The second episode of HBO Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon is about to premiere, but the network is looking at the long game: they renewed the show for a third season earlier this week, a vote of confidence in the show's ability to carry on the legacy of Game of Thrones.
Back in the day, new seasons of Game of Thrones would come out every year. These days, there's usually a gap of two years or more. That's true of House of the Dragon; fans have been waiting since October of 2022 to see more. How quickly will HBO step on the gas for season 3?
Well, we know that showrunner Ryan Condal has an ending for the series in mind, and that he and his team have been prepping for season 3 behind the scenes. According to The Guardian, which talked to actor Matt Smith about his character Daemon Targaryen, filming will begin later this year. “We go again,” Smith said.
This falls short of a firm confirmation, but it definitely behooves HBO to start production on season 3 sooner rather than later. Although even if the show does start filming later this year, I don't imagine season 3 will begin airing before 2026. Those dragons take time to animate.
Daemon is "quite volatile and confused" in House of the Dragon season 2
In the meanwhile, fans can enjoy season 2 when it premieres this Sunday, June 16. Smith weighed in on why he enjoys playing Daemon so much. “One of the gifts about a character like Daemon is he does things that are, on occasion, pretty unthinkable.”
It's true; in the first season, Daemon murdered his wife and married his niece, among other things. He's a loose canon. However, Smith has been talking a lot lately about Daemon taking a more internal journey in season 2, which will see him fly his dragon Caraxes to Harrenhal to establish a military toehold in the Riverlands on behalf of his wife, Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy). "Daemon's a bit more on his back foot and slightly different this season," Smith told USA Today. "He's haunted by the present and his feelings about the past. I think it was a deliberate decision by the writers. They don't want to just churn out the same thing. It's like, what else can we do with Daemon?"
"Grieving is the catalyst. He's grieving the death of his brother [King Viserys], who he misses deeply. But he's unable to share or express that to anyone. So you're left with a quite volatile and confused Damon Targaryen, which will hopefully be entertaining for viewers."
Hopefully. I'm a bit worried they're going to take a dynamic character like Daemon and give him a sleepy arc, but we'll see how it goes. "I'm sure he'll be back," Smith said of the wilder, more unpredictable Daemon. "But you're all just going to have to wait and see."
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