With its upcoming fantasy TV show, Apple TV is poised to be at the helm of a series that could be better than The Wheel of Time. For years, high fantasy on television has been a tricky balancing act. The genre demands immense world-building, interesting lore, and compelling characters, all while maintaining narrative clarity and stories that audiences can believe in. Fantasy shows like Prime Video’s The Wheel of Time have certainly aimed high, but alienated some reader fans, who lamented that the series wasn’t a true representation of its source material.
Apple TV’s science fiction offerings have given it a chance to win the streaming wars, but the streamer’s original fantasy titles are meager. As such, the upcoming adaptation of Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive has a lot riding on it. The Stormlight Archive consists of five main novels and two novellas, which are set in the unique and dangerous world of Roshar, with its story blending war, magic, and mythology, thus creating a world like no other in the fantasy landscape.
With the adaptation of The Stormlight Archive, Apple TV will be ushering in a new era of fantasy. However, ambition alone will not be enough to do the beloved book series justice. Every element in the series will have to come together, from the worldbuilding to the visual design and characters. Given that Sanderson himself will be at the helm of the upcoming fantasy show and Apple TV will be footing the bill for a series that will undoubtedly be expensive, The Stormlight Archive has a chance to be even bigger than Game of Thrones.
Brandon Sanderson Will Have Creative Control Over The Stormlight Archive TV Adaptation
Brandon Sanderson has been vocal about the state of fantasy in the streaming TV landscape, which is why he’s been reluctant about his work being adapted for the small screen, particularly with the challenges that The Wheel of Time and Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power have faced. As one of the most prolific fantasy writers of our time, it’s surprising that none of his work (except The Wheel of Time) has been brought to the small screen and big screen, but that changed when he made a deal with Apple TV.
One of the biggest reasons that Sanderson’s novels haven’t been adapted, despite getting many offers from studios, is that the author wanted complete control of the creative process, something which is unprecedented in the entertainment industry. With his fans backing him, Sanderson was able to secure a deal with Apple, which allows him to write, produce, and consult on the upcoming adaptation of his literary work. Essentially, he will have a say in every creative decision that is made regarding The Stormlight Archive series.
The fact that Sanderson will be at the helm of The Stormlight Archives is good news for the series, as no one understands the world better than he does. Hopefully, the control that he has been given by the streaming platform means that fans who have been looking forward to an adaptation of the author’s work will not be disappointed that the TV show did not stay true to its source material.
Apple TV’s Stormlight Archive Adaptation Still Has A Huge Challenge
Adapting a series as vast as The Stormlight Archive into a TV show is both exciting and challenging. Like many fantasy stories, the novels feature an intricate magic system and worldbuilding. The magic, known as Surgebinding, allows individuals bonded to spren (spirits) to manipulate gravity, transformation, and illusion. The world in The Stormlight Archives itself is equally complex.
Apple TV will also be adapting Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn series into feature films.
Roshar is profoundly alien compared to other fantasy settings. Its ecosystems, architecture, and even weather patterns are unlike anything we’ve seen in the genre. Bringing highstorms to life convincingly would require massive visual effects, and the same goes for creatures like chasmfiends or spren. There’s obviously a lot that can go wrong with the Apple TV fantasy series, more so because of the sheer density of Sanderson’s books. The TV show, obviously, can’t have a linear structure as that would require a lot of the original story to be cut out.
The truth is, not everything that is in the novel will have to be in the TV show; there is, after all, a reason why showrunners aren’t 100% faithful to source material. All we can hope for is that the Stormlight Archive TV show will be true to the story it’s based on, but will make the necessary changes required to make it a great series.
