Was an Upcoming Game of Thrones Spinoff Just Quietly Cancelled?

HBO has big plans for its Game of Thrones franchise, but it seems as though one TV spinoff won’t be happening after years in development. Since Game of Thrones‘ ending back in 2019, the network has been gradually exploring other stories to tell in Westeros, taking a relatively restrained approach compared to many other franchises. So far, two shows have made it to air – House of the Dragon and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms – with others in development, including an animated Corlys Velaryon prequel titled The Sea Snake, and 10,000 Ships, about Princess Nymeria of the Rhoynar.

Alongside these, Warner Bros. is making a Game of Thrones movie, which was officially confirmed during the studio’s CinemaCon presentation. Currently titled Game of Thrones: Aegon’s Conquest, it’ll take place around 300 years before the events of the parent show, and chart the beginning of the Targaryen dynasty as Aegon and his sister-wives, Visenya and Rhaenys, conquer Westeros with the help of their three dragons. However, its confirmation also presumably means that the Aegon’s Conquest TV show is no longer happening.

Could The Aegon’s Conquest TV Series Still Be Saved?

Back in 2024, it was reported that The Batman writer Mattson Tomlin was developing a TV show telling the story of Aegon’s Conquest. It’s continued to be in development at HBO since then, with the scribe making gradual progress on the series. However, earlier this year, it was also reported that WB was developing an Aegon’s Conquest movie from Beau Willimon (House of Cards, Andor). The idea was that both would be developed, and then they’d choose the one they preferred. We now know which version won out (unless there is some merging of the scripts that happens).

It’s easy to see the appeal of the movie. The franchise is already proven on TV, and there are several other spinoffs in the works. But with Warner Bros. needing big-screen franchises as well, testing the waters of Thrones as a movie makes sense from a business point of view. And if doing that, then the combination of Targaryens+dragons, for both familiarity and spectacle, makes Aegon’s Conquest the obvious choice, with THR previously reporting this would be seen as a “Dune-sized” film. In terms of box office success, it’d really only be this or Robert’s Rebellion for the first go around that’d make sense.

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It is not impossible, however, that an Aegon I Targaryen TV show happens in some form, even if it’s not the exact story that Tomlin was developing (which is a shame, because he’s great – but then so too is Willimon). If the movie is a box office hit, then they might decide to either make sequels, or follow it up on TV with a series charting more of his reign. Even better, though, would be a movie being followed by a Sons of the Dragon show, which focuses on the succession of Aegon and is quite a fascinating part of George R.R. Martin’s Targaryen history book, Fire & Blood.

That’s getting ahead of things, though. The film doesn’t have a release date, but was simply mentioned in WB’s 2027 and beyond slate. Given that there’s no director or casting announced, plus the scale of it, then it’d be a 2028 release at the earliest. But if it can conquer the box office, then maybe there’ll be even more of Aegon’s story to tell.

Game of Thrones is available to stream on HBO Max.

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