The Wheel of Time season 2: key information
– Not expected to release until 2023
– Launch date might be announced at CCXP 2022
– Filming wrapped in May
– Key cast all set to return
– New cast members’ characters announced
– First footage revealed at New York Comic-Con 2022
– Showrunner teases season 2 storylines
– Third season greenlit by Amazon Studios
Are we about to get a release date for The Wheel of Time season 2? With the show set to feature at Brazil Comic-Con (aka CCXP), one of the world’s biggest entertainment events, it’s certainly a possibility.
It would be about time if one was forthcoming, too. The high fantasy series – one of the best Prime Video shows, in our view – was last on our screens in December 2021, so its return is long overdue. Still, we’ve had The Rings of Power, aka Amazon’s Lord of the Rings TV adaptation, to tide us over until The Wheel of Time’s second season is released.
Anyway, you’re here to learn more about The Wheel of Time season. Below, we’ve rounded up everything worth knowing about the Prime Video series’ sophomore season, including its cast, plot details, possible release date, and brief teaser trailer. We also explore whether the show will return after its recently greenlit third season.
Full spoilers for The Wheel of Time season 1 follow. Additionally, potential cast and story spoilers for its follow-up season are incoming, so use the navigation bar to your left to skip a section if you’re avoiding spoilerific content.
The Wheel of Time season release date
There’s no release date for The Wheel of Time season 2 yet. However, filming wrapped in mid May, so the wait for an official announcement should be coming soon.
That’s a wrap for season 2! #TheWheelOfTime #WOTWednesday pic.twitter.com/sROnpKFzftMay 18, 2022
Some fans hoped that season 2 would arrive before 2022 is over. But, as Amazon Studios’ Head of Global TV Vernon Sanders told TVLine (opens in new tab), that wasn’t never a possibility. Why? Because Amazon didn’t want The Wheel of Time season 2 and The Rings of Power season 1 to launch simultaneously.
With a bunch of VFX, music, and editing work to undertake – not to mention possible reshoots or pick ups – it’s likely we won’t see The Wheel of Time season 2 arrive on Amazon’s streaming service until mid-2023. However, key Wheel of Time cast members are set to appear at CCXP 2022 on December 3 (opens in new tab), so we could finally get a release date announcement in the very near future.
The Wheel of Time season 2 trailer
An official trailer hasn’t been released, but a first teaser for The Wheel of Time season 2 was released online in October.
The teaser opens with a fast-paced, still image-based montage of all of the first season’s key moments. It’s not until the 0:25 mark that the season 2 footage begins, but it looks suitably foreboding, action-packed, thrilling, and fantastical all the same.
We get good looks at where all of our heroes are at the beginning of season 2 – more on this in our plot section – as well as the antagonists who are set to make their debuts. It all seems like it’s become a bit too much for Moiraine, too, who’s seen verbally lashing out at Lan. We’re also introduced to the new Mat Cauthon, who’ll be played by Dónal Finn from now on after Barney Harris’ departure.
There’s only 30 seconds’ worth of footage to take in here, but it gives us a good indication of what’s at stake and what’ll play out in the show’s next entry. Color us excited.
The teaser comes three months after a behind-the-scenes look at the show’s next installment was posted online:
Their journeys are far from over. Get a behind the scenes look at #TheWheelOfTime season 2. pic.twitter.com/K3IVCyMOw3July 21, 2022
The Wheel of Time season 2 cast
We expect season 1’s main cast to return, although there is one notable exception:
- Rosamund Pike as Moiraine Damodred
- Daniel Henney as Lan Mandragoran
- Josha Stradowski as Rand al’Thor
- Zoë Robins as Nynaeve al’Meara
- Madeleine Madden as Egwene al’Vere
- Marcus Rutherford as Perrin Aybara
- Dónal Finn as Mat Cauthon
- Fares Fares as The Dark One
- Johann Myers as Padan Fain
- Sophie Okonedo as Siuan Sanche
The biggest casting news concerns the character of Mat Cauthon. Barney Harris won’t reprise his role from season 1, with Dónal Finn (The Witcher, Cursed) taking over. In September 2021, we reported that Harris was no longer part of the cast. No reason was given for his departure and showrunner Rafe Judkins has declined to comment on the situation (per Deadline (opens in new tab) ).
