The Wheel of Time's Ceara Coveney on Elayne's Meeting With Rand

The Wheel of Time's Ceara Coveney discusses her character Elayne's fateful meeting with Rand al'Thor at the end of Season 2. The Wheel of Time has made some big changes from its source material over the course of its two seasons, but one thing that apparently hasn't changed is the seemingly fated relationship between Rand al'Thor (Josha Stradowski) and Elayne Trakand (Ceara Coveney). Although the two characters didn't meet the way they did in the books, the show's depiction was arguably even more powerful, with Elayne healing Rand at a crucial moment during the Season 2 finale. 

ComicBook.com spoke with Coveney about her character's meeting with Rand, and how the cast and crew tried to emphasize its importance. "I knew it was a very important moment in terms of these characters meeting," Coveney said. "And I think, for me, the most important thing that I wanted to play was the fact that Elayne didn't necessarily know why, but she knew this person was very important to her in her life. Yes, he's the Dragon Reborn, so he's very important in that sense, but I definitely wanted to help audiences see that inside she's wondering who this man is and why she feels this way towards him." 

Coveney noted that it was her final scene that she filmed that season. "There was a real weight to it, which really helped in creating that moment. And the sun was setting behind me. It all came together serendipitously in this moment that I think, on screen, it's quite the moment that makes audiences go, "Hang on. What's going on here?"

While her scenes with Rand were brief, Coveney had much more interaction with other members of the cast, with Elayne mostly sharing the screen with Egwene (Madeleine Madden) and Nynaeve (Zoë Robins) and inserting herself into an established friendship in a parallel to how Coveney was added to the cast in Season 2. "It was really fun to explore those relationships," Coveney said. "Obviously, as a new character to the season and both Maddie and Zoë having already done a season together, it very much reflected the dynamic of the characters in the show and the fact that Egwene and Nynaeve have grown up together in the Two Rivers, and Elayne as this new girl who's popped up in the White Tower. So it was really fun to not only play Elayne navigating new friends in this completely new scenario and environment, and behind the scenes also, as Ceara making friends with Maddie and Zoë and getting to know them. It informed the scenes in a way, so that was really, really fun."

Coveney pointed to the relationship between Elayne and Nynaeve as one she particularly enjoyed exploring. "I loved playing their dynamic, especially around episode 5 and 6 where they're bickering and they're at each other's necks, and they're just constantly trying to prove the other one wrong," Coveney said. "That was just so much fun to play, and that was very different to Zoë and I's dynamic behind the scenes. We very much were just great friends at that point. So it was just quite fun to play."

When asked what scenes she enjoyed as a fan of the show, Coveney pointed to the introduction of another fan-favorite. "I absolutely loved Aviendha's introduction," Coveney said. "It's absolutely amazing. I was just so blown away. I read it in the script and obviously heard from Ayoola and Marcus and Jay how it went. But actually watching it, I was like, 'Oh my goodness, this is amazing.' I really loved it. And I think it's just such a fantastic introduction to that character and just how badass she is. She's so cool."

The Wheel of Time's second season is available to watch on Prime Video in its entirety.