As Ned Stark, Sean Bean met his maker by the end of Game of Thrones’ first season, but the actor is not opposed to returning to the franchise again in one of the planned spin-offs. Having been one of the central characters through the series’ premiere season, Ned’s fortunes took a downward turn when he was beheaded in the season finale at the command of the tyrannical Joffrey Baratheon. However, with the show now delving into prequel territory, Bean is aware that could mean an unexpected return for his character, and he would be more than happy to jump back on board.

Sean Bean is currently starring in new movie Knights of the Zodiac, and while speaking to Screen Rant about that project, it is only natural that conversation turned to his previous work on HBO’s epic fantasy and what he would think about being part of it again. He said:
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“I don’t know if he’d ever be incorporated again. I’m not that clued up about the following [for House of the Dragon], I’ve heard it’s really good, I’m going to try to see that [at some point]. But yeah, it’s always nice to think that you could be involved in some way in such a great series, something that became worldwide. I don’t think at the time, we knew with Lord of the Rings how big that was going to turn out, and it was the same with Game of Thrones. If I’m ever asked again, it would be nice to be involved in some way.”

Related: Game of Thrones Spinoff: How Would an Aegon Targaryen Series Work on HBO?

More Game of Thrones Spin-Offs are Being Considered.

HBO

When Game of Thrones came to an end, there were around ten options for potential spin-offs being mentioned and potentially developed to keep the franchise alive at HBO. However, as time wore on, similar to George R. R. Martin’s The Winds of Winter, it seemed less and less likely that any of them would actually come to fruition.

However, the arrival of House of the Dragon has spurred on a renewed interest in the Game of Thronesfranchise, and that means some of those dormant spin-offs are now being developed, including A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight, with others such as an Aegon the Conqueror series said to also be in consideration.

While there are many ways that these spin-offs could have small cross-overs with familiar characters or settings from the original series, where Ned Stark would fit into any of them is uncertain. Naturally, there are always plenty of ways to include flashbacks, preludes and other scenes that could see Sean Bean bringing Ned back to life, but in the grander scheme it is clear that the larger future of the Game of Thrones franchise lies beyond the story that already exists. That could mean that no matter how much Bean would love to be part of the saga again, it may be something that just wouldn’t work in the context of the stories being told.