Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time Series Coming to the Big Screen

Posted by on August 13th, 2008   Filed under: Books/Comics, Fantasy
Source: Coming Soon

It looks like grown-up fantasy movies are making a comeback once again, and the rights to one of the most popular fantasy series of all time have just been picked up by Universal Pictures. Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series spans 11 books (with one still to come) and has sold over 30 million copies worldwide. Universal is looking to turn it into a new franchise, with the first book The Eye of the World being adapted first.

The Wheel of Time series involves a battle between the champion of Light, Rand al’Thor, and Shai’tan, the Dark One. I’ve never read any of the books myself, but I know a lot of people have compared Jordan’s work to J.R.R. Tolkien’s. That’s not always a good thing though, since some people find almost all fantasy stuff derivative of Tolkien… but really, how can it not be? I think this is the reason we haven’t seen more fantasy on the big screen lately. People are afraid of the Lord of the Rings comparisons. However, with Robert Rodriguez doing Red Sonja now, an ElfQuest movie in the works, and HBO optioning George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Fire and Ice, I think studios are finally getting over that fear, and we should be in for a bunch of solid fantasy adaptations over the next few years.



  • megan

    i’m going to out myself as a super-nerd and say this news makes me really happy.

  • I read the first 3 and a 1/2 books and the magic and characters are engaging. The story is typical “chosen one” shit though and the writing style is so meticulous it wears away at you. There are A LOT of characters and A LOT of books. I don’t see how they can pull this off easily without pissing fans off. People love this series though: my best friend’s cousin has a Wheel of Time tattoo!

    The problem with going into this series is Robert Jordan died before completing the last book! Apparently he left notes and someone is going to complete it but that’s so truly heartbreaking. I haven’t seen Will since then but I bet he’s really upset!

  • I’m ashamed to admit I’ve never read any these books.

    I fail.

  • Why can’t someone find out about GUY GAVRIEL KAY or ALISTAIR REYNOLDS for film adaptions. Robert Jordan and his Wheel of time is such garbage – and garbage in slow motion. Totally lost interest around book 4 as it was clear that Jordan was simply milking his fantasy creation rather than doing anything interesting with it. Ditto Terry Goodkind, David Eddings, and Terry Brooks.

    I’d like to see Ursula LeGuin, GG Kay, A. Reynolds (more pulp sci-fi than fantasy, but still), and perhaps some Charles De Lint be adapted as ‘adult’ movies. Doubt it will happen and we’ll be stuck with more Harry Potter, Spiderwick Chronicles, watered down C.S. Lewis and fucking Eragon. Shame.

    (Yes, my entire teenage years and much of my 20s were devoted to the Fantasy Genre…sad, but true)

  • John

    I’ve read a lot of comments on several sites. First of all Universal is tackling just the first book with one film.
    Remember, Robert Jordan wrote with his wife, who was also his editor and has left notes, research and basically everything for her to co-write and edit the 12th book, so it should be great!
    The multiple level of the story threads is exactly why this will make a wonderful series of films as long as casting and direction is tight.
    Also, Red Eagle / Manetheren is along as Producers to maintain loyalty to the novels.
    Looks overall like good news to me!

  • Gary

    I’ve read all the wheel of time books, including new spring, it is an amazing fantasy adventure and of course there is a hint of Tolkien but what fantasy book wouldn’t? The problem for most people like Kurt i think is that there are already twelve books in the series so far and the story is epic to say the least. There are so many sub plots and other things going on aside of the main “chosen one” story that it might be hard for some people to get into but if you do read them all you would not regret it.

    Its a shame that Robert Jordan died last year before he wrote the last book and Brandon Sanderson has alot to live up to.

    As for Universal! I hope that Universal realise the task at hand and dont ruin the movie by trying to cram all the action from each of the book into a crappy one and a half hours like Disney wanted to do with The lord of the rings a did with The lion, the witch and the wardrobe.

  • gebe

    I think they should make the movie but what the need is a half decent director. Eragon was one of the best books ive read and it was completly ruined by the movie they really needed PETER JACKSON for that one.

    they should just clone peter jackson and get him to do all fantasy movies.

  • David

    All I have to say is; Finally, took long enough

  • Johno

    …I’ve grown up around the classics and been addicted to both fantasy and mythology for most of my life, and I have to say this is probably one of the best series i’ve ever read. There are other good fantasy writers out there, but Jordan brought about the ability to implement EVERYTHING into his series… which is why it will be next to impossible to pull this off without completely ruining the books! Not impossible, but next to it.
    I agree that Peter Jackson would be the best candidate for director, that is as long as he doesn’t fuck over the story lines as he did in LOTR…
    I hope i’m not the only person who realized how many, not scenes, chapters he took out of each book?

    …haha were fucked.

  • Q.S. Chapman

    This was great series. Eventhough Rand Al’Thor is kind of predictable and annoying as the hero. Matt will be the next Han Solo. I just don’t see how they can keep the same actors for 12 movies and if they try to cram too many books in one movie it will be wacked. I loved the Sword of Truth series but the TV Show is F@*%&G Corny…. I think Ice and fIRE ON h.b.o. WILL TURN OUT TO BE THE BEST fANTASY ADAPTION SINCE lORD OF THE rINGS…

  • Yann

    I am now reading the series (I am at book 8 now).it is a good series and i think that the tv drama will be interesting.BUT PLS , Peter jackson ruined lotr by making a mcdonald tasteless movie.He really killed the book. Hes ok for bigscreen hit, but lets not give him another Classic to destroy. I could not support the idea of Rand al thor on my mecdonald cup.pls not this time.thanx for reading me

  • Art

    I can’t get my hopes up. I was extremely excited when the lord of the rings came to the big screen. It was a huge disappointment. Recently Terry Goodkinds Sword of truth came to the small screen – awful. Anytime a Fantasy Epic is turned into a Movie they fail to capture the essence of the books. Case in point Harry Potter

  • Discontent

    I was somewhat turned off after the first WoT book. I suppose it was my most unrealistic expectations of this book, that were generated after reading LoTR as well as His Dark Materials, that contributed to this disinterest. Though I’ve not read the rest, I know indubitably that the entire WoT storyline or scope is “epic”. However, I can’t stand the way people claim astoundedly, “woah, twelve books and THAT many pages!” In essence, I find it rather draggy. I feel that its almost huumdrum in a sense. Everything moves at such a slow pace, its almost as if he’s retelling the story again and again in a perpetual wheel (pun intended). According to many others, the overwhelming impression of the first book was “Amazing! Must read the rest!” I can’t seem to find that vigour to do so..

  • Arctor

    It’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” not Fire and Ice.

  • Max

    ok all i got to say is that i have read all the books in the series to come out so far and i think they are AMAZING! yes they can be slow at some times but the end result is always worth it! im looking forward to this movie very much and like everyone else just hope they don’t screw it up too badly. truthfully even if they do leave stuff out, which im sure they will due to the volume of info the books contain, i think as long as its not horrible acting and cheesy effects i know i will enjoy them no matter what! oh and the last book “A Memory of Light” is going to be split up into 3 books so with the prequel to the first book that will make 15!
    The author that is now finishing the series is Brandon Sanderson and i have read his three book series “Mistborn” and enjoyed them very much! it has the same “chosen one” theme but i think that is what makes me like them. i love that premise for a book. i think he will do a good job on completing the series and all i have to say is GOOD LUCK Universal Studios! a lot of lifetime fans are counting on you!

  • Kev

    as a long term fan of WoT i am both extremely excited at the prospect of a movie, but also very fearful of it. I do not think the essence of the series will be captured on film. maybe the best bet would be 2 films to each book and possibly in the same kind of style as 300. then maybe, just maybe there would be hope.(though it would mean making 30 movies without the actors aging too much. cgi???

