7 Shows Like ‘Game of Thrones’ You Should Watch Next

It’s a great time to be a fan of swords-and-sorcery-style fantasy, as the genre is seeing a major boom on screen and in other mediums as well. Many fans fell in love with fantasy or rediscovered their love for it with Game of Thrones over the last few decades, and studios’ hunt for more productions to fill that niche is starting to bear fruit. Here are some other great TV shows to check out for your next fantasy fix.

Game of Thrones was so successful that it made HBO consider expanding a franchise in a way the prestigious network has never really done before. Obviously, if you’re looking for more Game of Thrones, the best match will be the prequel series House of the Dragon, which premiered last summer and has a second season coming in the fall of 2024. There is also another Thrones prequel in the works and as many as five others in development, but one of the best parts of the current fantasy resurgence is that it’s not limited to this one author or one franchise. Other books and stories have been making their way to the screen, highlighting the broad capabilities of the fantasy genre in every niche of pop culture.

The tricky part about recommending further fantasy shows to fans of Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon is that there are many things that might draw one to the genre. In general, this list favors stories that are set in completely fictitious secondary worlds – as opposed to magical versions of our real world – and which make their fantastical elements integral to their storytelling.

These shows do not necessarily share the themes that most people associate with Game of Thrones – at least, not on the surface. Of course, you could always seek out political dramas, war dramas and historical dramas to scratch that itch, but it seems clear that the high-stakes fantasy elements are what many fans are really turning to Westeros for.

Keep in mind that the fantasy TV genre is just starting to hit its stride now. The rush for the “next Game of Thrones“ has only begun, and many exciting adaptations are still in the early stages of production. For now, here are some of the best fantasy TV shows to hold you over between seasons of House of the Dragon.

‘The Wheel of Time’

The Wheel of Time is an adaptation of the novel series by the same name written mostly by Robert Jordan. Jordan was a contemporary of Martin and his worldbuilding matches the extreme detail of Martin’s in many ways, so this is an easy recommendation for Game of Thrones fans. Amazon Prime Video is producing this adaptation and Season 1 premiered in the fall of 2021. Season 2 filmed from July of 2021 to February of 2022, and is now slated for release on Sept. 1, 2023. Amazon has already renewed the series for a third season.

‘Shadow and Bone’

The Netflix original series Shadow and Bone is a unique adaptation project – much like House of the Dragon. The TV series is based on Leigh Bardugo’s novels, but it combines and remixes the stories from two separate families of books set in the same fictional world. The story has a “hard magic system” unlike Martin’s work, but in terms of tone and stakes it does compare better to Martin’s work than you might think at first glance. Seasons 1 and 2 are streaming now on Netflix but so far the company hasn’t announced whether the show is renewed for more seasons or not.

‘The Witcher’

The Witcher is one of the obvious answers you were probably expecting to see on this list. It is an adaptation of Andrej Sapkowski’s novels by the same name – originally written in Polish. However, most fans became familiar with this fictional world through the video game series, which helped flesh it out and familiarize fans with its map.

If you love the idea of a sprawling franchise with deep history, now is the time to get in on The Witcher. The series already has two spinoffs – an animated film prequel called Nightmare of the Wolf streaming on Netflix, and a limited series prequel called Blood Origin. As for the main series – Season 3, Part 1 just premiered on June 29 and Part 2 premieres on July 27. It seems Netflix has committed to many more projects in the Witcher universe, so stay tuned.

‘The Dragon Prince’

A hidden gem that adult viewers may not have given a chance is the Netflix original series The Dragon Prince. This fantasy cartoon was co-created by writer Aaron Ehasz, best known for writing on Avatar: The Last Airbender, and like Avatar it manages to satisfy both young viewers and adults. The show is set in a familiar yet intriguing secondary world whose mysteries are essential to the unfolding story. There are three seasons streaming now with a fourth one on the way, so now is a great time to dive in.

This also seems like a good place to add in Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra as honorable mentions. Both shows are streaming now on Netflix and Paramount+. That franchise will be expanding soon as well, and the fantasy world they are set in is more fleshed out than it has any right to be for a children’s cartoon.

‘The Rings of Power’

Another obvious pick for this list is The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power – Amazon’s prequel to J.R.R. Tolkien’s legendary fantasy trilogy. This show is based on little source material and includes quite a bit of original writing. It aired simultaneously with House of the Dragon, so it’s natural that fans compared the two at every turn.

This is not exactly fair, as many commenters have been arguing. However, while Martin and Tolkien’s work differs greatly in tone and theme, there’s no denying that Martin was heavily influenced by Tolkien. If you want to dive deep into what makes Westeros so enthralling, exploring Middle-Earth is a must. The Rings of Power Season 1 is streaming now on Prime Video.

‘Merlin’

The BBC’s Merlin shatters the misconception that a fantasy series must have an enormous budget. It successfully sucks fans in with little more than some creative set-dressings and the occasional animated firebolt. Technically, this is not a secondary world fantasy, but it takes place in a distant, mythical past that makes it effectively as fantastical as any of the other shows on this list.

Merlin is streaming now on Peacock and Prime Video in the U.S. The series concluded in 2012, so it is already complete and easy to binge.

‘Attack on Titan’

Finally, if you’re looking for high-concept fantasy but you haven’t turned to anime yet, you’re doing yourself a disservice. The example most applicable to Game of Thrones is probably Attack on Titan, but you could also check out Berserk, Fullmetal Alchemist or many other magically-inclined series. Without spoiling anything, Attack on Titan is a particularly strong recommendation for Game of Thrones fans because of the way its mysteries and history unfold together before the audience and its characters.

Attack on Titan is streaming now on Hulu in the U.S., with both subtitled and dubbed episodes available. The final portion of new episodes is slated to premiere in late 2023.