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The Game of Thrones prequel, HOT D aka House of the Dragon came back last weekend. Is anyone watching Season 2? I kinda fell off towards the end of Season 1, but am trying to be in it to win it for the new season. In the absence of George R.R. Martin ever actually finishing the A Song of Ice and Fire series, HOT D is all of the new content GOT fans have right now. But, not for long! Another prequel series is currently in the works through HBO. Production for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is underway in Belfast, Ireland. The series is based on the novella “The Hedge Knight,” which is one of three novellas from the “Tales of Dunk and Egg” series. GRRM is credited as a writer and EP for the series, which will start with just six episodes. Dunk is Ser Duncan the Tall and Egg is the future King Aegon Targaryen V. Get it? Aegon = Egg? AEG-on?
What’s it about? A Knight of Seven Kingdoms takes place a century before the events of Game of Thrones, during an age when the Targaryen line still held the Iron Throne. Per an official but vague logline, the show follows “a young, naïve but courageous knight, Ser Duncan the Tall, and his diminutive squire, Egg,” two unlikely heroes who face “great destinies, powerful foes, and dangerous exploits.” (Spoiler: Egg is the childhood nickname of King Aegon Targaryen the Fifth.) George R.R. Martin has said on his blog that the goal is to create a “faithful” adaptation of what’s on the page. Since this is based on his novella The Hedge Knight, we’re specifically expecting to see the story of how Dunk and Egg first met during a tournament at Ashford Meadow.
Who’s in the cast? Rugby-pro-turned-actor Peter Claffey will star as Dunk. He certainly looks tall enough! Meanwhile, nine-year-old Dexter Sol Ansell (a.k.a. young Coriolanus Snow from The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes) has already shaved his head in preparation for his role as Egg. The full cast also includes Finn Bennett as Aerion Targaryen, Bertie Carvel as Baelor Targaryen, Tanzyn Crawford as Tanselle, Daniel Ings as Ser Lyonel Barotheon, and Sam Spruell as Maekar Targaryen.
Who else is involved? Owen Harris, who directed “San Junipero” and other episodes of Black Mirror, will direct three episodes. Sarah Adina Smith (Lessons In Chemistry, Buster’s Mal Heart) will direct the other three. George R.R. Martin and Ira Parker wrote the show, and they both also serve as executive producers alongside Harris, Ryan Condal, Vince Gerardis, and Sarah Bradshaw.
When is it coming out? An official release date hasn’t been confirmed yet. However, during a Warner Bros. Discovery earnings call in February 2024, CEO David Zaslav said that the show would premiere “in late 2025 on Max.” So far, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms still seems to be on track to make that estimate, given that production began in June. At least we’ve got House of the Dragon to hold us over while we wait?
I’m actually not super familiar with the source material for this prequel. I remember reading up about it on the GOT wiki page for Dunk and Egg a few years ago, but that was as far as I got. I’m one of those people who is actually really fascinated by the world that Martin created, from the history to the relationships, geography, fantasy aspects, and more. I’ll probably watch A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms in hopes that we get even more good backstory – love that kinda stuff. I’m still all in on any and all Lord of the Rings material of the past, present, and future. What will inevitably be frustrating, though, is that while there are three Dunk and Egg novellas currently in existence, Martin has said that he has anywhere between six and twelve total stories that he plans on telling. There’s no way he’s going to have them all out before the series inevitably catches up and surpasses them. It’s going to end up being like GOT all over again.
Photo note by CB: I know Finn Bennett from the last season of True Detective!
Photos credit: Xavier Collin/Image Press Agency/Avalon, Sue Andrews/Avalon, James Warren/Bang Showbiz/Avalon, Maria Laura Antonelli/AGF Foto/Avalon and via Instagram