The Wheel of Time’s other main actors are all returning. That includes Fares Fares’ primary antagonist The Dark One and Sophie Okoendo’s Siuan Sanche, who are both shown in The Wheel of Time season 2’s sneak peek. Meanwhile, WOTseries.com (opens in new tab) suggests Sandy McDade’s Maigan will feature at some point.
As for who else could return, this is harder to predict. We suspect characters including Kate Fleetword’s Liandrin and Kae Alexander’s Min Farshaw will reappear. The first season’s plot, however, was pulled from multiple books in Jordan’s series. Meanwhile, Judkins took some creative liberties that led to its plot diverging from the story in the novels.
It’s unclear if The Wheel of Time season 2’s plot will differ from its source material. If it does, we may not see Liandrin or Min return, even though they have roles in the series’ second and third books, aka The Great Hunt and The Dragon Reborn.
What we do know is that new characters will be introduced – and we already know who some of those individuals will be.
Ceara Coveney has been revealed as our Elayne Trakand! What characters do you think Natasha O’Keeffe and Meera Syal are playing? (Hint: Rafe said they were “two of the most important characters”) #TheWheelofTime pic.twitter.com/zJgtVci3HhOctober 8, 2021
Ceara Coveney – in her first major acting role – will portray a hugely significant character in Elayne Trakand. In the novels, Elayne is not only Queen of Andor and Cairhien, but she’s also one of the most powerful Aes Sedai in Robert Jordan’s fictional universe. Expect her to play a major role in proceedings in The Wheel of Time season 2.
Natasha O’Keeffe (Misfits, Filth) and Meera Syal (Paddington 2, Doctor Who) have also been cast in undisclosed roles. Rafe Judkins has teased that they’ll portray “two of the most important characters”, so place your bets now on who they’ll play.
Potential season 2 cast spoilers follow, so skip ahead if you don’t want to know which actors have reportedly joined the series.
Here’s a rundown of other confirmed and rumored characters, and the actors portraying them, as announced on The Wheel of Time’s official social channels (where Aviendha is concerned anyway) and The Wheel of Time’s Instagram fan page:
Meanwhile, Deadline (opens in new tab) claims Guy Roberts (Hanna), Arnas Fedaravicius (The Last Kingdom), and Gregg Chillingirian (A Discovery of Witches) feature in supporting roles. Roberts will reportedly play Uno Nomesta, a one-eyed soldier who served Lord Agelmar before the latter’s death in the season 1 finale. Fedaravicius will play Masema, another of Agelmar’s former charges. Finally, Chillingirian portrays Ingtar Shinowa, who Deadline describes as a warrior from war-torn lands.
In a separate (but no less speculative) WoTseries.com (opens in new tab) article, Marie-France Alvarez (Paddington 2) will portray another Aes Sedai called Celestin. Melissa James (Coronation Street) and Jessica Boone (Das Boot) have also apparently been hired (per WoTseries.com (opens in new tab)), though their roles aren’t currently known. WoTseries.com (opens in new tab) has also suggested British-born New Zealand actor Rima Te Wiata (Hunt for the Wilderpeople) is part of the cast after supposedly being spotted in The Wheel of Time season 2 production wrap video. Additionally, WoTseries.com (opens in new tab) suggests Ken Bradshaw (Eastenders, Wire in the Blood) will play Asan Sandair, a city guard who crosses paths with Rand.
WoTseries.com has also leaked a bunch of other supposed hires. Jay Duffy (Vikings, Derry Girls) has reportedly joined the cast (opens in new tab), as has iconic Disney star Hayley Mills (opens in new tab) (The Parent Trap, Pollyanna, Tiger Bay, and Forever Young among others). Darragh O’Toole (Foundation, Peaky Blinders) and Lubna Kerr (Moondogs) are also believed to have signed on (opens in new tab).
