Game Of Thrones’ Creators Not Making Spinoffs Is Good (Not Just Due To S8)

David Benioff and D. B. Weiss not making Game of Thrones spinoffs is already good news after the season 8 backlash, but it’s also a positive prospect in terms of the new shows establishing themselves beyond the original. The Game of Thrones creators confirmed they weren’t interested in returning to the show’s offshoots in the future, primarily due to their interest in building new worlds after 11 years of helming HBO’s series. While their final Game of Thrones season is now known as one of the most controversial TV installments of all time, D&D are eager to move onto new creative ventures, feeling it wouldn’t “make sense” for them to return to Game of Thrones’ world.

Following Game of Thrones’ divisive finale on HBO, Benioff and Weiss are primarily working on projects with Netflix, but their reputation for season 8’s controversial ending still remains. Many fans blamed Game of Thrones’ finale blunder on the creators for rushing the last two seasons, as well as their prior inexperience with helming TV shows. While not all Game of Thrones viewers share such animosity for Benioff and Weiss, it’s impossible to declare that their involvement wouldn’t cause significant apprehension for future spinoffs after their finale’s polarizing reputation.

HBO is already working overtime to rebuild relationships with audiences after Game of Thrones’ finale backlash, as many who are still sour about the original show are hesitant to jump on board for House of the Dragon, the first official spinoff. The lack of involvement from D&D on House of the Dragon and the future Game of Thrones offshoots is already a good sign for those who blame the creators for season 8, but their exclusion is more significant to the universe’s future based on how new shows can offer new, fresh takes on the world. Game of Thrones’ spinoffs need to be able to stand on their own two feet without relying on the original, and the best way to accomplish this is by having new voices take on the universe and expand it with unique stories.

D&D’s involvement in Game of Thrones’ upcoming spinoffs would inevitably lead to the offshoots receiving criticism for the same shortcomings in the original show, not just because of their damaged reputations, but because they would be approaching the material from the same worldview, style, and frame of reference. House of the Dragon and the new Game of Thrones shows need to establish themselves as significantly different from the original, and accomplishing this would be difficult with Benioff and Weiss’ influence. HBO is still working to separate the spinoffs from not only Game of Thrones season 8, but also Game of Thrones as a whole, which is exactly why they need a fresh, new team making the creative decisions for how to approach the universe moving forward.

While each spinoff will still have the eye of author George R.R. Martin to guide Game of Thrones’ universe, the creative liberties and directions of the new creators are what will differentiate them from Game of Thrones’ larger reputation and worldbuilding style. Martin built an incredible world on the page that has just barely been explored, so it would be a shame to have each adaptation interpreted from the same point of view and design. Game of Thrones is an expansive universe with so many stories to be told beyond what Benioff and Weiss created; it’s a world that can’t be limited by the perspectives of just these two men, regardless of how their reputations may have been soured by Game of Thrones season 8.