HBO has made it official: It has scrapped its in-the-works Game of Thrones spinoff from Jane Goldman. News of the project’s demise leaked earlier this week.
“After careful consideration, we have decided not to move forward to series with the untitled Game of Thrones prequel,” the premium cabler said in a statement late Friday. “We thank Jane Goldman, [fellow EP] S.J. Clarkson, and the talented cast and crew for all of their hard work and dedication.”
HBO, meanwhile, is moving forward with the House Targaryen-centered prequel series House of the Dragon, handing the spinoff a 10-episode straight to series order (full story here).
Ready for more of today’s newsy nuggets? Well…
* Season 7 of The Great Christmas Light Fight will kick off with a two-episode premiere on Monday, Dec. 2 at 8/7c, ABC announced Friday. Additionally, the competition show has been renewed for Season 8, to air in 2020.
* Hot Ones: The Game Show, based on the popular web series, has received a 20-episode series order at truTV. Slated for a 2020 premiere, the show will find teams answering pop culture trivia questions in an effort to win money, all while eating wings covered in increasingly spicy sauces.
* Steven Pasquale (Rescue Me) and Oona Chaplin (Game of Thrones) have joined CBS Studios’ forthcoming limited series based on James Comey’s bestselling book, A Higher Loyalty. Per Deadline, they will respectively play former FBI agent Peter Strzok and former FBI lawyer Lisa Page.
* The Disney+ dramedy Big Shot, starring John Stamos, has added Shiri Appleby (UnREAL) and Yvette Nicole Brown (Community) to its cast. In the project, which stars Stamos as a temperamental college basketball coach who must take a job at an all-girls high school after getting fired, Appleby will play down-to-earth assistant basketball coach Holly, while Brown will portray the school’s no-nonsense dean, Sherilyn.
* Showtime will release all six episodes of its dramedy Back to Life at midnight on Sunday, Nov. 10, prior to the show’s debut that night at 10/9c. The episodes — which center on Miri, a woman rebuilding her life after serving an 18-year jail sentence — will be available on the Showtime and Showtime Anytime apps, as well as Showtime On Demand.
* Amazon has unveiled a teaser trailer for its upcoming drama Hunters, starring Al Pacino. Executive-produced by Jordan Peele, the show follows a diverse band of Nazi hunters living in 1977 New York City. Watch the preview below:
