When is House of the Dragon Season 2 coming out? Everything we know about the second season

House of the Dragon Season 2 is inching closer and closer, and we finally have an official announcement of the release date.

As the release date draws nearer, HBO is beginning to release more details about the second season. As House of the Dragon draws from author George R.R. Martin’s book Fire and Blood, book readers have many speculations about how Season 2 will shape up.

The details released by HBO, along with set photos and leaks, are giving us a better idea of how Season 2 will look. Here is everything we know about House of the Dragon Season 2.

Quick answer: House of the Dragon Season 2 comes out on June 16, as confirmed by HBO through Season 2 trailers and a press release.

Read More: George R.R. Martin reveals the inspiration for Fire and Blood: the novel behind House of the Dragon

House of the Dragon Season 2 teaser trailer

HBO released the teaser trailer for House of the Dragon Season 2 at CCXP Brazil. The trailer contained many key moments from Season 2, and some scenes have led the fanbase to speculate as to how the next season will play out.

Read More: Every detail we noticed in the House of the Dragon Season 2 teaser trailer

So far, on House of the Dragon

Princess Rhaenys arrived at Dragonstone to inform the Black faction of King Viserys’ death and Aegon II’s crowning. Daemon suspects murder, and the stress sends Rhaenyra into labor.

With Jacaerys by his side, Daemon rallies troops while Rhaenyra gives birth alone, resulting in a stillborn baby.

Erryk Cargyll arrives with Viserys’ crown and swears allegiance to Rhaenyra as the Queen of the Seven Kingdoms. Daemon places the crown upon her head, and all gathered bend the knee to her. Meanwhile, Otto Hightower, Hand of the King, arrives via ship with terms for Rhaenyra, but Daemon refuses his offer and is ready to kill Otto.

However, he provides Rhaenyra with a gesture of goodwill from Alicent – a page from a history book they read together as children.

Rhaenyra considers the terms while Corlys and Rhaenys pledge allegiance to her. She sends Jacaerys and Lucerys to secure support from individual kingdoms. Jacaerys departs for The Eyrie and Winterfell, while Lucerys flies to Storm’s End to meet with Lord Borros Baratheon.

Aemond has already arrived at Storm’s End and promised to marry one of Borros’ daughters in exchange for Baratheon support.

Borros rejects Lucerys’ offer as he is already betrothed to Rhaena Targaryen. Lucerys attempts to leave, but Aemond seeks payback.

Against Aemond’s commands, Vhagar kills both Arrax and Lucerys. Daemon informs Rhaenyra of Lucerys’ death, and peace is out of the question, leading to war.

Read Next: What can we expect from House of the Dragon Season 2?

