House of the Dragon, HBO’s much-anticipated prequel series to their hit Game of Thrones, has set the premiere date for its first season: Sunday, August 21.
The new show is based on George R.R. Martin’s 2018 book Fire and Blood, a companion to the A Song of Ice and Fire series that inspired Game of Thrones. House of the Dragon — which shared its first teaser trailer in October — is set 200 years before the events of Thrones, focusing on the story of the rise and fall of House Targaryen, the ruling house into which Emilia Clarke’s Game of Thrones character Daenerys Targaryen was eventually born.
House of the Dragon stars Paddy Considine as King Viserys Targaryen; Emma D’Arcy as Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, the king’s first-born child; Matt Smith as Prince Daemon Targaryen, the king’s younger brother and heir to the throne; Steve Toussaint as Lord Corlys Velaryon, a sea adventurer and Lord of House Velaryon; Rhys Ifans as Otto Hightower, the “Hand of the King”; Olivia Cooke as Alicent Hightower, Otto’s daughter; and Sonoya Mizuno as Mysaria, an ally to Prince Daemon.
The series’ 10-episode first season was among Rolling Stone’s Most Anticipated TV Shows of 2022, noting that House of the Dragon boasts a different creative team than its predecessor, including George R.R. Martin himself as an executive producer and co-creator; despite creating the world of Westeros, the author had only an ancillary role on Game of Thrones, contributing occasionally as a writer on the series.