Game of Thrones might have ended its eight-season run on HBO back in 2019, but the franchise remains a top priority for HBO and has become one of its most valuable franchises.
The network has already launched one successful spinoff with House of the Dragon which will be returning for a third season in 2026, and it’s about to debut yet another one this year with the arrival of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Like House of the Dragon, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a prequel taking place before the events of Game of Thrones. Unlike House of the Dragon, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms has received nothing but rave reviews from the author whose work the franchise is based upon.
Author George R.R. Martin has offered up nothing but praise for the upcoming prequel series which will adapt his Dunk and Egg novella trilogy via a six-episode series based on his book The Hedge Knight. He recently raved about the show on his personal blog celebrating the incredible performances of leads Peter Claffey ( Ser Duncan the Tall) and Dexter Sol Ansell (Egg) and loving the six episodes.
Perhaps it’s for that reason it’ll come of little surprise to know that HBO is already mulling a two-season renewal for the series ahead of its premiere later this year.
HBO boss teases possible A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms 2-season renewal
From the start, a three-season plan has been in place for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms with each season adapting one of the three books in the novella trilogy: the first season adapting The Hedge Knight, the second season adapting The Sworn Sword, and the third season adapting The Mystery Knight. So it’s not at all surprising to know HBO is eyeing a 2-season renewal for the show already.
As HBO‘s Head of Drama Series and Films Francesca Orsi revealed in a new interview with Deadline, HBO is currently discussing renewing the show for two seasons for a variety of reasons including the network’s belief in the show’s leads and excitement in the potential the show holds.
“You’re going to be so impressed by Peter Claffey and Dexter Sol Ansell as Dunk and Egg, the two leads, the sort of brotherhood, the paternal nature between Dunk and this young man. So much so that we’re already planning on how do we build this for the three seasons in total. We’re not picking it up officially, but it’s looking very good. We’re looking at it as a holistic piece, Seasons 2 and 3, because there’s three novellas.”
While no renewal has been announced just yet, the fact that Orsi already has confirmed conversations about a 2-season renewal seems quite promising. Usually studio brass play coy about a show’s potential for renewals ahead of their premieres, so the fact that HBO is already discussing a second and third season is really promising and suggests the network believes the show will be well received.
There is clearly a strong belief in the show with Martin’s praise creating a lot of excitement, but at the end of the day, this might be a money move for HBO. As Orsi revealed to Deadline, part of the conversation about the 2-season renewal stems from a desire to be more cost-effective and create a shorter turnaround between seasons with the plan being to film the two seasons back-to-back.
Honestly, this is a move we wish more networks would take with its big-budget series which often take months to film and then several additional months in post-production for special effects to be added in. This results in long breaks between seasons such as what we’ve seen with House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones.
A 2-season pickup for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms would hopefully lead to shorter breaks between the seasons of the show which would surely be a welcome change for fans. And if the show is as good as Martin seems to hint, HBO might as well bet big on the show!