A Timeline of House of the Dragon Season 2 Updates

• August 2022: HBO renewed House of the Dragon for a second season shortly after the show’s premiere broke records for the premium cable channel. Francesca Orsi, HBO’s EVP of programming, expressed pride in the team’s accomplishments with Season 1. Miguel Sapochnik announced that he would remain an executive producer for the show, and Ryan Condal will take over as the sole showrunner. Sapochnik expressed his decision to move on as a tough one but the right choice for him personally and professionally.
• September 2022: Spanish newspaper Hoy reported that HBO would film King’s Landing scenes for season 2 in Cáceres, Spain, from March to June 2023.
• October 2022: Casey Bloys, the chief content officer for HBO and HBO Max, said to Vulture that he expected the release of the show’s second season in 2024. Bloys stated that they were currently in the early stages of planning. Like the first season, he said many unknown factors could affect the timeline. He emphasized that they do not want to make any promises they cannot keep. He said they would not announce a release date until they were confident in their ability to deliver.
• October 2022:  Ryan Condal stated in an interview with Variety that the writing for Season 2 had already begun during the post-production stage of Season 1. This overlap was necessary to keep up with the fans’ desire for material and HBO’s need for a reasonable timeframe between seasons. As a result, the team has to move into making Season 2 meet these demands.
• October 2022: Author George R.R. Martin stated on his blog that there is much more story to cover. He estimated it would take four full seasons of 10 episodes each to do justice to the Dance of the Dragons from start to finish.
• February 2023: Casey Bloys told Variety that the second season of House of the Dragon would miss the 2024 Emmy Awards deadline. He also said that more Game of Thrones spinoffs were in the works.
• March 2023: House Of The Dragon Season 2 scripts are ready, confirms Matt Smith (Daemon Targaryen) at the Middle East Film and Comic Con in Abu Dhabi.
• March 2023: George R.R. Martin said he wasn’t impressed with the dragons in Game of Thrones, as he found them all the same. But, the dragons he saw in House of the Dragon were truly impressive, as they had personalities and came alive. Ryan Condal shared that there will be five new dragons in season 2, which is expected to begin production shortly.
• March 2023: According to the Film & Television Industry Alliance’s Production List, season 2 started filming on March 6th. The filming will happen in London and Spain. The special effects and post-production needed for the episodes may delay the release until late 2024.
• March 2023: HBO might have cut Maelor Targaryen, Aegon and Helaena’s third child, from the show.
• March 2023: House Of The Dragon will have just eight episodes instead of 10, according to a new report.
• April 2023: David Hancock, who served as an executive producer in the first season of House of The Dragon, will now be serving as a writer as well, according to his agency’s website.
• April 2023: House of the Dragon Season 2 begins production.
• April 2023: New Harrenhal scenes being shot at Leavesden Studios.
• April 2023: House of The Dragon adds 4 new cast members, Simon Russell Beale as Ser Simon Strong, Freddie Fox as Ser Gwayne Hightower, Gayle Rankin as Alys Rivers, and Abubakar Salim as Alyn of Hull.
• April 2023: House of The Dragon Season 2 to begin filming in Spain on May 18th.
• April 2023: House of The Dragon Season 2 might wrap up filming quicker than Season 1.
• May 2023: Filming on Season 2 of House of The Dragon will continue despite the WGA writers’ strike.
• November 2023: Just days after the WGA strike ended, Casey Bloys revealed the second season of the Game of Thrones spinoff will premiere in early summer 2024 during an HBO event in New York
• November 2023: According to a report by Wake the Dragon fansite, the premiere episode of Season 2 might have an opening shot of Winterfell.
• November 2023: According to a report by Wake the Dragon fansite, the finale episode of Season 2 will have Corlys Velaryon heading out to a battle in the sea donning his full armor.
• November 2023: According to a report by Redanian Intellegence fansite, actor Sam C. Wilson, who plays the assassin named Blood, will appear in two episodes of Season 2. This means that the Blood and Cheese storyline will span 2 episodes.
• November 2023: According to IMDb, showrunner Ryan Condal has written the script for House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 1.
• November 2023: According to a recent leak via House the Dragons fansite, the ‘Sowing’ of the Dragonseeds will occur in the seventh episode of House of the Dragon Season 2, and will be a fiery spectacle.
• November 2023: According to a report by Wake the Dragon fansite, The Batman actor Archie Barnes will be playing the role of Ser Oscar Tully and might appear in Episode 7 of Season 2. Barnes portrayed Don Mitchell Jr.’s Son in The Batman.
• November 2023: HBO held a wrap-up party to conclude the production of Season 2. Actor Harry Collett celebrated the occasion with his fans, sharing a picture from the set, which shows a sword, a mysterious large book, and a name tag, that says ‘Prince Jacaerys Targaryen’. This indicates that Prince Jacaerys Velaryon will officially be christened as Jacaerys Targaryen in Season 2.
• November 2023: Actor Steve Toussaint, who plays Corlys Velaryon on the show, shared a picture of a clapboard prop from HBO’s House of the Dragon Season 2 wrap-up party. It had several interesting details, including House of the Dragon Season 2’s directors and their corresponding episodes.
• November 2023: In an episode of the podcast The Stuff Dreams Are Made of, showrunner Ryan Condal discussed a dragon poop prop with his friend David Mendel, jokingly mentioning that it will play a big role in Season 2.
• December 2023: HBO released the teaser trailer for House of the Dragon Season 2 and gave us our first look into the second season.
• December 2023: HBO confirmed the new cast and charcaters for Season 2, including Clinton Liberty as Addam of Hull, Jamie Kenna as Ser Alfred Broome, Kieran Bew as Hugh Hammer, Tom Bennett as Ulf White, Tom Taylor as Lord Cregan Stark and Vincent Regan as Ser Rickard Thorne.
• December 2023: Actor Steve Toussaint discussed his charcter Corlys Velaryon at CCXP, mentioning that a lot of his past deeds would come back to haunt him, and that he will go on an emotional journey in Season 2.
• December 2023: Fansite Wake the Dragon identified scenes from the House of the Dragon trailer and their corresponding episodes.
• December 2023: Author George R.R. Martin mentioned via his blog that the episodes in Season 2 are very dark and may make viewers cry.
• December 2023: Author George R.R. Martin mentioned via his blog that writer Philippa Goslett has joined the writing staff for House of the Dragon Season 2.
• December 2023: Fansite Wake the Dragon mentioned that Rhaenyra and Alicent would meet on Dragonstone in the last episode of Season 2, via a leak.
• December 2023: The X account Team Black revealed that actor Oscar Ezinaki has been cast as Rhaenyra’s youngest son, Prince Joffrey Velaryon.
• December 2023: Author George R.R Martin revealed via his blog that the renowned visual effects and animation firm Wētā FX, established by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson would be returning to work on the visual effects for House of the Dragon Season 2.
• December 2023: Max Wrottesley, who played the Kingsguard knight Ser Lorent Marbrand in Season 1, revealed on the Youtube channel Voice of Oldtown that the island of Dragonstone will feature more frequently in House of the Dragon Season 2.
• January 2024: Actor Matt Smith says House of the Dragon Season 2 may premiere in August 2024.
• February 2024: House of the Dragon Season 2 release date rumours addressed by HBO
• February 2024: Sam C. Wilson (Blood) completes ADR recording session for House of the Dragon Season 2
• February 2024: We get a closer look at House of the Dragon Season 2’s exterior sets
• February 2024: House of the Dragon Season 2 battle scenes to be reshot in March 2024
• February 2024: House of the Dragon Season 2 to premiere between April-June, says report.
• February 2024: House of the Dragon Season 2 reshoots begin at Leavesden Studios.
• March 2024: House of the Dragon Season 2 reshoots scenes near the River Lea.
• March 2024: House of the Dragon Season 2 confirmed to release in June 2024.
• March 2024: Aemma Arryn might return in a flashback scene in House of the Dragon Season 2.
• March 2024: HBO drops two new House of the Dragon Season 2 trailers.
• March 2024: House of the Dragon Season 2 release date confirmed for June 16.

