Game Of Thrones Is Quietly Becoming More Tolkienesque In 2027

In 2027, the Game of Thrones franchise is becoming a little more like The Lord of the Rings just as The Lord of the Rings is becoming a little more like Game of Thrones. GOT and LOTR remain the two tentpoles of fantasy on television, and 2026 and 2027 will be important years for the shows and movies under their umbrellas.

Game of Thrones has arguably been the more successful of the two. After a frustrating end to Game of Thrones in 2019, it seemed like any interest in the franchise had been extinguished as suddenly as Dothraki torches in the face of a zombie wall. Then House of the Dragon came along to give the universe a kickstart, one which it's been riding high on with two more seasons and another spinoff.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms premiered in January 2026 and brought something never before seen to the Game of Thrones universe: a pleasant tale, with more smiles than tears. There were tears to be sure. And brains, blood, and extraordinarily-sized members, but it was a happy six-episode series.

Based on the first in George R.R. Martin's Tales of Dunk and Egg novella series, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms takes place within only a few days, following a hedge knight named Dunk (Peter Claffey) and his young squire, Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell). A rousing story and a rousing success, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms was renewed for season 2, set to premiere sometime in 2027.

Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power continues to stream on Prime Video, and the first four episodes of season 3 will premiere on November 11, 2026. There's been a curious switch in tones between these two franchises, highlighted by what's to come in the next year in both shows.

A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms Season 2 Sounds Like A Tolkien-Style Quest

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms already had a more Tolkien-like sensibility than either of the GOT shows that came before it. It's a quieter series, less interested in the hard politics that Martin's stories are known for. There are villains, heroes, duties to fulfill, and more conventions of "classic" fantasy.

The second season of AKOTSK will likely be even more ingrained in that LOTR-style of storytelling. Season 2 will be based on the next novella in the series, The Sworn Sword. In The Sworn Sword, Duncan and Egg are still traveling together and find work at a minor lord's castle.

There, they get in the middle of a minor property-line dispute that could result in violence, though in AKOTSK-style, only a small amount of it. Think "trial of seven" vs. the bloody battle between the Blackwoods and Brackens in House of the Dragon season 2. This is a story even more centered in the pastoral, adventurous tone of Lord of the Rings.

Games Of Thrones Is Lightening Up Just As Rings Of Power Gets Darker

Game of Thrones appears to be lightening up, at least in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, just as The Rings of Power is getting darker. In The Rings of Power season 3, the Dark Lord Sauron is revealed, and war is coming. There's not likely to be very many The Hobbit-style dinner interludes or other moments of warmth.

Whether this is a conscious choice by the Game of Thrones and Lord of the Rings teams, or the natural swinging of a pendulum, is unclear. As A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms has shown, though, this sweeter, though not without some bite, storytelling style is something audiences are appreciating.