A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms season 1 has quickly proven to be one of the most faithful adaptations of George R.R. Martin’s works.
Pulling inspiration from The Hedge Knight, the first of George R.R. Martin’s Dunk and Egg novellas, the new series has introduced audiences to Ser Duncan the Tall and his squire Egg, following their journey as they wander through Westeros. Fans have quickly fallen in love with the unlikely duo of Dunk and Egg, and the show has been praised for faithfully adapting Martin’s source material. That’s not to say there haven’t been some creative liberties taken, but any change that has occurred was done with Martin’s direct involvement and approval.
As someone who has never read the book upon which the show is based, I, like many non-book fans, jumped to the immediate assumption that the show’s leading duo were the same ages as they are portrayed in the source material. Without prior knowledge of The Hedge Knight, it’s easy to assume that Dunk and Egg’s ages in the series directly reflected Martin’s original characterization, rather than being an element potentially adjusted for television. So imagine my surprise when I discovered that while the show was faithful to the age of one half of the duo, they notably changed the age of the other.
Dunk and Egg ages in The Hedge Knight vs A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms
In both The Hedge Knight and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms season 1, Egg is nine years old. Actor Dexter Sol Ansell was nine when he was cast as Egg and during filming of the show’s first season in 2024, making him exactly the age of Egg when readers are introduced to him in the books.
While the show did not alter the age of Egg and cast an actor who was the very age of the character in the books, it’s a different story for Ser Duncan the Tall.
In The Hedge Knight, Dunk is described as roughly 16 years old when he’s first introduced, putting only seven years between Dunk and Egg in the books. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms does not directly touch upon Dunk’s age in the show; however, the show has aged the character up quite a bit from his book counterpart.
Ser Duncan the Tall is played by Peter Claffey in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, who was 28 at the time of filming on season 1. This casting decision indicates that Dunk is designed to be in his 20s within the show’s timeline and therefore is much older than Egg in the show vs. in the books. As Dunk’s exact age is not mentioned on-screen in the show, the exact age gap between Dunk and Egg in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is unclear, but it’s much larger than in the books in working on the general assumption among viewers that Dunk is now in his 20s.
Now, there is a possiblity that this is an incorrect assumption and an instance of a show casting an older actor to play a teen character. It's possible that while Claffey was 28 at the time of filming, that the show envisions him as a teen still -- something CW fans know a thing or two about thanks to shows such as Riverdale in which the show's high schoolers were all played by actors in their 20s. So perhaps HBO wants us to dissupend our belief and think of Claffey as being 16-18 within the show. If that's the case, the techical age gap between the character would be closer. However, the broader assumption among viewers is that Dunk is now meant to be in his 20s -- and honestly that works better in the context of the show.
The larger age difference between Dunk and Egg in the show creates a much more visually apparent mentor-and-squire dynamic, one that makes immediate sense on screen and requires little explanation for viewers unfamiliar with the books. It’s also not uncommon for characters to be aged up a bit in this franchise. In fact, many characters from Game of Thrones were aged up by a few years in the show to fit its narrative. This included iconic characters such as Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen, Robb Stark, Sansa Stark, Arya Stark, and Bran Stark.
I think we can all agree HBO made the right call in aging the character up for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Still, it is funny to think of Dunk being in his teens within the book given all that unfolds in the story.
New episodes of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms premiere every Sunday night on HBO and HBO Max. Keep reading Winter is Coming and tune in for our weekly podcast, Take the Black, to follow along with our coverage all season long.