Season 1 of the web television series The Wheel of Time premiered on Friday, November 19, 2021 on Prime Video.[1] The season consists of eight episodes.[2]
The first two episodes had an early premiere in select theatres on November 15, 2021.
The first three episodes premiered on Prime Video on Friday, November 19, with new episodes available each Friday following, leading up to the season finale on December 24, 2021.
Synopsis[]
Official synopsis for The Wheel of Time from Amazon Studios in October 2021:
The lives of five young villagers change forever when a strange and powerful woman arrives, claiming one of them is the child of an ancient prophecy with the power to tip the balance between Light and Dark forever. They must choose whether to trust this stranger – and each other – with the fate of the world before the Dark One breaks out of His prison, and the Last Battle begins.
Official synopsis from a press release by Amazon Studios in July 2021:[3]
Set in a sprawling, epic world where magic exists and only certain women are allowed to access it, the story follows Moiraine (Rosamund Pike), a member of the incredibly powerful 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.
Official synopsis first shared by The Hollywood Reporter in October 2018:[4][5][6]
Set in a sprawling world where magic exists but can only be used by women, the story follows Moiraine, a member of the shadowy and influential all-female organization the Aes Sedai, as she embarks on a dangerous journey with five young men and women. Moiraine's interest in these five lies in the fact that she believes one of them might be the reincarnation of an incredibly powerful individual who prophecies say will either save humanity or destroy it. The series draws on numerous elements of European and Asian culture and philosophy, most notably the cyclical nature of time found in Buddhism and Hinduism.
Episodes[]
| # | Title | Air Date[1] | Writer | Director | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leavetaking | Nov 19, 2021 | Rafe Judkins | Uta Briesewitz | |
  A strange noblewoman arrives in a remote mountain village, claiming one of five youths is the reincarnation of an ancient power who once destroyed the world – and will do so again, if she’s not able to discover which of them it is. But they all have less time than they think. | |||||
| 2 | Shadow's Waiting | Nov 19, 2021 | Amanda Kate Shuman | Uta Briesewitz | |
  Moiraine and Lan lead the four villagers to safety, unsure which is the one from the prophecy. But the friends are equally unsure about their rescuers, especially once they see how far Moiraine is willing to go for her mission – and how far astray Lan is willing to lead them. | |||||
| 3 | A Place of Safety | Nov 19, 2021 | Paul Clarkson & Michael Clarkson | Wayne Yip | |
  Moiraine and Lan find help in an unexpected – and unwanted – quarter, as the separated villagers try to find their way back to each other, or at least to refuge. But they all soon learn how far the Dark One’s reach extends, and how few they can trust on the road. | |||||
| 4 | The Dragon Reborn | Nov 26, 2021 | Dave Hill | Wayne Yip | |
  Moiraine struggles with uncertainty while Lan struggles with their new companion. Rand wonders about Mat and Mat starts to wonder at himself. Egwene and Perrin take their first steps down a different path. An incredible new power is unleashed on the world. | |||||
| 5 | Blood Calls Blood | Dec 3, 2021 | Celine Song | Salli Richardson Whitfield | |
  Perrin and Egwene run into a familiar face. Mat and Rand see strange ones. Moiraine and Lan mourn their loss. | |||||
| 6 | The Flame of Tar Valon | Dec 10, 2021 | Justine Juel Gillmer | Salli Richardson Whitfield | |
  Moiraine faces the consequences of her actions. Mat faces the darkness in himself. Egwene faces the most powerful woman in the world. | |||||
| 7 | The Dark Along the Ways | Dec 17, 2021 | Amanda Kate Shuman & Katherine B. McKenna | Ciaran Donnelly | |
  Moiraine and her charges are diverted from their path by an unexpected encounter. This diversion, though, reveals many things — Moiraine’s true goal, Lan’s past, the fractures that have grown in the group, and the identity of the Dragon Reborn. | |||||
| 8 | The Eye of the World | Dec 24, 2021 | Rafe Judkins | Ciaran Donnelly | |
  Season finale. For twenty years, Moiraine has dreamed and worked towards this moment. But she can't stop the Dragon Reborn from seeing the appeal of the Dark. | |||||
