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House of the Dragon, the Game of Thrones prequel series, has resumed filming after being shutdown for two days. Filming on the series, which is taking place primarily in the UK, began in April and is also expected to film in Spain and California. The series is being developed by Rampage’s Ryan J. Condal alongside George R. R. Martin who penned the Song of Ice and Fire series that both shows are based on. On Monday, House of the Dragon became the latest in a string of shows forced to halt production including Bridgerton and American Horror Story.
The spinoff is based on Martin’s Fire and Blood novel, which chronicled the history of House Targaryen from their conquest of Westeros to their eventual fall. House of the Dragon is set 300 years prior to the events of HBO’s award winning fantasy series, during a time when the Targaryens still ruled Westeros. It will focus on the civil war that arose between the heirs to the throne, known as the Dance of the Dragons, and will star Paddy Considine as King Viserys, Emma D’Arcy as his daughter and heir-apparent Princess Rhaenyra, and Olivia Cooke as Viserys’ second wife Queen Alicent Hightower who wants to seize the throne for her sons. They will be joined by Steve Toussaint, Graham McTavish, Matt Smith, Eve Best, and Sonoya Mizuno.
Production on the House of the Dragon was halted after a member of the production team tested positive for COVID-19. In compliance with the show’s own strict testing policy alongside the industry guidelines, the crew member was told to isolate and close-contacts instructed to do the same, effectively shutting down production on the series as a result. After the two day delay, Entertainment Weekly is reporting that filming has now resumed on the series once again.
HBO was incredibly tight-lipped about the number of potential COVID cases on set for obvious reasons, with reports initially suggesting that a number of cast and crew had been affected. However, the speed with which production has resumed seems to suggest that no members of the primary cast were affected, which is certainly a positive sign for the series. House of the Dragon is set for release in 2022, and with no word from HBO about any potentially delays in that plans it sounds as if things remain on track.
Despite the lack-luster Game of Thrones finale in 2019, fans have been eager for a return to Westeros and to learn more about the world. After the runaway success of the original series, HBO has understandably sought to produce multiple spinoffs and prequels including an adaptation of the Dunk and Egg stories, alongside 10,000 ships focusing on the warrior Nymeria would eventually found both Dorne and House Martell, and 9 Voyages that will follow Steve Toussaint’s character Corlys Velaryon/the Sea Snake on his many famous voyages. Fans might be best holding their anticipation however. Another spinoff series set in Flea Bottom in King’s Landing was announced but has since been cancelled. It’s more than likely that HBO is waiting to gauge success of House of the Dragon before committing whole-heartedly to any of the other series. Thankfully, with production back on track, viewers hopefully won’t have to wait long for any new information on House of the Dragon before it releases next year.
Source: Entertainment Weekly
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