As fans await the arrival of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, interest in Game of Thrones is higher than it’s been since the show signed off in 2019. While that finale remains a hotly debated topic, the franchise has continued with House of the Dragon and Knight. But those are far from the only spinoffs in development.
One of the most exciting spinoff ideas was one that would pick up years after the Game of Thrones finale and focus on Jon Snow, played once more by Kit Harington. In an extensive interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Martin discussed the state of the franchise and touched on the plans for a Jon series.
According to THR, Martin figured that Jon would be the “safest” character for a sequel, given that the series ended with him exiled to the north of the Wall. That meant focusing on Jon would mean almost no mentions of other characters far south, so their fate from the main show would remain up in the air (not to mention avoiding the logistics of getting the actors back).
Harington himself worked on the series concept with two writers from his drama, Gunpowder. The actor drew on his own well-publicized problems with entering rehab for “mental health difficulties” after Thrones ended. He thus wanted a Jon living alone, having driven off direwolf Ghost and thrown away his sword Longclaw, who is “spending his time building cabins and burning them down again.” In short, this was a Jon with PTSD, and Harington even wanted him to die at the end.
To no surprise, HBO wasn’t fond of the “broken Jon Snow” idea, and it’s likely fans wouldn’t have responded to it well either. However, there’s a hint that some version of a Jon Snow spinoff may still happen!
Will we get a Jon Snow show after all?
The original Jon Snow project appears to be dead, as Harington has made it clear he’s not interested in reprising the role and leaving the fantasy genre behind. But the THR article has sources claiming writer Quoc Dang Tran has been tapped to create a new version of the spinoff.
Notably, the idea would shift things from north of the Wall to Essos, a much brighter and more vibrant area, hinting that the storyline wouldn’t be as dark. Even bigger is that it would have Jon reunite with Arya Stark (Maisie Williams), who’s on her own quest for a new life.
The key stumbling block here is Harington’s declaration that he’s done with Jon Snow. Recasting the role would be tricky given how well Harington embodied the part, and while Jon and Arya on a road trip tale sounds fun, it could be diminishing returns for the GOT franchise.
Love it or hate it (and there are enough people to fill out both sides there), Game of Thrones ended in a way meant to close the book on the various characters. Picking up years later for yet another "sequel series" is just nostalgia bait rather than serving a good story, and that rarely ends very well for fans or the characters alike.
Martin couldn’t confirm or deny any of these reports or projects in development. He may simply be out of the loop on some of the happenings or is involved and keeping things close to the chest. Fans can only hope this Jon Snow idea happens after all to continue Game of Thrones’ amazing, if controversial, legacy.
Game of Thrones is streaming on HBO MAX.