HBO is keeping the fire (and blood) in the heart of fans alive with a new poster for House of the Dragon, the highly-anticipated spinoff prequel to Game of Thrones. The poster focuses on Emma D’Arcy as Rhaenyra Targaryen, one of the dragon riders fighting for the Iron Throne during the civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons.
The poster shows Rhaenyra Targaryen with a red dress, golden cape, and crow, standing among dozens of iron swords scattered through a room. The blades are a reference to the Iron Throne, the most powerful seat of all Westeros, traditionally occupied by the royalty of House Targaryen. Behind Rhaenyra, we can see one of the mighty dragons used by the Targeryans to subjugate the people in Westeros. The first trailer for the spinoff prequel had a disappointing number of dragons, so it’s nice to see HBO focusing their marketing campaign in the scaly creatures, the real stars we want to watch coming next August.
In the upcoming series, Rhaenyra is a dragon rider who must prove she’s worthy of the Targaryen name just because she was born a woman. Unfortunately, she will be caught in the middle of a civil war that also involves other Targeryan nobles. House of the Dragon also stars Paddy Considine as King Viserys Targaryen, a man who has trouble holding to the throne due to his kindness. The series also features Matt Smith as Prince Daemon Targaryen, a brutal Targaryen next in line for taking the throne.
The House of the Dragon cast also includes Eve Best as Rhaenys Targaryen; Rhys Ifans as Otto Hightower, the Hand of the King; Olivia Cooke as Otto’s daughter; Steve Toussaint as Lord Corlys Velaryon, the “Sea Snake;” Fabien Frankel as Dornish warrior Ser Criston Cole; and Sonoya Mizuno as Mysaria, a foreigner who becomes an unlikely ally to the throne. The series also features Milly Alcock, Bethany Antonia, Phoebe Campbell, Emily Carey, Harry Collett, Ryan Corr, Tom Glynn-Carney, Jefferson Hall, David Horovitch, Wil Johnson, John Macmillan, Graham McTavish, Ewan Mitchell, Theo Nate, Matthew Needham, Bill Paterson, Phia Saban, Gavin Spokes, and Savannah Steyn.
House of the Dragon is based on Fire & Blood, a prequel novel written by Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin. The story will center on the civil war that split the Targaryen family apart. The series was created by Martin and writer Ryan Condal. Condal also acts as showrunner, together with director Miguel Sapochnik. The three executive produce alongside writer Sara Hess, director Greg Yaitanes, Jocelyn Diaz, Vince Gerardis, and Ron Schmidt. Other directors include Clare Kilner, Geeta V. Patel.
House of the Dragon debuts on August 21 on HBO and will be available to stream on HBO Max. Check the new poster below:
