Actor Rosamund Pike, who will play Moiraine Damodred in the upcoming Wheel of Time series recently provided an update on the series and what fans can expect from the first season.
Pike sat down with Balance, who also revealed the show is expected to debut on Amazon sometime in 2021.
Pike first explains that Wheel of Time is based off Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series, “I’m shooting a television series for Amazon called The Wheel Of Time, which is based on 14 passionately beloved novels by a man called Robert Jordan.”
Related: Exclusive: Amazon’s Wheel of Time Features Big Change to Perrin Aybara’s Character
She then describes the world in which the Wheel of Time is set, “It is a fantasy world grounded very much in a reality. It is a world in which there is magic and tremendous power, but they are also very human.”
Pike then goes on to provide some details about just who Moiraine Damodred is for those unfamiliar with the character, “It is really wonderful. I am a mysterious character who comes into a small town and takes five friends on a journey that will change them forever.”
She adds, “We are on the road; she is a sort of guide character, I suppose. And I am loving it!”
Later on she adds, “This character calls me, for a reason, I’m sure. I’ve played a lot of intelligent women who have suffered a huge amount and I wanted to do something different and explore some different things.”
She continues, “And one thing about Moraine, my character, is that she has tremendous calm. She’s quite enigmatic and very layered. She has many facets.”
Related: Amazon’s Wheel of Time Series Race Swaps Egwene, Perrin, and Nynaeve
Pike adds, “Her outward seeming thing is that she’s very calm and I thought, ‘There’s a reason this has come into my life!’ She is very calm, and yet within her she knows she has tremendous power, and that’s very interesting.”
Pike then references her upcoming film Radioactive, which tells the story of scientist Marie Curie, “It’s a bit like with Marie Curie – when you know you have radium in your hands!”
She then notes that the story is about responsibility and was heavily affected by Jordan’s service in the Vietnam War.
Pike explains, “It is a very rich world. Robert Jordan was a veteran of the Vietnam War and he was striving for balance – he was trying to make sense of a world torn apart. ”
She concludes, “It’s all about how our actions affect the future and what responsibility one takes, in this, your life on earth. We have these great weather patterns storming through us, that are so relevant. It’s great – it’s a big world of epic adventure.”
Along with Pike, the series stars Marcus Rutherford as Perrin Aybara, Zoë Robins as Nynaeve, Madeleine Madden as Egwene Al’Vere, Josha Stradowski as Rand al’Thor, Barney Harris as Mat Cauthon, Michael McElhatton as Tam Al’Thor, Johann Myers as Padan Fain, Alexandre Willaume as Thom Merillin, Kate Fleetwood as Liandrin Guirale, and Daniel Henney as al’Lan Mandragoran.
Rafe Judkins is the showrunner.
Adam Whitehead at The Wertzone believes the first season will be eight episodes long.
Judkins recently shared a photo from the first day on set.
What do you make of Pike’s comments regarding The Wheel of Time? Are you looking forward to the show?