The Game of Thrones franchise remains super popular, with its spinoff House of the Dragons joining the ranks of HBO shows that got the world talking. But those with an HBO Max subscription know that we can't expect new seasons to arrive every single year like other TV shows. And the network's chief Casey Bloys recently explained the thought process behind the show's scheduling.
Fans are patiently waiting for Season 3 of HOTD, which will begin airing this summer. On top of wondering which dragons belong to which Targaryen, fans have questions about how the book to screen adaptation is released. During a conversation with THR, Bloys spoke about the specific balance that's needed in HBO's programming. As he put it:
You have to balance it. For some of the bigger shows like Harry Potter or House of the Dragon, or The Last of Us, huge world-building shows, it would be nice to have those on an annual basis. But from a production point of view, it’s just not possible. It’s not that everybody involved is just taking their time and sitting around.
Points were made. Because while certain network TV shows consistently air new seasons every year shows like House of the Dragon, The Last Of Us, or the upcoming Harry Potter TV show have a much larger scale. The production itself is huge, and there's also a ton of visual effects work that needs to be done once cameras go down. So it's simply not realistic to expect new seasons to be shot, edited, go through the post-production process every calendar year.
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Despite Game of Thrones' controversial ending both HOTD and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms have helped to restore interest in future Westerosi stories. But fans have high expectations for its production value, requiring more time before each new installment is released. In the same interview Casey Bloys compared those big titles to shows like The Pitt, which can more easily be shot and released in quick succession. In his words:
These shows are complicated to do. In order to bring a show back on an annual basis, you do have to start from the beginning with people who know how to do it, people like [The Pitt executive producer] John Wells or Greg Berlanti, and it’s helpful if there are not dragons that need to be rendered, or zombies and things like that.
Honestly, this does make a great deal of sense. And while I'd rather have more episodes of House of the Dragon sooner rather than later, that's simply not realistic. Fans will recall how Game of Thrones also took long breaks between seasons, thanks to being shot across multiple countries and its massive scale. Luckily the shows with less CGI are able to come back more consistently, such as The Pitt and Industry.
Season 3 of House of the Dragon is expected to arrive sometime in June of this year as part of the 2026 TV schedule. While we wait for more information, the first two seasons, as well as all things GOT, are streaming over on HBO Max.
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