House Of The Dragon Trailer: The Targaryen Dynasty Crumbles With Fire And Blood

Hundreds of years before the fate of the Seven Kingdoms rested on the shoulders of Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen, Tyrion Lannister, and the rest of the major players on "Game of Thrones," the realm found itself ruled by the unchallenged might and iron fist of the Targaryen dynasty ... and their plentiful abundance of fire-breathing dragons. Of all the significant families in the original series who justified a spin-off of their own, Daenerys' legendary ancestors poised to maintain their status as conquerors proved to be the most natural fit to guide our return to Westeros in "House of the Dragon." 

The spin-off/prequel series is ideally positioned to launch the next era of fantasy storytelling for HBO, though tasked with the gargantuan challenge of washing away the bitter taste left by the divisive, shocking, and (many would argue) terribly rushed ending of the original series. So what better way to accomplish that than by going back in time long before any of those events would ever come to pass?

Thankfully, you can get an idea of that in the new trailer, which you can check out below!

"Fire and Blood." Those are the ominous words of House Targaryen and they've certainly been given an added "oomph" with this latest footage. "House of the Dragon" follows the civil war that inevitably breaks out in the aftermath of decades of peace and prosperity under the rule of King Jaehaerys I Targaryen. Upon the end of his immensely successful reign, however, the potentially catastrophic debate over who will serve as his successor to the Iron Throne threatens to split the entire kingdom apart and plunge the Targaryen family into the bloody war of succession forever known to historians as the Dance of the Dragons.

"House of the Dragon" is co-created by Ryan Condal and author George R.R. Martin himself, with Condal and Miguel Sapochnik (the director behind some of the biggest and most famous episodes of "Game of Thrones") serving as co-showrunners. The new series stars Paddy Considine as the current and newly-christened King Viserys I Targaryen, Emma D'Arcy as Viserys' firstborn daughter Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, Matt Smith as the presumptive heir apparent Prince Daemon Targaryen, Eve Best as the passed-over claimant to the throne Princess Rhaenys Velaryon, Steve Toussaint as her husband Lord Corlys Velaryon, Olivia Cooke as Lady Alicent Hightower, Rhys Ifans as her father and Hand of the King Ser Otto Hightower, Sonoya Mizuno as the mysterious Mysaria, and many, many more.

Based on Martin's book "Fire & Blood," "House of the Dragon" will premiere on HBO and HBO Max on August 21, 2022.