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All Game of Thrones spinoffs — Everything you need to know about the prequel and sequel shows

All you need to know about the World of Westeros.

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Credits: Max

Following the tremendous success of House of the Dragon, HBO is diving deeper into the Game of Thrones universe with the production of several new prequel series. Some of these projects have already begun filming, with trailers released and premiere dates on the horizon, while others are still in the early stages of development, with their futures yet to be determined.

The original series captured the hearts of viewers worldwide, sparking a demand for more stories from Westeros. In 2024, HBO has made waves with a mix of confirmed projects and speculative developments. Here’s everything we know so far about the upcoming Game of Thrones prequels and spin-offs.

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House of the Dragon

Milly Alcock as Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen

Credit: HBO

The show took everyone by storm and exceeded most audience’s expectations. House of the Dragon is a prequel series set 200 years before the events of its Game of Thrones and follows the story of House Targaryen. It portrays the story of King Viserys I, his brother, Daemon played by Matt Smith and his daughter, Rhaenyra played by Emma D’Arcy. It shows Rhaenyra’s ascension into adulthood and the maddening politics which follow.

Season 1 was as intensely dramatic as one would hope and brought in a stellar cast along with showrunner Ryan Condal and screenwriter Ira Parker. It also introduces us to one of the prominent characters from House Velaryon, the Sea Snake, Corlys Velaryon played by Steve Toussaint.

House of the Dragon Season 2 wrapped up with mixed reactions, but anticipation for Season 3 remains strong. HBO appears to be moving forward with production alongside other spin-offs, with pre-production for Season 3 reportedly starting on October 31, 2024. Filming is expected to kick off in 2025, with preparations likely beginning by the end of 2024.

HBO already commissioned the third season even before the second one aired. According to showrunner Ryan Condal, the writing for Season 3 is well underway. This forward planning is crucial for maintaining the series’ biennial release schedule.

Read More: A new BTS picture from House of The Dragon teases a deleted scene with young Rhaenyra

Aegon’s Conquest

aegon visenya and rhaenys targaryen fanart

Credit: Amok

Mattson Tomlin has been hired to write the Aegon’s Conquest prequel. This marks significant progress for the series, which was first announced in April 2023 and is still in early development. Aegon’s Conquest will explore the rise of the Targaryens, contrasting with House of the Dragon, which shows their eventual decline.

Tomlin posted on X (formerly Twitter) suggesting that writing for Aegon’s Conquest is well underway. He shared a photo of his writing tools alongside a copy of George R.R. Martin’s Fire and Blood, the novel that will serve as the basis for the new series.

The series will focus on Aegon the First, who, alongside his wives Rhaenys and Visenya, united the Seven Kingdoms under the Targaryen banner through a bloody campaign. Set a century before House of the Dragon, Aegon’s Conquest will provide a different perspective on the Targaryen dynasty, highlighting its rise rather than its fall. This era is crucial, as it lays the foundation for the events of Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon.

With the thrones universe expanding, fans are thrilled to fan-cast actors to their favorite characters. The most popular fan-casting for Aegon I Targaryen is Henry Cavill. The actor has known for his intense and talented performances in series and movies alike. Some of his best work has been portraying Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher and Superman in Warner Bros’ DCEU movies.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms first look (1)

Credits: Steffan Hill/HBO

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms will follow the story of Martin’s novellas, The Tales of Dunk and Egg. It will focus on the adventures of Ser Duncan the Tall (Dunk) and his squire, Aegon V Targaryen (Egg).

The Tales of Dunk and Egg takes place 90 years before the events of Game of Thrones, during the Targaryen dynasty’s rule. The series will start with The Hedge Knight, following Dunk, a humble knight, and Egg, his young squire. Together, they face the dangerous political landscape of Westeros.

Peter Claffey will play Dunk, and Dexter Sol Ansell will play Egg. Claffey is known for his role in Wreck, while Ansell is a young actor with a growing resume.

Other cast members include Finn Bennett as Prince Aerion Targaryen, Bertie Carvel as Prince Baelor Targaryen, Sam Spruell as Prince Maekar Targaryen, Tanzyn Crawford as Tanselle, and Daniel Ings as Ser Lyonel Baratheon.

