When A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms was announced, fans were a bit surprised. Not that HBO would order a new series based on George R.R. Martin’s works, but that it would be with that title. Most expected it to be the title of the first novella, The Hedge Knight, or perhaps Dunk and Egg, after the name of George R.R. Martin's book series, The Tales of Dunk and Egg. But originally, the series was announced as A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight, before eventually being shortened to just A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.
Speaking to Variety, showrunner Ira Parker detailed how avoiding "Dunk and Egg" in the show’s title change was all Martin's idea, to avoid it sounding like a TV sitcom.
“Early on, George was like, 'Just don’t call it ‘Dunk & Egg’ — it sounds like ‘Laverne & Shirley.’ It sounds like a sitcom.' I said, "Oh, absolutely fine,'" Parker recalled. "As it got really late in the game when we were putting the final touches in the post-production process, I did sort of waver a little bit. I said, 'Everyone’s just gonna call it ‘Dunk & Egg,’ so why don’t we call it that?' Then I was talked down by my assistant that it wasn’t a wise idea. And I agree. It’s nice to see a show called 'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms,' and come there to find out that it is just a little lighter and has some fun, rather than setting people up with 'Dunk & Egg' and you sort of know what you’re gonna get. I hope.”
The name change does fit, as A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms sounds far more epic and grand than “Dunk and Egg.” It sells how the focus is on Ser Duncan learning to be a knight with his squire and the grander scale of Westeros. Plus, it matches the title of the Tales of Dunk and Egg omnibus Martin published in 2015, also titled A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.
Why are there Nine Kingdoms?
As the series ends, Dunk and Egg talk on the roa,d with Dunk surprised when Egg points out that, technically, there are nine kingdoms in Westeros, not seven: “Crownlands, Westerlands, Stormlands, Riverlands, the Iron Islands, the North, the Reach, the Vale of Arryn, and Dorne.” To punctuate this, the end title says “A Knight of the Nine Kingdoms.”
Parker admits this was just a tongue-in-cheek bit meant to bring levity to the tale. “That’s maybe me getting a little too jokey," he said. "People may hate it or crucify me for that, but there’s a bit of a lighter touch to these shows. And I’m going to learn some things. People are going to have a reaction to it, and and I’m going to have a reaction to it after not seeing it for a few months. And we’ll see. I like it. Enough of the wonderful creatives that I worked with liked it, too. It came from an honest place. It’s all true. It’s nine kingdoms at that point. We want to make Westeros a fun place to hang out, even when terrible, terrible things are happening and everyone’s sad, just like real life. You can still make jokes at a shiva, and it’s OK. We need that relief. So even in a bad spot, Dunk and Egg are still Dunk and Egg again.”
Fans have been debating the nuances of this final conversation, as the Crownlands and the Riverlands weren’t formed until after the Conquest, and Dorne didn't formally join the Seven Kingdoms until many years later. It plays on how Egg (and likely other Tagaryens) consider there to be nine kingdoms, since that's the scope of their rule, whereas most in Westeros still believe there to be only seven kingdoms, since that's the long-standing name for the realm.
Regardless, it’s funny to think of how much care the A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms team took, right down to the names, to ensure this series succeeded.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms season 1 is streaming on HBO Max.