Strap in for bad news: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, HBO's new Game of Thrones prequel series, has been delayed to 2026, according to Variety. Originally it was going to air this year. We don't have an exact premiere date.
That means that 2025 will pass without any new Game of Thrones programming. The second season of House of the Dragon, HBO's first Game of Thrones prequel show, aired last year. They're filming the third season of that series right now, and I assumed that they were targeting a 2026 release date. But with the news of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms being pushed back to next year, I wonder if House of the Dragon season 3 might get pushed back to 2027.
These days, studios are asking fans to wait longer and longer between new seasons of their favorite shows, and Warner Bros. Discovery — the parent company of HBO — is one of the worst offenders. Even with their most popular series, they don't seem to mind stretching things into eternity; for instance, The Last of Us is a big hit, but the second season is almost over and the third reportedly won't start filming until next year. That means we might not see more episodes for a very long, giving people plenty of opportunity to lose interest. Pick up the pace, people.
Or maybe the first season of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and the third season of House of the Dragon will air in the same year; we'll tell you more info as we get it. But it's hard to shake the feeling that things are chaotic and disorganized over at WBD. For instance, they just announced that the name of their streaming service will change from Max to HBO Max starting this summer. If you'll recall, the service was originally called HBO Max and got changed to Max in 2023...and now they're gonna change it back. And before it was called HBO Max (the first time), it was called HBO Go. Pick a name and stick to it! It's like they're trying to confuse customers.
What is dead may never die. HBO Max coming this summer. Same app, new-ish name. pic.twitter.com/XVQSby8qjE
— HBO Max (@hbomax) May 14, 2025
ANYWAY, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is set decades after the events of House of the Dragon and decades before Game of Thrones. It's based on George R.R. Martin's Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas. Here's the official logline:
"A century before the events of ‘Game of Thrones,’ two unlikely heroes wandered Westeros… a young, naïve but courageous knight, Ser Duncan the Tall, and his diminutive squire, Egg. Set in an age when the Targaryen line still holds the Iron Throne, and the memory of the last dragon has not yet passed from living memory, great destinies, powerful foes, and dangerous exploits all await these improbable and incomparable friends."
The first season will last only six episodes and have a lighter tone than either of its sister shows. Sounds like it would have been fun to watch later this year, doesn't it?
Variety also says that a trailer has been shown to members of the press, so maybe we'll see that soon.
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