House of the Dragon will be half as long as Game of Thrones

House of the Dragon is set to return with Season 2 next year, with George R.R. Martin revealing that work on the rest of the series has already begun. However, don’t expect it to be as long as Game of Thrones.

Game of Thrones kneecapped its own legacy with its eighth season, a gluttony of fast-paced spectacle that was widely rejected by fans and managed to erase its position in pop culture.

Yet, with House of the Dragon, faith in the franchise has been renewed. Based on Martin’s Fire and Blood, the first season lit the fuse on the Dance of the Dragons, the infamous Targaryen civil war set nearly 200 years before the birth of Daenerys.

After the first teaser trailer for the second season was unveiled last week, the author shared an update from the set of the series that indicates how long it’ll run for.

House of the Dragon set to have four seasons

While Game of Thrones had eight seasons, it looks like House of the Dragon will only have four.

On his website, Martin detailed his recent trip to London and the show’s “huge, stunning” set, where he met with showrunner Ryan Condal to discuss the future of the prequel series.

“It was not all tromping through sets, though. I also spent two days locked in a room with Ryan Condal and his writing staff (Sara Hess, Ti Mikkel, David Hancock, and Philippa Goslett) talking about the third and fourth seasons of HOUSE OF THE DRAGON,” he explained.

“They were lively, fun discussions, and we got some good work done… though two days was not nearly enough. There is so much ground to cover that I am not sure twenty days would have been enough.”

This echoes the writer’s previous comments, earlier writing: “I am thrilled that we still have 10 hours every season to tell our tale… I hope that will continue to be true. It is going to take four full seasons of 10 episodes each to do justice to the Dance of the Dragons, from start to finish.”

In May this year, HBO’s head of drama Francesca Orsi said Martin and Condal were going to meet to decide exactly where and when the series will end. “Is it four seasons? I don’t think from where I sit at this point will be any less than four. But could be more. We’ll see,” she said, as per Deadline.

House of the Dragon Season 2 will premiere on HBO in summer 2024. Find out more here.