The showrunners for upcoming Game of Thrones spin-off House of the Dragon have revealed the series will include a time-jump structure – not unlike that seen in The Crown.
Miguel Sapochnik and Ryan Condal explained during an interview with The Hollywood Reporter that the series will start with its two female leads as teens before jumping forward 10 years in the middle of the first season, with young stars Emily Carey and Milly Alcock replaced by Olivia Cooke and Emma D’Arcy.
And that will be the first of many time jumps in the debut run, although the same actors – Paddy Considine and Matt Smith – will play the male leads throughout.
“This is how you tell this story correctly,” explained Condol. “We’re telling a story of a generational war. We set everything up so by the time that first sword stroke falls, you understand all the players.”
Meanwhile, HBO and HBO Max Chief Content Officer admitted that he was “nervous” about the ambitious structure but added that those doubts had now been cast to one side.
“Now that I’ve seen the result, I feel really good about it,” he said.
The series is set to launch in August, and fans were treated to an epic new trailer earlier this week that sees King Viserys Targaryen (Considine) decide to appoint a new successor to the Iron Throne, sparking a war between his younger brother Prince Daemon Targaryen (Smith), and his daughter Princess Rhaenyra (D’Arcy).
It was recently revealed that the show is planned to run for three or four seasons, provided its debut ratings are high enough, while the showrunners have also explained that the new series will “pull back” on the amount of sex it features compared to Game of Thrones.
To catch up, you can watch Game of Thrones seasons 1 – 8 on Amazon Prime today or on NOW when it becomes available. You can also buy the DVD boxset for seasons 1-8 on Amazon for £99.99.
House of the Dragon will launch on Monday 22nd August on Sky Atlantic and NOW in the UK – sign up for Sky TV here.
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