A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Star Drops Huge Bombshell That Completely Changes Game of Thrones Lore

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Okay, folks, buckle up, because Dexter Sol Ansell, the star of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, just dropped a bombshell about Ser Duncan the Tall and Aegon Targaryen – and it’s a twist even those of us who’ve devoured all of George R.R. Martin’s writings didn’t see coming! We thought we had a pretty good handle on what happened to these characters – they’ve appeared in the Dunk and Egg novellas, gotten mentions in A Song of Ice and Fire (and, briefly, Game of Thrones), and there’s been plenty of supplementary material. But apparently, everything we thought we knew is wrong. Seriously, consider this your spoiler warning – what happens to Dunk and Egg is not what we expected.

Years after the events of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, Egg unexpectedly becomes King Aegon V Targaryen due to a series of unfortunate events. His companion, Dunk, joins the Kingsguard and eventually becomes its leader. Both men are known to have died in a disaster called the Tragedy at Summerhall, which happened fifty years after the first season of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, in the year 259 AC.

The Tragedy at Summerhall remains a significant unsolved mystery in the history of Game of Thrones. While details are scarce, the prevailing theory suggests that Prince Aegon V Targaryen, known as Egg, was attempting to hatch a dragon egg, and this involved wildfire. The resulting explosion killed many, including Aegon, Ser Duncan the Tall, Aegon’s son Prince Duncan, and Maester Corso. Recently, actor Owen Ansell spoke with Decider and shared new insights.

I’ve heard a little about what happened at Summerhall, when Egg was trying to create dragons, and how it ended in a massive fire. What we do know, thanks to George R.R. Martin himself, is that Dunk made it through, but we’re still in the dark about whether Egg survived.

As he was talking, his co-star, Peter Claffey, tried to interrupt, saying, “We don’t know if that is exactly what…” and playfully gesturing for him to stop. It was clear the young actor had accidentally shared something he wasn’t supposed to.

What Dunk & Egg’s Possible Survival Means For Game Of Thrones

The future of Dunk and Egg remains uncertain because George R.R. Martin hasn’t completed the planned ‘Tales of Dunk and Egg’ novellas. While three are currently available, he intends to write as many as twelve, detailing their entire lives. Considering Martin doesn’t typically outline extensively beforehand, this could just be one of many ideas he’s exploring, and he likely shared it with the actors as a possibility – a “we’ll see what happens” scenario – rather than a definite plan.

Honestly, the idea that Dunk and even Egg might have lived is pretty amazing, considering everyone always believed they died in that tragedy. There was never anything in the books to suggest they survived! But thinking about Dunk specifically, it actually feels possible. We know he saved Princess Rhaella, and she later had Rhaegar. Maybe he managed to escape the fire with her? It’s exciting to consider, but it definitely raises a lot more questions than it answers.

If Ser Duncan lives, what will he do? He’d likely resign from the Kingsguard – especially if Egg dies. He might feel he failed to protect the king and decide to live a peaceful, secluded life.

A fascinating detail in the story’s background is that Brienne of Tarth is a descendant of Dunk (Ser Duncan the Tall). She possesses his shield, and George R.R. Martin had hinted that a descendant of Dunk would appear in the books, leading fans to believe Brienne was the one. When asked at a 2016 convention (according to The Wertzone) if the details of Brienne’s lineage would ever be explained, Martin said, “Eventually. All will be revealed in time.”

You know, I’ve been thinking about what happened to Dunk after his story ended. It’s cool to imagine him just going back to Tarth and living a peaceful life, something similar to what he knew before becoming a Kingsguard. That would explain his connection to Brienne and wouldn’t really change much about the main Game of Thrones story. But then again, it’s fun to speculate if he might be one of those mysterious characters still out there in the world! It’s a bit of a stretch considering how much time has passed – he’d be super old! – but that doesn’t stop people from coming up with theories. I’ve already seen some on Reddit suggesting he could even be Coldhands, which is a wild thought!

It’s surprising to consider that Egg might still be alive, especially since he was king. After the tragedy at Summerhall, his son Jaehaerys became king, which wouldn’t have happened if Egg hadn’t disappeared. If Egg secretly survived, it could be considered giving up the throne, but he’d still have a right to it if he ever returned – though, like Dunk, he’d be quite old by then. He might have gone into hiding with Dunk, perhaps even traveling to Essos instead of Tarth, as a former king might attract too much attention. Now that the Targaryen dynasty is over and several characters are trying to restore it, could Egg reappear and play a role in the future?

It feels pretty unlikely, honestly. While it’s one thing to imagine Dunk surviving, having Egg also survive and live in hiding – especially with so many other secret Targaryens already in the story – feels like a big leap. It’s interesting because it would connect to a prophecy from A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, where the fortune teller predicted Egg would die in a fire, but not Dunk. Similarly, we thought we understood a prophecy about Daeron Targaryen, believing it foretold another Targaryen’s death. But it could actually have a second meaning, hinting that Egg dies and Dunk lives. Now we’re just waiting for George R.R. Martin to write several more books to confirm all of this!

New episodes of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms release Sundays at 10 pm ET on HBO and HBO Max.

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2026-02-13 15:41