A Game of Thrones spinoff series was in development under Brian Helgeland, known for projects such as L.A Confidential, A Knight’s Tale, Man on Fire, and Mystic River – and it sounded epic.
The series was called Ten Thousand Ships and it would have centred around a Moses-inspired plot that focused on Queen Nymeria. Helgeland recently opened up to reveal some details about the scrapped series.
He said: “It came out great, but I think they felt the period of my show was too far removed from the pillars of the original. That’s why it hasn’t been picked up yet, but nothing is ever dead. My script was based on Queen Nymeria and this little blurb about her that was in a Westeros encyclopedia.”
As for the story, Helgeland explained: “Essentially, it was the story of Moses but swapping him out for Nymeria. Her country gets ruined and her people are forced to live on the water, which is why the show was called ‘Ten Thousand Ships.’”
He continued: “They end up having to leave and find a new home like the Israelites leaving Egypt. She’s leading all these people, trying to hold everyone together but things are always in danger of falling apart as they travel around a fictionalized version of the Mediterranean, looking for a new home to settle in.”
The creator went onto share the following: “Their life was nomadic. Living in a raft city that was bound together, this big floating city. Sometimes, the characters would come ashore, but they ultimately get driven off the land as they search for a home, their version of the promised land.”
Helgeland also spoke about meeting with George R.R. Martin for the project, stating: “I met with George R.R. Martin to pitch him the idea, which he signed off on. Sadly, I didn’t work with him closer, but I would have done if the show was picked up.”
He added: “It was kind of like Ray Harryhausen’s Sinbad films mixed with ‘The Odyssey.’ In a way, Nymeria is Odysseus, but instead of a 12-person crew, she’s responsible for every citizen in this floating city-state. My work is still there if HBO wants to pick it up. I enjoyed my time developing it, and you just never know.”
That’s quite an interesting read, and I think it could potentially lead to an epic series somewhere down the line – one that HBO could still have the potential to make. However, right now they’re concentrating on other Game of Thrones projects.
Season 2 of House of the Dragon will be out this summer (I’m not ready) and a second spinoff series entitled A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knightis is currently in development, starring Peter Claffey as Dunk, and Dexter Sol Ansell as Egg.
Hmmm, what do you think of these details – could it work as a show in future, or do you think it’s likely scrapped forever? Let me know in the comments.