Ira Parker will serve as the showrunner. George R. R. Martin will write an episode, and Owen Harris and Sarah Adina Smith will direct six episodes. Filming began in June 2024 in Northern Ireland and is expected to wrap up by mid-September. The series will likely be released in late 2025.

As soon as House of the Dragon wrapped up its second season, HBO dropped a new teaser for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.

More: Everything you need to know about A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight

Snow

jon-snow

Credit: HBO

The Jon Snow spin-off was cancelled in it’s stage of early development, but loads of fans are hoping it makes its way on air eventually. Kit Harington recently joked on Jimmy Fallon, “we would see a ‘Game of Thrones’ spin-off right now with Jon Snow” if the viewers would stop bothering him about it. There were high hopes for the show to get the green light from HBO but was cancelled for being stuck in developmental hell.

Samwell Tarly becomes the Grand Maester to King Bran in King’s Landing in the final season of Game of Thrones. What happens after is a mystery and the Jon Snow sequel series might have more answers. Fans thought that the show finally got the green light when John Bradley was asked in a recent interview with ComicBook.com, “what was more likely, definitive proof of alien life, or a reunion between Sam and Jon?” His reply although vague, it gave fans hope.

Bloodmoon

Bloodmoon

Credit: HBO

Bloodmoon, written by Jane Goldman was one of the earliest spinoffs to be announced. It was set 8,000 years before the events of Game of Thrones but the writers had barely a few lines of lore from the books to go off of. The show would begin in the golden Age of Heroes and follow the world’s descent into darkness. Bloodmoon’s pilot episode was shot for approximately $30 Million but was ultimately scrapped.

The then-chairman of WarnerBros., cited the reason for the cancellation being, “It wasn’t unwatchable or horrible or anything. It was very well produced and looked extraordinary. But it didn’t take me to the same place as the original series. It didn’t have that depth and richness that the original series’ pilot did.”

Recently, some images surfaced of Naomi Watts portraying a character, Morven from House Casterly. This created a lot of hype among the fans. To fuel the excitement, the storyboard artist who worked on Bloodmoon and House of the Dragon, Adam Pescott, released several etchings from the canceled prequel. After reviewing several images, a novel theory popped up, hinting at a Stark-Lannister wedding. Regardless of these images of Naomi Watts, the Starks and more, the show is still said to be cancelled.

Read More: Jamie Campbell Bower talks about canceled Game of Thrones prequel ‘Bloodmoon’

The Sea Snake

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Credit: Valdihr

House of the Dragon has introduced us to the main character of the spin-off (previously titled The Nine Voyages), Corlys Velaryon played by Steve Toussaint. Martin said the change of title from The Nine Voyages to The Sea Snake was because “we wanted to avoid having two shows with numbers in the title.”

The prequel follows the Great Voyages of Corlys Velaryon, considered the greatest seafarer of the Seven Kingdoms and brought the House Velaryon immense wealth through said voyages. George R. R. Martin has confirmed this show is in development. This spinoff is the furthest in development so far, with creator Bruno Heller (creator of The Mentalist) currently reported to be writing a pilot script for the same. Previously a live-action, it is now being developed as an animated show but will still feature Steve Toussaint. Martin mentions that the show has not been cancelled but has not been completely approved either.

Read More: Sea Snake (Corlys Velaryon) spinoff show is still in under development, confirms George R.R. Martin

Ten Thousand Ships

Princess Nymeria, by JK Drummond, for The World of Ice & Fire

Credit: JK Drummond

Ten Thousand Ships is a live-action TV series set in the world of Westeros, currently in development at HBO. Eboni Booth wrote the pilot. The show focuses on Princess Nymeria, a legendary queen from 1,000 years before Game of Thrones. She led her people from Essos to Dorne and burned her fleet of 10,000 ships to ensure they couldn’t return.

In 2017, HBO announced it had ordered scripts for four Game of Thrones spinoffs. One of these was Ten Thousand Ships, which Brian Helgeland originally pitched. The project gained momentum in 2021 when HBO ordered a pilot script from Amanda Segel. George R.R. Martin confirmed in 2022 that the project was progressing well, with Segel delivering drafts.

