The Next ‘Game of Thrones’?
The Game of Thrones finale premiered over a year ago. More than a year has passed and yet, we’re still talking about it.
Well, not about it exactly. The final season of Game of Thrones is close to becoming the television equivalent of Voldemort a.k.a. the-finale-which-must-not-be-named. It was bad. Objectively, just bad.
But that won’t take away from Game of Thrones‘ legacy. Nothing will change the fact that for eight years, this series was the most popular show in the world and on everyone’s minds. Game of Thrones was an entertainment phenomenon like no other; no other show has brought up so much discussion and anticipation within its fan base.
And that’s exactly what made this series specifically so emblematic: the conversation it started. You could be with friends, strangers, a partner, it didn’t really matter — everyone was actively talking about Game of Thrones. So when picking a contender for the next big TV hit, we must choose via this factor exactly: will this show get people talking? Let’s get to it.
What show could be as big as Game of Thrones was?
If you had asked us a year ago, these shows would have been contenders, but right now, they don’t stand a chance. Let’s get them out of the way.
- The Witcher: It got many viewers, but definitely didn’t get people talking that much. The quality is not good enough.
- Game of Thrones prequels: After the finale, a lot of people are likely not to watch these out of spite.
- His Dark Materials: Bad marketing and not enough of an existing fanbase to begin with.
A few more upcoming shows have a slim shot at being the next big thing, but really, only three have a real and legitimate possibility in actually getting there. They are: The Chronicles of Narnia, The Wheel of Time, and The Lord of the Rings. Let’s look at them individually.
The Chronicles of Narnia
It’s a known story. The books are old and regarded as classics and already have a secure fanbase at hand. The older generation might be interested in this because they read the story as teenagers/young adults. The younger generation might be interested because they’ve seen the films in the 2000s.
What’s great (and bad) about this upcoming show is that it’s going to be on Netflix. Great because many people will have access and watch it out of curiosity. Bad because Netflix doesn’t tend to make overwhelmingly amazing television. It’s entertaining and well-made, but often lacks depth and a final layer of quality. The Chronicles of Narnia will likely suffer from this; thus, it’s chances for becoming the next Game of Thrones drop a bit.
Will it get people talking: Yes, but only if it’s outstandingly good.
The Wheel of Time
A legitimate contender because of a number of reasons. One, the books also have a pre-existing large fanbase. Any person remotely interested in fantasy has read or at least heard of this saga. Two, there is a vast and insanely large quantity of story to tell here. 16 books could easily span over 10 seasons. The story is definitely there, it just needs to be told properly.
A third, and main, reason would be how the original story could very nicely reflect on current political and socio-economic issues. Without giving much away, The Wheel of Time is years ahead of its time and really expands on and explores deep-rooted and heavy themes that many fantasy authors seem to stem away from. This could interest a huge part of the current television demographic.
Will it get people talking: Yes, if the correct parts of the story are told and if it’s marketed well.
The Lord of the Rings
The big one. Obviously, Lord of the Rings hits every single one of the points previously mentioned. It has an existing fanbase from the books, but mainly, and more importantly, Peter Jackson’s trilogy truly popularized this story and made it loved and accessible to all.
Amazon has aquired the rights for the show for 250 million and after production is complete, the entire cost of The Lord of the Rings might hit 1 billion, making it the most expensive television series of all time. Obviously, Amazon is banking a lot on this. And it’s Lord of the Rings: the name alone would bring in an insane amount of viewers.
Will it get people talking: Yes, unless Amazon screws up massively.
In conclusion —
We’d take The Chronicles of Narnia out of the running because chances that Netflix creates something on the same quality level as Game of Thrones (the middle seasons!!!) is still low. Yes, it would have a lot of viewers, but so did The Witcher.
So, it’s between The Wheel of Time and The Lord of the Rings. While Wheel of Time is, on paper, a larger story and the project itself includes some more known names (Rosamund Pike is the lead), we’re still putting our eggs in the Lord of the Rings basket. It’s an iconic story and so much of it is left unexplored. Amazon is definitely banking on this, considering the amount of money and energy they are putting into it. And their original content has been great lately, so we’re confident. Hopefully, even, The Lord of the Rings television series won’t the next Game of Thrones, but the first Lord of the Rings.
(We mean that in television terms. Lord of the Rings is still the best story ever. Sorry, Game of Thrones, but you’re not even coming close to this one.)
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— Pouty Boy