If you’ve been watching A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, you probably haven’t taken much note of the weather in and around Ashford Meadow. Sure, there’s a bit of rain and mist and mud, but it’s generally pretty pleasant. Dunk (Peter Claffey) and Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell) are sleeping outside at night with no complaints about the temperature, for instance. But the show’s next season will bring some environmental challenges that our misfit heroes (and the HBO show itself) will have to deal with.
That is, of course, assuming showrunner Ira Parker sticks as closely to “The Sworn Sword,” the second of George R.R. Martin’s Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas, as he has so far with the first, “The Hedge Knight.” It seems very likely Parker will stay the course, considering how he’s spoken about his excellent working relationship with Martin. That includes being mostly faithful to what the author put down on the page, a few “flourishes” aside.
“The Sworn Sword” picks up with Dunk and Egg as they’re embarking on a new adventure. They’re still in the Reach, the same Westeros region as Ashford Meadow, but a bit further north and west—and it’s the height of summer. The area is suffering from a terrible drought, and a quarrel over local water rights becomes a key instigator in the story.
With that in mind, Parker had to make some logistical changes for season two of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Speaking to the Hollywood Reporter (via Collider), he made specific mention of the drought and how its importance meant the show had to shift filming locations.
“It’ll still be six episodes. I think the scope will be [the] same, maybe even smaller. The budget has stayed the same, but everything is more expensive due to inflation,” Parker explained. “Plus, book two takes place in a drought, so we can’t shoot exteriors in Belfast. We have to go to a sunny location with no water, which costs money—that’s a major expense that we did not have in season one. I’m having a lot of fun [with] season two. It’s going to be a different season, and, I hope, for the better.”
Production on season two is currently underway. And if we’re getting ahead of ourselves just a tiny bit, it’s because we’re enjoying season one so much and are excited for more. Episode three of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms—we’re almost to the halfway point!—arrives this Sunday on HBO and HBO Max.
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