A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: HBO Drops Epic Teaser, Confirms January 18 Premiere
It’s been three years since “House of the Dragon” revitalized the good name of the most iconic small-screen property in the fantasy genre. Now, riding on all the goodwill that was sorely lacking during the last seasons of “Game of Thrones,” HBO is ready to deliver its next George R.R. Martin adaptation, titled “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.” This series will premiere on January 18, 2026. Its official teaser trailer, which dropped on October 9, promises Westeros’s own grandiloquent version of the rags-to-riches story.
A Humble, Noble Warrior
Like “House of the Dragon,” “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” will serve as a prequel series to “Game of Thrones.” It is an adaptation of “Tales of Dunk and Egg,” a collection of prequel novellas that Martin published in 2005. Evidently, HBO wanted a much more grandiose name for their screen version of the story, and the trailer certainly advertises enough visual and narrative splendor to justify this. On the other hand, the book’s humble title might be more fitting for what appears to be a surprisingly heartwarming underdog tale.
The rank outsider at the center of “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” is Dunk (Peter Claffey), a.k.a. Ser Duncan the Tall, squire to the late Ser Arlan of Pennytree. He’s a noble man, for sure, but he receives no respect anywhere in Westeros. This is first illustrated via a highly amusing misdirect, in which footage of him being suited up like a great knight is accompanied by a swelling soundtrack and the voiceover question: “Are you Baelor Targaryen?” Then, we see that the speaker is a stable hand tasked with handling the horse of his kingdom’s prince. After Dunk answers in the negative, the stable hand replies: “Then would you move the fuck out of the way?”
The Underdog’s Requisite Sidekick and Chance for Greatness
Fortunately, Dunk soon gets a friend and helper in the form of Aegon Targaryen (11-year-old actor Dexter Sol Ansell), a.k.a. “Egg,” another prince of the Targaryen dynasty. This boy also hasn’t heard of this humble hedge knight before, but he quickly offers to squire for Dunk. The latter develops ambitions beyond those of a mere noble, itinerant warrior. “I know I’m just a hedge knight,” he says, “but sometimes I think I could be more.”
Dunk’s prospective route to “more” (to becoming a knight of the seven kingdoms, perhaps?) appears to be some kind of gargantuan tournament involving the usual dependable staples of fantasy action: knights on foot and on horseback duking it out with lances, a fire-breathing dragon, etc. If he joins this tourney, Dunk will be pitted against some of the most skillful warriors around. “You have no chance,” warns Ser Lyonel Baratheon (Daniel Ings), a knight who appears to be acting as Dunk’s mentor. Nonetheless, Ser Lyonel exhorts him: “Be brave. Be just. Be tall.”
A Formulaic Tale, But Told with a First-Rate Cast and Production Values
The underdog is, of course, a storytelling archetype, and it appears that “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” will adhere to the conventions of this type of tale. Nonetheless, there’s still plenty to recommend about it from its teaser.
First, there are several compelling performances on display. Dunk is a bereft, lonesome man, but Peter Claffey seems to be playing him not as a brooding lone wolf, but as a personable, even open, individual who readily befriends Dexter Sol Ansell’s Egg. The latter acts largely solemn in both voice and tone, but the two of them have a subtly playful chemistry together that stands to give “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” both a beating heart and a mild dose of levity.
Daniel Ings as Dunk’s de facto mentor strikes a similar balance between sententiousness and semi-leavening encouragement, while Finn Bennett is shown in a memorable bit of scenery-chewing as Prince Aerion Targaryen.
“A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” also appears visually superb, bringing to life a fantasy world that is often quite beautiful but always feels lived in. Such are the special effects on display that the great black dragon tied up inside a large, crowded tent looks as natural as any of the horses. The footage we get of one tourney battle – knights donning unique crested masks before riding through mist to battle one another – looks suitably pulse-pounding.
Overall, however tried-and-true its story may be (at least in its broad outlines), “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” looks like an interesting, even unexpected, addition to Westeros’s televised universe: a series that will showcase a gritty world and an epic storyline without a relentlessly dark tone.
