Wheel Of Time's Josha Stradowski Talks Short Hair, Source Material, And Season 2 - Exclusive Interview
"The Wheel of Time" saga has a lot of faces. In fact, Robert Jordan's 14-book series comes replete with over 2700 named characters and 148 points of view. While showrunner Rafe Judkin's adaptation of the story for Amazon Studios has had to dramatically pare down that number, there are still dozens of individuals soaking up screen time.
Despite the crowded playing field, one character manages to stand out above the rest: Rand al'Thor. When Season 2 starts, Rand is hiding from his fate. By the end of the season, he has revealed himself (with a little help from Moiraine) as the Dragon Reborn. This officially pushes him center stage for the remainder of a story that, even two full seasons in, is still just getting started.
Looper recently had a chance to sit down with Rand actor Josha Stradowski. We picked his brain regarding all things Rand, from his knowledge of the source material to his scenes with Natasha O'Keeffe (Lanfear) to why his hair was so much shorter for this season, in particular. The answer isn't what you expect, even though hair and makeup artist Davina Lamont partly answered the question for Looper back in August.
Finally talking about Season 2 — and getting into character
Are you excited to finally get a chance to talk about Season 2?
Oh, hell yeah. It's been a while since we shot it, and it came out. We're dealing with a lot of stuff. We still were dealing with COVID while we're shooting it. Then there were the strikes, and I'm very happy that it's finally out and then I can finally talk about it.
It's been really cool to hear your insights and some of the behind-the-scenes stories. With Season 2 starting to pull back the curtain on your character and what it means to be the Dragon Reborn and then Season 3 presumably continuing that process, what has it been like balancing a character that is somewhere between an immature young adult and a reincarnated legendary hero?
That's the fun bit. He goes from the shepherd, the young man, to the savior of the world, basically, or the guy that breaks it. We'll see. That arc is fun. Season 1, we drew the lines. Season 2, we colored it a bit, and now Season 3, we're ready to have fun with it.
For Rand, Season 2 was about finding himself and realizing that he can't run away from it. He needs to do it with the people he loves. Season 3 is finally time for facing what he has to face. He's owning that prophecy more, and we see glimpses of why Rand is the Dragon Reborn and why he'll end up where he needs to end up.
As that evolution's taking place, what do you do to get into character as this character is evolving?
I'm very lucky that I have 14 books, which I have read, and that has given me a lot. I really understand Rand, and it's a lot of things. It's the conversations I have with Rafe [Judkins], the directors, and the writers. It's playing with all these amazing actors. It's the sets. Everything feels so real, and at the end of Season 3, we go to South Africa for two months, and being in that environment, all those things added up together, that helps you to get into the character.
Rand's short hair and acting with Natasha O'Keeffe
On a less serious note, you get a dramatic haircut in Season 2, and we actually talked to the Season 2 hair and makeup supervisor, Davina Lamont, back in August, and she was talking about how this reflected the desire for Rand to change his appearance and keep a low profile. Can you speak to that at all? Did the haircut affect the way you presented yourself in Season 2?
I have this tradition that after shooting — with Rand Season 1, I walked around with red hair for two years — and the fastest way to get rid of it is to shave my head. After Season 1, I did that, and they saw that and took that idea for Season 2. I love that idea, because it's not only because of the color of his hair that he's more anonymous, but it was also to sacrifice the past. It's literally shaving off all your hair and leaving it behind and, trying at least, to be reborn.
That's a lot more symbolism than I expected. That's cool. So now that Rand can't really hide behind that anonymity anymore, should we expect another hairstyle shift moving forward? Is this a new thing? And no spoilers...
What I can reveal is that Season 3, Rand will have a little bit more hair on his head. Big plans.
What was it like acting opposite of Natasha O'Keeffe for so much of this season? Do you have any fun behind-the-scenes stories? How was that, working together?
We had so much fun. We were really lucky that we started off as the Innkeeper and the Young Man, and that was a really nice way to establish that relationship with Thomas Knapper, who is a great director. We rehearsed all the scenes and wanted to make sure that all the nuances were there. Then, when we established that honest relationship, it was time for the reveal, and that was, for the both of us, very fun to shoot.
Also, Season 3, that keeps on going, and that is a very interesting area to explore because Lanfear is the Devil, and you can't love the Devil. It feels at times that Lanfear is the only one that really understands Rand, and because Rand is often very lonely in what he feels and sees, it seems like, at times, he can't express it to anyone else, and she's exactly what he needs — but she's the devil. That was very interesting for us to explore, and I secretly hope that Rand and Lanfear marry, but I don't think that will happen.
I don't think so, either. Did you guys film all of your scenes in order? Were you able to progress into that?
With Rand and Lanfear, we shot them in [chronological] order. Yes, we did. Yeah.
Dónal Finn as Mat Cauthon and what's coming in Season 3
Another actor that changed was Dónal Finn. He stepped into the very large shoes of Mat Cauthon after the unfortunate departure of Barney Harris. How do you think Dónal handled picking up the character — such a big character — partway into the show?
I don't think he could have done it better. He's the perfect Mat.
Were there any challenges there? You guys all established your characters in Season 1, and he had to come in and do that on the fly. He did seem to do it so seamlessly.
He did it seamlessly. I don't know how he did it, but there was quite some pressure for him. Everyone who steps into this show feels that kind of pressure because of the source material, because of these characters that are so important for so many people. As you said, I think he did it seamlessly.
Ishmael's out of the way, at least for now, and Lanfear's still there at the end of the season, and there's a lot of other Forsaken coming. Moghedien's shown at the end. Again, without spoilers, what's next for Rand and the Emond's Field Five heading into Season 3? What can we expect?
That's a good question. What can you expect for Season 3 without getting into spoilers? Well, they're together again. There is way more togetherness than in Season 2.
That's exciting. It is fun to follow all of you guys, but there's a lot more momentum when you're all together.
That's also quite hard for them, because these main characters all need to become something eventually. Because they are so close, it also creates some inner conflict. Rand, for example — if someone has been to your first birthday parties, it is very hard to become the most powerful channeler in the world and also the most dangerous man in the world, because they know your parents and they know who you were. That is one of the struggles they're facing now that they're together at the start of Season 3.
All Season 2 episodes of "The Wheel of Time" are available to binge now on Prime Video.
This interview has been edited for clarity.