While HBO will likely only take one of the possible Game Of Thrones spin-offs to production, at least four and a possible fifth are in development for the network. There’s no firm details for the spin-offs, but we do know they are all prequels to the current series and books, and they will focus on characters that don’t currently exist on Game Of Thrones. That leaves a lot open for exploration within George R.R. Martin’s world, some which we’ve covered in detail in the past.
But now screenwriter Jane Goldman is giving us the slightest of hints to help narrow the focus on at least one of those ideas. She had a chat with IGN about the future of the show and what she’s currently working on with Martin himself, saying it has been fun talking about “ideas and characters.” But the solid lead she gives, while not much, is something to add to the growing list of clues you can speculate about:
Yeah, I think I can say if I was able to say what mine was — yeah, I think as a book reader or as someone who watched the series, you would say, “Oh, that! OK.” Yeah, it would be recognizable as a past event, but I think that’s probably as far as I can go.
So yeah, that narrows just sightly. Now it’s more like a galaxy to search through for life instead of the entire universe. It’s still daunting, but it’s something. Indiewire notes that some expect to see Robert’s Rebellion or the Doom of Valyria brought to life on screen, with the former being unlikely thanks to those previous claims about no existing characters appearing. If you’re going to talk about Robert’s Rebellion, you’d need a few of the players currently kicking around to make an appearance.
The latter seems more plausible given the other tidbit that Goldman shares, but it is certainly nothing concrete either. When pressed about the presence of magic and supernatural creatures in her particular spin-off, she tries to give a soft general answer that sorta spins into some sort of confirmation:
Yeah, I mean those are things that exist in the universe that George has created and it’s certainly — that’s an aspect that I love so, umm, yeah. (laughs) I’m sure there’s an element of that in anything that’s being developed but, yeah, that’s — I guess so, yeah. I feel like I’m saying way too much! I can say absolutely nothing.
Now all of this could mean that Goldman has doomed her own idea and now it won’t be chosen by the network. She said too much and ruined her chances. Still, this is good news for folks starved for any information on what’s to come or that could connect to the series as it comes to a close. Some other small things she hints at is the speed at which HBO wants to develop the spin-offs once the main series ends with its 8th season. She also hints that she knows how the main series will close out, meaning some of the folks working on these spin-offs are privy to a lot information to go on for their projects.
So yeah, there’s still not much out there, but you can add this to your growing theory board. If anything, it gives another excuse to fall into a Wiki hole or read up on the history of Westeros. The Doom of Valyria and the rise of House Targaryen wouldn’t make for a terrible series, plus there’s enough there to keep casual fans interested through its relationship to Game Of Thrones.
