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According to one of the company's chief execs, the future of Game of Thrones spinoff content could still be bright and expansive at HBO. HBO’s high-budget adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s epic fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire quickly became a pop culture phenomenon, achieving a level of ubiquitous presence and zeitgeist unparalleled by nearly any TV series before or since. A prequel show, House of the Dragon, is currently in development.

Despite Game of Thrones’ unprecedented cultural impact during its run, the series quickly faded in relevance and popularity after its final season concluded. Much of that decline is due to season 8 being universally panned by both fans and critics alike. Before the show’s finale, it seemed unthinkable that a decade of goodwill could be undone in just a handful of episodes. And yet, for many loyal viewers, it was. HBO has continued with development for House of the Dragon, which will tell the early stories of the dragon-taming Targaryen family. Still, the buzz around the new series may have been severely dulled by its predecessor’s lackluster finish.

Still, it seems that HBO isn’t giving up on the franchise’s potential future, even beyond House of the Dragon. In a recent interview with Variety, HBO’s chief content officer Casey Bloys discussed different ways the network is hoping to expand its cable and streaming content. When asked if the Song of Ice and Fire world could become a central universe for the company as Star Wars and Marvel have become for Disney, Bloys didn’t rule anything out. “Those are fantastic properties that are decades and decades old,” he said. “I don’t know that it would get that big, but certainly it is a great resource that we have and an amazing world. So I don’t think it’s just going to be the one [show] for the rest of its life.”

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The future of Game of Thrones televised content largely depends on House of the Dragon’s success. If the new series is well received, it could undo some of the damage Game of Thrones inflicted on itself in its final season. The Targaryens are certainly one of the franchise’s most popular character groups, and Martin himself has released a good deal of canonical content outlining their history and lineage.

If House of the Dragon can stick to Martin’s work (something the latter seasons of Game of Thrones were criticized for ignoring) and establish itself as a leading series in its own right, that would reopen the door for more in-universe content going forward. There are few fantasy stories with as much width and depth to explore, and almost none with the same cultural awareness level. So while Game of Thrones may be hiding in the shadows, for now, it may not be wise to count it out just yet.