The Wheel of Time extra dishes on the cast, the sets, and more!

For a show that’s on a filming hiatus thanks to the coronavirus, we’re getting some interesting news about Amazon’s Wheel of Time adaptation lately. We got a bunch of new casting announcements just last week, and now, YouTuber WoT Up has uploaded an interview with a Wheel of Time fan who worked as an extra on the series!

As is expected with these big-budget productions, nondisclosure agreements are involved, so the unnamed extra couldn’t reveal everything, but we’re happy to have anything we can get. Also keep in mind that some things they describe could change by the time the finished show comes out.

With that in mind, watch below!

This extra played a servant to an Aes Sedai, and was able to see the main cast at work first-hand. “Zoe [Robins] is an amazing Nyneave…Daniel [Henney] is a perfectly stoic Lan…Rosamund Pike is the serene and steady Moraine…Josha [Stradowski], Barney [Harris] and Marcus [Rutherford] are our Two Rivers boys…Alvaro [Morte] is commanding and yet as saddening as Logain is in the first book.” It sounds like our favorite characters are in good hands.

The extra let slip that they were up for the role of one of the Tinkers, but “unfortunately or fortunately” was not chosen. One of the main concerns with adapting a 14-book series is that it’s hard to sell the scale of the world in a medium where petty things like budget and time are a concern. So it’s good to hear that the Tinkers, a nomadic, pacifist people who live in brightly painted wagons, are here at all.

Let’s hit some other highlights:

• What did the extra think of the production itself? “It was incredible. I could rant and rave about how [showrunner Rafe Judkins and book expert Sarah Nakamura] have done an amazing job pulling book scenes into real life but I also want to highlight all of the crew behind the scenes creating or procuring all of these items and then setting the scene and making it real.”
• Apparently, it’s a very friendly set. “Yes, by stroke of pure luck another extra and I ended up in a scene with Josha and Barney and they are just… I know now I could not imagine anyone else as Rand or Mat.”
• The costumes and sets are apparently up to snuff and as Robert Jordan would have imagined them. “There was a lot of time and effort into the research, history, and creation of it all. I really feel as though a lot of care and thought has been put into the show and I really hope the other fans will appreciate it.”

The extra also mentions noticing many scenes taken directly from the books, suggesting that Judkins are company are staying pretty faithful. As for the cast, apparently Josha Straowski (Rand) is still working on reading the saga. It’s a tall mountain to climb, but every fan appreciates him trying to learn all he can about his character.

The extra also reiterated something we’ve heard before: that the show is using as many practical effects as possible in the hope of making everything feel authentic, from massive sets to actual wolves.

Finally, WoT Up asked the extra if there was anything else they could say about the production. They couldn’t share anything specific, but they have us intrigued nonetheless. “I am very excited to see the final product because the team and Amazon are really putting their heart and soul into this.”

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