  • James

    I’ve read the series through 2 or 3 times, the problem is always going to be the fact that, in order to realistically portray all the sub plots and how they all weave into the bigger picture, the movie would need to be a day long or more, they always cut out pieces they see as unessential to furthering the main storyline and in this case, as it was in LOTR you lose the better part of the book, story tellers like Robert Jordan don’t just provide you with a main plot, but several, and to ‘cut’ his work to a 3 hour movie a book is a disservice to him. it’d probably do better as a series of 1 hour installments on TV that way you get more hours to play with in order to fully tell the story

  • To those of you who have contemplated reading The Wheel of Time series and have been discouraged by the negative comments made both here and elsewhere,I say this:

    Yes,the characters are annoyingly predictable at times, consistently being themselves as people always do.

    The story line slows almost to a halt at times, like waiting to board a plane. Then at other times it moves so quickly that it feels like the take off of said plane – a rush of emotion and sensation so intense that most of us tune some of it out.

    As for retelling the same period in the story line over and over again, well its true and it is sometimes fairly aggravating. Its like hearing varying accounts of the same incident from different observers or being told of other events that happened at that same time from folk who were elsewhere at that time. Some of the accounts are boring once you have the basic time line in mind, but hearing them may be the price paid for getting the information they convey.

    True to life as these and other bits of business may be, they are none the less truly irksome when you are reading the books. I considered jumping ahead on more than one occasion. I never did, but I considered it. There is one whole book that hardly advanced the plots at all and it drove me to distraction. Only on reading subsequent volumes did the part played by that book of doldrums become clear… and appreciated.

    All that said and done, I impatiently awaited the publishing of each new book with great expectation.

  • AJ

    Sorry, but the WoT is a travesty, an insult to the fantasy genre. It is the Days of Our Lives of fantasy. Overblown, dreadful characters, self-indulgent writing.

    I have read four of the books and then stopped. Why? I could not bear to read any more descriptions of buildings and women’s clothing, nor did I care for any of the 96 minor character POVs that often carried the narrative. I have a life, and there are too many wonderful books in the world to read the craftless crap Jordan was spewing out.

    Someone at the beginning of the comments mentioned Guy Gavriel Kay – now there is a fantasy writer. Read him if you want to know how good fantasy can be without waiting decades to know the ending.

  • Stephen R Donaldson”Chronicles of Thomas Covanant” Movie.thats it.thats all I have to say

  • lonegoat

    scrap the live action movie make it an anime no actor can fill the role of matt or perrin how will they dance the spears of the fans if they fu*k this up
    the books do get a bit slow true but its a good thing it makes it more real…i mean mat is the nuts kid that lived down the road geting every one in sh#t
    the movie will make all those crap xbox games tshirts

    new from calvin cline rand al thor
    killl the movie

  • JPD

    I have read the WOT series till the 8th book now. Incredible story telling and detailing to the core. To put this in a 2 hour movie would just be a waste. There are lot of speculations abt roles, but no thoughts have risen as to how are they going to do any justice to this novel writing.
    Some parts in the books, may feel tiring to read, maybe RJ himself thought it could hit the screens(big or small :)), otherwise he wouldnt have a full paragraph to describe a sword hilt or room decorations.

    The most difficult part would be to assimilate the movie timelines. Like 3-4 years would has passed in the books, but the movie spans over 12 years. This would be a challenge.

    If universal stops after a few books, may be to bad response or overkill, it would then be really be a throw away.

    In any case, it would be nice to see the movies.

  • Ghostace

    time for the first 2010 entry:

    1. Of my 3 favourite fantasy book series, Sword of Truth, Song of Ice & Fire and Wheel of the Time, all very enjoyable, the Wheel of Time is the best of the 3.

    2. Jordan wrote this like a series, sometimes looking back at the eye of the world, each chapter or 2 chapters could easily form an episode. Altho the wait would be excruciating for those who haven’t read the books. EotW was magical, truly magical.

