Game Of Thrones Prequel House Of The Dragon Now In Production

HBO has announced that production has officially begun on the Game of Thrones prequel series, House of the Dragon. The new spinoff is expected to launch sometime in 2022.

The news came via HBO over Twitter, with a picture of the cast at a socially distanced table read. This overdue news, or something like it, has been expected for some time now as the network has been recently and very steadily making a wide array of casting announcements. Check out HBO's tweet and picture below, signaling the auspicious start for a show that will continue the fantasy series' legacy.

So far, House of the Dragon stars Fabien Frankel (The Serpent), Paddy Considine (24 Hour Party People), Olivia Cooke (Ready Player One), Matt Smith (Doctor Who), and Emma D'Arcy (Truth Seekers). Sonoya Mizuno (Devs), Rhys Ifans (Notting Hill), Steve Toussaint (Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time), and Eve Best (Nurse Jackie) will also feature.

House of the Dragon is co-created by author George R.R. Martin and Ryan Condal (Colony, Rampage). Miguel Sapochnik (Trainspotting, Game of Thrones) will serve as showrunner along with Condal. Joining them as a writer and executive producer will be Sara Lee Hess (Orange is the New Black, Deadwood).

This news also comes in at the tail end of Game of Thrones' 10-year anniversary a month, which has offered fans curated playlists of the series for custom viewing marathons and some new merch and giveaways. While not officially part of these festivities, creator George R. R. Martin also recently announced he's working on a Broadway version of his fantasy epic that will "tell the whole story."