Matt Smith, House of the Dragon
Theo Whiteman/HBO
Game of Thrones has proven to be so popular that the fan backlash to the final season of the series hasn’t impeded the success of the brand all that much. The spin-off shows House of the Dragon and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms have both been hits, and now Warner Bros. is planning a theatrical movie called Aegon’s Conquest. The Game of Thrones machine continues on.
It’s very unusual for a TV franchise to spawn a theatrical film, and those that have, like The X-Files, haven’t usually performed very well at the box office. Another ubiquitous TV franchise, The Walking Dead, tried to do a Rick and Michonne movie but ended up turning that into another spin-off series instead — it’s hard to get people to go to the theater for something they usually can get from the comfort of their couch. But perhaps the world of A Song of Ice and Fire is compelling enough to make it work. Let’s see what we know so far.
Everything you need for fall TV:
Game of Thrones: Aegon’s Conquest release date
It’s going to be a while. In late September 2026, HBO announced Game of Thrones: Aegon’s Conquest would premiere on June 1, 2029.
What is Aegon’s Conquest about?
While HBO and Warner Bros. have not offered even the briefest of plot synopses for the film, we can say with near absolute certainty that Aegon’s Conquest will tell the story of Aegon I Targaryen and his invasion of Westeros, after the destruction of his family’s home in Valyria. This was how the Targaryen dynasty in Westeros began, a century prior to House of the Dragon and about 300 years before the events of Game of Thrones. These are events that are referenced over and over again on Game of Thrones and both of its spin-off series, but since all this goes down well before the start of any of those shows, you shouldn’t expect any direct story ties aside from maybe a prophecy or two.
Aegon’s Conquest cast and crew
The film will be directed by TV director Owen Harris, who handled three episodes of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. It’ll be written by Beau Willimon, who was showrunner on House of Cards and a writer on the beloved Star Wars series Andor.
Those are the only creatives announced for the film, and nobody has been cast in any roles yet.
Why a Game of Thrones movie?
Given how rare it is for a TV show to spawn a successful theatrical film, we don’t really know what inspired the idea. But since the story of the Targaryen invasion will involve so much action and so many dragons, it’s going to be very heavy on CGI and cost a ton of money to produce, so it does make sense, abstractly, for Aegon’s Conquest to be a movie rather than a new spin-off series. It’s not out of the question that the film could itself start off a new series, but we’re still so far away from all this that even HBO probably doesn’t know what its plans are yet.
More on HBO Max:
Could the Paramount Skydance/Warner Bros. Discovery merger derail the film?
This is exactly the sort of long-term project that could be disrupted by a takeover of the parent company. But the prospects for this particular project look pretty good right now, because the summer 2029 release window was revealed at the end of September, after the merger had basically been finalized and approved. So Aegon’s Conquest isn’t any more likely to be canceled prior to production than any other movie that’s announced this far in advance.
Game of Thrones: Aegon’s Conquest is expected in summer 2029.