FollowingThe Wheel of Time’scancellation, the planned movie trilogy now sounds like a terrible idea. With Marvel dominating box offices andGame of Thronesdominating TV screens throughout the 2010s, it’s no surpriseAmazon’s plans forThe Wheel of Timeinvolved the possibility of a shared universe franchise. In December 2023, it was announced that aWheel of Timeprequel moviewas in the works based on the Age of Legends, which would be the first part of a trilogy that would span multiple pivotal eras of the fantasy world’s history.
Amazon wasn’t pulling punches with its production team, bringing on Kari Skogland (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) as the director and Zack Stentz (X-Men: First Class) as its screenwriter. The evident attempt to develop a Marvel-like shared universe based onRobert Jordan’sWheel of Timebookshasn’t seen any updates since the TV show’s cancellation. The most recent development came in March 2025, whenWheel of Timeshowrunner Rafe Judkins explainedthat the film was being developed by a different group and wouldn’t be directly connected to the show.
The Age Of Legends Movie Won’t Work After The Wheel Of Time’s Cancellation
The Wheel Of Time’s Main Story Already Ended Prematurely
TheAge of Legendsprequel film was always going to be risky, but it would be even more controversial after the TV show’s cancellation. Audiences caught a glimpse of the mythical era during season 3’s critically acclaimed episode, “The Road to the Spear,” even showing MierinEronaile, who would end up being one of the main characters in the film. Theprequel’s plot was going to be focused on the thirteen Forsaken, examining how the Dark One influenced them, “each personifying distinct elements of human weakness and ambition.”
This is a compelling idea, but we effectively already saw the gist of this in season 3, episode 4. Mierin, who would eventually become Lanfear, thought she was discovering a new potential for humankind, only to open the bore, unleashing the Dark One’s power into the world. Examining this narrative furthercould be somewhat compelling if the TV series had reached the Last Battle and depicted the final confrontation between the Dark One and the Light. A prequel loses its meaning, however, if the original show never has an ending.
TheAge of Legendsfilm has a lot in common withThe Rings of Power. The Amazon Prime VideoLord of the Ringsprequel examines the Dark Lord Sauron in his rise to power during the Second Age of Middle-earth. This is effective, though, because general audiences are already familiar with Tolkien’s story due to Peter Jackson’s film trilogy. Making a film about theAge of Legendsnow would be like ifTheRings of Powercame out and the only movie we’d gotten wasTheFellowship of the Ring.
The Wheel Of Time Prequel Always Going To Be Controversial
There’s No Proper Source Material For These Movies
Amazon’sThe Wheel of TimeTV show was divisive among book readers for its adaptation of Robert Jordan’s source material. The difference with the film is that the show had source material in the first place. There’s a wealth of history and lore to uncover in Jordan’s fifteenWheel of Timenovels, butthere’s no direct narrative to adapt for these movies. Not to mention, this period of Jordan’s history is shrouded in mystical qualities that make it purposefully vague, with much of the Dark One’s strength being metaphysical.
Just asThe Rings of Powerhas divided Tolkien fans, theAge of Legendsmovie would almost certainly evoke a range of opinions from Jordan readers.
Adapting this narrative would be incredibly challenging on its own. Just asThe Rings of Powerhas divided Tolkien fans, theAge of Legendsmovie would almost certainly evoke a range of opinions from Jordan readers. Now, with the show gone, it would also suffer from TV series fans who craved more ofThe Wheel of Time, especially if it offered differing interpretations of Forsaken characters we’d already seen. TheAge of Legendsfilm would bestuck between a rock and a hard place from the get-go, and it doesn’t seem worth it.
