House of the Dragon renewed for season 2 by HBO days after episode 1 breaks viewership records

Game of Thrones' spinoff series House of the Dragon has been renewed for a second season merely days after its first episode began streaming and broke viewership records.

Game of Thrones’ prequel show House of the Dragon has officially been renewed for a second season, just days after the premiere of its first episode. The decision was taken by HBO, the company bankrolling the show, after the pilot episode broke all records of viewership within days. Game of Thrones, the show’s predecessor had aired on HBO for eight seasons from 2011-19.

Emma D’Arcy and Matt Smith as Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen and Prince Daemon Targaryen in House of the Dragon.

House of the Dragon began streaming on HBO Max on Sunday (and on Disney+ Hotstar in India). As per figures released by HBO, the show was watched by nearly 10 million people in the US on day one itself. The figure has grown to 20 million in the four days since. In comparison, the most watched episode of Game of Thrones was watched by 13 million people. This is the highest opening any HBO show has received in the company’s history.

Reports say that this historic success is what prompted HBO to green light season two. As per a report in The Hollywood Reporter, Francesca Orsi, executive VP, HBO programming, said, “We are beyond proud of what the entire House of the Dragon team has accomplished with season one. Our phenomenal cast and crew undertook a massive challenge and exceeded all expectations, delivering a show that has already established itself as must-see-TV. A huge thank you to George RR Martin, Ryan Condal and Miguel Sapochnik for leading us on this journey. We couldn’t be more excited to continue bringing to life the epic saga of House Targaryen with season two.”

The series, set close to two centuries before the events of Game of Thrones, looks at Westeros, the fictional continent in Martin’s books, when it was ruled by the Targaryen dynasty. It focuses on the Dance of the Dragon civil war within House Targaryen, which led to their eventual decline.