When series end, there is usually a chance to either expand or fade away. In the case of HBO’s Game of Thrones, there remained a ton of material and interest to bring folks back to Westeros again. So was born its first spin-off series, House of the Dragon which is gearing up for collossal warfare in its second season. While the flagship series ended in 2019, to mixed reviews, one of the spin-offs announced in its wake was one called 10,000 Ships, which would follow Queen Nymeria, the warrior-queen of the Rhoynar. Now, writer Brian Helgeland offers up details regarding the series which was untimately discontinued by HBO.
The name Nymeria might be familiar to Game of Thrones enthusuats as the name of Arya Stark’s (Maisie Williams) gorgeous direwolf which bite Prince Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) in the show’s first season. However, in Westerosi canon, Queen Nymeria was a warrior-queen of the Rhoynar, leading her people to safety in Dorne over a thousand years before Arya. Speaking in a recent interview with Inverse, Helgeland discussed the scrapped spin-off, with the writer highlighting that the show strayed significantly away from the flagship series. “It came out great, but I think they felt the period of my show was too far removed from the pillars of the original. That’s why it hasn’t been picked up yet, but nothing is ever dead,” the writer explained. “My script was based on Queen Nymeria and this little blurb about her that was in a Westeros encyclopedia. Essentially, it was the story of Moses but swapping him out for Nymeria. Her country gets ruined and her people are forced to live on the water, which is why the show was called Ten Thousand Ships.” Helgeland expanded further, describing the Rhoynar as a “nomadic people” forced to live on “this big floating city.”
“They end up having to leave and find a new home like the Israelites leaving Egypt. She’s leading all these people, trying to hold everyone together but things are always in danger of falling apart as they travel around a fictionalized version of the Mediterranean, looking for a new home to settle in. Their life was nomadic. Living in a raft city that was bound together, this big floating city.”
If a spin-off of an original work is to succeed, the chances usually go up when the original creator takes part in its development – when possible. Helgeland earned the approval of author George R.R. Martin, whose written works form the foundation of all these shows. “Sometimes, the characters would come ashore, but they ultimately get driven off the land as they search for a home, their version of the promised land. I met with George R.R. Martin to pitch him the idea, which he signed off on. Sadly, I didn’t work with him closer, but I would have done if the show was picked up,” Helgeland said.
More to Come From the Lands of Westeros
HBO is still vested in the creation of more shows steeped in the lore of Westeros. The success of House of the Dragon certainly has fueled that desire, but only if it feels right. While a Kit Harrington-led Jon Snow spinoff has been shelved, another show based on the adventures of Dunk and Egg, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight has been confirmed. Despite this initial set back, Helgeland belives that 10,000 Ships might escape development hell someday. “It was kind of like Ray Harryhausen’s Sinbad films mixed with The Odyssey. In a way, Nymeria is Odysseus, but instead of a 12-person crew, she’s responsible for every citizen in this floating city-state. My work is still there if HBO wants to pick it up. I enjoyed my time developing it, and you just never know,” he hoped.
