Plans for the first Game of Thrones prequel series, Bloodmoon, may have been scrapped more than five years ago, but fans are finally getting a glimpse into a previously-unseen Westeros story in these leaked images.
It’s been more than four years since Game of Thrones exited our screens after 73 jaw-dropping episodes spread over eight seasons. Whatever your view on the final Thrones season (personally, I didn’t hate it), the profound impact of the HBO original is still felt to this day, reflecting a golden era of television that some argue ended with the show.
Of course, Thrones fans are being treated once again to an incredible new story from Westeros lore, brimming with the same incestuous and blood-thirsty tropes that George R. R. Martin effortlessly deployed into his original material.
And with HBO’s House of the Dragon returning with its second highly-anticipated season, new images have been released from a long-forgotten prequel that was scrapped more than five years ago.
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It was inevitable that HBO would look to capitalise on the resounding success of the original Thrones series, introducing a multitude of projects that explore the rich history of the fantasy world created by George R. R. Martin throughout his writing career.
One work in particular, Bloodmoon, was meant to be the studio’s first big-hitter since the original series ended, telling the gripping story of The Long Night – Martin loves a moniker – the wedding between a Stark and a Casterly, taking place at Casterly Rock almost 5000 years before the events of Game of Thrones.
It was one of four potential successor shows under development by HBO, but it was ultimately turned down due to poor reception of its pilot episode. It was thought to be buried until Flora Moody, a hair and makeup artist who has worked on Road House and the Star Wars films, published images from the set of the first episode to her Instagram.
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“Taking place thousands of years before the events of Game of Thrones, the series chronicles the world’s descent from the golden Age of Heroes into its darkest hour,” an official statement read.
“And only one thing is for sure: from the horrifying secrets of Westeros’s history to the true origin of the White Walkers, the mysteries of the East, to the Starks of legend…it’s not the story we think we know.”
Naomi Watts was cast to portray the lead character in the cancelled series.