Who is Lanfear in The Wheel of Time? Character explored in depth

Amazon Prime Video's fantasy drama series The Wheel of Time has kicked off with Season 3. The show is based on Robert Jordan's book series of the same name.

While the fantasy world of the show is vast, the Forsaken are an important part of the story's fabric. They are an army of 13 powerful people serving the Dark One.

Lanfear, played by Natasha O'Keefe, is one of the 13 Forsaken and a disciple of the Dark One. She pretends to be Selene in Season 2 and introduces herself to Rand, following her attraction to him.

More on Lanfear in The Wheel of Time in our story.

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Lanfear is one of the Forsaken in The Wheel of Time

In Jordan's book 'The Great Hunt,' Lanfear was first introduced as the 'Daughter of the Night.'. She is a major antagonist and one of the Forsaken in the books, whose introduction in the show was highly anticipated.

The Forsaken are an army of 13 chosen ones who serve the Dark Lord and are his loyal disciples. Her connection with her Lord is superior because she is the one who unleashes him. Many years before the events of The Wheel of Time, Lanfear was an Aes Sedai (a witch) who accidentally unleashed the Dark One with a male Aes Sedai.

After learning his powers and strength, she changed her identity to Lanfear and joined the Forsaken army to serve her Dark Master. While the army of the 13 is very powerful and can even be resurrected after death, they lost the battle with the original Dragon in the War of Power.

Lanfear is attracted to Rand instantly and even poses as Selene, an innkeeper, to grab his attention in Season 2. But after Ishmael frees her from prison, her identity is afterwards revealed to be Lanfear.

Lanfear discussed one of her past lovers with Rand, the Dragon Lews Therin Telamon. They had a romantic relationship, which Therin eventually broke up when he became aware of Lanfear's threat of power.

She not only got her heart broken, but Therin also fell in love with another woman, which drove Lanfear to such heights of jealousy that she took a villainous path. She was later attracted to Rand because of his power and because he was the reincarnation of the Dragon, which hints that she never got over Therin.

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What can be expected of Lanfear in The Wheel of Time Season 3?

While Lanfear is one of the Forsaken, she is not well-liked among her group because of what she has done in the past. Her complicated relationship with Rand also starkly contrasts her with the other Forsaken.

In an interview with Screen Rant, O'Keefe notes:

“Lanfear has been completely thrown off her high horse.It’s interesting to see her trying to switch gears and [find] who to make allies with and who’s not having any of it.”

Rand and Lanfear's relationship will be one of the highlights of The Wheel of Time Season 3, and the makers have even made changes to the books. While the attraction is pretty one-sided in the books, the fans will get to see tensions bubbling from both sides in the new season.

Showrunner Rafe Judkins teased the chemistry for Season 3 (via Screen Rant):

“One thing we really try to do in the writers’ room with their relationship is make it feel like, when you’re watching the show, you could actually wonder to yourself, ‘What if they ended up together?’” As for why it works so well? “It’s something you never get to experience in the books.”

Also Read: The Wheel of Time Season 3 filming locations

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