A Jon Snow sequel TV show is reportedly happening at HBO, and with it comes the opportunity to fix Game of Thrones' most egregious mistake in adapting George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire books. Jon Snow's ending in Game of Thrones saw him go back beyond the Wall with the Wildlings, and didn't suggest there was a sequel story waiting to be told. That is what's happening, though, with a Jon Snow spinoff in development at HBO, according to reports, that will bring Kit Harington back to the role. HBO has many planned Game of Thrones spinoffs, but this one in particular will have a real impact on the show and could be chance to reframe events.
For the first half of its run, Game of Thrones was largely celebrated both for its own storytelling and how well it adapted Martin's novels. Though it inevitably had to make some changes, most of these were understandable. It was only when the show overtook the books - and in particular the ending with Game of Thrones season 8 - that things truly went awry and audiences turned against the series. However, even when it was at its best, it didn't perfectly capture A Song of Ice and Fire, but Jon Snow's sequel could fix one of its oldest and longest running book-to-screen issues: the direwolves.
In A Song of Ice and Fire, the Starks have strong connections to their direwolves, with most shown to be able to warg into them. The bond between them runs much deeper than them being pets or guardians, but becomes something more spiritual, like they are a part of one another. It's a core aspect of who they are, with the direwolves mirroring their personalities and fates: Jon an outsider like Ghost; Arya having to leave her family behind like Nymeria; Bran exploring the world in a way beyond his body, like becoming the Three-Eyed Raven; Shaggydog being wild like Rickon, and so on. Unfortunately, Game of Thrones failed the direwolves, hardly scratching the surface of their meaning and often just ignoring them completely, but the Jon Snow sequel is an opportunity to put that right through the presence of Ghost.
When Jon goes back to the Wall in Game of Thrones' ending, Ghost is there waiting for him (and their reunion scene is a true finale highlight). Ghost then journeys beyond the Wall with Jon and the other Wildlings, meaning he should be around during the sequel show as well. As one of the returning characters from Game of Thrones, then it'd make sense for Ghost to have a more prominent role in things, especially as that could form such a strong part of the narrative. The Jon Snow sequel show's story isn't clear but, if it's sticking in the far North rather than taking him back to Westeros proper, having him warg into Ghost and exploring more of his connection to the direwolf could allow for a fascinating layer of introspection and character development that Game of Thrones lacked. It can truly show Jon Snow as a warg, and get into the heart of the bond between the pair since Jon will be the prime focus, rather than one of many main characters.
The main reason given for Game of Thrones' direwolf mistakes was to do with budget and CGI, and the difficulty of making them look good on screen. That excuse never fully washed anyway, given just how much money Game of Thrones had to work with and the increasingly impressive spectacle displayed elsewhere, but it should be less of an issue for the Jon Snow sequel. Without having to worry about three fully grown dragons, and perhaps not even needing quite the same scale as the original show - this would presumably have a smaller cast and fewer locations than Game of Thrones, at least - then there could be more money and time to properly bring Ghost to life.