HBO's House of the Dragon is bringing a new wave of fan theories, but those will be drastically different from the types of theories inspired by Game of Thrones. House of the Dragon, which is based on George R.R. Martin's Fire & Blood, tells the bloody history of House Targaryen. The upcoming series will bring back some Game of Thrones veterans, including acclaimed director Miguel Sapochnik as co-showrunner, but the cast is all new. A first teaser for the show included glimpses of Paddy Considine's King Viserys Targaryen, Emma D’Arcy's Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, and Matt Smith's Daemon Targaryen.
During Game of Thrones' eight-season run, fan theories ruled the internet. Some theories were insightful, revealing an inside look at the story's details. For instance, the truth about Jon Snow's (Kit Harington) parentage was spread around the internet in a fan theory years before the show revealed the details of his mother and father. However, fans guessing at author George R.R. Martin's ending for his fantasy story regurgitated even the most ridiculous theories that were wrong from the start. These included the theories that Bran (Isaac Hempstead Wright) was secretly the Night King or that Daenerys' (Emilia Clarke) was secretly pregnant.
Though House of the Dragon will inspire theories, they will be drastically different from the ideas that sprang from Game of Thrones. During Game of Thrones' run, the series went past George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire book series, leaving fans guessing about the series' ending. Because of that guessing, the theories tended to have less and less evidence, with fans latching onto minor details to explain where the show would go. House of the Dragon will be different. The theories inspired by the series likely won't constantly guess at the show's ending since it's based on a completed story. Instead, the theories will focus more on lingering Targaryen mysteries.
House of the Dragon theories likely won't be as ridiculous as the ones from Game of Thrones. Unlike Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon already has its significant events outlined in Fire & Blood, including the entire Targaryen civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons. There isn't a big mystery in the series like Jon Snow's true parentage or who winds up on the Iron Throne. Instead, smaller secrets will come to the forefront of the show. For instance, theories will likely speculate on the timing of significant events in the show or details about Targaryen history. Some lingering mysteries, including Daemon Targaryen's ultimate fate following his supposed demise, are also up for speculation.
Though the main fan theories will likely be drastically different, House of the Dragon may still bring back some Game of Thrones favorites. House of the Dragon is already paying homage to Game of Thrones by including the Iron Throne and Arya's (Maisie Williams) White Walker-killing dagger in the first teaser. Therefore the series may add more details to Game of Thrones moments or change the perspective on HBO's fantasy series. So the theories will be different, but retcons are also coming.