As we write this, we're no closer to knowing how author George R.R. Martin intends to finish the story of A Song of Ice and Fire. The Winds of Winter still isn't done, and with another book supposed to follow that long-delayed tome, there's no way of knowing when or even if either of them will see the light of day.
The Game of Thrones TV series has already wrapped up the story, of course, but diverged from the books—ditching several characters and subplots—with an ending that Martin has repeatedly said won't necessarily match what he's writing.
Still, with its version of the epic tale concluded, HBO has already considered a sequel to the show, titled Snow. That was going to revolve around Jon Snow after he travelled north of The Wall following the events of Game of Thrones.
According to The Hollywood Reporter (via SFFGazette.com), "Harington, working with two writers from his drama series Gunpowder, was interested in mapping out a tale of Snow living alone as a broken man with PTSD."
"Having chased off his direwolf Ghost and thrown away his sword Longclaw, Jon spent his time building cabins and burning them back down again," the trade adds. "Harington also wanted Jon to die and to avoid being a hero."
HBO reportedly found the premise "too much of a bummer," but has now turned to writer Quoc Dang Tran from Drops of God to work on another sequel series. This time, "One possibility is shifting the drama to the Mediterranean-like land of Essos and adding another hugely popular legacy character — Arya Stark." It's unclear whether Harington would be involved in any way.
An insider notes, "We are very interested and excited by the prospect of a sequel, but also keenly aware of how high the bar of execution needs to be." Other spin-off ideas include an animated project about House of the Dragon's Sea Snake (to keep costs down) and the story of King Aegon Targaryen's conquest of Westeros, which may become a "Dune-sized feature film."
Back to The Winds of Winter, and the trade put it to the writer that he could choose to move on from attempting to finish the story (the 14-year delay is a constant source of frustration for his fans).
"I would hate that. It would feel like a total failure to me. I want to finish," Martin confirmed, adding that there are no plans for another author to take over the story if he were to die. "If that happens, my work won’t be finished. It’ll be like [Charles Dickens' unfinished] The Mystery of Edwin Drood."
Game of Thrones remains a huge draw for HBO, and it's clear that the franchise will continue to have a major presence on the cable network. Up next is A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, which debuts on Sunday, January 18.