Bonus videos[]
| # | Title | Airdate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moiraine's Quest | October 22, 2021 |
Supplementary series[]
- Inside the Wheel of Time, the official after-show that aired on Tuesdays
- The Wheel of Time - Explained, a series of short explainers introduced by the cast
- The Wheel of Time Origins, an animated series of standalone shorts
Cast and characters[]
Starring:
Guest starring:
Co-starring, in alphabetical order by cast surname:
- Naana Agyei-Ampadu as Danya[7]
- Miguel Álvarez as the King of Ghealdan[13]
- Derancie Baitoukou as Malkieri Woman[11]
- Robyn Betteridge as Helga Grinwell[13]
- Lilibet Biutanaseva as Eldrin Cauthon[7]
- Litiana Biutanaseva as Bode Cauthon[7]
- Pasha Bocarie as Master Grinwell[13]
- Katie Brayben as Latra Posae Decume[12]
- Petra Bučková as Armswoman Rose[12]
- Thomas Chaanhing as Lord Agelmar[11]
- Amar Chadha-Patel as Lord Yakota[11]
- Lolita Chakrabarti as Marin al'Vere[7]
- Keira Chansa as Young Siuan Sanche[8]
- Darren Clarke as Basel Gill[8]
- Madiana Day as Malkieri Child[11]
- Michael D'Cruze as Zahir[11]
- Peter de Jersey as Berden Sanche[8]
- Maria Doyle Kennedy as Ila[9]
- David Dvorscík as Grinwell Son[13]
- Mark Fletcher as Lead Warder[10]
- Vilma Frantová as Yellow Aes Sedai[14]
- Peter Franzén as Stepin[9]
- Roman Dvořák as Young Man[7]
- Jennifer Cheon Garcia as Leane Sharif[8]
- Stuart Graham as Geofram Bornhald[14]
- Juliet Howland as Natti Cauthon[7]
- Izuka Hoyle as Dana[9]
- Emmanuel Imani as Ihvon[9]
- Jan Loukota as Homeless Man[9]
- Petra Lustigová as Shienaran Woman[12]
- Daryl McCormack as Aram[9]
- Sandy McDade as Maigan[8]
- Michael McElhatton as Tam al'Thor[7]
- Evelyn Mok as Yellow Aes Sedai[8]
- Álvaro Morte as Logain Ablar[9]
- Johann Myers as Padan Fain[7]
- Taylor Napier as Maksim[9]
- Clare Perkins as Kerene Nagashi[9]
- Jan Petřina as Old Man[7]
- Jennifer Preston as Mistress Grinwell[13]
- Pearce Quigley as Master Hightower[14]
- Guy Roberts as Uno Nomesta[11]
- Alexia Rodriguez-Melian as Small Girl on Western Shore[12]
- Christopher Sciueref as Abell Cauthon[7]
- Abdul Salis as Eamon Valda[14]
- Narinder Samra as Raen[9]
- Sandra Yi Sencindiver as Lady Amalisa[11]
- Petr Simcák as Tom Thane[7]
- Magdalena Sittova as Tigraine Mantear[11]
- David Sterne as Cenn Buie[7]
- Mandi Symonds as Daise Conger[7]
- Rebecca Tanwen as Elusha Salid[13]
- Michael Tuahine as Bran al'Vere[7]
- Terezie Vraspírová as Armswoman Hallway
- Helena Westerman as Laila Dearn[7]
- Alexandre Willaume as Thom Merrilin[9]
Additional characters:
Production[]
On October 2, 2018, Amazon announced that it had given the production a series order.[4]
Casting[]
It was announced in June 2019 that Rosamund Pike had been cast as the lead in the series.[15] Further main cast members were announced in August 2019: Josha Stradowski as Rand al'Thor, Marcus Rutherford as Perrin Aybara, Zoë Robins as Nynaeve al'Meara, Barney Harris as Mat Cauthon, and Madeleine Madden as Egwene al'Vere.[16]
Principal photography[]
On September 10, 2019, the cast had their first table read.[17]
Principal photography began on September 16, 2019.[18] In March 2020, production in the Czech Republic was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It resumed in September 2020. In November 2020, production was halted a second time with a possible restart for April 2021.[19][20][21] In April 2021, production in the Czech Republic resumed, with cast members back on set.[22]
Filming primarily took place in the Czech Republic, but the series also filmed in Slovenia, Croatia, and Spain.[23][24][25]
- Czechia (the Czech Republic) - various locations
- Jordan Studios in Prague - the primary studio location, includes the sets for Tar Valon and Shadar Logoth
- A quarry located 40 kilometers outside of Prague - where the Two Rivers village set was built
- Slovenia - for several scenic locations around the Two Rivers
- Croatia - for several scenic locations while traveling
- Spain
- Alcázar of Segovia, Segovia - for Ghealdan
- Benijo Beach in Tenerife, Canary Islands - the far western shore
On May 18, 2021, principal photography for season 1 was completed.[26] The first season took a total of 145 days to film.[27]
Release[]
On Tuesday, November 16, 2021, the first episode will be screened as part of a red carpet premiere event in London.
