Summary
Over the years,Amazon’sPrime Videohas managed to become the streaming home tosome of the biggest genre titles. From titles likeThe Expanse,The Wheel of Time, and most recently,Fallout,Prime Videohas helped to adapt some of the most exciting titles. Now, Prime Video has its sights set onFourth Wing, a book that quickly took the book world by storm when released last year.
Fourth Wing, which was released last year by Red Tower Books, is the first in a five-book series. It features a war college and dragons, and Prime Video seems hopeful it’ll be its next big franchise, having recently announcedAnne With an E’s Moira Walley-Becket as its showrunner. So, what exactly isFourth Wingabout? More importantly, though, has Prime Video just found its next big franchise withFourth Wing?
What is Fourth Wing even about?
Fourth Wing, which is by author Rebecca Yarros, follows twenty-one-year-old Violet Sorrengail, as she seeks to find herself at an elite and brutal war college. Violet is expected to join the Scribe Quadrant, a life that would save her from the action of battle and allow her to live among books and history. Those within the Scribe Quadrant are responsible for studying and mastering their past, while also recording and relying the present for the future. It’s the safe option for Violet, who is smaller and suffers from a disability. She’s fragile, at least in the eyes of those around her, and seems unlikely to find a future as a dragon rider. Still, she seeks to try her hand in the Riders Quadrant, where she’ll need to prove herself to everyone around her - including the mysterious Xaden Riorson, who is the most powerful rider in the Quadrant. The novel focuses on Violet’s journey to becoming a rider, and the pain she faces along the way, as she finally becomes the rider she always hoped she would become.
The book is described as a romantic fantasy novel, and features a slew of dragons who are able to speak with their riders, resulting in plenty of charming moments on the page. The series also features plenty of action, as the riders are forced to endure physical tests where their lives are on the line to join the Riders Quadrant. It’s a series that has remained atop the New York Times Bestsellers List since its debut, with the second book,Iron Flame, having been released shortly after Fourth Wing. The next book,Onyx Storm, is currently set to be published in January.
How Fourth Wing Can Become Amazon’s Next Big Franchise
Romantic fantasy is currently the big thing in the book world right now, much like dystopia was once the big thing back whenThe Hunger GamesandDivergentstormed the screens back in the mid-2000’s. What makesFourth Wingan exciting property, though, is that it’s a fresh spin on a fantasy with dragons. It’s not the type of fantasy that’ll turn away watchers, as Yarros purposely wrote it as an introduction to fantasy, per se. The dragons are just as vital of characters as Violet and Xaden are, often delivering some much-needed humor when things are tense. Prime Video officially optioned the book in October 2023, with the streaming service also securing the rights to the remainder of the series at the same time. Michael B. Jordan’s Outlier Society, which has an overall deal at Amazon, is producing the series alongside the streamer. The series secured its showrunner this past July, addingAnne with an EshowrunnerandBreaking Badwriter, Moira Walley-Beckett, as the showrunner for a potential series. News of theFourth Wingtelevision adaptation comes at a time when the previously announced adaptation of another book sensation,A Court of Thornsand Roses by Sarah J. Maas, was put on hold at Hulu.
Prime Video’s adaptation ofFourth Wing, should it be ordered to series, could potentially launch a new franchise at the streaming service - one that is as big, if not bigger, thanthe genre hits it has already brought to life.Fourth Wingcontinues to dominate the bestseller chart on Amazon, and it has yet to leave the New York Times Bestsellers List. In fact,Iron Flameis still within the top ten on the New York Times Bestsellers List forty-six weeks after release. The series has the potential to be Prime Video’s ownHunger GamesmeetsGame of Thrones, if handled properly. While the second book had its share of production issues during its initial launch, Yarros and Red Tower Books appear to have delivered the next big thing and Hollywood is wasting no time bringing the action-packed romance tolife on the small screen. With a producer like Michael B. Jordan, and a streaming service willing to take risks with its properties, as evident withThe Wheel of Timeand evenThe Boys,Fourth Wingseems to have the perfect (potential) new home for its dragons. Who knows, it might even have helped Prime Video secure its next franchise.
