The creators of House of the Dragon already have a specific ending in mind. The series, which premieres on HBO on August 21, is a prequel to their hit fantasy drama Game of Thrones. That series, which premiered in 2011, is based on the fantasy novel series A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin. It follows the exploits of key figures in several of the most prominent families on the fictional continent of Westeros as they clash over control of the Iron Throne. These families, or houses, include the Starks, who rule the North, the Lannisters and Baratheons, who hold the Iron Throne at the beginning of the series, and the Targaryens, a clan of blonde-haired dragonlords of which only Emilia Clarke's character Daenerys remains.
House of the Dragon will take place 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones, when House Targaryen ruled Westeros. Season 1 will follow the 28 years of conflict and infighting that led to the Targaryen civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons, as depicted in Martin's fictional history Fire & Blood, the first volume of which was published in 2018. The massive cast of the series includes Jefferson Hall, Paddy Considine, Fabien Frankel, Ryan Corr, Eve Best, Gavin Spokes, Graham McTavish, Steve Toussaint, Olivia Cooke, Sonoya Mizuno, Bill Paterson, Matthew Needham, Emma D'Arcy, Rhys Ifans, David Horovitch, and former Doctor Who star Matt Smith.
Today, ComicBook released an exclusive interview with House of the Dragon executive producer Miguel Sapochnik. During the conversation, he reminded viewers that the show will still be broad in scope, and hopefully fun for as long as it's able, but they do know how they want the finale of the series to go. Although he obviously can't share what it is, he said that "we have a very, very precise idea of where we wanna go with it." Read his full quote below:
We have a very, very precise idea of where we wanna go with it, but we can't tell you. I think that the important thing is that this is a... Think of this as an Episode IV, the Star Wars Episode IV. So it's kind of, we're in the middle of a history that is rich and full of stories to tell and it's a good place to start."
This insistence on a precise ending before the show even premieres is likely a response to the public reception of the Game of Thrones series finale. Although most of season 8 was dismissed by fans as undermining what they loved about the show, the finale was where the criticisms really crystallized. Although the show was a massive hit for the first eight years of its existence, this finale left a sour taste in people's mouths that jeopardized the future of the franchise.
It remains to be seen if House of the Dragon will have the opportunity to run for quite so long as Game of Thrones. If it does, however, it will certainly need to stay sharp to avoid the pitfalls of the earlier show. Considering the fact that the second volume of Fire & Blood has not yet been published, they will probably also have to push past the established canon and carve their own path, so it will be extremely beneficial to have an end point in mind rather than making one up as they go along.
Source: ComicBook