2023 WGA Strike Halts GoT Prequel The Hedge Knight's Production
Martin behind the strikers and the abolition of mini-rooms.
We were warned that a WGA strike could bring a halt to the production of major shows. And now that has come to fruition, with George RR Martin confirming via his blog that 'The writer's room on A KNIGHT OF THE SEVEN KINGDOMS: THE HEDGE KNIGHT has closed for the duration. Ira Parker (showrunner for the series) and his incredible staff of young talents are on the picket lines.'
The author's blog post began with the statement that, 'No one wanted this — no writer with an ounce of sense, anyway — but the producers and the studios and the networks and the streamers gave us no choice', demonstrating he's firmly behind the industrial action being taken.
Season 2 of House of the Dragon remains unaffected as the writing and editing for the series is complete and production is underway. But with other unions representing those in the film industry yet to decide whether to support strike action, doubt remains over production schedules in the coming months.
The Hedge Knight is a prequel series consisting of 6 episodes and is based on Martin's 3 Dunk and Egg novellas set just about in the middle between House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones in terms of the franchise's timeline.
It follows the adventures of Ser Duncan the Tall (aka Dunk), the future Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, and his companion Aegon Targaryen, who will go on to King Aegon V.
The first novella, published in 1998, is called The Hedge Knight, and gives its name to the series. Martin has previously said he intends to write up to 12 novellas in the series chronicling the entire lives of the pair. But to be fair, he hasn't finished the Winds of Winter yet !
After showing his solidarity with striking writers, Martin wrote another blog post in which he explained what feels is the main issue; that of mini-rooms, which the WGA want to see abolished and the author of A Song of Ice and Fire says are having a 'terrible impact' on writers who are just starting out on their career.
Other popular shows affected by the strike include The Handmaid's Tale and Stranger Things. And right now, there is no end in sight for the strikes. Tara Kole, founding partner at entertainment law firm JSSK said, 'I hate to say it, but it's going to be a while,' with the opposing sides in the debate still miles apart.
There's been no word yet on exactly what this means for production of the show – or when it might hit our screens. And until some sort of compromise can be reached, it appears that any predictions about when we might get to see Dunk and Egg are nothing more than speculation.
Source: Not a blog, Not a blog, Hollywood Reporter.