The fantasy series The Wheel of Time hits Amazon on Friday, based on the wildly popular novels by Robert Jordan. The streamer is hoping the series will be the next Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones, and Zoe Robbins, who plays the sorcerer Nynaeve al’Meara, says to bring on the comparisons.
“It’s incredibly different from a lot of the other fantasy stories that we know,” she tells ABC Audio. “I think in particular, it’s so character-driven and the power dynamics and the gender dynamics and everything that we explore is, I think, quite different to what we’re used to in the fantasy genre.”
Robbins adds, “I think we all expect that the comparisons will happen, but I think I think ours is quite different and special.”
What makes The Wheel of Time different from fantasy series that have come before it? The gender and power dynamics, for one. Madeline Madden stars as Edwene Al’Vere in the series, a villager just learning how to tap into her powers. She reveals what makes this world unique.
“The Wheel of Time is set in a world where magic exists, but only women are allowed to touch this magic or wield it,” says Madden. “So obviously there is a power struggle between the genders that is explored throughout the course of the series.”
“There is this streak of the matriarchy throughout the world. And you know, it is that struggle between men and women, light and dark, but at the core of The Wheel of Time, it’s really a story about balance and finding that balance,” the actress adds.
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.