An update on the nextGame of Thronesspinoff show,A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms(formerly andmaybestill currently subtitledThe Hedge Knight, as that remains unconfirmed), eases concerns about it repeating mistakes made by a different fantasy franchise.House of the Dragonis the only spinoff show to make it to air sinceGame of Thrones' endingback in 2019, with two seasons under its belt so far (and two more confirmed), but that will change in 2025.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' storywill take audiences to a different part of Westeros, set around 90 years beforeGame of Thronestimeline(and roughly 80 years afterHouse of the Dragon). Based on George R.R. Martin’sThe Tales of Dunk and Eggnovellas, it follows Ser Duncan the Tall and his squire, Egg, on adventures in Westeros.It promises to be quite a different show toGame of ThronesandHouse of the Dragon, and that’s a good thing.
The Tales Of Dunk & Egg Stories Are A Song Of Ice & Fire’s Version Of The Hobbit
The Prequels Have A Very Different Tone
A Song of Ice and Fire’s similarities toLord of the Ringsare clear, as are its differences: Martin was hugely influenced by J.R.R. Tolkien when crafting his own epic fantasy saga, but also wanted to avoid falling into the traps that many other post-LOTRnovels had, such as simply being too derivative of Tolkien’s work. And so, ifASOIAFis his version ofLord of the Rings, similar in scope but subverting typical fantasy tropes and expectations, thenThe Tales of Dunk and Eggnovellas are hisThe Hobbit.
The Tales of Dunk and Egg are, like The Hobbit, much shorter, breezier reads than the vast tomes they are related to.
LikeThe Hobbit,they takes place several decades before the “main” story, and have plenty of elements that readers will recognise while still having unique characters and locations. But most of all,The Tales of Dunk and Eggare, likeThe Hobbit, much shorter, breezier readsthan the vast tomes they are related to. The books have more humor, the struggles are a lot more personal in scale than a war to rulethe Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, and the tone, while still having its own darkness and brutality, is a hell of a lot lighter.
A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms' Plan Made Me Worried About Repeating The Hobbit Movies' Problems
Is HBO Going To Turn This Story Into Something Too Epic?
I loveThe Tales of Dunk and Eggnovellas and am delighted to see they’re being adapted to the screen, because they’re highly entertaining stories filled with great characters, fun adventures, and lots of fascinating bits of worldbuilding and lore (such as how it draws on the Blackfyre Rebellion, which happened around 13 years before the first book). But I was concerned, too, becausereading the stories doesn’texactlysuggest a long-running, multi-episode TV show likeGame of ThronesorHouse of the Dragon.
Every Targaryen In A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms Explained
The Targaryen dynasty was in full swing by the time of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and the upcoming Game of Throne spin-off will have plenty.
It was somewhat of a relief to hearA Knight of the Seven Kingdomsseason 1 would only have six episodes, but even that didn’t assuage my concerns about things being stretched too thin. There are only three books, and they’re all very short.The Hedge Knighthas 160 pages; the audiobook is just under three hours long(!), and yet that could become six hours with HBO’s plan for the show.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdomsdoesn’t yet have an exact release date, but HBO and Max have confirmed it will release in 2025, and filming has already concluded.
I’ve seen, quite disastrously, how that can backfire withThe Hobbititself. Rather than one fun fantasy prequel movie toLord of the Rings, they were turned into three movies totalling almost eight hours in runtime for the non-extended editions. They made a lot of money, sure (almost $3 billion at the box office for three movies would suggest the plan worked), but in terms of quality they were a bloated mess.Almost all the charm, wit, and lightness of the book was lost, in favor of trying to recreate the grand epic scope and scale ofLord of the Rings.
HBO has had huge success with Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon which, for all their differences, are both huge shows that deliver a massive spectacle.
Of course,A Knight of the Seven Kingdomsis a TV show, and the situations aren’t the exact same, but with three novellas that total around 10 hours in audiobook length being turned into three seasons that could be triple that, it’s enough to have made me uneasy. Similarly, HBO has had huge success withGame of ThronesandHouse of the Dragonwhich, for all their differences, are both huge shows that deliver a massive spectacle. Wouldn’t they want to continue that with the next spinoff?
A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms' Budget Avoids The Hobbit’s Problem
GRRM Is Also Happy With What He’s Seen Of The Game Of Thrones Spinoff
Thankfully, one part of my concern has been eased, and by none other than the books' author himself. Martin discussedA Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' budgetin a blog post, saying that it is"muchsmaller"(the emphasis is his). That’s great to hear, because while they’re still committed to the show looking great, it meansthey aren’t trying to just make it likeGame of Thrones. Contrast toThe Hobbittrilogy, which had a budget of more than double theLord of the Ringsmovies, and it’s definitely a positive sign.
Status
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms
An adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s The Tales of Dunk & Egg novellas
Season 1 releasing in 2025 on HBO and Max
House of the Dragon
Ongoing Game of Thrones prequel, telling the story of the Targaryen civil war, the Dance of the Dragons
Season 3 expected in 2026; season 4 will be the last
Aegon’s Conquest
The story of King Aegon I Targaryen and the conquest of Westeros with his sister-wives, Rhaenys and Visenya
In-development
10,000 Ships
A spinoff about Princess Nymeria, who led her people the Rhoynar to Dorne after a war with the Valyrian Freehold
Nine Voyages
An animated show about Corlys Velaryon’s Great Voyages, where he sailed around the Known World
The Golden Empire (unofficial)
An animated show set in empire of Yi Ti, which is in the far East of Essos
Another live-action Game of Thrones spinoff
Another animated Game of Thrones spinoff
I’m still not 100% sure about just how the story expansion will work, and what they’ll add or deepen in order to allow for what I assume will be six hour-long episodes. But the fact they are aiming to keep the tone and spirit of the book is a fantastic step, and should ensure we do get a true adaptation. Further, Martin himself has a lot of praise forA Knight of the Seven Kingdomsso far -saying he"loved"the rough cut of the first episode he was shown. And if it’s good enough for him, then it should hopefully be good enough for everyone else too.
A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight
Cast
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight is set in a time when the Targaryen dynasty rules Westeros.
Game of Thrones
Game of Thrones is a multimedia franchise created by George R.R. Martin. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire is the basis for the award-winning HBO series Game of Thrones, which lasted for eight seasons. After the incredibly divisive final season of Game of Thrones, the series was followed up by the prequel series House of the Dragon, which also received critical acclaim.
