Miguel Sapochnik, a co-showrunner of House of the Dragon, is leaving. The first HBO Game of Thrones prequel series' co-creator and director, Sapochnik, is leaving the project, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Sapochnik will be listed as the executive producer of House of the Dragon beginning with season 2, with fellow showrunner Ryan J. Condal taking exclusive control of the project. In addition, Sapochnik has signed a first-look agreement with HBO to develop new ideas after working on House of the Dragon for three years.
In a prepared statement, Sapochnik said, "Working inside the Thrones world for the past few years has been an honour and a joy, especially spending the last two with the fantastic cast and crew of House of the Dragon." "I am pleased by the enthusiastic response of our viewers and so proud of what we were able to accomplish with season one. Moving on was tremendously difficult to decide, but I am confident that it was the best option for me both personally and professionally. But knowing that Alan will be joining the series gives me a great deal of comfort as I do so.
Condal will be joined by Alan Taylor, a director best renowned for his work on Game of Thrones and Thor: The Dark World, to helm House of the Dragon from season 2 on. The Many Saints of Newark, a spin-off sequel to the critically acclaimed The Sopranos TV series, which is currently streaming on Disney+ Hotstar, was most recently directed by the filmmaker, who has maintained a long-standing working relationship with HBO and Warner Bros.
"It's a pleasure and an honour to be working for HBO again and getting back into the Targaryen universe. As House of the Dragon moves into its second season, I am looking forward to collaborating closely with Ryan. In a rich and fascinating world, Ryan, Miguel, and George have begun an astonishing story, according to Taylor. In the first season of the Game of Thrones TV series, he directed "Baelor" and "Fire and Blood," among other early episodes.
The decision was made after the HBO record-breaking launch of House of the Dragon, which had 25 million views in its first week of release. The precursor to the Game of Thrones series received an early renewal for season 2 last week.
As previously mentioned, Sapochnik has signed a new contract with the studio and will concentrate on developing new programmes for the high-end US cable TV network. He is well recognised for helming two of the most beloved Game of Thrones episodes, "Hardhome" from season 5 and "The Battle of the Bastards" from season 6. Condal and Taylor will continue to collaborate closely with writer George R.R. Martin.
HBO unveiled a House of the Dragon episode 3 trailer earlier this week. It includes yet another time jump, this time showing the birth of Aegon to newlywed King Viserys (Paddy Considine) and Alicent Hightower (Emily Carey). The Crabfeeder (Daniel Scott-Smith), a prince admiral infamous for pinning his enemies to spikes and feeding them to crabs, was also presented in the House of the Dragon episode 3 teaser.
Every Monday at 6:30am IST on Disney+ Hotstar in India and Sunday at 9pm ET on HBO Max wherever it's accessible, new episodes of House of the Dragon are broadcast. There are ten episodes in the first season.
