Highlights
- The Game of Thrones Jon Snow spinoff was canceled due to the inability to find a compelling story, ending development hopes.
- Two other Game of Thrones spinoff projects were already axed, including Sea Snake/Nine Voyages and Ten Thousand Ships.
- Despite cancellations, HBO continues to dive into expanding Game of Thrones universe with animated spinoffs and prequel series in development.
One Game of Thrones actor confirmed the developing spinoff for their character is officially scrapped, explaining why the creative team behind the project couldn’t make it work.
Game of Thrones was one of the most acclaimed and watched shows during its heyday. However, the final two seasons were widely regarded as rushed, culminating with a divisive series finale panned by many viewers. Nonetheless, the franchise was still popular enough for HBO to develop multiple spinoffs, including a Game of Thrones sequel with Kit Harington’s Jon Snow. The series would follow Jon Snow after the Game of Thrones series finale, which ended with the character joining the Wildlings beyond the wall after being exiled to appease the followers of Daenerys Targaryen, whom Jon Snow killed because she burned down King’s Landing to claim the Iron Throne.
However, the Game of Thrones Jon Snow sequel’s future was in doubt after an HBO executive said they were unsure if they could make the project work in 2023. During an interview with Screen Rant, Harington said the Jon Snow sequel was only in development and he was hesitant to talk about it in case it didn’t move forward. Harington then confirmed the Game of Thrones sequel was no longer in development because the creative team couldn’t find a worthwhile story, though he suggested the project could be revisited.
I hadn’t really ever spoken about it, because it was in development. I didn’t want it leaked out that it was being developed, and I didn’t want the thing to happen where people kind of start theorizing, getting either excited about it or hating the idea of it, when it may never happen. Because in development, you look at every angle, and you see whether it’s worth it.
And currently, it’s not. Currently, it’s off the table, because we all couldn’t find the right story to tell that we were all excited about enough. So, we decided to lay down tools with it for the time being. There may be a time in the future where we return to it, but at the moment, no. It’s firmly on the shelf.
The Jon Snow sequel is not the only canceled Game of Thrones spinoff. In 2022, two projects titled Sea Snake/Nine Voyages and Ten Thousand Ships were removed from the “in development” tab on the website for Startling, Inc., which produced Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon. A pilot for a prequel series titled Bloodmoon starring Naomi Watts was in post-production in September 2019. The series would have been set roughly 10,000 years before Game of Thrones during a period known as the Age of Heroes. However, HBO decided against moving forward with the series.
Still, HBO is not without alternate Game of Thrones spinoff options. While the Nine Voyages project may be scrapped as a live-action show, franchise creator George RR Martin recently revealed it was now being developed as one of many potential animated Game of Thrones spinoffs. HBO is also developing a prequel series centered on Aegon Targaryen’s famed conquest of Westeros, and the network ordered A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight (a prequel show based on Martin’s novella series Tales of Dunk and Egg) to series.
It’s unsurprising for HBO to go all in on the Game of Thrones franchise. While the Game of Thrones series finale is one of the more infamous TV show endings, House of the Dragon drew in millions of viewers each week, arguably demonstrating that fans were willing to stick with the franchise despite the original show’s underwhelming conclusion. Unfortunately for fans hoping the Jon Snow sequel would make up for the Game of Thrones series finale, it appears the White Wolf won’t be the savior they were looking for, at least for now.
Game of Thrones is available on Max.
Source: Screen Rant
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