Every Book in This Fantasy Series Is a 10/10, but It May Never Get a Movie or TV Adaptation

With every book in one bestselling fantasy series being a 10/10, it’s more than deserving of a screen adaptation — but tragically, it may never be made into a TV show or film. Many incredible fantasy shows and movies have come out in the last 25 years, and the biggest successes have largely been book adaptations. The Lord of the Rings movies, Harry Potter films, and HBO’s Game of Thrones all benefited from source material to pull from and established audiences to support them. And following each, there was an uptick in fantasy projects being green-lit, with Game of Thrones ushering in the 2020s’ push to produce more TV shows in the genre.

Of course, not every fantasy adaptation that’s announced makes it out of development and onto the screen. Plus, there are so many new books coming out from year to year that even fantasy novels worthy of movies and shows sometimes get overlooked. And then there’s one perfect series that won’t see an adaptation until the timing and circumstances are right. Unfortunately, that means it may never happen, regardless of how perfectly suited for the screen it is — and how successful it would be.

The Original Mistborn Trilogy Is a 10/10 Series All the Way Through – And It Deserves to Be Adapted

One of the fantasy series most in need of a screen adaptation is Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn trilogy, which is a modern classic in the category. Following a young girl with metal-based magic as she joins a crew of criminals in overthrowing a corrupt empire, the series has everything you could want from a fantasy narrative. Its characters and found-family elements are compelling, its action and twists rarely let up, and the themes are, unfortunately, timeless. The first book is also structured as a heist, adding a fun layer to an otherwise dark and high-stakes story.

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And that first installment, The Final Empire, is easily one of the best fantasy novels of the 21st century. I’ve read it multiple times, and it never fails to pack a punch (nor does it ever get boring, even knowing what’s coming). What’s more impressive, though, is that Sanderson keeps that momentum going for the remainder of his trilogy. All three books are nearly perfect, consistently raising the stakes of the story, while delivering surprises, great character moments, and, most importantly, hope. We could all use that last bit in this day and age, which makes now an ideal time to bring this story to the screen. Of course, the fact that it’s action-heavy and cinematic also makes a case for adapting it, as does its popularity, and the fact that it has franchise potential thanks to Sanderson’s Cosmere.

Why a Mistborn TV Show or Movie May Never Happen

While Mistborn is an obvious choice for a TV or movie adaptation, it’s unclear if we’ll ever get one — something made more disappointing by the fact that we almost did. A Mistborn movie was in development until last year, when Sanderson revealed in his State of the Sanderson blog post that the project had fallen through, thus returning it to “square one.” The author indicated that he would be looking to focus on other adaptations of his work before revisiting this one. However, he also has been vocal about his reservations when it comes to the current fantasy landscape.

In an interview with Polygon, he discussed his thoughts on streaming’s approach to the genre, emphasizing his feelings that, “Streaming hasn’t figured out epic fantasy yet.” He also offered insight into why his other hit series, The Stormlight Archive, hasn’t made it to the screen yet:

“I have had a lot of offers for The Stormlight Archive, people wanting to make prestige television for cable networks or streamers. Very nice offers from very great people that I would want to work with. And I’ve said no because I don’t feel it’s the right time for Stormlight Archive yet. I am in the fortunate position where I can walk away from some of the best deals that might be offered to authors, and do what I think is best for the story.“

We can assume his feelings about Mistborn are similar, at least when it comes to prioritizing the story over the desire for an adaptation. And in his State of the Sanderson post, Sanderson hinted that creative disagreements are what led to the initial film plans not moving forward. It’s great that the author is holding out for a proper take on his work, but it does mean that we could be waiting indefinitely. Fortunately, there’s nothing stopping us from diving back into Sanderson’s world — and all the others connected to it — on the page instead.

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