Game of Thrones gets prequel: now a franchise?

[Brian G Turner]

As revealed yesterday, Game of Thrones may be about to get it's first spin-off series.

Already a pilot for a new TV series, set 10,000 in the past, has been green-lighted by HBO for production.

But according to George R R Martin, this is merely one of five concepts that he's pitched - and while one has already been rejected, another three potential spin-off series remain on the discussion table:

Three more GAME OF THRONES prequels, set in different periods and featuring different characters and storylines, remain in active development. Everything I am told indicates that we could film at least one more pilot, and maybe more than one, in the years to come. We do have an entire world and tens of thousands of years of history to play with, after all. But this is television, so nothing is certain.

So, what could the other TV series be?

Well, GRRM already has two prequel series on the boil:

1. The Dunk and Egg novellas, now collected in a single edition published as A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, is set 90 years before Game of Thrones,

2. Fire and Blood - to be released later this year - a new prequel story set 300 years before the start of Game of Thrones.

A third option would almost certainly be a sequel set some time after the events of Game of Thrones finishes, though this could either be a near future - with original actors reprising aged character roles - or else much later in the future, when such character names have become legends in their own right.

As for the prequel that is already signed-off, this is likely to air in 2020, and focus on the Age of Heroes, when the Children of the Forest faced the invasion of the First Men - a conflict that would eventually give rise to the White Walkers so infamous in the TV series.

The big question is whether Game of Thrones will work as a TV franchise - the original TV series had a pre-sold fan base, who could explain character and plot events from the books to new audience members. Any spin-off will not have familiar characters, only a somewhat familiar setting, so might be especially hard to pull off.

Still, Star Trek managed the same, but had a longer time to build up a fan base - so as to cover a wider audience demographic that covered multiple generations - plus a string of reasonably successful movies to support momentum, and continuation, into Star Trek: The Next Generation.

However, even Star Trek suffered from declining audience figures as it expanded into further spin-offs, such as Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and finally Enterprise - which was finally cancelled.

How does the future look for Westeros? Which ideas do you think HBO might go with? Are there any ideas you think I've missed? Feel free to post comments below.

 

[ctg]

Which ideas do you think HBO might go with?

Did HBO bought the rights for the Fire & Blood? George said that he doesn't have time or he would be writing the pilots and so for, for the small screen. He hasn't indicated that there is going to be any films, even though at this point I think a couple of them would really well answer the burning questions the fans might have on the various characters. I also believe that they should keep the televised universe altered from GRRM's universe similar way Kirkman's comic is altered from the TV stuff.

I for one would love to see them doing a dark series with the things that went North of the Wall. Maybe starting from the point it was conjured up.

 

[Narkalui]

I still want to see a full on cinema release movie of Aegon's Conquest, that would be awesome. Then perhaps they could make trilogy by doing The Dance followed the first Blackfyre rebellion...

 

[Foxbat]

My mum's 80 next year and she's getting all excited now that I've told her of the prospect of a new Game Of Thrones series. I honestly didn't know what I'd started when I loaned her my GOT DVD collection

 

[ctg]

I would also love to see a series that explains how those people with stone skin ended the way they did. When they televised it I thought there was a great legend behind the ruins and the people, but they had no time on putting it in the main series.

 

[Phyrebrat]

Hi,

I'm no expert on GOT universe but I'd love to see an origins story of the White Walkers.

pH

 

[Foxbat]

I have a book called The World Of Ice And Fire: The Untold History Of Westeros and The Game Of Thrones. It covers the prehistory quite extensively. Unfortunately, it doesn't specify an origin for the stone people, although their origin does appear to be linked with The Doom Of Valyria. But again, that cataclysm's origins are unknown. Perhaps a tale of the rise of Valyria then leading up to the Doom would make a good prequel?

 

[Judderman]

There is a lot of great options. Is a problem with prequels that you know what the end result will be?

 

[BAYLOR]

Why not series after the Time of Game of Thrones ?

 

[Judderman]

Definitely scope for that but perhaps the issue is that George has written so much material to draw from for prequels or legends. Have some tv writers do completely new sequels and it may be junk.

 

[Brian G Turner]

UPDATE: Screenrant says that filming has been scheduled to begin this October - but now says that the prequel is set 1,000 years before GoT: Game of Thrones Prequel TV Show Begins Production in October

 

[Narkalui]

Screenrant have probably just got it wrong.

Athough 1000 years or so ago was quite an interesting period, the arrival of the Rhoynar seemed to trigger a fair amount of unheaval: the exile of the Manderleys to The North, the end of House Justman, the last Bolton rebellion, the foundation of the Karhold

 

[ctg]

HBO has been hard at work figuring out how it’s going to continue the Game of Thrones legacy. This included commissioning a whopping five potential spinoffs set within the A Song of Ice and Fire universe. Now that one has been approved, it looks like the other ones have gotten the Ned Stark treatment.

HBO president Casey Bloys revealed at the Television Critics Association today that the “Golden Age of Heroes” prequel (still unnamed officially), helmed by Jane Goldman and George R.R. Martin, is the only Game of Thrones series fans should be expecting for the time being. During the TCA presentation, as reported by IndieWire, Bloys said Goldman and Martin’s pitch is their next hopeful Game of Thrones series and “there are no plans to make any others at this point.” Bloys added that this was part of their plan, that HBO’s goal was to start with a lot of options and narrow them down to, ideally, one solid show. Quality over quantity, as it were.

“The reason we did multiple scripts, in the development process, [is] out of five we’d be lucky to get one we’re excited about,” Bloys said.

The ASoIaF prequel will take place thousands of years before the events of Game of Thrones, focusing on Westeros’ descent from the Golden Age of Heroes into the darkest (and longest) night. It’s still in the pilot stage, and Bloys said there are plans to shoot it sometime next year. Right now, HBO is looking for a director to helm the pilot, as well as finding the initial cast. As far as that final season of the series that started in all, Game of Thrones, Bloys said we should expect it sometime in the first half of 2019. Maybe. Hopefully.

We’ll see.

https://io9.gizmodo.com/those-4-other-game-of-thrones-spinoffs-in-the-works-at-1827865935

 

[Al Jackson]

The was a teaser for GoT yesterday. Season 8 seems to have a lot of buzz.
I am still surprised at the success of this show, I mean I love it, but it is a fairly urbane adult fantasy …. maybe there is a market for that …. outside of the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films I don't know of any other fantasy films like it right now... I don't count comic book movies, or Harry Potter … hard to do the sophisticated stuff...

 

[Judderman]

I think other than maybe Lord of the Rings movies the fantasy genre is regarded as so nerdy by many, and so hasn't historically managed to get big tv series with budgets that mean you can get good effects to show off the fantasy elements. Also Game of Thrones only has bits of high fantasy here and there so is more accessible to non nerds . The Whitewalkers (like zombies) and the Dragons they spent a long time building up to. There isn't much along the lines of orcs roaming around or people firing off fireballs and teleporting. It is mainly the human drama and violence, with a bit of fantasy to mix it up.
I suppose season 8 will be one of the most eagerly waited TV series ever.
No doubt there will be a lot of appetite for spinoffs.