Amazon's Fourth Wing adaptation, based on the Empyrean Series novels by Rebecca Yarros, is probably one of the most-anticipated series currently in development — especially after Hulu canceled its four-year-long A Court of Thorns and Roses project. While Fourth Wing's former competitor in the romantasy space has been scrapped, it seems Amazon and Outlier Society's production is still moving along seamlessly. Amazon's Fourth Wing series was first announced in November 2024, and has made consistent progress updates since — even announcing Moira Walley-Beckett as showrunner this past July.
Yarros herself has made several promising comments on the show's future, and her latest Netflix's Shadow & Bone series, it comes as a huge relief. However, this leaves Amazon's Fourth Wing to pave the way for future romantasy adaptations, and puts a significant amount of pressure on its success.
With ACOTAR Being Scrapped, Amazon's Fourth Wing Show Lost Its Biggest Competition
Fourth Wing Will Pave The Way For Romantasy Adaptations
Now that Hulu's years-long A Court of Thorns and Roses adaptation has officially been scrapped, the Fourth Wing TV series has lost its biggest source of competition. With both shows being developed from a popular romantasy book series, each adaptation would likely have drawn in a very similar target audience, as readers have often expressed their love for both. With ACOTAR now off the table, Amazon's Fourth Wing will be able to enter the market without a competitor — making it easier for the show to develop its own style without any concern over comparing the two.
Without a strong competitor, Amazon's Fourth Wing will be left to pave the way by itself, and have no sounding board by which to gauge viewers' reception ahead of release.
However, the loss of ACOTAR as a competitor has its downsides as well, as there's now a lot of pressure on Amazon's Fourth Wing series to be near perfect upon its release. Not only will the Fourth Wing series need to make a memorable entrance into the fantasy TV market, but its success could determine the fate of future romantasy adaptations. Without a strong competitor, Amazon's Fourth Wing will be left to pave the way by itself, and have no sounding board by which to gauge viewers' reception ahead of release—which would have been healthy for the series' run.
Quicksilver Could Emerge As Fourth Wing's Biggest Competitor In The Romantasy Race
Netflix's Enthusiasm May Indicate The Steamer Plans To Move Quickly
However, Amazon's Fourth Wing series may not be the only romantasy adaptation in the works. Netflix recently made headlines when the studio won a seven-figure bidding war for the rights to Callie Hart's Quicksilver—the first novel in the Fae & Alchemy series, which went viral on TikTok after its release in June 2024. Similarly to Fourth Wing, Quicksilver employs several popular romantasy tropes, and includes a fiery female protagonist, a shadow-wielding male main character, and plenty of spice and tension. While it's likely a ways off, Netflix's obvious enthusiasm for Quicksilver may indicate the studio plans to work quickly through production.
Netflix's Recommitment To The Fantasy Genre With Quicksilver Is A Shocking Turn Of Events After A Series Of Big Cancellations
Despite big cancellations, it looks like Netflix is recommitting to the fantasy genre with its huge acquisition of Callie Hart’s Quicksilver.
If Netflix fast-tracks its Quicksilver adaptation, it could provide a healthy source of competition for Amazon's Fourth Wing and allow the streamer to enter into the romantasy race. Amazon's Fourth Wing is over a year ahead of Quicksilver in of development, but Netflix still has the opportunity to become a major competitor if it releases Quicksilver's adaptation during Fourth Wing's multi-season run. And while the two shows will have different narratives, their equal focus on both fantasy and romance elements throughout will likely prove to attract similar audiences.
ACOTAR's Fate Proves That Both Fourth Wing & Quicksilver Need To Succeed
The Future Of Romantasy Adaptations Rely On Their Popularity
Hulu's cancelation of its A Court of Thorns and Roses show was incredibly disappointing, and further proves how badly the industry needs Fourth Wing and Quicksilver's adaptations to succeed. The romantasy genre has long been ignored and undervalued, and Hulu's ACOTAR show was previously believed to be the series that would fill the gap in the fantasy TV market. However, Amazon and Netflix's adaptations will now have to step into A Court of Thorns and Roses' former role and hopefully avoid falling to the same fate.
The Fourth Wing TV Show Needs To Feature This Viral Song BookTok Is Obsessed With
After the release of Onyx Storm, BookTok has become hyperfixed on one song that captures Violet and Xaden's romance—and Amazon needs to include it.
Instead, Amazon and Netflix's romantasy acquisitions, should they prove successful, could open the door for other popular series to receive film or television adaptations. BookTok has long advocated for these types of productions, and after Fourth Wing and Quicksilver each gained popularity among readers, it seems a few studios and streamers are beginning to take notice of the romantasy genre's overall value. However, the decision to adapt romantasy novels will likely only continue if Fourth Wing and Quicksilver are met with great success upon release.
