HBO Just Ordered A ‘Game of Thrones’ Prequel Written By A Jewish Buddhist

Don’t underestimate Jane Goldman. Image by Getty Images
In seven seasons of “Game of Thrones,” the mega-hit HBO show which delights in showing the violent rapes of its female characters, 2.7% of episodes have been directed by women, and 5.5% have been written by women.
That’s going to change.
For the new prequel series, which will take place thousands of years earlier than the original show, HBO has hired Jane Goldman as showrunner, the highest position of creative authority on a television show. Goldman, with “Game of Thrones” author George R. R. Martin, will also write the script. “She has been an absolute thrill to work with,” wrote Martin of Goldman. “And my god, what a talent.” HBO currently has four GOT prequel shows in the works, though Goldman’s is the only one that has been greenlit for a pilot. The show will have to pass this hurdle and be ordered by HBO as a series before we’ll be able to see it on the small screen, something that critics estimate won’t happen sooner than 2020.
You know Goldman’s work even if you don’t know her name. The vibrant, though private, writer who finished school at 15 to follow Boy George’s tour, was hired as an entertainment columnist at 16. She went on to model lingerie, write novels and young adult literature, and host a television show, “Jane Goldman Investigates,” that explored paranormal activity. She was raised by a Jew and a Buddhist, and is said to own a number of ferrets.
And she co-wrote “Kick-Ass.” Remember “Kick-Ass”?
Then she wrote both of the “Kingsman” movies:
And “X-Men: First Class.” And “X-Men: Days of Future Past.” And “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children.” Goldman has made an art of rehabilitating violence and gore via wit. Goldman is enigmatic — in part by choice, in part because coverage of her usually comes as part of adoration for her British TV presenter husband and seems randomly, wantonly sexist. “While they could easily have become a media power couple,” wrote The Scottsman in 2010, when Goldman had already published several books and scripted films, “She took an altogether more traditional path: having babies.” The Guardian chimed in, “Goldman spent most of her 20s having babies but also found the time to write several books.” [Despite scripting so many blockbusters, Goldman is almost always referred to in print as “Jonathan Ross’ wife,” or as one UK film blog put it, “Unfortunately for feminism, she’s probably best known as the buxom and flame-haired consort of telly king Jonathan Ross.”]
The pilot ordered by HBO will see Martin’s fantasy world as the golden Age of Heroes declines and Westeros is shrouded in darkness. Here’s hoping the ferrets come into it.
Jenny Singer is the deputy Lifestyle editor for the Forward. You can reach her at [email protected] or on Twitter @jeanvaljenny
The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Most Popular
- 1
Opinion The dangerous Nazi legend behind Trump’s ruthless grab for power
- 2
Opinion I first met Netanyahu in 1988. Here’s how he became the most destructive leader in Israel’s history.
- 3
News Who is Alan Garber, the Jewish Harvard president who stood up to Trump over antisemitism?
- 4
Culture Did this Jewish literary titan have the right idea about Harry Potter and J.K. Rowling after all?
In Case You Missed It
-
Fast Forward On his first trip to Auschwitz, New Jersey governor urges vigilance against rising antisemitism
-
Fast Forward Survivors of the Holocaust and Oct. 7 embrace at Auschwitz, marking annual March of the Living
-
Fast Forward Could changes at the FDA call the kosher status of milk into question? Many are asking.
-
Fast Forward Long Island synagogue cancels Ben-Gvir talk amid wide tensions over whether to host him
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
Republish This Story
Please read before republishing
We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines.
You must comply with the following:
- Credit the Forward
- Retain our pixel
- Preserve our canonical link in Google search
- Add a noindex tag in Google search
See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.
To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.