It’s been over three years since HBO’s flagship drama, Game of Thrones, ended with a whimper rather than a boom, but the realm of Westeros is finally returning in 2022. The House of the Dragon, a 10-episode series based on George R. R. Martin’s 2018 novel Fire and Blood, will depict the Targaryen dynasty’s origins 200 years before the events of the original program.
What will you see here?
Release date
House of the Dragon will premiere on HBO Max on August 21 in the United States. As well as in other foreign areas where WarnerMedia’s streaming platform is available. UK viewers will be able to watch episodes on Sky Atlantic and Now TV at the same time as their American counterparts.
Before HBO ultimately released the show’s official premiere date in March, executive producer George R. R. Martin said in February that production on “all 10 episodes” had concluded.
In addition to HBO and HBO Max in the United States, the series has been confirmed for distribution on Sky and Now TV in the United Kingdom, as part of a new arrangement negotiated by Sky TV with HBO in October 2019 that will keep HBO titles on the platforms “for many years to come.”
By the time House of the Dragon is released in 2022, HBO Max will have likely made its way to numerous European territories as well. So the program will be available to watch in more locations than ever before.
House of the Dragon story
Expect ambition, incest, and, of yes, winged, fire-breathing lizards in the forthcoming Game of Thrones prequel series, which centers on House Targaryen. The new program is based on Martin’s 2018 book Fire and Blood. This irritated some fans by not being The Winds of Winter, a long-awaited sixth novel in the A Song of Ice and Fire saga. It’s been ten years since the last installment, A Dance With Dragons was released.
Instead, the book is a chronicle of the dragon-riding Targaryen family — the author has dubbed it the “GRRMarillion,” a reference to J. R. R. Tolkien’s thick non-novel that recounts Middle-pre-Lord earth of the Rings history.
House of the Dragon will take place 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones. The series claims to recount the narrative of House Targaryen, but no further details regarding the plot have been revealed.
We can, however, hypothesize. There will very certainly be plenty of family feuding – the Targaryens were dysfunctional even before Viserys and Daenerys . As well as origin stories for other prominent Westerosi families like the Baratheons, Tyrells, and Lannisters.
In other words, House of the Dragon appears to contain the same combination of epic battles, political intrigue, and infidelities as Game of Thrones. Also with one significant difference: because it’s a prequel, we already know where it’s going.
House of the Dragon creators: who’s making it?
George R. R. Martin devised the new Game of Thrones prequel series alongside Ryan Condal, according to a Twitter statement in October 2019. Condal is best known for co-creating the USA Network alien invasion thriller Colony and writing the game adaptation Rampage starring Dwayne Johnson.
Condal wrote the sitcom and will co-executive produce it alongside Miguel Sapochnik. Sapochnik helmed some of Game of Thrones’ most epic episodes, including Battle of the Bastards in season 6 and The Long Night in season 8. Also will direct many episodes of House of the Dragon, including the premiere.
Vince Gerardis, Sara Lee Hess, and Ron Schmidt are among the other confirmed producers. The series is also being directed by Clare Kilner, Geeta V Patel, and Greg Yaitanes.
Furthermore, Variety says that House of the Dragon will be the first show to employ the V stage, a new virtual production stage at Warner Bros. Studios in Leavesden, UK — which we assume is similar to the Mandalorian’s MicroLED display stages. And, perhaps most importantly, Game of Thrones composer Ramin Djawadi will return to score House of the Dragon.
Conclusion
You’d expect that by the time House of the Dragon arrives, interest in a Game of Thrones prequel series will be stronger. Stronger even than it was three years ago when the program ended divisively. The great names in the ensemble and the change in time frame make the series seem fascinating. The pressure will be on to make the stakes feel as high as they did in the main series. This will be difficult given that we already know what happens to House Targaryen.
