Mistborn Movie's Disappointing Update Is A Chance To Fix The Biggest Flaw In Its Original Adaptation Plan

The Mistborn movie adaptation received a disappointing update from author Brandon Sanderson, but this could actually be an opportunity to right the ship. Talks of Mistborn being adapted into live-action have gone on for over a decade, particularly after the fantasy boom that followed HBO's monster success with Game of Thrones. Every streaming service has wanted its own series to mimic that success, and Sanderson's expansive Cosmere universe seems like the perfect place to start. Combining the appeal for fantasy with the appeal for shared universes like the MCU seems like a no-brainer, yet it's no closer to being done.

Before the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes of 2023, Brandon Sanderson was well on his way with a Mistborn adaptation. In his 2024 State of Sanderson blog post, where he shares annual updates regarding all of his ongoing projects, Sanderson explained that the movie was nearly off the ground, with recognizable stars (though he won't be mentioning any names) attached to play the leading roles. Unfortunately, the Mistborn movie adaptation has since fallen through, and the author claims that Cosmere adaptations are back to square one. It's disappointing, but it could be a blessing in disguise.

Mistborn Might Be Best As A Prestige TV Series

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Brandon Sanderson is known for being as transparent with his fans as possible, updating readers on book progress through his website, YouTube channel, and podcast. Hollywood adaptations come with their own degree of secrecy that inhibits what he's allowed to share, but he's still been vocal over the years on how he would like to see his books adapted. He's long been particular about Mistborn being a feature film despite the success of fantasy on television. In a YouTube livestream from 2020, he said the following:

I do have to warn you, there isn't a lot of time in the screenplay for the crew. If I'm gonna do this as a film... Which it's not set in stone; it's possible that I'll move to a show. But right now, what I'm planning is: film, television show for Well of Ascension, film. Which means that mostly in the first film, it is focused on Vin, Kelsier, Sazed, and Elend. That's gotta be the core of our film. With Shan as an antagonist. And that's the movie. And I can't spend as much time with each of the crew members, like I did. But what we can do is, we can then move into Well of Ascension as a show, and with that being a show really show the crew and the things they're doing. And kind of write a heist with the crew where the crew is trying to heist keeping the kingdom from collapsing. A thieving crew has been put in charge of a city; let's see if they can keep this empire going. And I think that will work really well in television show format. And that's where we can get into some the things with OreSeur and TenSoon and character arcs for some of the crew members, really get to know Ham and Breeze and everybody. That's the big cost by doing it in a film. That's the thing you're gonna have to understand, as it becomes really Vin and Kelsier's story. And I think it's gonna work. I think it is great. But if it doesn't, we do have the option of just doing a television show. Which I know a lot of you would rather see; I just see Mistborn as a film. I've always seen it as a feature film. So I'm hoping I can make it work.

This quote is years old, so it's possible Brandon Sanderson's thoughts on adaptation have changed since. However, assuming this is generally the same thought process, it's worth speculating on whether the most recent creative differences would be the breaking point for his pivoting to television. The author has stated that not needing money has allowed him more freedom to make choices and reject Hollywood offers than most writers would have, so it's hard to say how long he'll stick to his guns on wanting a movie if plans keep falling through.

Related Mistborn Era 3 Timeline Confirmed: When Ghostbloods Takes Place In The Saga Brandon Sanderson has revealed critical information about Mistborn era 2, so here's our breakdown of what exactly it means for the narrative.

With The Mistborn Movie At "Square One," There's An Opportunity To Adapt It For TV

It's The Perfect Time To Reassess What Mistborn Should Look Like In Visual Media

Custom Image by Ana Nieves | The Way of Kings and The Final Empire cover art by Sam Green

If the Mistborn movie is back to square one, it's the perfect time to contemplate the Cosmere as a television universe. There's something to be said about seeing Sanderson's inherently cinematic narratives on the big screen, but contemporary television has proven to be just as capable of providing visual excellence and event-like excitement when done right. Jumping from movies to TV shows works for something like Marvel and Star Wars, as they're already titles that exist in broader pop culture. Mistborn and the Cosmere continue to grow, but trying to mesh television and film from the get-go could get convoluted.

It's important that Mistborn and The Stormlight Archive, the main theaters of the Cosmere, be as fully fleshed out as possible.

Posing the Cosmere as a primarily television fantasy universe, similar to what HBO and Netflix have been attempting with Game of Thrones and The Witcher, seems like the best course to really develop the complex, long-term storytelling Sanderson's books offer. The Witcher has even had animated spinoff movies, which could be done for shorter books like Tress of the Emerald Sea or the Cosmere novellas, fulfilling the desires of fans who want Sanderson's world in animation. It's important that Mistborn and The Stormlight Archive, the main theaters of the Cosmere, be as fully fleshed out as possible.

Related Stormlight Archive Book 5's Ending Perfectly Set Up The Next Mistborn Book (& Made Era 3 More Exciting) The Stormlight Archive book 5 isn't just exciting for its own series but also for Mistborn, with one iconic character featured in multiple scenes.

Why Mistborn Would Be Better As A TV Show Than A Feature Film

A Mistborn Movie Would Cut A Significant Amount Of The Story

Custom Image by Simone Ashmoore

It's important to break down why exactly Mistborn would work as a TV show. While word count isn't always the perfect metric to determine how something would translate to adaptation, it's one of the best metrics available, and it's worth breaking down. The Final Empire is just over 200,000 pages, making it longer than The Fellowship of the Ring, a three-hour movie, and The Deathly Hallows, a story split into two films. It's shorter than A Game of Thrones, a novel that was almost perfectly adapted into a ten-episode season of television.

Fantasy Books Word Count The Final Empire 210,103 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 198, 227 The Fellowship of the Ring 177,227 A Game of Thrones 292,727

With this in mind, Mistborn would either need to leave out a significant part of its material, as Sanderson suggested, or it would have to be upwards of three hours, something Hollywood probably wouldn't be interested in making. Sticking to the core characters makes sense, but with so many fantasy adaptations missing the mark with fans due to excessive source material changes, trying to develop a story as beloved as Mistborn with the most faithful interpretation possible seems worthwhile. An eight-episode television series could be perfect.