House of the Dragon builds massive city set for season 2

The first season of House of the Dragon returned us to the medieval metropolis of King’s Landing, well over a hundred years before Daenerys Targaryen torched the place in the final season of Game of Thrones. At the time of House of the Dragon, King’s Landing is as prosperous and well-maintained as its ever been, but with war on the horizon, it could be in danger.

House of the Dragon does a lot of filming at Leavesden Studios in England. HBO already built a pretty big King’s Landing set there for season 1. In new photos, it looks like they’re expanding it extensively:

And here’s an image comparing what the set looked like in season 1 to what it looks like now. It appears that the production has expanded beyond the Red Keep to build out parts of a city wall.

Beware SPOILERS: What will happen to King’s Landing in House of the Dragon season 2?

At the end of House of the Dragon season 1, Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) looked like she was done fighting with kid gloves. She’s in a battle with her half-brother Aegon Targaryen (Tom Glynn-Carney) for the Iron Throne, and she might take the fight to him.

Rhaenyra is currently on Dragonstone and Aegon in King’s Landing. House of the Dragon is based on George R.R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood. In that book, Rhaenyra and her allies eventually do take King’s Landing, although they do it in a way that isn’t nearly as bloody or destructive as how Daenerys does it in Game of Thrones. It’s possible we could see Rhaenyra reclaim the city towards the end of season 2.

We’ve also seen images from other scenes set in King’s Landing being filmed for season 2, so maybe the expanded set is for that. And they can always keep the set for later seasons. It’s even possible that the new sets aren’t going to be used for King’s Landing at all, although given that they’re right next to the Red Keep set from season 1, that’s our guess.

House of the Dragon season 2 is due out sometime in the summer of 2024, although it’s possible the ongoing strikes in Hollywood could mess with that.

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