Game Of Thrones Jon Snow Series Bringing Back Fan-Favorite Character?

The new Jon Snow-centered Game of Throne sequel is in development, but will we be getting one of the best characters back?

By Nathan Kamal | Published

game of thrones jon snow

Game of Thrones was a television program like no other. It received more Primetime Emmy Awards than any other drama ever. It became the most-watched series in HBO’s history and is widely considered one of the greatest television shows yet produced. It even made it socially acceptable to care about fantasy, a genre that has mostly been reduced by critics to Ian McShane’s famously withering words. All of that explains why HBO is eager to bring back some of that Game of Thrones magic with a Jon Snow sequel series, and why we very well might be getting some more Samwell Tarly

John Bradley as Samwell Tarly

Actor John Bradley played Jon Snow’s (Kit Harington) best friend Samwell Tarly for all eight seasons of Game of Thrones, swiftly becoming a fan-favorite character. At the end of the very controversial final season of the show, Samwell Tarly ended up becoming the Grand Maester of the Small Council under King Bran (Isaac Hempstead Wright). It was one of the happier endings for a character in a show that largely based its reputation for plotting and depth on its willingness to have horrible things happen to anyone, and it sounds like John Bradley is willing to consider returning to the character for the Jon Snow sequel. Here is what John Bradley told Digital Spy in an interview:

I tend to think about it. I think we all left Game of Thrones thinking that we’d played these characters for so long and they had such a life to them, we’d like to sort of check in with them and see how they’re getting on. We played those parts for so long that as soon as we’d finished, we felt sort of free of them in a way. Because it’s a lot of story to carry around and a lot of emotional life to carry around with you. But in the future, who knows? I haven’t spoken to anybody about the potential Jon Snow prequel, but if somebody wants to send a script my way I’d be interested to read it.

The upcoming Jon Snow Game of Thrones sequel series is currently in development at HBO, with few plot details available as of yet. When the final season of Game of Thrones finished, Jon Snow was heading north of the wall with the Wildlings, which definitely left things open-ended in terms of further adventures. There were also a number of other surviving primary characters, including Jon Snow’s sisters Arya (Maisie Williams) and Sansa (Sophie Turner), and breakout star Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage). While it seems John Bradley has not yet been contacted by HBO for a potential appearance in the sequel, it is hard to imagine a Jon Snow-focused series would not find time for a Samwell Tarley appearance. 

John Bradley is not the only actor who fans are interested in seeing reprise their Game of Thrones character along with Jon Snow. Gwendoline Christie, who played Brienne of Tarth in the show and ended up as Commander of the Kingsguard, was non-committal about a return, but that is certainly not a no. On the other hand, Daenerys Targaryen herself, Emilia Clarke, has been pretty firm that she will not be returning to the character. Given how much of the backlash of the final season was centered around her character, that is pretty understandable, plus it helps that her character is deceased. However, there is always the magic of flashbacks or literal magic in the world of Game of Thrones, so we would not totally rule it out.


HBO is currently developing a number of different Game of Thrones spin-offs in addition to the Jon Snow sequel series; the prequel House of the Dragon will be premiering next month, which will be a good test of fan interest in seeing more of that world. If all goes well, we could be seeing Jon Snow and Sam back together again pretty soon.