'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' changes its title after finale as showrunner opens up: 'People may hate...'
It appears that there are nine kingdoms in Westeros, a neat piece of trivia, courtesy Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell). This effectively makes a 'A Knight of Seven Kingdoms' now 'A Knight of Nine Kingdoms' when the hit HBO Max drama premieres with Season 2. The final chapter opens with a down-and-out Dunk (Peter Claffey) still looking worse for wear after his fight against Aerion Targaryen (Finn Bennett) and his knights. While Dunk emerged victorious, he is shown to be reeling from the death of Baelor Targaryen (Bertie Carvel), his fellow knight. After the heir to the Iron Throne dies following a brutal blow to the head from Maekar.
The aftermath of the tourney sees Maekar ask Dunk to serve under him, but the former declines and, in a shock move. Instead, he decides to take Egg with him on his next course of adventure. This marks the beginning of the knight and his squire setting off to new lands.
In the final minutes of the episode, Dunk and Egg set their sights on the next destination, Dorne, the southern, desert-covered part of Westeros. Maekar (Sam Spruell) searches for Egg after the squire decides to leave the Targaryen family and travel with Dunk hints at a potential Targaryen crossover in the second season.
For those unaware, the region's divisions are the North, the Vale, the Iron Islands, the Riverlands, the Westerlands, the Reach, the Stormlands, the Crownlands, and Dorne. The nine kingdoms now tease a longer and more complicated journey for the young squire (or prince) and Ser Duncan (Peter Claffey) in the future seasons. Should there be more seasons of 'A Knight of Nine Kingdoms', expect more of these regions to be covered along the way.
Co-creator and showrunner Ira Parker shed light on the change in title and the ramifications of the move. "That’s maybe me getting a little too jokey. People may hate it or crucify me for that, but there’s a bit of a lighter touch to these shows," Parker told Variety.
"And I’m going to learn some things. People are going to have a reaction to it, and I’m going to have a reaction to it after not seeing it for a few months. It’s nine kingdoms at that point. We want to make Westeros a fun place to hang out, even when terrible, terrible things are happening and everyone’s sad, just like real life."
'A Knight of Nine Kingdoms' will comprise six episodes like its predecessor. Barring the possibility of Dunk and Maekar crossing paths, there is no official logline for the new season. With the filming already underway in Belfast, the new instalment is expected to be released sometime in 2027. The new chapter follows the second Dunk & Egg novella, 'The Sworn Sword'. There is very little known about the cast of season 2 outside of Claffey and Ansell. While Henry Cavill is rumored to play Daemon Blackfyre, nothing is concrete at the moment.
All episodes of 'A Knight of Seven Kingdoms' are streaming on HBO Max.
