When exactly will House of the Dragons release? In October 2019, HBO cancelled The Long Night prequel, but ordered a new series, House of the Dragon, the same day. Although fans of the franchise now have some clarity for the future, the question remains: when will House of the Dragon's premiere date be?
The Targaryen prequel will take place 200 years before the events depicted in Game of Thrones, and will reportedly explore the Dance of Dragons civil war and the history of the Targaryen household. As with the original Game of Thrones series, casual HBO viewers won’t necessarily have to know everything about House Targaryen before watching the sequel, but some familiarity with the original George R. R. Martin novel series and television adaption will certainly help. In the original HBO series, created by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, various character arcs showed how major players could easily shift from hero to villain, and vice versa. This concept is further reinforced by the storyline for the hero-turned-villain Daenerys Targaryen, one of Game of Thrones’ most controversial figures. Such themes will most likely be at the center of the spin-off series.
House of the Dragon has been confirmed to premiere in 2022, though on what date exactly is unclear. Whereas Jane Goldman’s The Long Night series had filmed a pilot before being cancelled, the Targaryen prequel series as in the early stages of development when it got picked up to series. House of the Dragon officially began production in early 2021 and brought on board a well-known cast, including Doctor Who and The Crown's Matt Smith, Paddy Considine, Olivia Cooke, Emma D'Arcy, and more. Created by George R.R. Martin and Ryan Condal, the latter serves as co-showrunner alongside Miguel Sapochnik, who previously directed numerous iconic Game of Thrones episodes, most notably "Hardhome,” ”Battle of the Bastards,” and “The Long Night.” If HBO follows Game of Thrones' release structure, House of the Dragon will probably premiere in April 2022. If the series is getting a spring release, then confirmation regarding its premiere date should come in January or February 2022.
Because Martin’s franchise is so popular, the stakes are indeed high for House of the Dragon. The first teaser trailer for the series hints at a lot of dragons, fire, the Targaryens taking things by force, and maybe a connection to the Night King's death. As with Game of Thrones, the prequel series also suggests a lot of family drama and politics being involved in the storyline. The original Game of Thrones pilot was infamously re-cast and re-shot before it eventually transformed into a pop culture sensation, and Goldman’s failed pilot for The Long Night serves as even more evidence that new franchise installments require time and patience. Given all the pandemic-related delays that halted or pushed back filming, the prequel series didn't begin filming until April 2021 despite having been announced in October 2019, a 2022 premiere date makes the most sense.
Moving forward, there will be plenty of speculation about what questions House of the Dragon will address. The Targaryens are known for their influence within Westeros — but more specifically, they’re known for their dragons, their tempers, and — to be quite frank — their well-documented incest. All of those topics will undoubtedly be part of the prequel’s main storyline, and will serve as the foundation for larger thematic explorations associated with Westerosian history and culture.