TheGame of Thronesprequel seriesHouse of the Dragonhas found one of its lead actors inThe Outsiderstar Paddy Considine. With production on the successor series heating up, HBO had begun an extensive casting search this year to find the right performers to lead the upcoming series. The first name now officially has been added to the ensemble cast with the news of Considine’s casting as a Targaryen family ancestor, with the series focusing particularly on House Targaryen.
Reportedly,Paddy Considinewill play King Viserys Targaryen, a character described as a person “chosen by the lords of Westeros to succeed the Old King, Jaehaerys Targaryen, at the Great Council at Harrenhal. A warm, kind and decent man, Viserys only wishes to carry forward his grandfather’s legacy. But good men do not necessarily make for great kings.”
Secured with a straight to series order last year,House of the Dragonis set 300 years before the events ofGame of Thrones. George R. R. Martin’sFire and Bloodwill serve as inspiration for the story. The spinoff is co-created by Martin and Ryan Condal (Colony). Additionally, Condal is writing the script alongside Sara Lee Hess and will serve as co-showrunner with Miguel Sapochnik. Martin, Condal, Sapochnik, Vince Gerardis, and Hess are executive producing, and Sapochnik will direct the pilot episode.
Game of Thronesserved as the flagship series forHBOfor many years, earning great acclaim and many prestigious Emmy Awards in the process. Inspired by Martin’s literary works, the series followed the conflicts between the various dynasties competing to become the ultimate ruler. Though it spent several years enjoying a reputation as one of the greatest television shows of all time, a lot of controversy surrounded the way it ended last year. The series finale in particular was the subject of great criticism from fans, and a petition to have the entire final season remade from scratch garnered nearly two million signatures.
Following the end ofGame of Thrones, there weremultiple spinoff ideasreported to be in the works following all-new casts of characters. One planned spinoff, dubbedBloodmoon, would have starred Naomi Watts as a “charismatic socialite hiding a dark secret.” Set 10,000 years beforeGame of Thrones, the plot delved into the Age of Heroes, a period that saw the foundation of many powerful Houses and the introduction of the White Walkers. A pilot episode was filmed, but for reasons that aren’t entirely clear, HBO opted not to move forward with production on the series.
Now that production appears to be on the fast track, we’ll likely see moreHouse of the Dragoncasting announcements made in the near future. It’s not exactly clear when filming will begin, but as of now, the plan is for the series to be given a 2022 release on HBO. Time will tell if the spinoff manages to reach the heights of the original. At the least, getting a series order means it’s already fared better thanBloodmoon. This news comes to us fromThe Hollywood Reporter.
