When news of potential Game of Thrones prequels broke, there were more than two under consideration. All of them were not expected to make it to air. Among the potential series was one from Game of Thrones’ writer Bryan Cogman. His was the fifth one announced. Cogman has now confirmed that his prequel series is no longer among the living. It is dead.
“What is dead may never die,” according to the Greyjoys' motto, but television is a different game. The Game of Thrones scribe gave the sad update regarding his prequel in an interview. When asked if he was still attached to one of the prequels, which he was working on with source material author George R.R. Martin, Bryan Cogman told THR:
I'm definitely leaving. I was developing one of the successor shows with George. George has worked with a bunch of the writers, including Jane, whose show is being done [as a pilot]. My prequel show is not happening and will not happen. HBO decided to go a different way. I'm working with Amazon now and helping them out with their shows. So, it is a goodbye. I am done with Westeros.
This news is particularly sad because Bryan Cogman has been a part of the original series since Season 1. A voice pivotal to Game of Thrones would have still been heard within Westeros via the prequel. Having someone as integral to Thrones as Cogman would have made the prequel all the richer.
Details on Bryan Cogman’s series were not shared when it was announced. Maybe now that it is off the table, fans will learn more about what it was about. Many Game of Thrones’ fans are probably curious to know what the series would have entailed.
With the completion of Game of Thrones and his prequel not getting the go-ahead, Bryan Cogman’s days in the Seven Kingdoms are over. The writer has signed an overall deal with Amazon, so do not expect him to fade away. He will be bringing his skillful touch to projects for the studio.
Interestingly, that is the same studio that is developing that Lord of the Rings universe series, which is a prequel to the epic tale of Middle Earth so many know and love. As fans know, Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones have drawn comparisons over the years. It would be neat if Bryan Cogman exercised his talents on that.
Bryan Cogman wrote the incredibly poignant second episode of Season 8, entitled “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.” It serves as a reminder of what an outstanding writer he is, which only makes the prequel news all the sadder. A silver lining is that work on a different Game of Thrones prequel is getting underway via a pilot.
That project comes from writer Jane Goldman, who Bryan Cogman mentions in the above quote. Casting is still underway. It already has Naomi Watts signed to star, among many others. That prequel will take place at a time in the history of Westeros far distant from Game of Thrones' timeline. The clock will be moved back thousands of years.
While fans await further details about that successor series, they can savor the remaining episodes of the show that started everything. Find out what happens on the original series when Game of Thrones Season 8 continues. Another new episode will air this Sunday at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.