On Monday, November 15, 2021, the first two episodes had "exclusive fan screenings" in select cities in the USA.[28] Many prominent fans attended to officially host these screening events:
| City | Fan / Organization | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Atlanta, Georgia | JordanCon (convention organizers) | [29] |
| Austin, Texas | ||
| Chicago, Illinois | Wheel Takes with Ali and Gus (podcast) | [30] |
| Dallas, Texas | ||
| Denver, Colorado | ||
| Los Angeles, California | Dragonmount (fansite) | [31] |
| Miami, Florida | ||
| New York City, New York | The Black Tower (fangroup) | [32] |
| Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | ||
| San Francisco, California | Maidens of the Spear (YouTube videos) | [33] |
| Seattle, Washington | Weekly Wheel News (parody news) | [34] |
| Washington DC | @malkiersking (Twitter personality) | [35] |
On Friday, November 19, 2021, the first three episodes were released on Prime Video. It was released in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide.[3]
The episodes were released weekly on Fridays, leading up to the season finale on December 24.
Music[]
The series is composed by Lorne Balfe, who reached out to get involved with the series. There are about 18 musical themes for the first season. He worked closely with showrunner Rafe Judkins to come up with a distinct sound for the series, to separate it from other fantasy series. It has a very global sound with a variety of instruments, such as a carnyx. The lyrics of the music are in the Old Tongue and narrate the scenes like an opera.[36]
Balfe and the team will release music without initially providing lyrics, to give fans a chance to try to analyze the music. They also plan to release the instrumental versions of the music so fans can add their own vocals, and to release just the vocals so fans can make their own music to go with it.[36]
Albums[]
The first season will have four albums. The first album is a musical introduction for season 1, the characters, and the themes. The following albums will be for every two episodes, for a total of four albums.[36]
| Album title | Released | Tracks | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Wheel of Time: The First Turn | November 12, 2021 | 14 | 53 minutes 7 seconds |
| The Wheel of Time: Season 1, Vol. 1 | November 19, 2021 | 16 | 46 minutes 44 seconds |
| The Wheel of Time: Season 1, Vol. 2 | December 3, 2021 | 17 | 51 minutes |
| The Wheel of Time: Season 1, Vol. 3 | December 17, 2021 | 12 | 43 minutes 35 seconds |
Singles[]
Three singles were released for the first album. Al'Naito was the first single, released on October 8, 2021.[37] The second and third singles were Mashiara and Caisen'shar, released on November 5, 2021. Like a Raging Sun was a single released for the third album on November 23, 2021. Revelation was a single released for the fourth album on December 10, 2021.
Gallery[]
Images[]
Posters[]
Videos[]
Notes and Trivia[]
- Season 1 cover the storyline of the first novel, The Eye of the World
(book spoilers!),[38] with some aspects of the book being cut and used in later seasons.[39] Aspects from the second book, The Great Hunt (book spoilers!), also appear, such as characters who are not introduced until that book. Smaller character revelations from books later in the series also appear in the first season. - The budget for season 1 is estimated to be over $80 million USD, or $10+ million per episode.[40]
- According to Nielsen, the series had 1.163 billion streaming minutes from November 15 to November 21.[41]
(book spoilers!),
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Amazon Studios press release: Amazon Prime Video Debuts Official Teaser Trailer for The Wheel of Time. September 2, 2021.
- ↑ Eight episodes confirmed in a panel with Rafe Judkins on April 18, 2020. Video: JordanCONline WoT on Prime panel @ 23:15.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Amazon Studios: Amazon Original Series The Wheel of Time releases teaser poster during COMIC-CON@HOME panel. July 23, 2021.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 The Hollywood Reporter: 'Wheel of Time' Fantasy Drama Nabs Amazon Series Order by Aex Ritman. October 2, 2018.
- ↑ Production Weekly: December 12, 2018 (PDF)
- ↑ Tor: The Wheel of Time TV Series to Start Production in Fall 2019. January 23, 2019.
- ↑ 7.00 7.01 7.02 7.03 7.04 7.05 7.06 7.07 7.08 7.09 7.10 7.11 7.12 7.13 7.14 7.15 7.16 7.17 7.18 7.19 7.20 7.21 7.22 7.23 7.24 The Wheel of Time, season 1 episode 1: Leavetaking.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 The Wheel of Time, season 1 episode 6: The Flame of Tar Valon.
- ↑ 9.00 9.01 9.02 9.03 9.04 9.05 9.06 9.07 9.08 9.09 9.10 9.11 The Wheel of Time, season 1 episode 3: A Place of Safety.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 The Wheel of Time, season 1 episode 5: Blood Calls Blood.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 11.6 11.7 11.8 The Wheel of Time, season 1 episode 7: The Dark Along the Ways.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 The Wheel of Time, season 1 episode 8: The Eye of the World.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 13.5 The Wheel of Time, season 1 episode 4: The Dragon Reborn.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 The Wheel of Time, season 1 episode 2: Shadow's Waiting.