    3. Yes, we all know books 7 to 11 dragged on like hell, farnkly they should have been 2 books not 4, in fact 7-9 as one book would have been great.Jordan does tease, but that’s what I like about the books, you get progression, only Martin’s song of Ice and Fire had better chapter by chapter progression imo. It’s like Martin wrote it in a tv series/book hybrid format… but the way he ends each chapter, ouch, as a TV series the wait will be excruciating.

    4. Finally, to the main topic, the Movie, 3-4 hrs would be my expected film length time for EotW to do it any reasonable justice, and in 3-D like Avatar. The plot is good enough to hold you for that long. Truly epic, they shouldn’t fuck it up. But RJ did not trust Red Eagle entertainment, and that leaves me nervous, film companies are notorious for butchering books, they think they’re doing it a favour and making it marketable, but the none work hard to make it like the original book, LoTR the exception that proves if you really try hard, you can make it great. But then, LotR had an entire crew of fans making the movie, and a director with unshakeable resolve, without these it doesn’t look bright for WoT the movie(s). The sad part is most just want to milk the brand name and care little of making a true masterpiece.

    Personally, for this to work, 1st book a 3D 3-4hr long movies, I would then do the rest as a 12 part mini-series per-book, episodes roughly 90 mins long, like the Tudors.

  • Cerri-Lee

    Who ever says that the wheel of time series is sh*t doesnt have any brains. i always wondered if they would bring out a movie about it. i will be one of the first to watch it if it ever materializes.

  • Colin

    I grew up reading the WOT as a young reader when there were only three books out. I can easily see how a casual and thorough reader might get lost amidst the many details and the sometime slow pace.
    But for me, I am so grateful for the depth and texture of the story. I’ve reread the series several times, and each time I get more out of it. The magical system is brilliant – and makes for awesome battles. The main characters mature into formidable people, shaped by events almost as dark as those found in Stephen Donaldson.
    A film could never capture the full tapestry of the first book. But I’d be keen to see Sanderson try his hand at a script … I think he’s brought a new vitality to the series, now that the end is in sight, and has a great sense of character. In the end, if a movie could bring these characters to life I’d enjoy the effort.
    Also – how bout a Peter Hamilton movie?

  • Haily

    I grew up with fantasy. WoT is shit. The very first book I read reasonably quickly and it was sort of enjoyable… but the characters were typical fantasy characters, worse than Terry Goodkind because they are teenagers and teenagers are insufferable. Many of them were borderline retarded, annoying, selfish and frankly boring to read about because they have so very few really special or even redeeming qualities. The women are written by a man who does not know women, the men by a man who is compensating for something. Everyone was suffering from cliche after cliche. It was entertaining drivel.

    Then I read the trippin’ ending of book 1 where we find out that moron Rand is the Second Coming. I put down the book and spared myself the agony. What is it with people LIKING IT when a character who has no overtly special qualities suddenly wins “because he’s the main character”?

    For anyone who said this series was good… for god’s sake read some high quality literature and grow up a little? God help you if you like Eragon… I couldn’t even finish that book and I make a point of finishing books. The characters were just cut outs, the plot stale, and it too suffered from mainMaleCharacterIsUnbeatable disease.

  • Chris

    I agree that Wheel of Time is impossible to do a movie adaption and have it be good. Too much going on, too many side stories and chars. Love the books, but a movie is not possible. That said… What was wrong with the Lord of the Rings movie adaptions? Yes, stuff was cut out. That was inevitable. But the core of the story was there, and the look and feel of the characters and locations was captured exactly as I always envisioned them in my head. LotR movies were an EPIC WIN!!! Take that all you rediculous elitist tolkien fans!

  • Chris

    Oh and to the moron who posted just above my first post…. I should first say that Rand does have special qualities. He is the most powerful male aes sedai around… But back to your last idiotic plea as to why people like the whole bad ass main char. People read fantasy to escape into a different world. A world of fantasy and wonder. Of magical creatures and powers. People want to read about a man/women/creature that IS special and does great things with their lives and WINS. No offense, but they dont want to read some depressing melodramatic tripe that more closely resembles the real world. If they wanted real world issues in their novels they wouldnt read fantasy.

