During its original run on TV, Game of Thrones became a HBO show that got the world talking, becoming quintessential water cooler talk in the process. And while GoT's ending was controversial, fans returned to Westeros with its spinoffs. There's been rumors that one might be in development for Maisie Williams' Arya Stark, and she's now officially offered a response to the online discourse.
Game of Thrones continues to be re-watched for those with a HBO Max subscription, and the spinoffs seemed to have renewed interest in the book to screen adaptation. During a recent interview with The Guardian about her new movie Practical Magic 2, Williams spoke about her rumors of her return as Arya Stark, saying:
I saw that, too! I was like, huh? I don’t know, really. She would have to be developed in some way because I feel like I’ve changed so much, and I feel like what people loved about Arya is that she was always a child doing things that were quite grownup.
Points were made. Like the rest of the young Game of Thrones stars, Maisie Williams grew up before our eyes during her eight years on the show. The juxtaposition between Arya's young age and thirst for bloody vengeance is a big reason why fans loved the character, so it might not hit the same way now that she's 29 years old. And per the New Mutants actress' comments, there are seemingly no plans to step back into her signature character's shoes.
It's been interesting to see which Game of Thrones spinoffs have actually seen the light of day. While we've been treated to both House of the Dragon and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, some titles have fallen along the way. The Jon Snow spinoff is dead, and Bloodmoon's pilot was filmed but never saw the light of day. There are definitely some fans who would love to see what happened to Arya after she decided to sail to the uncharted area west of Westeros.
Since GOT fans are in the dark about that area beyond Westeros, a spinoff isn't the worst idea. But Williams seems to think that her character Arya might not hit the same now that she's growing up and rapidly approaching her 30s. But now that the franchise has returned to the small screen with multiple prequel spinoffs, why not make one that's set after the flagship series? After all, it's clear that fans are still invested in George R.R. Martin's universe.
Game of Thrones, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and House of the Dragon are all streaming now on HBO Max, with the latter recently wrapping its third season as part of the 2026 TV schedule. We'll just have to wait and see if/when new spinoffs are given life by the network.
