'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight' - Everything We Know About the New 'Game of Thrones' Prequel So Far

The new series will bring some levity and chivalry back to Westeros.

By Michael Hein

It's a busy time for Game of Thrones fans, with House of the Dragon Season 2 finished and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight coming up soon. The new series is a prequel based on George R.R. Martin's novella series, often referred to as The Tales of Dunk & Egg. Read on for all the details we have so far, and check back for updates as production goes on.

The Hedge Knight is the second Game of Thrones spinoff to be greenlit at HBO, though you may have read about some of the others in development. At the time of this writing, there's no telling if or when other shows in Westeros might get a series order. This show will have some major differences from House of the Dragon, not least of all because of its source material. while House of the Dragon is based on a fictional history book, The Hedge Knight is based on a novella written in a style similar to A Song of Ice and Fire, making it familiar territory for fans.

Martin's books, including The Hedge Knight are available now in print, digital and audiobook format for those who want to get ahead. House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones are streaming now on Max. Here's a breakdown of what we know about A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight.

Release Date

In June of 2024 during Warner Bros. Discovery's upfront presentation, HBO executive Casey Bloys announced that The Hedge Knight will premiere in 2025. Since then, Martin and others have echoed that year, but no announcement has ever gotten more specific than that.

Still, we can speculate based on clues that are piling up from unofficial sources. For one thing, it's safe to say that HBO will release the show strategically at a time when it will draw the biggest audience. For Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon that has usually been the summer. On top of that, podcaster and YouTuber Gray Area spoke to an anonymous source who worked on The Hedge Knight in September of 2024. They said that the show has finished filming, which means only post-production remains. That means the show could be ready to air as soon as March of 2025, depending on how much CGI and editing it needs.

Teaser

HBO released a teaser for The Hedge Knight in early August, during House of the Dragon Season 2. It shows us our first seven seconds of footage from the series, which is enough to get a lot of fans excited. So far, no other trailers or previews have been released, though there is one official image embedded in the next section.

Dunk & Egg

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(Photo: Steffan Hill/HBO)

The Hedge Knight stars Peter Claffey as Ser Duncan the Tall and Dexter Sol Ansell as his squire, Egg. This duo will be the center of the story, and of the next two installments – assuming the show gets renewed. Claffey is a former pro rugby player, and has appeared in several TV shows including Vikings: Valhalla. Meanwhile, Ansell is best known for playing the young version of Coriolanus Snow in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

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Other Cast

Several other key cast members for this show were announced in June. Bertie Carvel will play Baelor "Breakspear" Targaryen, heir to the Iron Throne and Hand of the King, while Finn Bennett will play his arrogant son Aerion "Brightflame" Targaryen. Sam Spruell will play Baelor's younger brother, Maekar Targaryen. Daniel Ings will play Ser Lyonel Baratheon, also known as "The Laughing Storm," while Tanzyn Crawford will play the puppeteer Tanselle.

That leaves several important cast members to be announced, including Aerion's younger brother Daeron "The Drunkard" Targaryen and the two Fossaway cousins, Steffon and Raymun. We will also need to see Dunk's mentor, Ser Arlan of Pennytree.

Setting and Connections

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(Photo: Helen Sloan/courtesy of HBO)

The Hedge Knight is a prequel to Game of Thrones, but takes place after House of the Dragon in Martin's fictional timeline. In the books, The Hedge Knight is set about 90 years before the events of A Game of Thrones, and about 80 years after the events of House of the Dragon. However, the books lean on imperfect record-keeping in this pseudo-medieval setting, and the TV timeline has been altered to change the ages of certain characters and timing of some events, so there may be som changes here as well.

Because it is practically halfway between the other two shows, this one will not share any major characters with its counterparts, but that doesn't mean there aren't connections. One of the biggest is Maester Aemon (Peter Vaughan,) the blind maester who advises Jon Snow (Kit Harington) on The Wall in Game of Thrones. Aemon is a son of Prince Baelor, and though he is not present in this story, he has some relevant connections to the characters here.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight premieres sometime in 2025 on HBO and Max. Those that want to get ahead will want to find Martin's book A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, which contains all three Dunk & Egg novellas starting with The Hedge Knight. That and his other books are available now in print, digital and audiobook formats. Check back for more updates on this series as they become available.

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