The Wheel of Time has added a new member to its cast for its upcoming second season, according to the announcement made by showrunner Rafe Judkins during the virtual JordanCon panel today. Ayoola Smart will be joining the cast in a recurring capacity as Aviendha, a name that fans of Robert Jordan's book series will instantly recognize.
Introduced in The Dragon Reborn, the third novel in The Wheel of Time series, Aviendha is a Wise One—one of the matriarchal leaders of the Aiel—and one of the strongest known female channelers. Aviendha also goes on to become one of Rand al'Thor's (Josha Stradowski) main romances, alongside Min Fashaw and Elayne Trakand, who haven't been introduced to the series yet. Ceara Coveney was cast as Elayne late last year, which may indicate that the series intends to follow through with the relationship that forms between both women and Rand. When last we saw Rand, he was still reeling from his relationship with Egwene (Madeleine Madden).
In addition to Smart and Coveney, the second season of The Wheel of Time has added several other new players to the mix, including Guy Roberts as Uno Nomeshta, Arnas Fedaravicius as Shienaran warrior Mesema Dagar, and Gregg Chillingirian as Lord Ingtar of House Shinowa.
Most notably, Smart appeared as Audrey in Season 3 of the critically acclaimed BBC America series Killing Eve as Kenny Stowton's (Sean Delaney) girlfriend and starred in the series Smother as Cathy Cregan. In addition to the upcoming second season of The Wheel of Time, she is set to play Officer Reba in the film Cocaine Bear, which stars Keri Russell and Alden Ehrenreich.
The Wheel of Time stars Josha Stradowski as Rand al'Thor, Rosamund Pike as Moiraine Damodred, Daniel Henney as Lan, Marcus Rutherford as Perrin, Madeleine Madden as Egwene, Zoë Robins as Nynaeve, and Álvaro Morte as Logain Ablar, as well as Maria Doyle Kennedy, Priyanka Bose, Daryl McCormack, Sophie Okonedo, Clare Perkins, and Kae Alexander. The role of Mat Cauthon, which was played by Barney Harris in the first season, will be played by actor Dónal Finn for Season 2, perhaps indicating the dark path the character is set to embark on.
A release date has not been set for the second season of The Wheel of Time, but the production is underway in Prague, Czech Republic.