A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms Season 2 Won't See One Alive Targaryen Return Despite Season 1 Book Change

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms season 2 may not see at least one Targaryen prince return.

The Game of Thrones spinoff ended the six-episode journey, as Aegon “Egg” Targaryen (Dexter Sol Ansell) and Ser Duncan the Tall (Peter Claffey) leave Ashford and travel through Westeros. However, in what is a tweak from George R. R. Martin’s novella Tales of Dunk and Egg, Egg lies about his father’s blessings, as A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms ending shows Maekar Tagaryen (Sam Spruell) screaming about his son’s whereabouts. This is a major change from the book, where it’s implied that Maekar permitted Egg to squire under Ser Duncan.

Given this change, it raises questions about whether season 2 will make a crucial change by opening the doors to Maekar and the other Targaryen princes looking for him. However, Spruell confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that “I’m not going to be in season two.” Despite the assumption, the actor stated, “Well, we’ll see. Never say never, but I’m pretty sure that there will be other stories to tell.”

While this new update will come as a surprise to non-readers, those who have read novellas will know that most of the characters in The Hedge Knight don’t return in The Sworn Sword, which season 2 will adapt. That means that not only will Maekar be missing, but characters like Lyonel Baratheon, Aerion Targaryen, and Raymun Fossoway are unlikely to reappear. However, Maekar is mentioned in the second book.

In a separate interview with Collider, the show creator, Ira Parker, was asked whether season 2 could see any Targaryen returning. He argued the following:

Every book is a brand-new cast of people. George has a plan for later novellas, where certain people would come back in. We’ll see how it goes. It’s going to be, if any, quite light. There might not be any. We’re exploring. If it feels right, if it feels fun, if it adds something to it while not taking away from everything that we’re trying to do with The Sworn Sword, then it could happen.

This comment implies that season 2 will genuinely follow the content from The Sworn Sword, despite the season 1 change from Martin’s book. Most of season 1 followed the beats from The Hedge Knight, and Parker has been adamant about making sure the series is faithful to the novella and that it makes the author happy.

Later in the Collider interview, he affirms that Martin is very involved with season 2 because “he’s only been a benefit to the series.” He also revealed, “Every now and then, little things have to change, but we never change the story,” meaning that season 2 is unlikely to bring back any Targaryens if it follows the book closely.

Despite this disappointment, there is a chance that Maekar and the other Targaryen princes could make a return in future installments, since the creator has openly expressed interest in making at least 12 seasons. Some of that would also depend on outlines for the unpublished stories that Parker received, as the author is working on future novellas.

However, in a similar case with the A Song of Ice and Fire series, Tales of Dunk and Egg paused after The Mystery Knight was published in 2010. He has previously stated that additional novellas won’t be written until The Winds of Winter is finished, but the next stories have a working title of The She-Wolves of Winterfell and The Village Hero.

In the meantime, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms season 2 is already filming, with Claffey and Ansell confirmed as the only two returning cast members. Since it’s expected to follow the books, the sophomore installment will likely feature Daemon Blackfyre, Eustace Osgrey, Lady Rohanne Webber of Coldmoat, and Ser Lucas Inchfield. Those castings may be confirmed in the coming weeks, now that season 1 has ended.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms season 2 is expected to premiere sometime in 2027.