Imagine making a living playing pretend. This is the reality for Maja Simonsen. “In many ways I try and strive to be my most authentic and honest in whatever part I play,” says The Wheel of Time actress. “But I think that there is also a huge element of imagination and make believe where I can create a fantasy so vivid in my mind of this character, so much that I genuinely feel and live whatever this person is going through.” She has gradually warmed up to fantasy as a genre. “To be honest, before Wheel Of Time, I wasn’t a huge fantasy girl. However, having now worked on a fantasy show, I’ve come to see that this genre is such an incredible platform for us to be creative. There’s almost no limits to what you can do and where your ideas can go, and the work doesn’t stop when we’ve all wrapped. A big chunk of magic starts in the editing room and seeing how the special effects teams come into play after we’ve all done our jobs on set is just amazing. I find it all so impressive.”
Maja will be gracing our screens once again as warrior Chiad in the popular Amazon show. “It’s essentially a story between the Light and Shadow. Rand al’Thor (Josha Stradowski), who plays the Dragon Reborn, is one of the main protagonists who is destined to either save the world or bring its destruction. A pretty intense plot with lots of emotions! There’s a lot of magic, love, good, evil, different cultures, etc. It’s a show that I’m genuinely really proud to be a part of. Everyone in it and around it is so brilliant and it’s been so fun to work on.” She deeply admires her muse. “Chiad is basically my hero. She’s an Aiel and a Maiden of the Spear. That means she’s a part of a group of women who have sworn an oath to avoid marriage and bear children. Instead, she focuses on defending her people and fights in battle. The Aiel are such cool characters. They’ve got a great sense of humor. They’re strong, determined, and highly skilled in battle. They also speak sign language, which has been an amazing thing to work on along with all the stunt training! And living in the desert!”
Season 3 will also reveal that Chiad has quite the cheeky side in between obligations. “Hanging out with Bain, her First Sister! And a lot of Maiden’s Kiss. They’re really, really keen to play that game with whomever wants to play with them. Quite fun to see a more playful side to her this season. They will also partake in a big battle…I think that might be all I can say without giving away spoilers.” Chiad lives her life by a noble mantra. “I would say the main motivation is the Aiel code of honour ‘Ji’e’toh.’ Ji stands for honour and duty. It’s about fulfilling her responsibilities and commitments and protecting the people around her and being strong in battle. It’s about bringing honour to yourself and those around you. Toh stands for obligation and debt. That means that if someone does something to help or save her, she owes them her toh in return. That is her duty; a pretty amazing code to live by.”
Maja has had her whole world view altered by the devoted fighter. The lessons that she offers are crystal clear. “I wish I was as fearless as Chiad. Ha! It’s funny though, since playing Chiad I’ve found myself to be much stronger and certain in myself than I ever have been in the past. You learn a lot from the characters you play and I feel quite proud to be able to portray an Aiel. Their honour and loyalty and fierceness is inspiring. Something that I think a lot about is their approach to death. A sentence they say a lot is – ‘Life is a dream from which we all must wake.’ They believe that dying isn’t the end, but rather that you’ve finally woken from a dream. It’s a beautiful thing. I think if you never feared death, but actually felt lucky to die when it’s your time, I would probably also be a lot more fearless. I don’t think I’ll ever be as cool and fearless as her, but here’s to trying!” Mortality is simply a bookend to an unforgettable adventure. Season 3 of The Wheel of Time drops on Amazon on March 13th.
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Maja Simonsen Balances Fealty with Fun in Season 3 of “The Wheel of Time”. Photo Credit: Karl Hughill and Jakub Koziel.
