Game of Thrones – Arya spin-off not being considered; potential’s still there
Think about things this way: Arya’s ending probably had the most in common to Lord of the Rings in that she, after a long journey, decided to head somewhere else and see what else was out there. In her case, she has an opportunity to trace the land west of Westeros, if there is any said land to trace. Think about an adventure series with Arya getting to be a brave explorer seeing what all is out there in the world — Maisie Williams is a more than capable lead, and we’d love to actually see that story told since it could be separate enough from the flagship show to work. It would also add to the overall lore of this world and of George R.R. Martin’s source material.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like this is something that HBO as a network is altogether taking seriously, despite it being possibly the one present-day Game of Thrones spin-off that could actually work and feel like a consistently compelling story. In speaking on this subject per The Hollywood Reporter, the network’s programming head in Casey Bloys explained (following a question about an Arya spin-off) that doing a direct continuation of the flagship show would, in his mind, impede on the work of creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, something that the prequel shows currently in development would not:
Nope, nope, nope. No. Part of it is, I do want this show — this Game of Thrones, Dan and David’s show — to be its own thing. I don’t want to take characters from this world that they did beautifully and put them off into another world with someone else creating it. I want to let it be the artistic piece they’ve got. That’s one of reasons why I’m not trying to do the same show over. George has massive, massive world; there are so many ways in. That’s why we’re trying to do things that feel distinct — and to not try and re-do the same show. That’s probably one of the reasons why, right now, a sequel or picking up any of the other characters doesn’t make sense for us.
For more news regarding Game of Thrones and the series finale, check out the video that we’ve got on the matter below! Meanwhile, remember to subscribe to CarterMatt on YouTube for some other news and take a look at our full series playlist.
Of course, the operative words in here are “right now,” meaning that there’s always at least a faint possibility for something more in the future. We do think that a few years from now, maybe this is something that could at least be revisited as a limited series idea or something that would generate a lot of excitement in the brand if attention starts to wane.
Are there are a lot of polarizing elements of Game of Thrones from the past few weeks? Absolutely, but there’s still a joy and relative purity to Arya and her story. She’s one of the few characters within this story who has an ending that is easy to agree upon. She never wanted to be a ruler, and nor did she want to settle down and be a wife. She has found a greater sense of humanity, though she does still have that training from the House of Black and White and ability to be “No One” — though being Arya is also pretty great.
If you missed it…
Check out some more thoughts on the series finale via George R.R. Martin over at the link here, and we’ll have more news all about this world when the right situation arises.
Do you still want to see an Arya Stark spin-off to Game of Thrones? Be sure to share in the comments, and check back soon for some other updates. (Photo: HBO.)