One would think now would have been the perfect time. A few weeks ago dragon fans lined up at bookstores across the country to pick up their copies of Rebecca Yarros’ Onyx Storm, copies we plowed through, leaving us immediately wanting more. Less swift, however, has been the hotly-anticipated upcoming Fourth Wing TV series based on this same series of books. Which begs the question: What is actually the holdup with getting this on the upcoming TV schedule?
Really quickly, I’m assuming you’re already up on the premise of Yarros’ The Empyrean Series, but given there are a ton of upcoming book-to-screen adaptations, if you aren’t, Fourth Wing is the first book and the name of the planned series based on the novels. Onyx Storm is the third of five (allegedly, I’ve spent too much time writing on George R.R. Martin to count those chickens before they hatch) books. Along with Onyx Storm's release, a second book, Iron Flame, is also already available for purchase.
There’s plenty of source material to work off of and the works have increasingly grown more popular, with two million copies of the first book sold post-release. That number actually grew with Onyx Storm, which sold 2.7 million copies in its first week alone. In fact, in an interview with Elle she declined to comment on where the series is at, and used Tom Holland's spoilery reputation as a bit of a scapegoat to do so, noting:
I’m so new to this industry. I will Tom Holland it. I’d probably just keel over and die [when I meet Michael B. Jordan].
Her comment relates to some of the minimal stuff we do know about the drama. For example, we do know Michael B. Jordan’s production company is set to be producing the series for Amazon, and seemingly hasn't met with the author yet. A while back we also learned Breaking Bad writer Moira Walley-Becket had signed on as showrunner, so I’m at least happy feeling like the show has not ground to a halt.
Plus, I guess I would rather the studio take a little too long to get it all right. However, this lengthy timeline to series also happened with A Court Of Thorns And Roses, based on the (also) extremely popular books by Sarah J. Maas, and guess what happened with the splashy fantasy series? It’s future was “murky” until Hulu announced it was DOA in mid-February 2025. That series is simply no longer getting off the ground. This is absolutely NOT what I want to see happen with Fourth Wing.
I’ve read both, and there hasn’t been a series in years I’ve wanted to see come to fruition more than Fourth Wing. It has everything fantasy fans are looking for: Dragons. Cool armor. A problematic love triangle. War games. Oh and varying dragon and griffin riders with equally cool powers.
Now would be the perfect time for the series to get off the ground as well, as Yarros has already announced a break before she gets started working on the fourth book. She's promised the show will not catch up to her books (I see you Game of Thrones), but that honestly makes me less confident about this series getting off the ground soon.
Sure, I could see how myriad dragons could get expensive, and there’s stuff to be worked out, but the last thing I want to see is this sit on a shelf until the iron is no longer hot enough to strike.
Hopefully, we’ll get some traction soon, but until then, I’ll be perching in my corner of the internet (much like the dragons themselves) and loudly complaining about how there’s been not enough forward momentum to anyone who will listen. Listen, we all have to do our part for the future of Navarre.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
