiple reasons. We were beset by COVID in the middle of our shooting. We had some heads of department change. Then, by season 2, we knew what we were doing, and we offered up a much better season. By season 3, I think we had our wings fully spread, and we were showing where we were capable of going, and there was a really well-acted, well-written, cohesive, deep show that was attracting powerhouse actors to come and play supporting characters. I think we showed what we were capable of doing with that material. Of course, you wonder, had we started off at that place, would we not have been canceled? Maybe. I think we’re possibly victims to the terrible churn factor of people wanting to show that ‘We’ve got a new show.’ It’s all about what’s new.”
Could ‘The Wheel of Time’ Ever Return to Screens?
Prime Video
While Robert Jordan’s epic fantasy saga is longer than Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, and has just as many fans, the saga does not have the same kind of general pop culture recognition of the stories of Middle Earth. Will we see The Wheel of Time be picked up and continued elsewhere? Pike believes there are certainly enough people who have a deep connection to the series to make it possible.
“I’ve touched the waters of what it’s meant to people, but this was a chance for people to really express, to come with people they’ve met through The Wheel of Time, people who’ve gotten married because of The Wheel of Time, people who’ve had the courage to come out because of The Wheel of Time. There are people who wanted to end their lives until they discovered The Wheel of Time. It’s profound and meaningful, and I just thought, ‘My God, if I could get the heads of Amazon here at stage door with me, listening to these stories.’”
Pike’s belief about The Wheel of Time taking too long to hit its stride does seem to match with its reviews, as the show steadily improved between its first and third seasons, with audience scores rising from 62% to 85%. The fact that The Rings of Power continues to be slammed by audiences, while retaining record-breaking viewership, confounds any belief that The Wheel of Time was canceled purely based on its reviews. Whether that means there is a chance another streamer could snap up the rights to continue the saga is something that only time will tell.
Release Date
2021 – 2025-00-00
Network
Prime Video
Showrunner
Rafe Judkins
Directors
Sanaa Hamri, Ciaran Donnelly, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Thomas Napper, Maja Vrvilo, Wayne Che Yip
Writers
Amanda Kate Shuman, Dave Hill, Rohit Kumar, Justine Juel Gillmer, Celine Song, Rammy Park, The Clarksons Twins, Katherine B. McKenna
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