House of The Dragon showrunner initially wanted to adapt the Dunk & Egg novels

The idea of Game of Thrones spinoff shows has been around for a really long time – HBO has been discussing the possibility of exploring more of the Martinverse since even before the original series came to a close. Prior to the first spinoff House of The Dragon came into being, showrunner Ryan Condal had another series in mind he wanted to adapt. That adaptation is finally on the way to becoming a full-fledged TV series, though without Condal in it.

Ryan Condal wanted to adapt Dunk & Egg

HBO recently announced the second Game of Thrones spinoff; A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight. Before he started working on House of The Dragon, Condal wanted to create a spinoff based on Dunk & Egg, the novels that serve as an inspiration for the upcoming spinoff. He told Indiewire:

“I thought it would fly because it was a great counterpoint to ‘Game of Thrones. It was just like ‘The Mandalorian’ to the big ‘Star Wars’ saga films. This was a completely different flavor. HBO wanted something big and muscular in the fight for the throne. They wanted something more like ‘House of the Dragon.’”

George R.R. Martin reflects on how far ahead The Hedge Knight is in development

Martin recently commented about how much work has already been done on the upcoming Game of Thrones prequel. He told Shakefire: “I don’t know when that’s going to debut, but we got a writing room. We got a full season pickup so we’re going to be doing that. That’s in the early stages.”

What is A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight series about?

In Martin’s own words: “Our premiere season will be an adaptation of the first of the three published novellas, “The Hedge Knight,” the tale of how Dunk & Egg first met during a tournament at Ashford Meadow. The pilot script is already written, and I think it’s terrific. It was written by Ira Parker, who is no stranger to Westeros. He was part of Ryan Condal’s writing staff for the first season of HOUSE OF THE DRAGON, and wrote the fourth episode of Hot D’s first season, “King of the Narrow Sea.” That’s the one where Prince Daemon returns to King’s Landing after conquering the Stepstones, and takes Princess Rhaenyra down into the stews of Flea Bottom. Ryan Condal is on board as well, as an Executive Producer. So am I.”

Read Next: ‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight’ production on hold due to writers’ strike