Twenty shows to watch while waiting for Game of Thrones season 8

4) The Accursed Kings (Les Rois Maudits) (France, mini-series, 1972)

What is the French miniseries Les Rois Maudits, a show from the ’70s, doing on this list? Because it’s based on a historical book series by Maurice Druon that George R.R. Martin has called the “original Game of Thrones,” and an inspiration for writing A Song of Ice and Fire, as he discussed with The Guardian in 2013:

"The Accursed Kings has it all: iron kings and strangled queens, battles and betrayals, lies and lust, deception, family rivalries, the curse of the Templars, babies switched at birth, she-wolves, sin and swords, the doom of a great dynasty and all of it (or most of it) straight from the pages of history. And believe me, the Starks and the Lannisters have nothing on the Capets and Plantagenets. Whether you’re a history buff or a fantasy fan, Druon’s epic will keep you turning pages: it is the original game of thrones."

Of course, Martin is talking abut the books, but the 1972 TV adaptation (there was another one in 2005) brought Druon’s story of the French monarchy in the 14th century to the small screen for the first time.

The Accursed Kings miniseries was considered extremely successful in France, and Le Figaro‘s Bertrand Guyard had high praise for the show. The miniseries doesn’t appear to be available in any translated format, so if you don’t speak French, you might be out of luck. But the real treasure here is that Druon’s long out-of-print novel series is now back in print (the first volume is The Iron King), much to George R. R. Martin’s glee.

I couldn’t find a trailer for the 1972 Les Rois Maudits, but here is a scene from the 2005 production with Gerard Depardieu.