House of the Dragon is returning later this year, but it may not be the only Game of Thrones spin-off for long. Via Variety, HBO has cast Peter Claffey and Dexter Sol Ansell in the two leading roles in the upcoming prequel series, Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight.
The show is based on George R.R. Martin’s Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas, which are set a century before the events of Game of Thrones. Claffey has been cast as Ser Duncan the Tale, who also goes by Dunk. Claffey has previously appeared in Vikings: Valhalla.
Ansell will portray Egg, Dunk’s squire who is secretly Prince Aegon Targaryen, one of the heirs to the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. Ansell recently portrayed young Coriolanus Snow during the opening minutes of The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
As noted in HBO’s description for the series, The Hedge Knight is “set in an age when the Targaryen line still holds the Iron Throne, and the memory of the last dragon has not yet passed from living memory, great destinies, powerful foes, and dangerous exploits all await these improbable and incomparable friends.”
Martin is co-writing and executive producing The Hedge Knight alongside Ira Parker. Now that casting is underway, The Hedge Knight may premiere as soon as 2025. In the meantime, House of the Dragon Season 2 will premiere this summer on HBO and Max.