Everything else aside, 2021 really has been—and continues to be—an incredible year for fans of epic fantasy series. The new Dune movie is now in theaters. The second season of The Witcher airs at the end of the year. Filming has started on the Netflix adaptation of Neil Gaiman's The Sandman—and The Sandman: Act II, the second installment of the star-powered Audible Original drama, was released in September 2021. Plus, the Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon has started filming, and The Lord of the Rings television show has been given a premiere date.
Perhaps the most exciting news of all: The Wheel of Time television series, adapted from one of the most successful and most ambitious series of novels in the history of fantasy publishing, is on its way. It has been more than two decades since its creator, the late Robert Jordan, first mentioned the possibility of seeing the series brought to life on the screen. Now, finally, it's happening—the epic fantasy television series will begin streaming on Amazon Prime Video on November 19, 2021. And author Brandon Sanderson, who completed The Wheel of Time series after Jordan's death in 2007, is as excited as fans. As an early reader of the first episode's script, he had these words of praise: "Excellent dialogue, nuanced characters, great pacing."
In case you're not yet a fan or need a quick refresher, The Wheel of Time is an epic high fantasy series set in an unnamed world; it's sometimes referred to by fans as “The Randlands,” after the main character Rand al’Thor, or simply, the "World of the Wheel.” "Wheel of Time" refers to the great cosmic loom that weaves the stories of this universe. The books are set on Earth, in both the distant past and the distant future because time is circular. This story arc is set specifically in the Third Age, after the Second Age, the Age of Legends. The Third Age has lasted for almost 3,500 years.
Warning: the following article contains spoilers for The Wheel of Time series.
The Wheel of Time series starts in the Third Age, the Age of Prophecy, with the search for the Dragon Reborn, a powerful champion who, it has been said, will rise up against the forces of darkness and keep the Breaking of the World from happening like it did in the Second Age. The Aes Sedai, channelers of the One Power drawn from the True Source, have been preparing people for the search for the Dragon Reborn and the coming wars. The quest to find the Dragon Reborn will be long, difficult, and daunting. Along the way, many battles will be fought between Light and Darkness, eventually leading to the ultimate showdown between the Dragon Reborn and the sentient force of evil in the universe: the Dark One.
The Dragon Reborn is the hero of the prophecy, but the fight against Darkness could not be done without the help of many, many others. Most of the characters are human, but there are a few non-human characters in The Wheel of Time series, such as the Ogier, a peaceful race of extremely tall architects and stonemasons who are responsible for the amazing structures in the world, and the Shadowspawn, the minions of the Dark One, including the Trollocs.
How many characters are there in The Wheel of Time series?
It would take you 19 days, 5 hours, and 25 minutes to listen to all of The Wheel of Time audiobooks! That's because there are 14 books in the series, as well as a prequel; in its entirety, the series contains more than four million words. Not surprisingly, there are some 2,700 distinctly named Wheel of Time characters, with 148 different points of view, over the course of the series. That's more than any other completed fantasy series—hence the cast of thousands.
Who are the main characters in Wheel of Time? That's a challenging question to answer, but we've managed to whittle it down to the six characters who are widely considered to be the most important to plot. So, here's a look at the main characters from the books, as well as a few others of note, some notable groups, and information about which characters will be appearing in the first season of The Wheel of Time TV series.
Who are the main characters in The Wheel of Time?
Rand al’Thor
Rand al'Thor's point of view accounts for about 20% of the books, so we're going to go ahead and crown him the main protagonist of The Wheel of Time. And of course, there's the whole "being the Dragon Reborn" thing. He's just a farm boy when we are introduced to him in The Eye of the World, but he becomes as strong in the One Power as anyone can possibly be. He has many important possessions, including the crown of the King of Illian, which he becomes after winning the crown in Book Seven, A Crown of Swords. As the defender of the Light in the fight against the Dark, he will go on many journeys, fight many battles (including one within himself), and have to face the Dark One at the end of the series. So, does Rand al'Thor die? Well, we're not going to spoil that—you’ll have to listen and find out.
Rand has three wives in the series: Min Farshaw, Elayne Trakand, and Aviendha.
Rand al'Thor will be played by Josha Stradowski in the first season of the show.
