20 years after the first book released, and 17 since the movie franchise started, Twilight continues to have a major impact on pop culture and, in particular, the fantasy genre. The film series may have had its detractors, but it was undoubtedly a global phenomenon that not only made stars of Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart, but helped spark a resurgence of the vampire genre, as well as a slew of other YA novel adaptations with similar franchise goals. The fantasy landscape is still huge business and, while most shows have largely tried to be the new Game of Thrones, one of the 2020s’ biggest trends is also indebted to Twilight.
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The romantasy subgenre has become not only one of the most successful aspects of fantasy, but among the more popular books in recent years; it’s an industry that has driven millions of dollars in sales. At the center of that is Rebecca Yarros’ Fourth Wing, aka The Empyrean Series, which Prime Video is turning into a TV show. The story takes place at a college in a fictional world, where students are put into one of four groups: Scribes, Healers, Infantry, and (dragon) Riders. The central romance clearly takes inspiration from Bella and Edward, and now the worlds may collide even more. In an interview with Teen Vogue, Twilight: Breaking Dawn‘s Renesemee actress Mackenzie Foy responded to being fancast as main character Violet Sorrengail for the show, saying:
“It’s got magic, it’s got dragons — it’s like, what’s not to love? I’m obsessed with it. The fact that there are people who want me to play Violet, that they would even think of me or want me for that, is really flattering. It’s up to Ms. Yarros, so if she calls, I’m down.”
The Fantasy Genre Could Shift With Fourth Wing’s TV Show
It isn’t hard to see why Foy is a popular fancasting choice for Violet: with her pale skin, slight frame, and dark hair, she looks almost exactly how the character is described in the books. At 24, she’s within the right age frame (Violet is 20 when they start), she’s done genre/franchise work before, and she has the acting chops to lead the series. That’s not to say she will be cast, but we’ve seen popular fancasts become a reality before, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see it happen, and it’d be a big step forward for what is an important show in the fantasy TV landscape.
Again, most fantasy dramas have centered on being like Game of Thrones – there’s a need to be epic and gritty, often striving to be like Thrones to their own detriment. But Fourth Wing is part of a change: the success of romantasy books, driven by BookTok, shows it’s a massive market for studios and streamers to tap into, which is exactly what they’re aiming to do. Prime Video also has an adaptation of the hit series Powerless lined-up, and Netflix acquired the rights to Quicksilver, another smash, in a reported seven-figure deal.
The Fourth Wing TV show has the chance of being the biggest of these: the saga’s most recent book, Onyx Storm, became the fastest-selling adult novel in 20 years [via The New York Times]. If and when it comes to fruition – progress has been fairly slow, but it did recently get a new showrunner in Meredith Averill (whose credits include The Haunting of Hill House, Locke & Key, and Wednesday) – it’ll likely be a streaming sensation, sparking more of a fervor for other romantasy adaptations and shifting the genre further in that direction, and if Foy is cast, then Twilight will still be playing a part in shaping the future of fantasy.
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