In an interview with The Press and Journal (opens in new tab), Stewart Kenneth Moore (Blood Red Sky, Carnival Row) also confirmed that he has a bit-part role. Moore refused to reveal his character’s identity, but hinted that he’ll turn up in episode 5 for a “fairly memorable scene”.
Finally, The Witcher fansite Redandian Intelligence (opens in new tab) claims that four other actors have been joined the party. Laura Crowhurst (The Last Bus) has reportedly been cast in an undisclosed role, as has Natasha J. Murley in her first major acting role. Game of Thrones’ Will Tudor will also allegedly play Barthanes Damodred, a relative of Moiraine’s, while Haruka Kuroda (Killing Eve) is set to portray one of Min Farshaw’s aunts.
The Wheel of Time season 2 plot
Spoilers follow for The Wheel of Time season 1.
Little is officially known about The Wheel of Time season 2’s story, but we’ve been given some indications about its central themes and narratives.
Per Prime Video’s Fanology Twitter account, the series’ second season will deal with theme of loneliness (opens in new tab). That’s not surprising, given that Amazon has pulled a Fellowship of the Ring-style move and broken up our merry band of heroes. Meanwhile, Daniel Henney told New York Comic-Con attendees that there’ll be more individual storylines in season 2 (opens in new tab).
There are also lots of plot threads that need to be picked up or resolved.
First, we need to be reunited with Rand – aka the Dragon Reborn – who, after temporarily defeating The Dark One, is continuing his journey alone. The Dragon Reborn is a prophesied, all-powerful channeler of the One Power fated to save or destroy the world, so Rand considers himself to be a danger to Moiraine, Lan, and his friends. He asks Moiraine to tell everyone he perished in battle against The Dark One so they don’t come looking for him. Josha Stradowski, who plays Rand, says the character’s season 2 arc will be built around redefining his identity (via The Wrap (opens in new tab)).
As for Moiraine, The Dark One destroys her connection to the Source, which is where Aes Sedai draw the One Power from. Unable to channel her powers anymore, the dynamic in Moiraine and Lan’s relationship is sure to shift in season 2. The two hardly feature in The Wheel of Time’s second book, but Judkins told CBR.com (opens in new tab) that their upcoming arcs will comprise wholly original content created specifically for the TV adaptation, as “you can’t sideline Rosamund Pike and Daniel Henney in a season of television”. Pike revealed at New York Comic-Con (per Entertainment Weekly (opens in new tab)) that Moiraine will return to her home city of Cairhien inThe Wheel of Time season 2.
We’ve been waiting. Ceara Coveney is Elayne Trakand #TheWheelOfTime #WoTNYCC pic.twitter.com/yiW0iAFS0oOctober 7, 2022
The season 1 finale also teased the arrival of the Seanchan – a villainous, seafaring empire that has ambitions on conquering The Wheel of Time’s main continent. Asked by Collider (opens in new tab) how they’ll make a splash (pun intended), Judkins said: “Everything’s following this traditional fantasy format coming out of the first book. In the second book, the Seanchan come out of nowhere and slap our characters, so we really wanted to have them function the same way in the show. We get this nod to them at the end of season 1 but, in season 2, the Seanchan arrive and they affect the story.”
Elaborating on the role the Seanchan will have, Judkins told New York Comic-Con attendees (via SyFy.com (opens in new tab)): “The Seanchan come in and sideswipe every story in the show. They sideswipe the show as much as they do the books and it’s a really cool storytelling device that Robert Jordan built and I think it’s so special and I’ve been so excited to bring it to the screen.”