However, in October 2022, Startling Inc. removed Ten Thousand Ships from its development list, sparking rumors that HBO had quietly rejected it. Despite this, in 2023, Martin stated that the project was still in development. By 2024, Eboni Booth was reportedly working on the pilot, though it remains unclear if HBO has greenlit it for filming.

Brian Helgeland, known for films like L.A. Confidential and A Knight’s Tale, compared Nymeria’s story to Moses leading the Israelites. He described the show as a mix of Ray Harryhausen’s Sinbad films and The Odyssey. Helgeland pitched the idea to Martin, who approved it, but HBO has yet to move forward. Helgeland remains hopeful that the project could still happen, emphasizing that “nothing is ever dead” in Hollywood.

The Golden Empire

Yin, capital of Yi Ti, by Henrik Zahringer

Credit: Henrik Zahringer

The Golden Empire is the working title for an animated TV series set in the world of Westeros. It focuses on the Golden Empire of Yi Ti, a region in the far east of Essos. HBO is developing the show, and it will explore an area not visited in the main A Song of Ice and Fire novels.

On July 16, 2021, The Hollywood Reporter shared that HBO was considering three separate Game of Thrones animated projects. One of these projects would be about the Golden Empire of Yi Ti. This series would likely draw from the detailed chapter on Yi Ti in The World of Ice & Fire, a sourcebook published in 2014.

On March 9, 2022, George R.R. Martin gave an update on the project, confirming that it is progressing well. He mentioned that the news about the show being set in Yi Ti had leaked months earlier. He also shared his excitement about the concept art and the animation style. Martin said:

“Over on the animated side…well, I am not allowed to talk about most of what’s happening, except to say that things are moving very fast, and I love love love some of the concept art I am seeing. And…wait, come to think of it, the news leaked several months ago that one of the animated shows would be set in Yi Ti. That’s true. Our working title is THE GOLDEN EMPIRE, and we have a great young writer on that one too, and I think the art and animation is just going to be beautiful.”

Flea Bottom

Cersei Lannister and High Sparrow in Flea Bottom

Credit: HBO

Flea Bottom was set to be a show which depicted the lives of the dwellers of King’s Landing’s slum and perhaps a few rags to riches/honor stories. Notably, Ser Davos Seaworth also hailed from the slums. But The Hollywood Reporter reported in 2021 that this spinoff series had been officially cancelled.

Histories & Lore

Mad King Aerys in Histories and Lore

Credit: HBO

Histories & Lore is a series of animated short videos included in the Blu-Ray release of every Game of Thrones season. There are a total of 121 shorts that serve as a crash course of sorts for A Song of Ice and Fire universe.

Braavos Spin-Off

Titan of Braavos

Credits: HBO

George R.R. Martin recently revealed that HBO shelved a potential Game of Thrones spin-off centered around the mysterious city of Braavos. Despite this setback, Martin intends to revisit the story once he completes The Winds of Winter, the long-awaited sixth book in A Song of Ice and Fire. Martin shared in a post on his blog, Not A Blog, that the Braavos spin-off was put on hold by HBO:

“One of these days, I need to write that story about Braavos we were developing for HBO. They shelved that one a couple of years back, alas, but that does not mean I won’t go back to it… after WINDS OF WINTER is done, of course.”

Braavos, one of the most vibrant locations in A Song of Ice and Fire, is known for its canals, the mighty Titan, and the powerful Iron Bank. Martin drew inspiration for Braavos from real-world cities like Amsterdam and Prague, though many readers associate it with Venice due to its canals. Reflecting on this, Martin wrote:

“A lot of my readers think that Braavos was inspired by Venice. Thing is, though I’ve read a lot about Venice… I have never actually been there… Amsterdam, however, has more canals than Venice, which surprised me too!”

Which spinoff were you most excited about? Let us know on our discord server.

Read Next: Steve Toussaint teases the beginning of House of The Dragon Season 2’s production

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12/02/2024 04:27 am GMT
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