Perrin Aybara
A former blacksmith's apprentice from the Two Rivers, Perrin is originally one of the three suspected of being the Dragon Reborn. He is a gifted fighter and becomes a strong ta'veren, someone chosen by the Wheel to weave or mend the Pattern with all surrounding life-threads, and is exceptionally gifted in dealing with the Tel'aran'rhiod, a parallel world where all the possibilities of the Wheel of Time connect. He is also one of only three known wolfbrothers, which means he has the ability to connect telepathically with wolves, in the series. He pulls off an epic defeat in the Battle of Maldon in Book 11, Knife of Dreams.
Perrin is married to Faile Bashere in the series
Perrin Aybara will be played by Marcus Rutherford in the first season of the show.
Matrim Cauthon:
Like Perrin, Matrim, usually simply called Mat, is a powerful ta'veren. He is exceptionally talented in fighting with a quarterstaff. He defeats the both of the talented swordfighters Galad and Gawyn in Book Three, The Dragon Reborn.
Matrim Cauthon will be played by Barney Harris in the first season of the show, but Dónal Finn will replace him in the role for the second season.
Egwene al’Vere
A friend of Rand, Mat, and Perrin, Egwene sets off from Two Rivers as part of Moiraine's group at the start of the series. She ends up enrolling as a novice with the Aes Sedai in the White Tower of Tar Valon, and eventually becomes the Amyrlin Seat, the leader of the Aes Sedai, in Book Six, Lord of Chaos.
Egwene al'Vere will be played by Madeleine Madden in the first season of the show.
Nynaeve al’Meara
Nynaeve grew up in Two Rivers, where she became skilled at tracking, hunting, and fishing. She later becomes an Aes Sedai of the Yellow Ajah, and proves herself to be one of the most powerful living female channelers.
Nynaeve becomes Queen of Malkier through her marriage to Lan Mandragoran.
Nynaeve al’Meara will be played by Zoë Robins in the first season of the show.
Elayne Trakand:
Elayne grew up in the Royal Palace in Caemlyn. She becomes the Queen of Andor and Cairhien and a powerful channeler of the Aes Sedai of the Green Ajah.
Despite appearing in Book 1, The Eye of the World, Elayne will not appear in Season 1 of the show. She will, however, be featured in Season 2, since she has a larger role in The Wheel of Time saga, starting in Book 2, The Great Hunt.
Elayne Trakand will be played by Ceara Coveney.
Other key Wheel of Time characters
Moiraine Damodred
A Blue Ajah of the Aes Sedai, Moiraine kicks off the great search for the Dragon Reborn when she leads Rand, Mat, and Perrin out of Two Rivers.
She will be played by Rosamund Pike in the first season of the show. Rosamund Pike also narrates a newly released audiobook of The Eye of the World, Book One of the series.
Min Farshaw
Min has the ability to tell the future through auras and visions. She becomes one of Rand al'Thor's lovers.
She will be played by Kae Alexander in the first season of the show.
Siuan Sanche
Like Moiraine, Siuan is an Aes Sedai of the Blue Ajah, and at one time, like Egwene, held the Amyrlin Seat.
She will be played by Sophie Okonedo in the first season of the show.
Loial
An Ogier, Loial meets up with Moiraine and her group of travelers and decides to join them on their adventures.
He will be played by Hammed Animashaun in the first season of the show.
Logain Ablar
Logain has the ability to channel the One Power. Since the One Power is harmful to men, he is considered dangerous to society.
He will be played by Alvaro Morte in the first season of the show.
Other characters in the first season of the show will include Rand's adopted father, Tam al'Thor (Michael McElhatton); Thom Merrilin (Alexandre Willaume), the traveling bard; and Padan Fain (Johann Meyers), a human who is secretly on the side of the Dark One.
Two key characters who are not scheduled to appear in the first season of the show:
Tuon Paendrag
Tuon is the current Empress of Seanchan, the Daughter of the Nine Moons. While she doesn't make an appearance until Book Nine, Winter's Heart, she plays a big part in the rest of the story, leading up to the Last Battle.
Lanfear/Selene
One of the Forsaken, Lanfear/Selene has had many names, including Moonhunter and Cyndane. She was said to be the strongest a woman could be in the One Power.
Major groups and organizations in The Wheel of Time
The Aes Sedai
This group is comprised of women who can channel the One Power and have been trained in the White Tower of Tar Valon. They are split into the Ajah, seven different groups: the Blue, Green, Yellow, Red, White, Gray and Brown. Each group has its own leader and its own specific purpose.
The Asha'man
The male counterparts to the women of the Aes Sedai, these men are trained in the One Power at the Black Tower.
The Forsaken
The Forsaken, also known as Darkfriends, refers to humans who serve on the side of Darkness for the Dark One.
