New Game of Thrones prequel shown off "in all its humor and irreverence"

Game of Thrones ended five years ago. The prequel series House of the Dragon wrapped up its second season earlier this year, with a third on the way in 2026. Next year, HBO is going to debut a new Game of Thrones prequel show: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, based on the Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas by author George R.R. Martin.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is set decades after the events of House of the Dragon but decades before Game of Thrones, and it much smaller in scale than either of those shows. It's about a pure-hearted, somewhat thick-headed knight named Ser Duncan the Tall (Peter Claffey) and his precocious, motor-mouthed squire Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell). Although there are plenty of other characters, it's much less an ensemble drama than either Game of Thrones or House of the Dragon. It's mostly just Dunk and Egg traveling around the Seven Kingdoms, meeting people and having adventures.

So we've known for a while that the vibe of the show would be different than either of its predecessors. We still haven't seen so much as a trailer yet, but a small group of insiders did get to watch some of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms at a recent press event, and their impressions are in line with what we'd expect. Here's Deadline's Max Golgbart writing about what he saw:

"A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, meanwhile, was displayed in all its humor and irreverence. The prequel takes a somewhat different tone to House of the Dragon and the original Game of Thrones."

I know that's very slight, but this is a Game of Thrones spinoff show so we're going to talk about it here on WinterIsComing.net!

For the record, the other impressions we've heard about the show have been very positive. George R.R. Martin, who's had issues lately with how the producers on House of the Dragon have been adapting his book Fire & Blood, has seen rough cuts of the first two episodes of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and he was very happy with them.

Game of Thrones always did a great job of balancing intense drama with moments of humor; even if it was dark humor, it went a long way towards giving the show texture. If I'm being honest, I miss that side of things from House of the Dragon, which is more self-serious. I really like the idea of a show set in the Game of Thrones universe which is a bit lighter and frothier, and I'll be looking forward to watching A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms when it debuts sometime in the back half of 2025.

FYI, these select journalists also got to see advance looks at The Last of Us season 2, The White Lotus season 3, and IT: Welcome to Derry, all big-name shows coming to HBO and Max in 2025. Hopefully it'll be a good year for TV.

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