How A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms’ Finances Issues Have been Hidden In Episode 5’s Trial Of Seven Combat Scenes Revealed By Creator

With a smaller funds than the previous two collection within the Recreation of Thrones universe, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms has needed to discover some intelligent methods to cover sure monetary challenges within the prequel collection’ greatest moments.

In contrast to the sprawling, battle-heavy, dragon-featuring, and CGI-requiring Recreation of Thrones and Home of the Dragon, the Ira Parker-created A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a way more contained and smaller story when it comes to scope and scale. Moreover, with solely six episodes coming in at a few half-hour every, it is sensible that A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms‘ funds is considerably smaller than its predecessors.

Nonetheless, the budgetary constraints of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms meant Parker and his group have been introduced with some obstacles when it got here to sure practicalities within the collection’ main set items. In A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms episode 5, that included the combat sequences in the course of the Trial of Seven. For the reason that collection did not have the monetary assets to rent 1000’s of extras to face round watching the combat, Ira Parker revealed to CBR that A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms compensated by exaggerating the fog to raised conceal the much less crowded background:

“Canonically, a fog rolls into Ashford on the morning of [the trial], in order that was essential for us to signify. It does make for probably the most badass wanting combat ever. You guess. We took it from the novella. We have been utilizing issues that have been applicable and George spoke of operate over type. However we even have the 2 finest stunt coordinators and second administrators within the recreation. We truthfully embellished a whole lot of the fog.

We do not have some huge cash on this present. We’ve a few quarter for each greenback. We needed to be cautious how we hid issues and the way we made it really feel like we weren’t hiding issues. We allow you to deal with what we wish you to be specializing in moderately than not having a crowd of 10,000 folks such as you in all probability would have at a Coachella/Glastonbury sort match right here. It is humorous how not having any cash simply forces you to search out actually cool artistic ways in which perhaps you would not have come to fully when you had simply had the power to spend it.”

Fortunately for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, the dense fog described in George R.R. Martin’s The Hedge Knight novella allowed the collection a artistic outlet for disguising the dearth of a high-budget, huge crowd. Whereas the absence of an enormous crowd did type a problem in adapting the extraordinary e book scene for the display screen, it additionally created a possibility for Parker and the artistic group to boost the deal with the extra essential points of the Trial of Seven occurring on the sector moderately than spectators’ reactions.

In March 2025, HBO govt Francesca Orsi confirmed that A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms‘ funds was underneath $10 million per episode. In the meantime, Home of the Dragon season 1’s funds was estimated to be $20 million per episode, with Recreation of Thrones‘ early funds starting at about $6 million per episode earlier than rising to $15 million per entry by the ultimate season.

With filming already underway for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms season 2, which can drop on HBO in 2027, Parker has teased that the funds for the following outing has remained the identical as season 1. Nonetheless, the dimensions of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms will stay roughly the identical because the freshman season, which suggests Parker might once more must give you intelligent methods to beat monetary challenges on set.

Dunk actor Peter Claffey revealed in December 2025 that season 2 would carry Dunk and Egg to Dorne, although nearly all of George R.R. Martin’s The Sworn Sword novella takes place within the Attain. Whereas season 2’s story arguably has a smaller scale than the primary season, a possible A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms season 3 might require an elevated funds if adapting Martin’s The Thriller Knight, which raises the stakes greater for Dunk and Egg’s dynamic in Westeros.

Launch Date

January 18, 2026

Community

HBO

Showrunner

Ira Parker

Administrators

Owen Harris

Writers

George R. R. Martin, Ira Parker

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  Peter Claffey

  Ser Duncan ‘Dunk’ the Tall

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