The Wheel of Time: Showrunner Rafe Judkins on What’s to Come in Season 3 [Interview]

With The Wheel of Time Season 3 going full steam ahead, many fans are excited to see where Moiraine, Rand, and so many others are going.

Given Rand’s proclamation of being the Dragon Reborn, it seems as if the world has ultimately changed as the Great Pattern is unravelling these new threads. As such, fans might be already wondering what The Wheel of Time Season 3 has in store.

The recently released trailer has already teased a divided White Tower, the rise of the Black Ajah and the Forsaken, and much more. Yet, there’s still a lot to uncover as these heroes face these new dangers.

I spoke with The Wheel of Time showrunner Rafe Judkins about what’s coming in Season 3, the journey the Emond’s Field gang is on, and the fiery spark between Moiraine and Siuan that continues to shine. (You can watch the full interview below.)

While The Wheel of Time Season 3 has a lot of challenges for the Aes Sedai to face, fans are very excited to see what Rand, Mat, and Perrin are up to. On The Wheel of Time Season 2, Mat was in the spotlight as he was separated from the rest of the group throughout the season.

Given this, Judkins says that this time, Rand and Perrin’s arc will take more precedence. “I think, in the show, we don’t necessarily get time to fully focus on all the characters each season,” Judkins began. “Some of their arcs take center stage. In Season 2, we really got to see a lot of [Egwene al’Vere] and [Nynaeve al’Meara].”

“I think two of the characters that really take center stage in Season 3 are Rand and Perrin,” he continued. “So, we get a lot of time with them. They each have a full episode devoted to them at one point in the season.”

As such, Judkins says that both of them will get more emphasis in Season 3.  “You really get to see them shine [and] really understand who they are as characters and get that level of depth,” Judkins explained.

“[Josha Stradowski], who plays Rand, and [Marcus Rutherford], who plays Perrin, are such incredible actors,” he said. “When you see them get these big challenges thrown at them, they really deliver.”

Watch the interview with Rafe Judkins:

With both Rand and Perrin seemingly getting more attention in Season 3, there are some characters from their arcs who will play a bigger role. One of these characters is Faile Bashere, played by Isabella Bucceri, who becomes Perrin’s wife.

Judkins went further in-depth into how Perrin and Faile’s dynamic will develop this season. “I think one thing we really wanted to see from this relationship with Faile is a study in contrast, and it’s not just physical between them.”

“[Isabella]’s tiny, and Marcus is so tall,” Judkins recalled. “Just physically on screen, they have this really great chemistry together. But also, she is different than him in every way.”

Judkins further described her personality going into Season 3. “She is aggressive, outgoing, impulsive, outspoken and is all the things that Perrin is not,” he said. “He’s gentle, and thoughtful, and careful with his words and his body.”

“I think that seeing her, she’s almost like this little fire that comes into his life and ignites him,” Judkins said. “For me, Perrin really comes into his own as a character once you see him in this relationship with Faile. So, I think the two of them do a great job this season.”

“I know that she’s a character that some people don’t like in the books,”  he said. “I think, in the show, I would be shocked if people don’t love her and love their relationship with each other.”

However, the relationship that fans are excited to see grow ahead of The Wheel of Time Season 3 is between Moiraine and Siuan. Throughout Season 2, both of them grew extremely close to each other, which was another departure from the books that fans loved.

Judkins believes that Moiraine and Siuan’s relationship was meant to be in The Wheel of Time. “In my head, reading the books, their love was canon.”

“I know, that’s just like a gay kid reading into these books when he was young,” Judkins laughed. “But for me, I loved the two of them and their relationship with each other in the book.”

As such, Judkins and the creative team made sure to flesh that out naturally. “It feels only natural that as people watch the show, they would love that relationship too.”

“It’s been really inspiring to see what that relationship has meant to a lot of people,” he continued. “We’re very careful with that relationship and how we treat it and keeping it real and having real conflict between them, because they’re two women who would have a lot of conflict with each other.”

“But the love also is always there and always present,” Judkins said. “I can’t say much about it, but they still have a lot yet to go through together and on their own.”

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The Wheel of Time Season 3 premieres on Thursday, March 13th on Prime Video.

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