A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, television series adapted from the Tales of Dunk and Egg, a novella series by writer George R.R. Martin. The show is a prequel to the TV sensation Game of Thrones (2011–19), which was based on his A Song of Ice and Fire novels. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms chronicles the unlikely friendship and myriad adventures of Ser Duncan the Tall (Dunk) and Prince Aegon V Targaryen (Egg) as they wander the fictional lands of Westeros. The show, which premiered on HBO and HBO Max on January 18, 2026, was created by Martin and Ira Parker, with the latter serving as showrunner.

Source material and plot

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms takes place 72 years after the Targaryen civil war depicted in House of the Dragon (2022– ), another prequel series, and about a century before the events of Game of Thrones. While the previous shows were based on books concerned in large part with the ruthless politicking within the highest echelons of the seven kingdoms, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms has as its source material the lighthearted episodic tales of a lowborn but honorable knight and his squire, who more often stumble into adventure than seek it out. The TV series is the first in the franchise not to feature dragons; the last known dragon died more than 50 years before the start of the narrative, and none would appear in Westeros until Daenerys Targaryen’s dragons about 90 years later. The show is expected to offer deeper insights into the impending decline of the Targaryen dynasty, which ruled Westeros for almost 300 years with the might of those dragons.

(The following discussion may contain minor spoilers.)

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Season 1

The initial season of the show is faithful to the storyline of The Hedge Knight, the first novella in the Dunk and Egg series. While the major plot points largely follow the book closely, the TV show fleshes out Dunk’s backstory and remolds certain side characters. The show, like the book, follows Dunk, a naive and exceptionally tall young man who sets out to make his way in the world as a hedge knight after the death of Ser Arlan of Pennytree, whom he served as a squire. A hedge knight is not sworn to a liege lord but earns his living by performing odd jobs, offering protection for hire, and participating in tournaments (medieval competitions where knights displayed their skills); although most are considered unreliable and some even turn to crime, Dunk is goodhearted and honorable to a fault.

Questions over Dunk’s Knighthood

There is some debate about whether Dunk was actually knighted by Ser Arlan before the latter’s death. There is much textual evidence in Dunk’s interactions and internal monologue that suggests he may have created a fictitious narrative to support his claims. For instance, in the novellas he is unable to provide witnesses to it or to explain the process of his knighting, usually avoiding a straight answer. Nevertheless, Dunk proves time and time again to be one of the most worthy knights of Westeros because of his otherwise spotless reputation and unshakable honor.

An orphan from a slum district called Flea Bottom with no ties to nobility, Dunk prepares to prove his worth as a knight at a tournament—and perhaps catch the eye of a noble lord who may take him into his service. At an inn along the way he meets Egg (short for Aegon), who he does not know is a Targaryen prince disguised as a stable boy. Egg insists on being his squire, and despite some hesitation, Dunk agrees to let him, impressed by the boy’s knowledge of knights and nobility. However, before he can set foot on the tournament grounds, Dunk is involved in a brawl as he tries to save a puppeteer named Tanselle Too-Tall from the sadistic Prince Aerion Targaryen. The hedge knight is subsequently imprisoned and set to be judged for his crimes, exaggerated by Aerion and his brother Daeron to include the alleged kidnapping of their brother Egg. In reality it was Daeron who had disguised Egg—his intended squire—and fled their father’s escort to avoid taking part in the tournament. Notwithstanding any defense Egg may offer in his favor, Dunk must prove his innocence by winning a trial of seven—a lethal melee where two groups of seven knights battle each other to see whom the gods favor.

Future seasons

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms has been greenlit for a second season, set to premiere in 2027, which will adapt Martin’s second novella in the series, The Sworn Sword. The book places Dunk and Egg in the midst of a feud between two houses—the Osgreys and the Webbers—over a dwindling stream amid a drought across the seven kingdoms. Though a third season is yet to be announced, it could likely follow the plot of the third novella, The Mystery Knight, in which the hedge knight and his squire unintentionally uncover—and ultimately thwart—a simmering rebellion at a wedding tournament they attend uninvited.

Though Martin has published only three titles in the Dunk and Egg novella series, he has said that future stories will take the duo to other exotic locations within Westeros and beyond.

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More on the characters and background

Although Dunk and Egg are fleshed out as characters in the novellas, parts of their biographies are mentioned in other books within the A Song of Ice and Fire series, most extensively in The World of Ice & Fire: The Untold History of Westeros and the Game of Thrones. According to canonical history, Egg eventually ascends the Iron Throne as King Aegon V and appoints Dunk to his Kingsguard, an elite band of seven knights sworn to protect the king. Dunk later becomes lord commander of the Kingsguard and is remembered by generations to come as one of the realm’s greatest knights. Egg’s journeys with Dunk make him sensitive to the struggles of the commoners, to whom he gives unprecedented rights and protections during his reign. However, these policies irk the nobles and lead to incessant uprisings, which he quells with Dunk at his side.

Dunk and Egg meet their end together as well. As he grows older, Egg becomes preoccupied with hatching dragon eggs, which he believes could bring the nobles in line and allow him to implement reforms. It was perhaps this obsession that led to the tragedy of Summerhall, where a massive inferno claimed the lives of Egg and most of his close family and aides, including Dunk. However, this episode in Westerosi history is shrouded in mystery, and little is known about the cause of the fire.

Production and casting

In 2016 Martin pitched two Game of Thrones prequel TV shows to HBO: one based on the Dunk and Egg series and the other exploring the Targaryen civil war, known as the Dance of the Dragons, as described in the fantasy history book Fire & Blood. HBO initially set aside the former, choosing to develop the latter into the well-received House of the Dragon series, which aired starting in 2022. It was only in 2021 that interest in a Dunk and Egg TV show was revived, as reports surfaced that an adaptation of the novellas was underway, with screenwriter Steve Conrad serving as showrunner—a fact confirmed by Martin in 2022. By the time the show was officially given the go-ahead by HBO in 2023, Conrad was no longer attached to the project, and Ira Parker was set to helm the production as showrunner, with Martin contributing as writer and executive producer.

In April 2024 it was reported that Peter Claffey had been cast as Dunk and Dexter Sol Ansell would play the role of Egg. Other cast members include Finn Bennett as Aerion Targaryen, Bertie Carvel as Baelor Targaryen, Tanzyn Crawford as Tanselle, Daniel Ings as Lyonel Baratheon, and Sam Spruell as Maekar Targaryen.