Brandon Sanderson’s ‘Skyward’ Is Heading to TV, and the Studio Behind Netflix’s ‘One Piece’ Is Making It Happen

Brandon Sanderson has had an extraordinary run of good news lately, and fans of his work are running out of ways to contain their excitement. The prolific author recently saw two of his most celebrated series, ‘Mistborn’ and ‘The Stormlight Archive’, set up at Apple TV as a film and television project respectively. For most writers, that alone would represent a once-in-a-career achievement. For Sanderson, it is apparently just the beginning.

Sanderson has sold more than 50 million books throughout his career, building one of the most devoted reader communities in contemporary genre fiction. His ability to construct sprawling, interconnected universes has long made his work feel tailor-made for the kind of serialized storytelling that premium television demands. That reputation now appears to be catching the attention of exactly the right people in Hollywood.

Tomorrow Studios, the indie production company behind Netflix‘s live-action ‘One Piece’, has officially set out to adapt ‘Skyward’, the first book in Sanderson’s Cytoverse franchise, for television. Sanderson will co-write the pilot script alongside Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen, the duo behind ‘Dollhouse’ and ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’, and all three will also serve as executive producers alongside Tomorrow Studios’ Marty Adelstein and Becky Clements.

The story centers on Spensa Nightshade, a determined young pilot living on a harsh planet under constant siege from a mysterious alien species. Driven by a desire to defend humanity and restore her disgraced father’s legacy, Spensa fights her way toward the front lines of an interstellar war. Published in 2018, ‘Skyward’ is the first installment of the Cytoverse series, which exists as a separate literary universe from Sanderson’s larger Cosmere.

Sanderson addressed the news with clear enthusiasm. In a statement to Deadline, he said the project had been a long time coming, describing Tomorrow Studios as the kind of partner needed to finally make the dream of a television adaptation real. The studio’s leaders were equally vocal about their excitement. Adelstein and Clements noted that the creative vision Sanderson, Whedon, and Tancharoen share for the show is, in their words, “defiant to the end,” a phrase that doubles as a direct nod to the human colony in the books, which is called Defiant.

This announcement did not come entirely out of nowhere. Sanderson had confirmed in a previous “State of Sanderson” blog post that the series had been optioned for television and that the team was actively searching for a showrunner. By a later update, the hunt had concluded and a pilot script was already underway. Whedon and Tancharoen also co-created ‘Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog’ with Joss Whedon and Zack Whedon, a project that earned a Hugo Award, a Saturn Award, and an Emmy.

No casting has been announced yet, and no timeline for the production has been revealed. With Tomorrow Studios having already proven their instincts with a fan-beloved live-action adaptation, and with Sanderson personally involved in shaping how Spensa’s story reaches the screen, the early signs are promising. If ‘Skyward’ can capture the same spirit as the books, with their blend of aerial combat, found family, and genuine emotional stakes, it could be one of the more exciting genre entries of the coming years.

Whether you have been with Spensa since the first page or are only now discovering the Cytoverse, share your thoughts below on what you are hoping to see from this adaptation.