A new “Game of Thrones” prequel is being discussed at HBO with this latest series focusing on Aegon I Targaryen and his conquest to conquer Westeros…
The “Game of Thrones” business at HBO may be expanding again — this time with a new series and a potential film as well.
According to a report from Variety, discussions are underway on a new series that would focus on Aegon I Targaryen and his conquest to conquer the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros alongside his sister-wives Visenya and Rhaenys on the backs of their mighty dragons.
While the potential series isn’t in active development yet, talks are happening that could make that happen rather quickly with a search for a writer is reportedly already underway. Nothing is set in stone yet but there’s the potential that a feature length movie could launch the new “Game of Thrones” series, which when then lead into the traditional episodic format week-to-week.
Aegon’s Conquest took place approximately 300 years before the events in “Game of Thrones,” although many of the same families and houses would still exist during this potential series.
As the story goes, House Targaryen was one of the only families to survive the fated Doom of Valyria after Lord Aenar Targaryen had foresight enough to leave the once prosperous region and instead set up a new home on a small stretch of land on an island that would become known as Dragonstone. Years later, Aegon I Targaryen — on the back of his dragon Balerion the Black Dread — helped free cities to the east that requested his assistance but he eventually turned his attention back to the west and the Seven Kingdoms.
At that time, Westeros was split into those Seven Kingdoms with a different ruler over each land but Aegon had the idea that he could combine them all under his rule. He offered each of the Lords of the Seven Kingdoms the opportunity to bend the knee and declare him king and in return, each would get to keep their lands and titles. Declining his offer meant Aegon would seek to conquer them — through fire and blood.
Despite having far fewer men in his armies, Aegon and his sister-wives had three dragons at their command and that was the only real weapon needed to defeat the Lords of Westeros. This was also famously when King Harren the Black of House Hoare defied Aegon while touting an impenetrable fortress that he had built called Harrenhal with the tallest and biggest towers built out of stone.
King Harren believed that even on dragonback, Aegon couldn’t force him out of his mighty castle.
Aegon proved him wrong while flying down on Balerion and roasting King Harren and his sons to death inside that mighty castle with stories that stone actually melted after being bathed in dragonfire.
Eventually, Aegon either conquered or saw six of the seven kingdoms yield to him including Torrhen Stark, the King in the North, who led a garrison of 30,000 men prepared to battle before ultimately seeking a peace treaty with House Targaryen, which allowed him to remain in power as the Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North. From then on, Torrhen Stark was known as “the King who knelt.”
The only kingdom that Aegon couldn’t conquer was Dorne — and that remained the sole outlier after House Targaryen officially conquered Westeros, which led to the construction of King’s Landing as well as all of the swords of Aegon’s fallen enemies being melted down into a seat for a king known as the Iron Throne.
It’s one of the most famous stories in the history of Westeros and one often mentioned throughout “Game of Thrones” as well as the prequel series “House of the Dragon.”
It remains to be seen if this latest prequel will move beyond the development stage into production but HBO definitely wants to remain in the “Game of Thrones” business, especially after the massive success of “House of the Dragon,” which was already renewed for season 2.
