Fourth Wing TV Show Is Taking Flight Based on The Empyrean Book Series
"A dragon without its rider is a tragedy, a rider without its dragon is dead."
If these words have been playing on repeat in your head ever since reading Rebecca Yarros' Fourth Wing, you have two reasons to celebrate. Not only is the Nov. 7 release date for sequel Iron Flame only days away, but a TV adaptation is also officially in the works.
Amazon MGM Studios is partnering with Michael B. Jordan's production company Outlier Society to bring the BookTok phenomenon to life, per Deadline. In fact, not only are they signed on for both Fourth Wing and Iron Flame, but they've also acquired the rights for the remaining three books planned for the five-part series.
The outlet also reports that Rebecca will serve as an executive producer on the television adaptation, as will Entangled Publishing's Liz Pelletier.
Fourth Wing follows Violet Sorrengail at the fictional world of Navarre's Basgiath War College as she leaves the scholarly Scribe Quadrant for the "graduate or die" Rider Quadrant, where students compete to the death to become first dragon riders and eventually soldiers. Amid a burgeoning love triangle with childhood friend Dain and the dangerously appealing Xaden, Violet must bond with a dragon before the end of the year—or else.
Though no further details regarding the writers or cast have been released yet, Fourth Wing's action-packed, spicy storyline quickly captured the hearts of book and fantasy lovers alike and promises to bring an equal dose of excitement to the small screen.
For more books to add to your TBR list as they're turned into TV shows and movies, keep reading.
Based On: It's Not Summer Without You, the second book in Jenny Han's beloved young adult trilogy
Starring: Lola Tung, Christopher Briney, Gavin Casalegno, Sean Kaufman and Rain Spencer
Premieres: July 14 on Amazon Prime Video
Why We're Excited: Like Belly (Tung), we've been counting down the days 'til summer all year as we awaited our return to Cousins Beach to find out what happened between her and the Fisher brothers—our current favorite love triangle on TV!—as well as get a much-needed update on how Susannah (Rachel Blanchard) is handling her cancer battle.
Han teased that fans should expect major differences between the 2010 book and the upcoming season. "There's always gonna be changes here and there," the showrunner told E! News in December. "So I guess you'll just have to wait and see."
Based On: Colleen Hoover's 2016 novel of the same name.
Starring: Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni, Brandon Sklenar, Jenny Slate, Hasan Minhaj
Premieres: TBD
Why We're Excited: Two words: Blake Lively. Okay, two more words: Love triangle. Centered around a florist named Lily Bloom, the book is a riveting tale of love, strength and the complications of relationships.
Based On: Casey McQuiston's 2019 novel of the same name.
Starring: Nicholas Galitzine, Taylor Zakhar Perez, Uma Thurman, Sarah Shahi, Stephen Fry and Rachel Hilson
Premieres: Aug. 11 on Amazon Prime Video
Why We're Excited: Make sure you have your A.C. on full blast before reading or watching McQuiston's steamy secret romance between Alex Claremont-Diaz (Perez), the son of the President of the United States, and Britain's Prince Henry (Galitzine). Trust us, relations between the U.S. and the British have never been hotter.
Based On: Bonnie Garmus' 2022 novel of the same name.
Starring: Brie Larson, Lewis Pullman, Stephanie Koenig, Aja Naomi King, Thomas Mann and Beau Bridges
Premieres: Oct. 13 on Apple TV+
Why We're Excited: In the 1950s-set series, Larson plays Elizabeth Zott, an aspiring scientist whose ambitions are put on hold in a society that insists women belong in the domestic sphere. After she finds herself pregnant, a desperate Elizabeth accepts a job as a host on a TV cooking show, which she turns into an opportunity to inspire overlooked housewives to change the status quo. This revolution really will be televised.
Based On: Patricia Cornwell's mega-popular series of the same name that has 26 books in total
Starring: Nicole Kidman and Jamie Lee Curtis
Premieres: TBD on Amazon Prime Video
Why We're Excited: If it's based on a book and Kidman stars in it, we will binge the s--t out of it. (See: Big Little Lies, Nine Perfect Strangers and The Undoing.) Add in the fact that the Oscar winner and Curtis—who bought the Kay Scarpetta book rights back in June 2021—will be playing crime-fighting sisters and it's already become our favorite new show of the year.
Based On: The Lightning Thief, the first book the beloved fantasy series written by Rick Riordan
Starring: Walker Scobell, Aryan Simhadri, Leah Sava Jeffries, Virginia Kull, Glynn Turman, Jason Mantzoukas, Megan Mullally and Timm Sharp
Premieres: Early 2024 on Disney+
Why We're Excited: Confession: While we loved the film franchise that starred Logan Lerman, we do think the source material is better suited for the TV treatment and we're so happy to be re-enrolling at Camp Half-Blood for more teen deity drama. Plus, Lin-Manuel Miranda is guest-starring as Hermes and we want to be in on the streaming service where that happens.
Based On: The non-fiction bestseller of the same name by Lisa Taddeo.
Starring: Shailene Woodley, Betty Gilpin, DeWanda Wise, Gabrielle Creevy, Blair Underwood and Sean Meehan
Premieres: TBA on Starz
Why We're Excited: One of the most relevant books of 2019, the series will explore female desire as it follows a trio of women who are on a crash course to radically overturn their lives. While Showtime initially canceled the show despite production already being completed, Starz swooped in, answering our literary battle cry.