The Prime Video Wheel of Time live-action show may have ended with Season 3, but that was far from the end for fan hopes for a TV adaptation of Robert Jordan’s epic fantasy novels. The series is reportedly getting new life as an animated series, along with animated feature films, and a mobile game.
According to a report from Variety, the new adaptations are part of a new production partnership between iwot Studios (which owns the IP) and Initiate Studios, which is run by Thomas Vu and Anthony Borquez. Vu is known for his role as an executive producer on Netflix’s Arcane as well as his work on League of Legends.
“I see tremendous opportunity in expanding ‘The Wheel of Time’ into fully authentic, integrated, interactive, and animated storytelling experiences,” Vu told Variety. “The depth of the mythology provides a foundation for sustained, multi-platform franchise growth.”
The Wheel of Time video game is mentioned here as a PC and mobile game that is “aimed at broadening the franchise’s reach across platforms,” while the animated projects will apparently be “targeting a young audience.” iwot Studios also confirmed to Variety that the projects from Vu will be “distinct” from the previously announced upcoming films and AAA RPG video games in development at iwot Games Montreal.
IGN had the chance to speak with iwot Studios last year after the company first announced that there was a Wheel of Time RPG in the works. The game was originally described as a “AAA open-world role-playing game” for PC and consoles when it was first announced. When we asked game studio head Craig Alexander for more detail about the vision for the games, he said “The plan is to work with the franchise for many years and develop a series of games, sequels, expansion packs, DLC, et cetera, and build out as much of the world we can.”
iwot Studio struck a deal just last month with a VFX company called Framestore with plans to launch an AI-enabled platform. Thanks to a report from Variety, we know that the first IP to use the new platform will be Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series. According to iwot and Framestore’s description of the tool, it is designed to “enable studios to unify their production environments across film, television, video games, animation, advertising, immersive experiences, social platforms, and user-generated content.”
Despite the cancelation of the TV series at Prime Video, there is still a loyal fanbase who would love to see more adaptations of Robert Jordan’s novels. Brandon Sanderson, who personally finished writing the series for Jordan, was deeply disappointed with the TV show coming to an end, saying: “It had a fanbase who deserved better than a cancelation after the best season.” Sanderson himself has a massive fanbase thanks his Cosmere universe of books, which is getting adapted by Apple TV.
Jacob Kienlen is a Senior Audience Development Strategist and Writer for IGN. Born and raised in Portland, Oregon, he has considered the Northwest his home for his entire life. With a bachelor’s degree in communication and 10 years of professional writing experience, his expertise is spread across a variety of different pop culture topics — from TV series to books and the latest Pokémon games.
