With production underway on the new “Game of Thrones” prequel series, author George R.R. Martin revealed Wednesday that “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” will have a “much different tone” than its predecessors.
“‘The Hedge Knight’ will be a lot shorter than ‘Game of Thrones’ or ‘House of the Dragon,’ with a much different tone,” Martin wrote on his blog, revealing later that the season would consist of six episodes. “But it’s still Westeros, so no one is truly safe.”
“A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight,” which is slated for a 2025 release, takes place one century before the events of the flagship series and centers on Ser Duncan the Tall and his diminutive squire, Egg, as the two unlikely heroes wander Westeros.
The author also noted that if “Seven Kingdoms” “does well” after its debut next year, adaptations of the second and third novellas following Dunk and Egg, titled “The Sworn Sword” and “The Mystery Knight,” will follow.
While the series found its Ser Duncan in Peter Claffey (“Bad Sisters,” “Wreck,” “Small Things Like These”) and its Egg in Dexter Sol Ansell (“The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes”), Martin revealed that “most” of the auditions for the series have been completed with casting announcements on the way shortly.
“We have our Tanselle, Steely Pate, Baelor Breakspear, the Laughing Storm, a couple of Fossoways, Aerion Brightflame (boo, hiss), Prince Maekar and the rest,” he wrote. “Lists are being built on Ashford Meadow. I am told they just had the first table read, and that it went great.”
In the meantime, he shared a video of Sol Ansell, who played a young Coriolanus Snow in the 2023 “Hunger Games” prequel, getting his head shaved as he transformed into Egg ahead of filming.
Martin also confirmed that British director Owen Harris joined the team to helm the show’s first three episodes, pointing out that Harris led Martin’s “favorite episode” of “Black Mirror,” “San Junipero.”
