Prime Video’s the Wheel Of Time Should’ve Been A Cautionary Tale For The Rings Of Power

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As a fan, I have to say Prime Video really should have learned from their experience with The Wheel of Time before releasing The Rings of Power. While the show has some good qualities, it’s been incredibly divisive, and honestly, that’s not surprising when you adapt a beloved book series. It always invites criticism, but Rings of Power seems to have really upset a lot of people. Prime keeps saying everything is fine, but you can’t ignore the reports I’m seeing online about people not finishing the series or the overall viewership being lower than expected. It’s a bit worrying, and I hope they can turn things around for season three.

Reports suggest that fewer people are watching Rings of Power as the series goes on, and many viewers don’t complete the full season. While it’s hard to know for sure, public reaction to the Prime Video show is clear. Critics generally like Rings of Power – about 84% have given it positive reviews over both seasons – but general audiences on Rotten Tomatoes are less enthusiastic, with only around 48% giving it a positive rating. Complaints about the show range from its visual effects and production quality to the writing itself, but the biggest issue for many fans seems to be changes made to established Tolkien lore.

The Rings of Power Rotten Tomatoes Scores
Season Critic Score Audience Score
Overall 84% 48%
Season 1 84% 38%
Season 2 84% 58%

Bringing Tolkien’s Second Age to life in Prime Video’s Rings of Power required significant changes to the original story. The show covers over three thousand years of history, but compresses centuries of events into just a few weeks, resulting in a narrative that differs considerably from the source material. It was predictable that these alterations would draw criticism, and Prime Video likely anticipated that Rings of Power would face an uphill battle to win over audiences, much like The Wheel of Time did with similar changes.

Prime Video Could Have Predicted Rings Of Power’s Fate After Wheel Of Time

Image Credit: Jan Thijs /©Amazon / Courtesy Everett

Prime Video’s The Wheel of Time is a fantasy series adapted from the popular books by Robert Jordan (completed by Brandon Sanderson). Because the novels were so well-loved, there was a lot of excitement for the TV show. However, the first season, released in 2021, received criticism from some fans. The show streamlined and simplified the complex story from Jordan’s books, which left many viewers feeling disappointed.

The Wheel of Time Rotten Tomatoes Scores
Season Critic Score Audience Score
Overall 88% 76%
Season 1 81% 62%
Season 2 86% 81%
Season 3 97% 85%

While The Wheel of Time faced some initial criticism, it wasn’t as controversial as Rings of Power. Viewers rated the first season at 62% on Rotten Tomatoes, but by the third season, that number jumped to 85% thanks to improvements in the show’s production. Despite becoming a more costly series to produce, viewership didn’t increase significantly. As a result, Amazon cancelled The Wheel of Time in May 2025, only a month after the third season finished airing.

When The Wheel of Time first launched, Rings of Power was already releasing episodes. This meant Amazon couldn’t easily adjust its strategy when The Wheel of Time began to face problems. Those early difficulties should have warned them about future issues. Ultimately, the significant departures from established lore proved damaging, and even a huge budget couldn’t keep viewers interested in Rings of Power.

Why Prime Video Is Less Likely To Cancel Rings Of Power (Despite Canceling The Wheel Of Time)

Given the challenges faced by The Wheel of Time, many expected similar problems for The Rings of Power. The Wheel of Time was cancelled because it was expensive to produce but didn’t attract enough viewers, and The Rings of Power is even more costly. With lukewarm reviews and reports of falling viewership, cancellation seemed inevitable. Surprisingly, however, it doesn’t appear to be happening anytime soon.

Prime Video spent over $250 million just to get the rights to create The Rings of Power, and production costs were around $60 million per episode. A huge amount of money has already been invested. Although canceling the show might prevent further losses, it could end up costing more than it saves. Amazon is contractually obligated to pay the Tolkien estate $20 million for each season they don’t produce, so finishing the series is likely the best course of action.

It’s likely that ending The Wheel of Time freed up Prime Video to focus more on Rings of Power, which was already their largest and riskiest project. Only time will tell how these decisions play out, but Prime Video should now have a clearer understanding of what’s needed to succeed with future fantasy series.

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2026-03-22 02:39