A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Could Run For 10 Seasons, Longer Than Game of Thrones

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The new Game of Thrones prequel, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, arrives on January 18, 2026, but it’s already facing a challenge. Author George R.R. Martin has only completed three of the Dunk and Egg stories. While the original Game of Thrones had five books to adapt before its showrunners had to rely on Martin’s notes for the unfinished The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms will run out of source material by the end of its third season.

As a huge fan of the Dunk and Egg stories, I was really relieved to hear some good news! Ira Parker, who’s working on the A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms series, told The National that George R.R. Martin hasn’t left them hanging. Apparently, Martin has actually mapped out the entire Dunk and Egg saga! Parker said Martin shared around 10-12 little outlines with the writing team, detailing the whole story of their lives. Right now, they’re focusing on just one of those, seeing how fans react. They’re actually making two at the moment, which is exciting! Hopefully, people enjoy them enough that we get to see all of Martin’s planned stories brought to life – I know I’d love that! I mean, I’m really enjoying writing in that world, and it’s such a great story, so fingers crossed we get many more!

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Has Enough Notes To Air For 10 to 12 Seasons

Similar to Game of Thrones, the new series A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms will cover one book per season. Game of Thrones didn’t always follow this plan perfectly – it covered parts of A Storm of Swords over two seasons, combined two books for Season 5, and later relied on outlines – but A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is sticking to the original idea. Each season will consist of six episodes and will be based on a single novella from the Tales of Dunk and Egg series.

By Season 4, the show will have used up all the source material from George R.R. Martin’s existing books. While Martin is providing new outlines to guide the story, the show can move beyond the planned The Mystery Knight storyline. Instead, it can continue following the adventures of Duncan the Tall, showing how he becomes Lord Commander of the Kingsguard—a fate previously hinted at in Game of Thrones. This could naturally lead to the Tragedy at Summerhall, providing a fitting conclusion to Duncan and Egg’s story.

Outlines Did Game of Thrones Last Three Seasons No Favors

While it’s great news that A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms likely won’t conclude after just three seasons, it’s important to remember that story outlines are just a starting point. The strongest seasons of the Game of Thrones adaptation succeeded because of George R.R. Martin’s compelling dialogue and vivid writing style. Interestingly, the final three seasons of Game of Thrones, which were often criticized, did have outlines to guide them.

While Season 6 of Game of Thrones was well-received and exciting, it relied on some convenient plot devices and overlooked logical details. For instance, Davos Seaworth wouldn’t realistically ask Melisandre to bring Jon Snow back to life, considering his distrust of her magic. The show also started rushing conversations and skipping over important consequences. Actions, like Cersei’s destruction of the Tyrell family and a major religious order, didn’t have the expected political repercussions.

The plot points of the final three seasons of Game of Thrones seem logical when you look at them individually—even controversial decisions like Daenerys’s turn and Jaime’s return to Cersei. However, the show’s creators didn’t include enough dialogue or explore characters’ inner thoughts to smoothly transition from George R.R. Martin’s source material. This made it difficult to connect the major story events. While Ira Parker, the new showrunner for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, will likely approach the series differently than Benioff & Weiss, fans of A Song of Ice and Fire know that simply having a plan isn’t enough to guarantee a satisfying story—especially with a shorter, six-episode season.

George R.R. Martin Refuses To Write More Tales of Dunk and Egg Until The Winds of Winter is Finished

The team behind A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is limited to working with existing outlines because George R.R. Martin hasn’t finished writing The Winds of Winter. This sixth book in the A Song of Ice and Fire series has been in progress for almost 15 years with no confirmed release date. Martin has stated repeatedly that he won’t write any new stories within the ASOIAF world—including the next Dunk and Egg novella—until The Winds of Winter is finished.

The planned next installment of the Dunk and Egg series was to be called The She-Wolves of Winterfell, a story centered on the Stark family in the North. This would have been a great chance for George R.R. Martin to begin developing the White Walkers as a serious threat, particularly after the season finale of House of the Dragon showed the Targaryens’ awareness of the Long Night. Unfortunately, the story remains unfinished and won’t be released until The Winds of Winter is published.

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2026-01-12 22:34