All Game of Thrones fans should be thrilled as production of the prequel series ‘House of the Dragon’ has finally started.
The official GoT Instagram account made the announcement earlier this week, which comes a year after the news about the prequel were first announced in 2019.
With production underway this hopefully means it will not be too long before the show releases on HBO.
While we wait, here is all we know about the anticipated fantasy drama:
Who are the creators?
Ryan Condal is writing the series and co-created it with author George R.R. Martin.
The composer responsible for the breathtaking songs on Game of Thrones, Ramin Djawadi, will return for this series as well.
Miguel Sapochnik and Ryan Condal will be amongst the plenty executive producers.
What is it about?
The fantasy drama is set 300 years before Game of Thrones which means it probably will not feature our favourite characters from the show. House of the Dragon is based on George R.R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood that was released in 2018, and tells the story of the House Targaryen, so expect to see more dragons in this series.
Who are the main characters?
King Viserys Targaryen
Played by Paddy Considine, Viserys Targaryen was chosen by the lords of Westeros to succeed the Old King, Jaehaerys Targaryen, at the Great Council at Harrenhal.
HBO describes this character as being warm, kind, and a decent man who only wishes to continue his grandfathers legacy.
Alicent Hightower
Played by the Sound of Metal star Olivia Cooke, Alicent Highwater is the daughter of Otto Hightower who is the Hand of the King.
HBO describes her as the most comely woman in the Seven Kingdoms. She was raised in the Red Keep, close to the king and his innermost circle. She possesses both a courtly grace and a keen political acumen.
Prince Daemon Targaryen
The Doctor who and The Crown star Matt Smith will be portraying Daemon Targaryen who is the King’s younger brother and the heir to the throne.
He is described by HBO as being an unrivaled warrior and a dragon-rider who possesses the true blood of the dragon.
Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen
Also a dragon-rider, Rhaenyra Targaryen, who is played by Emma D’Arcy, is the king’s first-born child and is of pure Valyrian blood.
Other characters include Lord Corlys Velaryon aka “The Sea Snake,” (Steve Toussaint) who is said to have more wealth than the Lannisters. His wife, Princess Rhaenys Velaryon (Eve Best), was passed over as heir to the throne because the realm favoured her cousin, Viserys, simply for being male.
Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) is the loyal Hand of the King.
The two characters I will be looking out for the most though are Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno) as she has been described as an ally to Daemon Targaryen and Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel) because of his sword skills which HBO claim are preternatural.
Release date
The show will release some time in 2022, there is no specific date so far. The first season will have 10 episodes.
