2022 was a wild year for HBO in many ways, some better than others. While merging WarnerMedia and Discovery to create Warner Bros. Discovery led to the hype associated with the cancellation of projects and even their removal from the streaming library, this year also saw the long-awaited return of the Game of Thrones universe with House of the Dragon. Now that the days are counting down to 2023, the author of A Song of Ice and Fire, George R. R. Martin, has weighed in on the Game of Thrones spin-offs being developed, the impact of the situation with HBO Max and the very long-awaited sixth book of his saga.
George R. R. Martin has logged into his Not A Blog website with some updates for fans ahead of the new year. Like many, he took a short break to celebrate the holiday season, and his return to work means some news for those who are eager to find out what will happen next with the world of Game of Thrones on television and the series of novels “A Song of Ice and Fire”. . Martin wrote:
I admit, I took a few days off on vacation. Shame on me, probably. But now I’m back in the salt mine, working… working on so many damn things that my head might explode soon. Yes, THE WINDS OF WINTER, yes, yes. AND THE DRAGON HOUSE, season two. And several other successors show that we are developing with HBO.
It looks like George R.R. Martin would be happy to take a few more days off, but it might be a luxury for him until he completely finishes some of those “a lot of damn things” he has in the works! HBO wasted no time ordering a second season of House of the Dragon, which is not expected until 2024, even though Martin is currently working on it.
His wording to reassure readers about the “Winds of Winter” seems consistent with the way he defended the pace of his writing earlier in 2022, when he stated that “having to repeat endlessly” that he was working on a sixth book “is just tedious.” (The fifth book of the saga, titled A Dance with Dragons, was published in 2011, and previous updates from Martin included a goal to complete The Winds of Winter in 2016.)
But what about those successor shows that are in development, in light of all the turmoil at HBO and its streaming service, when former Discovery CEO David Zaslav became CEO of the new Warner Bros. Discovery?
Well, even high-profile projects under the auspices of Warner Bros. Discovery hasn’t seemed completely safe since the first big hit on the Batgirl movie was wrapped when it was already in the post-production stage. The HBO Max originals were removed from the platform, and even high-profile HBO shows like Westworld weren’t safe. The series was closed after four seasons, and then removed from HBO Max.
George R. R. Martin has confirmed that all changes at Warner Bros. Discovery regarding HBO Max influenced the future of the Game of Thrones franchise when it shed light on the successor series being developed by HBO. He said:
Some of them are moving faster than others, as is always the case with development. None have received the green light yet, although we hope… maybe soon. A couple were put on the shelf, but I would not agree that they are dead. You can take something off the shelf as easily as putting it on the shelf. All the changes in HBO Max have certainly affected us.
The author of “A Song of Ice and Fire” did not go into details about which of the upcoming “Game of Thrones” TV shows in development have been postponed, but I assume that the Jon Snow spin-off is a priority as long as Kit Harington is ready. repeat the role! It is quite possible that some of the series being developed were supposed to be the originals of HBO Max. I could see that an animated show about the Golden Empire was planned for streaming, as HBO Max proved to be a reliable platform for Kaley Cuoco’s animated series.
As Martin pointed out, “postponed” does not mean canceled! There are more questions than answers about how HBO Max’s changes have affected the Game of Thrones franchise, but George Martin has high hopes for new spin-offs, which is an encouraging sign. In addition, the incredible success of “House of the Dragon” is already proof that Martin’s interest in the world of Westeros and beyond was not limited to “Game of Thrones” … and did not fade after the controversial finale of the series.
At the moment, you can always go back to the full screening of Game of Thrones and the full first season of House of the Dragon with an HBO Max subscription and find some upcoming viewing options in our TV premiere schedule for 2023.
