Last we reported on a Game of Thrones offshoot, showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss effectively ruled themselves out of the proposed spinoff series, but that hasn’t quelled HBO’s enthusiasm to mine Westeros for future content beyond the show’s eighth and final season.
In fact, according to the network’s programming president Casey Bloys, a Game of Thrones prequel series isn’t off the table, and the Powers That Be are hosting “preliminary” talks with franchise mastermind George R.R. Martin about where to take A Song of Ice and Fire next. Per Entertainment Weekly: “I would say it’s still kind of preliminary ongoing talks. There are areas we are exploring, but I wouldn’t point to any one and say, ‘This is what we’re going to do.’”
Early days, then, but we know from past interviews that Martin himself has been marinating on a spinoff idea that could involve the trio of Dunk and Egg novellas – novellas that chronicle the bond between young Ser Duncan the Tall and his squire, Aegon Targaryen.
Looking at the two-fold Game of Thrones finale, Bloys then spoke a little more about season 8, claiming that he’ll “take as much as [he] can get” when it comes to the total number of episodes remaining. Reports suggest that HBO has pinned down plans for 13 installments, but could the series finale run a little longer than expected? Time will tell. As for the proposition of screening the last few Game of Thrones episodes in theaters, Bloys replied: “I want everything I can get for HBO, I’ll just leave it at that.”
Game of Thrones will make its grand return to HBO when the truncated season 7 premieres next summer. Elsewhere on the network’s slate, Westworld, Insecure, and Divorce all landed renewals earlier today.