- ↑ Official Twitter: Rosamund Pike To Star In The Wheel Of Time TV Adaptation At Amazon
- ↑ Variety: Wheel of Time' Series at Amazon Rounds Out Main Cast
- ↑ Twitter: On September 10th, the cast and crew of #WOTonPrime got together to read the first episode of The Wheel Of Time. Production is now on its way and we are VERY excited to see this show come to life! #TwitterOfTime, this is for you. October 2, 2019.
- ↑ Twitter: video September 16, 2019.
- ↑ NEWS: According to multiple sources, #WotOnPrime production in the Czech Republic has been halted. Two sources tell us production is planned to resume in April of 2021. November 2, 2020.
- ↑ Filming suspended on THE WHEEL OF TIME for the second time. November 2, 2020.
- ↑ Filming on The Wheel of Time shuts down…again by Dan Selcke. November 2, 2020.
- ↑ Actor Josha Stradowski shared an image on Instagram live of a trailer and a sunset, and the trailer has a link to filmbus.cz, a service in the Czech Republic that provides buses and trailers for productions. Fan @celticmyst08 tweeted with a screenshot and zoom-in on the image on April 20, 2021.
- ↑ Atlas of Wonders: Where was The Wheel of Time filmed? Guide to ALL the Filming Locations. (archived)
- ↑ WoTSeries.com: Breaking: WoT To Film in… Spain? by Omar. November 20, 2020.
- ↑ WoTseries.com: Scoop: Four New Cast, New Director, and New Cinematographer Wrap in Segovia by Eri. December 4, 2020. Confirms filming in Spain.
- ↑ Confirmed by showrunner Rafe Judkins in an Instagram Q&A on May 20, 2021. Official Twitter thread with Q&A: "To celebrate the wrap of S1 this Tuesday and the greenlight of S2, AMA -"
- ↑ The Czech Film Commission: A fantastic film crew and beautiful locations in the heart of Europe bring The Wheel of Time back to the Czech Republic. September 3, 2021.
- ↑ Official Twitter: "Be one of the first to watch #TheWheelOfTime at our exclusive fan screening events in a US theater near you!" November 4, 2021.
- ↑ JordanCon on Twitter: "For those that live in Atlanta, we're partnering with Amazon for the Atlanta event— more information to come soon!" November 4, 2021.
- ↑ @wheeltakespod on Twitter: "if you're in or near Chicago, guess what? We're hosting the Chicago screening! Come say hi!" Co-host Ali on Twitter: "Wheel Takes (the podcast I host with Gus) will be hosting Amazon's exclusive fan screening of The Wheel of Time in Chicago." November 4, 2021.
- ↑ Dragonmount on Twitter: "Nov 15: Join us in select U.S. theaters for a FREE Fan Screening of Episode 1 of @TheWheelOfTime. The event in Los Angeles will be hosted by Dragonmount with @KittyRallo, @Thom_DeSimone, and @katysedai." Also on Twitter: "Dragonmount is hosting the Los Angeles fan event for #TheWheelOfTime on Nov 15!" November 4, 2021.
- ↑ The Black Tower on Twitter: "The Black Tower will be partnered with Amazon for the New York screening." November 4, 2021.
- ↑ Maidens of the Spear co-host Sara Caplan on Twitter: "We are so excited to get to introduce the premiere of the first two episodes at the San Francisco Screening!" Co-host Mary Lou on Twitter also confirmed she would be there. November 4, 2021.
- ↑ Weekly Wheel News on Twitter: "BREAKING NEWS! The WWN is happy to announce we will be hosting the Seattle exclusive fan screening at Pacific Place AMC!" November 4, 2021.
- ↑ Confirmedon Twitter: "I am honored and beyond grateful to announce that I will be hosting the DC #TheWheelOfTime screening. Who is joining me, #TwitterOfTime? You are invited and encouraged to come in Wheel of Time themed attire!" November 4, 2021.
- ↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 The Dusty Wheel: Wheel of Time TRAILER WATCH PARTY & Live Breakdown!, interview with Lorne Balfe beginning at about 7:37:22. October 27, 2021.
- ↑ YouTube: Al'Naito (from "The Wheel Of Time" soundtrack). October 8, 2021.
- ↑ Rafe Judkins answered a fan question, "Do you anticipate Season 1 taking up eye of the world and season 2 being The Great Hunt?" answering "Yes and no". September 12, 2018.
- ↑ Rafe Judkins: "there are already aspects of EoTW that I plan to use in different seasons". September 12, 2018.
- ↑ WoTSeries.com: WoT Season 1 Set to Receive $14.8 Million USD in Incentives. May 18, 2020.
- ↑ Amazon’s ‘Wheel of Time’ Topped 1.1 Billion Minutes Streamed in First 3 Days, Nielsen Says