'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' Filming Suddenly Canceled

Earlier this year, HBO's new Game of Thronesspinoff titled A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms made quite a strong impression with viewers and critics, receiving glowing reviews and ratings.

While a second season of the show is on the way, it sounds like production has hit a rather significant setback this week.

'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' Was a Hit

Set roughly a century before Game of Thrones, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a deliberate departure from what fans have come to expect from the Game of Thrones universe. Rather than dragons and dynastic warfare, the show follows Ser Duncan the Tall, a broke knight, and his young squire Egg as they navigate a dangerous tournament in the Reach.

It's a story told from a much more micro level than either Game of Thrones or House of the Dragon, and his generally much more lighthearted with more easily digestible episodes. And clearly, it's been a hit with viewers.

The six-episode first season, which premiered January 18, got off to a strong start and only grew from there. The debut drew 6.7 million U.S. viewers in its first three days, which was good enough for a top-three launch in HBO Max history, and the season finale pushed that number to 9.5 million, a 42% increase from week one. By the time the season wrapped, the show was averaging 14 million U.S. viewers and 26 million worldwide across all platforms.

The show was a hit with critics, as well, finishing with a 95% on Rotten Tomatoes, the highest debut season score in franchise history, topping the 90% earned by both Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon Season 1. Episode 4, "Seven," which earned a 9.7 out of 10 score on IMDb, making it the highest-rated episode in the Game of Thrones universe in nine years, topping every episode of House of the Dragon.

Season 2 Filming Abruptly Canceled

While the show is moving forward with a second season, it appears to have hit a rather significant setback.

According to a report from Atlantico Hoy (via Screen Rant), filming for the second season of House of the Dragon has been abruptly canceled as a result of a storm on the island of Gran Canaria, Spain.

Storm Therese has caused heavy flooding that has resulted in part of the set being submerged and has caused the Las Niñas Dam to reach the highest levels it's seen in 15 years, dating back to the last time the reservoir overflowed.

The filming area had been contractually reserved from Feb. 23 through May 15. Now, the filming appears set to move to the Spanish mainland, and the production company will need to submit an action plan for removing the film set, part of which remains submerged.

It's not clear how this will impact the timeline of the show's production, but it is obviously a significant setback.