Season 2 of HBO's popular Game of Thrones prequel, House of the Dragon, may come up slightly short of fan expectations as it begins production for an impending 2024 release.
While House of the Dragon regularly broke HBO episode premiere ratings, catering to an already-rich fan base of its predecessor, news of a second season came fast on the heels of its debut. Set nearly 200 years before the Westeros era of Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen, House of the Dragon won new fans through its well-wrought storylines of the Targaryen family ancestors and the famous Dance of the Dragons battle. House of the Dragon season 1 finished strong, with the Targaryens and the Hightowers at each other’s throats in the battle over the iron throne, boding an exciting kickoff for the much-awaited second season.
According to Deadline, while the initial plan was for a 10-episode arc consistent with last season, it was recently announced by an HBO spokesperson that House of the Dragon season 2 will only contain 8 episodes. This is due to story-driven considerations and logical breaks in structure. The change comes as the series eyes a potential 3rd and 4th seasons ready for HBO's greenlight, likely to arrive swiftly, possibly even before season 2 reaches the screen in 2024.
Screenwriter Ryan Condal, working with George R.R. Martin, whose Fire & Blood book House of the Dragon is based on, decided a shorter season worked best in mapping out the complete series arc from beginning to end. As a result of the new episode count, plotlines initially planned for House of the Dragon season 2 will move to the third season, including a major battle. Per Deadline sources, Condal and Martin keep going back and forth on how many seasons would be best for House of the Dragon, but the series will likely run for four.
While seasons for new shows on HBO and many other networks have been getting shorter, down from the typical run of older shows like The Sopranos, which usually got 13 episodes, the demand to adhere to a defined source material may work out in House of the Dragon's favor, with creators capable of turning to Martin's stories at a glance. Unlike the final seasons of Game of Thrones, which relied heavily on the show’s writers to guess where Martin was going, the endpoint is visible. HBO's comparable fantasy series Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power included only 8 episodes, while HBO's hit The Last of Us topped out at only 9.
With reception for House of the Dragon last season setting records, reaching 130M people in the U.S. by company estimates, odds are incredibly favorable for continued seasons. If the prequel is anything like the original series, its reach will only grow as new people discover the franchise beyond the existing large fan base. Long or short, House of the Dragon season 2 is bound to be a rousing success.
House of the Dragon season 2 production begins this spring, with an expected release on HBO in the summer of 2024.
Source: Deadline