The showrunner of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is defending the show’s very divisive early scene.
If any scene proved A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms was not going to match Game of Thrones’ tone, it was the opening of the premiere. After burying mentor Ser Arlan of Pennytree (Danny Webb), Ser Duncan the Tall (Peter Claffey) decides to follow in his mentor’s footsteps. He talks of becoming a true knight, the music swelling into the familiar Game of Thrones theme…and then we cut to Dunk defecating behind a tree.
Many found it hilarious and a nice way to start the show in an offbeat tone. Others derided it as a cheap gag and ruining the show’s motif. While speaking with Entertainment Weekly recently, showrunner Ira Parker defended the moment as just fun.
Parker realizes the poop scene might’ve “detracted” from other moments
Parker said he wanted the opening to be a signal to the audience that this wasn’t the pure drama of Game of Thrones or House of the Dragon but a more lighthearted feel. "I actually worry that it detracted from the rest of the stuff we were doing in episode 1 for some people,” Parker admitted. “Which was absolutely not my intention, especially that early on in a show."
A surprisingly tricky part of the scene was figuring out the right sounds to use and how even this goofy moment required a lot of meticulous preparation.
“We went through so many different sounds. We went through so many different versions of the poop,” Parker explained. “It's one of those things where everybody got the exact best version of that, and some people still hated it. It could have gone way wrong, and it's one of our first big jokes. Attention is paid to every single tiny little detail."
Parker said he wiped his social media presence before the premiere, as he knew it would be volatile one way or another. He heard of the negative reactions to the pooping scene but still defends it, saying it plays into the same kind of dark humor as other HBO classics like The Sopranos and The Wire.
“At the end of the day, what's funnier than a fart? If you can't laugh at that, I don't know, I sort of feel bad for you,” Parker stated.
This offbeat storytelling is what made AKOTSK such a breakout hit. It’s not the in-depth drama of the other GOT shows, but more humor-filled with shorter runtimes. It’s not attempting to tell an epic saga about good vs evil or saving a kingdom. It’s about a man, a bit in over his head, trying to become a knight while mentoring a young prince.
Season 2 seeks to continue this trend with Dunk and Egg getting into new misadventures in a politically charged setting. Parker sums up his approach with, “It’s gotta come from the heart,” and that mentality will help the show continue to succeed.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is streaming on HBO Max.
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