Between 2011 and 2019, HBO’s fantasy epic Game of Thrones dominated television and pop culture. The series has been praised by both critics and audiences worldwide for its blend of realism and fantasy, its unexpected plot twists, its large and talented ensemble cast, its high-quality production, and its epic battle sequences. The show’s first season averaged 2.5 million viewers per episode. By its final season, Game of Thrones was averaging 11.9 million viewers per episode across all platforms. HBO knew they had a cash cow on their hands — and they had to keep it alive by producing successor shows, spin-offs that are also set in the fictional world of Westeros.
Author George R.R. Martin, who wrote the book series that Game of Thrones is based on, has published additional content over the years, including short stories and encyclopedias that dive deeper into the history of Westeros. There are thousands of years of history and stories to draw from, a seemingly endless well of content. Some of these stories have already gotten the green light from HBO and are currently being adapted. House of the Dragon’s second season is set to premiere this June.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight, based on Martin’s novella trilogy Tales of Dunk and Egg, has just cast its leads, while Ten Thousand Ships, a story based on warrior-queen Nymeria, is supposedly still in development. Another show about the legendary Aegon’s Conquest is also now in the works. But for every project that’s moving forward, there seems to be another one that’s been scrapped altogether. Some of these sounded interesting, and we’re bummed that we’ll never get to see them. But others… well, maybe it’s best to just let those fall by the wayside. Without further ado, here’s every canceled Game of Thrones spin-off that will never grace our screens.
Live-Action Adaptation of The Sea Snake
The Sea Snake is a ship that was built and captained by Corlys Velaryon, who’s known throughout Westeros by that same name. He’s a powerful lord, the head of House Velaryon, and has close ties to the Targaryen royal family. Corlys (Steve Toussaint) is actually a supporting character in The House of the Dragon, which makes this project more of a Dragon spin-off than a Thrones spin-off. This series would explore Corlys’ past as a seafarer and capture his nine fabled voyages on his iconic ship.
Originally called Nine Voyages, the show’s working title has been changed to The Sea Snake. But that isn’t the only alteration. The Sea Snake was originally supposed to be a live-action adaptation, but due to budget constraints, it will instead be an animated series. So we will still get to see The Sea Snake — it hasn’t been scrapped completely…yet — but it’s a shame that we’ll never get to see Corlys’ epic adventures in live-action.
Untitled Flea Bottom Series
Flea Bottom is the nickname for the slums of King’s Landing, the historic capital of the Seven Kingdoms that houses the coveted Iron Throne. We’ve taken several wary trips through the alleys of Flea Bottom in Game of Thrones, visiting the impoverished and desperate people who live there. Several major characters grew up in Flea Bottom, such as Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham) and Gendry (Joe Dempsie).
For whatever reason, there were talks about developing an untitled series that would take place in the slums of King’s Landing. But HBO scrapped the project, which was probably the right call. We imagine that kings, lords, knights, and dragons would attract more viewers than beggars in ramshackle buildings.
Bloodmoon
Bloodmoon was a series that generated a lot of excitement among Game of Thrones fans. Set during the legendary Age of Heroes, it was meant to capture the events of the Long Night, the fabled, long-lasting winter that swept across Westeros when the White Walkers first attacked. It was supposed to explore key elements of Thrones lore: the war with the White Walkers, the children of the forest, the formation of the Night’s Watch, and the construction of the Wall.
It would also presumably introduce characters that have become mythical in present-day Westeros, such as Bran the Builder from House Stark. We would also probably get more information about the Night King, the silent but deadly leader of the White Walkers.
Bloodmoon was the first successor show announced by HBO — and it makes sense. Its events set the stage for Game of Thrones, 8,000 years later. Some fans were excited about the chance to actually see the White Walkers dominate Westeros for longer than a single episode. Others were disappointed and felt like it would be more or less the same as Game of Thrones.
Either way, HBO cast Naomi Watts, among others, for the lead role as “a charismatic socialite hiding a dark secret”. They tested out Bloodmoon with a pilot. But the pilot failed to entice HBO, and the project was scrapped in favor of House of the Dragon.
Untitled Jon Snow Series
The last successor show on this list was an actual sequel to Game of Thrones. Its final season left many fans angry and disappointed, and its finale has joined the ranks of TV’s most divisive and polarizing endings. One of the audience’s biggest complaints had to do with the show’s leading man, Jon Snow (Kit Harrington).
Thrones finally unveiled Jon’s epic heritage, revealing him to be the heir to the Iron Throne. And absolutely nothing came from it. Jon was cast aside like a supporting character, banished beyond the broken Wall to live among the Wildlings. This untitled series would follow Jon Snow into exile and capture his new adventures and life.
Some fans were interested in seeing what became of Jon, hoping that HBO could redeem his character’s conclusion — perhaps give him a better ending or even bring him back to Westeros. Most fans, though, rolled their eyes and didn’t want to see anything that would continue the divisive finale in Game of Thrones. These same fans rejoiced when it was recently announced that the untitled Jon Snow show would be canceled. Apparently, the team couldn’t find a story that they were excited about, which just confirms how lame Jon’s ending really was.
