Brandon Sanderson Says Canceled ‘The Wheel of Time’ Show Lost Its Way

Prime Video’s The Wheel of Time ended after three seasons, leaving Brandon Sanderson with a blunt view of the adaptation. The author says the series moved too far from Robert Jordan’s books, even as it delivered strong work from its cast and a well-reviewed final season. Sanderson completed Jordan’s 14-book fantasy saga after Jordan’s death and served as a consulting producer on the live-action series. In a recent interview with IGN, he said he never expected a direct, page-by-page adaptation. Still, he believes the show made changes that created “an ever widening gulf” between Jordan’s story and the version released by Amazon. “I’m not one who thinks nothing can ever change in an adaptation,” Sanderson told IGN. “But there were alterations made here that led to an ever widening gulf between Robert Jordan’s vision and the show.” He said the production could have met Amazon’s goals while keeping the books’ central themes clearer. That criticism has followed The Wheel of Time since its 2021 debut. Sanderson objected to altered character arcs, new backstories, compressed plotting, and the series’ darker mood. The show combined and rearranged material from Jordan’s early novels to fit ...