The Defenders of the Stone
An elite military group who guards the Stone of Tear, the Defenders of the Stone act as a police force within the city of Tear.
The Children of the Light
The Children of the Light is an independent military organization dedicated to finding Darkfriends and other hidden forces of evil.
The Younglings
This group of young soldiers are trainees at the White Tower.
The books of The Wheel of Time series in order:
New Spring tells the story of the birth of an infant who will be of great importance. Meanwhile, a young Moiraine Damodred and Lan Mandragoran, a soldier, cross paths in a time of turmoil, which will lead to the quest to find the Dragon Reborn that begins the events of The Eye of the World.
When the village of The Two Rivers is attacked by the beastly Trollocs, five villagers flee their homes. Among them may be the reincarnation of the Dragon, who will save the unnamed lands from the Dark One, the biggest source of evil in the universe. In addition to this beloved edition, read by Kate Reading and Michael Kramer, a new version narrated by Rosamund Pike, who stars in the Amazon Prime original series, was recently released.
The Great Hunt of the Horn has been a thing of legend for centuries, a tale told of the Hunters and the Horn of Valere. But when the horn is actually found—and then stolen—the power to raise the dead heroes of the ages may be in the wrong hands.
The cold winter has stopped the war of the Third Age, but still the soldiers are calling for the return of the Dragon. Rand al’Thor is traveling to the great fortress to find the sword Callandor, which can only be wielded by the Champion of Light. If he can use it, he will know he is truly destined to battle the Dark One.
With the seals of Shayol Ghul weakening, the Shadow is rising to cover the world, and the Dark One grows stronger. Min sees portents of doom, the Whitecloaks search for the Dragon Reborn, the Seanchan armies set out to return to the mainland, and the Lord Dragon plans his next move.
In Shayol Ghul, the Dark One continues to grow stronger, while Rand al’Thor plans his next moves. He must keep his plans from everyone, even Egwene and Moiraine. Meanwhile, forces of both light and darkness are making their own plans to ensure their victory.
The Myrddraal swords have been forged in Shayol Ghul, while an unexpected visitor with the potential to change the fate of the world seeks an audience with Rand Al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, in Caemlyn. Meanwhile, the next moves in the fight between good and evil are plotted across the lands.
Elayne, Aviendha, and Mat work to reverse the world's endless heat wave and restore its natural weather, while Egwene gathers Sea Folk, Windfinders, Wise Ones, and other women with the ability to channel. With a fight of his own, Rand goes up against the Forsaken Sammael in the shadows of Shadar Logoth.
Nynaeve, Elayne, and Aviendha encounter a dreaded enemy on the way to claim Elayne's rightful throne. On separate but ultimately connected paths, Rand continues his fight in Illian, Perrin faces grave danger in Ghealdan, and Egwene struggles to reunite the Aes Sedai.
Rand and Min are on the run and Cadsuane is determined to find them, while Perrin is desperately trying to find Faile. Meanwhile, a man called Slayer stalks Tel'aran'rhiod and the wolfdream, and a marriage told of in a prophecy may come true.
Mat Cauthon flees Ebou Dar with the kidnapped Daughter of the Nine Moons, while Perrin tries to free his wife, Faile, from the Shaido. As the Aes Sedai creep closer to reunification, Rand al'Thor, who has removed the Dark One's influence from the male half of the True Source, must figure out if some of his friends may really be his enemies.
As the reality of the world destabilizes, the dead once again walk the lands. All signs point to the inevitable showdown between Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, and the Dark One—before all of humanity is lost forever. (Knife of Dreams is the last book in the series written solely by Robert Jordan before his death in 2007.)
Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, struggles to reunite kingdoms in preparation for Tarmon Gai'don, the Last Battle, while fighting with a terrible, growing darkness inside himself.
The Last Battle has started, the Dark One's prison seals are crumbling, The Pattern is unraveling, and the armies of the Shadow have begun to swarm. Towers of Midnight raises the chilling question: Is this the end of the Third Age?
The fates of many beloved characters of the Wheel of Time series, as well as the fate of the Third Age itself, hang in the balance in A Memory of Light, the satisfying conclusion to the best-selling epic fantasy series.
Speaking of epic: all 15 audiobooks and four million-plus words in The Wheel of Time series are read by the award-winning narrator team, and longtime married couple, Kate Reading and Michael Kramer. These accomplished performers bring all the characters highlighted above—and many more—fully and believably to life.
