Barney Harris is a British actor who portrays Mat Cauthon in Season 1 of Prime Video's The Wheel of Time. Harris's casting was announced on August 14, 2019.[1]
Harris will not be returning as Mat Cauthon for season 2, with Dónal Finn replacing him as Mat. The reasons for the recasting have not been officially revealed.[2]
Credits[]
- The Wheel of Time TV series
Recasting[]
Harris filmed the first six episodes as Mat Cauthon before production was shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. When production resumed, Harris did not return to set. The ending of episode 6 was modified so that Mat did not enter the Ways with the group. Harris as Mat appears briefly in episode 8, reusing footage of him from episode 5.
In September 2021, before the premiere of season 1, it was reported that Harris would not be returning as Mat Cauthon for season 2, with Dónal Finn replacing him.[2]
The reasons for Harris not returning to set and for the recasting have not been officially revealed. On January 4, 2022, Small Screen reported that the reason Harris left had to do with the production's strict COVID-19 vaccination policy, indicating that Harris may have refused to get vaccinated.[3]
Quotes[]
Mat is probably seen as the sort of light relief of the books and of the series, but he's much more complicated. I think his inner monologue is very much like, "I'm a bad person. I don't deserve this." Something to do with maybe the poverty that he has, and the ideas of reincarnation, and the stuff you don't agree with have coming into the fore. So yeah, he sees himself as quite a bad person, but his actions are always good. Mat's relationship with Rand is like they've grown up together, they've known each other since they were kids, and they're very banterous with each other. I think I see [Rand] as quite stubborn and quite serious all the time, which [Mat finds] quite irritating, I think [Mat finds] them both irritating, I'm not sure why [Mat] is friends with either of them. But they're loyal and loving and good friends to [Mat].
Barney Harris, IGN, October 29, 2021
Gallery[]
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Trivia[]
- Barney Harris and Sophie Okonedo both worked on The Hollow Crown, where Okonedo played the mother of Harris's character.
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External links[]
Barney Harris at the Internet Movie Database
References[]
- ↑ Twitter: “It was about a hero who insisted with every breath that he was anything but a hero.” @BarneyHarriso as Mat Cauthon #WoTWednesday #TwitterOfTime August 14, 2019.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Deadline. 'The Wheel Of Time': Dónal Finn To Play Mat Cauthon In Recasting On Amazon Series As Barney Harris Not Returning For Season 2. September 20, 2021.
- ↑ Small Screen: Barney Harris Fired From The Wheel Of Time – Here’s Why by Edward Lauder. January 4, 2022.
