Rebecca Yarros’ bestselling fantasy-romance novel Fourth Wing is being made into a TV show at Amazon MGM Studios, and esteemed Marvel showrunner Jac Schaeffer is being tapped to become showrunner!
Fourth Wing became a breakout fantasy novel in 2023, thanks largely to exploding in popularity on TikTok. A fantasy series leaning heavily into romance, the novel follows Violet Sorrengail, a young woman forced to enter a war college, Basgiath, where she vies to become a dragon rider...but in order to do so, it takes brutal training that could easily result in death.
Rebecca Yarros is not messing around with these books, collectively known as The Empyrean series. She's already published an enormous sequel, Iron Flame, and the third novel, Onyx Storm, debuted earlier this year. The series is planned to last for five books. There's already so much story for an adaptation to cover.
As for Amazon's adaptation, it is very much still in the works despite running into a few hurdles. For instance, writer and producer Moira Walley-Beckett (Flesh and Bone, Anne With an E) was originally tied to the project before dipping out. Now, according to a report from Deadline, Jac Schaeffer — known for her work on the Marvel shows WandaVision and Agatha All Along — is in early discussions to spearhead the adaptation, becoming a writer, executive producer and showrunner. This comes after Schaeffer signed a deal with the studio.
This isn't the only 'Romantacy' project in the works at Amazon. Prime Video has a clear idea for where the industry is headed, with the streamer also working on an adaptation of Lauren Roberts' similar fantasy romance series Powerless. It feels a little like a kick in the teeth to see all of these fantasy projects being picked up when Prime Video axed its brilliant fantasy series The Wheel of Time. Am I bitter? A little, but I've read both Powerless and Fourth Wing, and I wish their TV adaptations well.
To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and Twitter account, sign up for our exclusive newsletter and check out our YouTube channel.