HBO has given a pilot order to fantasy project "Game of Thrones."
The program is based on George R.R. Martin’s bestselling series of
novels "A Song of Fire & Ice" and executive produced by David
Benioff ("Troy"), D.B. Weiss ("Halo") and Guymon Casady ("Hope &
Faith"). The title “Game of Thrones” is from the first novel in the
series.
If greenlit, “Thrones” would represent the rarest of TV genres: a full-fledged fantasy series.
Though broadcasters have embraced sci-fi-tinged shows in recent
years following the success of ABC’s “Lost” and NBC’s “Heroes,” and
supernatural themes have been given a spin by CW’s “Supernatural” and
HBO’s own “True Blood,” high fantasy is nearly nonexistent in primetime
TV history -- and “Thrones” is an unabashed member of the genre. The
books have swords, dragons, magic, the works.
“Fantasy is the most successful genre in terms of feature films
given the incredible popularity of ‘Lord of the Rings’ and Harry Potter
movies,” Benioff said. “High fantasy has never been done on TV before
and if anybody can do it, it’s HBO. They’ve taken tired genres and
reinvented them -- mobsters in ‘The Sopranos’ and Westerns with
‘Deadwood.’”
Also, the success of “True Blood” may work in “Thrones'” favor. HBO has
always sought to defy any sort of specific genre branding for their
network, emphasizing that each project is judged on its own merits. Yet
given how the vampire drama continues to gain viewers, and how
Showtime’s swords-and-monarchy historical drama “The Tudors” has
performed strongly, it’s not unreasonable to believe the network may
see “Thrones” as a good fit.
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