HBO is making it sound increasingly likely that one of the five Game of Thrones spin-offs in development will be making it to screens before long.
A Song of Ice and Fire author George RR Martin is hard at work with five different sets of writers on Game of Thrones companion shows that will all be set before the events of the current series.
There was an update on the spin-offs at the MIPCOM entertainment conference in Cannes on Monday (October 16), when HBO chairman Richard Plepler teased that he's been impressed by the pitches thus far (via Entertainment Weekly).
"It's a fantastic group of writers and talent, most of whom have lived inside the Thrones eco-system so are very, very familiar with its intricacies," Plepler told attendees.
The HBO boss went on to say: "I think we will find with this embarrassment of riches an exciting property for us to move forward with. We are looking at some things, I have read a couple of early bibles and I'm excited about what I've seen."
The only familiar face from Game of Thrones' current team, Bryan Cogman, is officially on board for one of the spin-offs, making Plepler's comments slightly interesting. All indications are that Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D. B. Weiss will focus on their new show Confederate, rather than work on any of the prequels.
What to Read Next
HBO programming president Casey Bloys has previously indicated that the premium channel only expects to make one of the five projects, although perhaps Plepler is indicating that they've struck gold with multiple ideas?
Last month, George RR Martin hinted that one of the projects could air as early as 2019 — the same year that Game of Thrones is expected to conclude with its eighth season.
Take that prediction with a grain of salt, since George has also been promising us for years that his book The Winds of Winter is coming… yet we still don't have it on our e-readers.
Want up-to-the-minute entertainment news and features? Just hit 'Like' on our Digital Spy Facebook page and 'Follow' on our @digitalspy Twitter account and you're all set.
Justin is a freelance entertainment journalist and writer. He first joined Digital Spy as a freelance entertainment reporter in 2010 and also worked as a sub-editor for the brand, serving as Night News Editor from 2016 to 2024. Over more than a decade, Justin has covered numerous major entertainment events from the US and has interviewed a wide-ranging group of public figures, from comedian Steve Coogan to icons from the Star Trek universe, cast members from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and reality stars from numerous Real Housewives cities and the Below Deck franchise. Justin has also been on the ground to cover major pop culture events like the Star Wars Celebration and the D23 Expo. He's written for titles across the Hearst network, plus the likes of CBR and Us Weekly.
