There are plenty of Game of Thrones projects in the works, and to the surprise of no one, plenty of them are about the Targaryens and their generations-long rule of Westeros. But now we might be getting two versions of one of House Targaryen’s most famous stories—including a big-screen spin from Andor and House of Cards writer Beau Willimon.
The Hollywood Reporter has word that Willimon has submitted a script for a Game of Thrones movie that would depict the Targaryens’ arrival in Westeros, uniting the kingdoms under the rule of Aegon the Conqueror and establishing the House of the Dragon’s rule over the lands for centuries. The Wrap and Page Six first reported the news.
Rumors of an adaptation of one of the most vital moments of House Targaryen’s history have been in the works for years, ever since Game of Thrones first came to an end almost seven years ago, one of many spinoffs considered, including potential plans for theatrical spinoffs. But plans for Aegon’s conquest have long focused on a TV adaptation of the tale—a potential show that is still being considered at HBO, despite this news of a movie version as well.
The Hollywood Reporter initially reported on a potential set of rival takes on Aegon’s conquest from the TV and movie sides of Warner Bros. earlier this year as part of an extensive profile with George R.R. Martin, covering the breakdown of his behind-the-scenes relationship with House of the Dragon, the then-upcoming arrival of Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and other elements of the future of Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire world. But the news of Willimon’s involvement, as well as the submitting of the script, seems to indicate the potential for the movie version to have made a significant step ahead. The last news we heard about the TV take on Aegon’s conquest came in early 2024, when it was reported that The Batman Part II co-writer Mattson Tomlin had joined the project.
io9 has reached out to Warner Bros. for comment on the reports and will update this post when and if we hear back.
How that will survive Warner Bros. currently navigating its potential sale to Paramount remains to be seen. Details of any production in the works at the moment, even one as high profile as a Game of Thrones movie, are no doubt going to be in flux should Paramount’s $110 billion deal to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery be completed—after all, in the wake of its own purchasing by Skydance, Paramount drastically reshuffled its own slate of in-development projects, like how it killed off Star Trek 4 after a decade of development limbo to replace it with a new Star Trek movie project from Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley.
But Paramount CEO David Ellison is now on record as touting Game of Thrones as his favorite HBO series—so whatever happens, it wouldn’t be too surprising if this project survived such a deal. We’ll bring you more on Warner Bros.’ plans for Westeros as and when we learn them.
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Source: Gizmodo