From a ratings standpoint, Game of Thrones definitely went out with a bang after a record 13.6 million viewers tuned in for the final episode, but it’s an entirely different story creatively. Longtime fans grew increasingly disenchanted throughout season 8, with showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss facing plenty of well founded criticisms that the quality of the series nosedived when they ran out of source material to mine for inspiration, and even some cast members admitted that they’d sign the petition to see it remade.
Of course, the brand still retains immense popularity across the planet and was arguably the single biggest thing on TV when it was on the air, so HBO are hardly going to give up on the expanded mythology anytime soon, especially with HBO Max having just launched.
The company may have decided against moving forward on Kingsman writer Jane Goldman’s prequel series Bloodmoon with Naomi Watts in the lead, but House of the Dragon was given the green light and is expected to debut next year with Matt Smith, Paddy Considine, Olivia Cooke and more on board.
Insider Daniel Richtman is now claiming that an entire Game of Thrones shared universe is in the works, though, one that will look to draw inspiration from how Disney Plus are building out the world of The Mandalorian by developing a slate of projects set at various points across the timeline.
Of course, that’s hardly going to come as much surprise when it was revealed that another prequel based on George R.R. Martin’s novellas Tales of Dunk and Egg had entered development, while an animated drama is also in the works for HBO Max. Fans may have been burned by season 8, but the Game of Thrones legacy looks like it’s only just getting started.