There are many other branching narratives and subplots that the show’s second season will need to circle back to. Judkins confirmed to Nerdist (opens in new tab) that “we’ll certainly see” more of the backstory of Lews Therin, aka the first Dragon, as the season and overall series progresses. Judkins also teased the potential introduction of Gawyn and Faile, who are important characters in Egwene and Perrin’s story arcs, and the possibility of Rand and Min interacting more down the road (per CBR (opens in new tab)). As for Mat, Judkins revealed that he was heading for the White Tower – the Aes Sedai’s stronghold – and not Shadar Logoth in the season 1 finale.
We’re also expecting to learn more about Perrin’s wolfbrother powers and we hope that our heroes will get the Horn of Valere – a key item in the final battle with The Dark One – back after Padan Fain stole it in the season 1 finale. The love triangle between Moiraine, Lan, and Nynaeve is also set to be explored in more detail, too. Daniel Henney and Zoë Robins, who play Lan and Nynaeve, teased their season 2 storylines in a chat with Inverse (opens in new tab).
Speaking about The Wheel of Time season 2’s overall theme, Judkins told EW that the show’s next entry will “peel back the surface and try to understand what balance between dark and light they’re trying to find within themselves.” So we should settle in for more internal character battles, as well as those fights that are bound to be part of season 2’s makeup.
Much like the first season, The Wheel of Time’s next entry will also cover plot elements from multiple novels, Judkins telling EW: “[Audiences] will see that some characters are diving more into their book two story in season 2, and some of them are diving more into their book three story. We have a big round-up point at the end of season 2 that reconnects everything and pushes us off in a new direction where we’ve completed all the stories we need to get through.”
Additionally, we can expect blood – and lots of it. Daniel Henney told ContentMode (opens in new tab): “It’s really hard for me to not give too much away, but I will say this: two swords, multiple Fades, blood….lots of blood.” Meanwhile, Rafe Judkins told TVLine (opens in new tab): “More characters will die in the show than in the books, because we cannot carry a cast of 2,000 actors for seven seasons!” You should prepare for your favorite characters to potentially perish at some point in the show, then.
Finally, Judkins took to Twitter to answer fans’ season 2 questions (opens in new tab) during some post-production downtime. Key details to take away from those exchanges include the introduction of the Forsaken – channelers who serve the side of Shadow in the War of Power – and that season 2 will pull from the first, second, and third books in Jordan’s beloved fantasy novel series. Fans can expect to see new locations, such as Cairhien, Tear, and Falme in The Wheel of Time season 2 as well.
Will The Wheel of Time get more seasons?
The Wheel of Time season 2 won’t be the final entry in Amazon’s live-action adaptation, with Amaozn confirming it’s been renewed for a third season (opens in new tab) in October.
“I’m so thrilled that we’ll be making a third season of The Wheel of Time,” Judkins, said in a press release. “The Shadow Rising has always been my favorite book in the series, so being able to bring it to television and introduce new audiences to the stories that made me fall in love with these books in the first place is such an honor, and something I’ve been working toward since I first pitched the show years and years ago.”
Interestingly, The Shadow Rising is the fourth book in Jordan’s epic fantasy book series. Given that season 2 will adapt books one through three, it makes sense that the series’ third season will pick things up with book four.
It’s unclear when principal photography will begin on season 3, but we suspect it won’t be until late 2023 at the very earliest. If The Wheel of Time season 2 launches in mid-2023 as we’ve predicted, the cast and crew will complete their press tour by summer 2023 ahead of filming beginning on the show’s next installment.
As for future seasons, much will depend on whether seasons 2 and 3 resonate with audiences, and if Amazon feels it can fund its two big fantasy properties in The Wheel of Time and The Rings of Power. The latter’s premiere was the biggest Prime Video launch of all-time so, if only one show is continually greenlit, it’s likely to be its Lord of the Rings show, which is already returning for The Rings of Power season 2.
That said, we’d still expect Amazon to renew The Wheel of Time for more seasons. Judkins has eight seasons mapped out for the show, so it would be silly for Amazon to cancel the series midway through its run (if a fourth season is also greenlit). Here’s hoping, then, that The Wheel of Time can keep rolling on until it reaches its end point.
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