  • Bend

    Oh god!
    they want to make a movie based off of the worst EVER crap book I had to listen to in my car pool! its been SIX MONTHS NOW!
    Its made me actually think about quitting my job so I wouldn’t have to ride with the losers at work. The characters are not complete the story is concentrated on the mannerisms of side characters, that have nothing to do with the main story.
    And when something does happen the author who seems so concentrated on clothing instead of whats happening just skips ahead.
    Oh and for the moron who posted just above me…..
    Rand is the dumbest pathetic attempt at making a hero.
    Losers LOVE stories where the main character doesn’t have to lift a finger or work at building skills. One day your sitting on your fat greasy ass eating pork grinds wondering what anime character they would have sex with, and the BOOM!!!
    Your the savior of humanity…
    everything is easy and you can be the biggest blowhard ever, but that’s ok your special…

    I hope to hell they make a movie and fast so they can fuck it up like they always do piss off all the losers that think that this trite is the best thing since canned cheese, and it can all go in the trash where it belongs.

  • I was not much of a fantasy reader until the Wheel of Time came into my life. I dont think there is a script writer or an actor alive today that can do these books justice. I am in the process of reading the entire series again and will probably read the books many more times.

  • I think the reason so many people don’t like the main characters is that they too closly resemble themselve in the all too human way of when you’re young and just thrown into somthing like the main characters were you’re confused frightened and just don’t know what’s going on and you tend to look ou for yourselvs and I think some of the people are forgetting all the bad thing that happen to the main characters they don’t allways win somtimes they’re severly beaten down but they always surviv and grow into even better characters to the people who read all the books look at how badly Rands been beaten up and all the wounds he’s taken it’s not a they’re completly unstoppable story line what’s so ever so when you write somthing about this next time realy think before you type.

  • Paul

    I think they this would make a better TV show then a movie, as a TV show they could draw it out longer.

  • finally someone has come up with a good idea… This is one of the best books of all time. Robert Jordan is a genius. People compare him with the likes of Tokien, and Stephen King of course,( all the characters that he uses in his books. All the plots thAt he has going on at the same time). In that sense, yes they are alike. But that’s as far as the comparisons go. I have not read a more intricate novel in a long time…. Until I picked this one up and started reading it. And I have not stopped reading them yet…. I think a movie foe this series is long over due. I think by the time it gets done, it will surpass Lord Of The Rings….the first movie should have record sales at the theaters, and when they go on sale at the stores… When is the first one coming out?

  • son

    Read the WOT series a couple of times now. Not much of a Fantasy man but love this series. It’s not about a few characters. It’s about the whole Wheel of Time turning. As for a movie? I dunno. The books cover so much ground it would be hard to follow. For those who have yet to read it. do. It’s worth it.

  • SRG

    I read some of this quite a while back when there were only three books out. The 1st five or six books were great. Then I wasted my time on I think 7 thru 9. I had to stop because the story did not advance much at all and I switched to a more interesting series. Basically the first 9 books could have been written in 6. I quit so long ago and the last one was so long and pointless that I couldn’t put myself through it anymore.

  • Merlin

    I really wish hbo or showtime would have picked this up. Ithink it would do better as a tv series rather than a movie. Its truly an amazing book series and I just dont think a movie will do any of the books justice, but after seeing game of thrones on HBO I think a tv series would work well for The Wheel of Time.. Just my opinion.

  • The WOT series is good vs evil duh and I think it’s a great read omo–as to trash perhaps you could watch network tv/news-With that said series could have been reduced to make a more interesting read

  • Pete

    Would be nice to watch but i feel Sara Douglas’s ” Axis Trilogy” or ” Wayfarer Redemption” would be a better selection.
    Am excited ’bout the movie coming out but am a bit worried about a bad story line as with other fantasy movies.

  • Elladin

    Are they really gonna make this movie? The stores is awesome but it is do long since they said that they where making this film and nothing yet