Here's what (little) we know about the 'Game of Thrones' prequel

WESTEROS HISTORY, LORE. The 'Game of Thrones' prequel will be set in the Age of Heroes. Photo by Helen Sloan/HBO

We’ve barely been able to recover from the wheel-breaking and metal-melting of the Game of Thrones series finale. But if like many other fans, you’re already itching for more drama and action from Westeros, you’re in luck.

HBO is already working on a prequel to the beloved television series.

Here’s what we know so far:

What’s it about?

It’s going to be set “thousands of years” before the events in Game of Thrones, according to HBO. BBC reports it’ll be set at least 5,000 years before. It’s going to tackle “the world’s descent from the golden Age of Heroes into its darkest hour,” according to HBO.

There’s a lot of Westeros lore and history to tackle – when the Children of the Forest made a pact with the First Men, the origin of the White Walkers, the East, and the Stark ancestors, among others.

And sorry, no dragons here. “You're looking at a whole different era of Westeros,” said George R.R. Martin, author of A Song of Ice and Fire, the book series which Game of Thrones was based on.

But BBC does note that we will encounter at least one character we already know: the Night King, played by Slovak actor Vladimir Furdik.

They have yet to release a title.

Who’s in it?

According to HBO, here’s the cast so far: Miranda Richardson (Rita Skeeter from the Harry Potter films), Marquis Rodriquez (Manifest), John Simm (Strangers), Richard McCabe (Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams), John Heffernan (Dracula), and Dixie Egerickx (Summerland).

Joining them are Josh Whitehouse (Poldark), Naomi Ackie (Lady Macbeth), Denise Gough (Monday), Jamie Campbell Bower (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald), Sheila Atim (Harlots), Ivanno Jeremiah (Humans), Georgie Henley (The Chronicles of Narnia films), Alex Sharp (How to Talk to Girls at Parties), and Toby Regbo (The Last Kingdom, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald).

Naomi Watts, the biggest name so far in the cast, will play “a charismatic socialite hiding a dark secret.”

Goodbye D&D

David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, showrunners of Game of Thrones, will not be involved in the show. George R.R. Martin is credited as a creator of the new series alongside Jane Goldman, the showrunner.

Martin and Goldman will also be executive producers alongside first episode director SJ Clarkson (who has an impressive portfolio: The Defenders, Jessica Jones, HBO’s Succession and the upcoming Star Trek installment).

James Farrell, Jim Danger Gray, Vince Gerardis, Daniel Zelman, and co-executive producer Chris Symes round up the show’s head honchos.

When’s it coming out?

Filming has already reportedly begun in Belfast, but it’s likely not to come out until after a year after the Game of Thrones finale – so May 2020 at the earliest, maybe. – Rappler.com