Sanderson will write the pilot for a series based on Skyward
More Brandon Sanderson stories are coming to a TV near you.
Sanderson signed a deal with Apple TV in January to bring his Cosmere universe to the small screen, but he’s not stopping there. On Wednesday, Deadline reported that another of Sanderson’s sci-fi works will be getting a TV adaptation from the studio behind Netflix’s One Piece live-action show.
Tomorrow Studios will adapt the young adult book Skyward and its sequels. It’s part of Sanderson’s Cytoverse, which comprises four novels and a handful of novellas and short stories. Skyward is about a teenager who aims to become a pilot in hopes of defending humanity during a dangerous war.
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“I’ve been working on the Skyward series for nearly a decade, and to have a partner like Tomorrow Studios to help bring this story to television is a dream come true,” Sanderson said in a statement. He will write the script for the pilot of the TV series.
Sanderson has written dozens of epic fantasy and science-fiction books over the years, and they’ve collectively sold over 50 million copies. Despite that success, as recently as late 2024 he was hesitant to have Hollywood adapt his work. “I’m not convinced that we have hit stability in the streaming market,” Sanderson told Polygon in an interview. “Streaming has had a big problem with epic fantasy, and this has me worried. […] Streaming hasn’t figured out epic fantasy yet.”
His thoughts on streaming and Hollywood have presumably shifted since. He’s overseeing the Mistborn movie and is now set to help adapt Skyward.