After three seasons, Prime Video has decided to cancel the fantasy series The Wheel of Time and not produce a fourth season. While the series has been praised creatively by both critics and Prime Video executives – with season three being the highest-rated season to date – ratings and especially the high production costs ultimately proved to be the deciding factors.
The series, based on the popular book series by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson, had a promising start in 2021 with one of the most successful premieres on the platform. However, ratings declined in season three, with a short-lived presence in the Nielsen Top 10. The Wheel of Time disappeared from this list after only three weeks, while it remained in the list for the entire season of the previous two seasons. The series did return to number 10 in the Originals ranking after the season finale of the third season. The series remained quite popular worldwide, but this was not enough to justify the high costs of a new season.
The season three finale was deliberately made with a certain closure, in case the story ended there. Fans, who see season three as the creatively strongest part, will find the news disappointing. Prime Video will continue to promote the third season for the Emmy Awards.
The series was developed by showrunner Rafe Judkins, with Rosamund Pike as the lead actress and executive producer, among others.