House Of The Dragon Season 2 release date and more

Though the final release date has not been confirmed, we will see the release of Season 2 in Summer 2024.

The events of season 2 will cover the civil war extensively. Time jumps will no longer happen, and the show’s pace will slow considerably. All the characters that survived season 1 are expected to return for season 2. Ryan Condal told Entertainment Weekly that season 2 would be more significant and epic than season 1.

He said this season would explore the characters’ motivations and the consequences of their actions even further.

Milly Alcock and Emily Carey, who played young Rhaenyra and Alicent, will not return for season 2. Ryan Condal confirmed this by saying the characters are not part of the current storyline.

Cast for House of the Dragon Season 2

All the characters that survived the first season from the main cast will also return for Season 2. This will include all members of the royal family, both Greens and Blacks and the various characters that had a major role to play in Season 1.

One character that is presumed dead is Ser Laenor Velaryon. Whether or not he will return during Season 2 is anyone’s guess, as his faked death was not part of the books, and he may possibly return in some form in future seasons.

HBO has confirmed the new cast members and characters for Season 2. These will include:

Abubakar Salim as Alyn of Hull

Abubakar Salim is a British actor who has previously appeared in the HBO Max series Raised by Wolves. He has also voiced Bayek of Siwa in the video game Assassin’s Creed Origins. He plays Alyn of Hull, who is the brother of Adam of Hull, one of the new dragonriders who will fight for Rhaenyra. He is presumed to be the bastard son of either Laenor Velaryon or Corlys Velaryon.

Gayle Rankin as Alys Rivers

Gayle Rankin is a Scottish actress who has appeared in the Netflix series GLOW, the HBO series Perry Mason and has starred in the film The Greatest Showman. She plays Alys Rivers, a bastard of House Strong, wet nurse at Harrenhal and paramour to Prince Aemond Targaryen. Alys is rumored to be a sorceress who can see visions in storm clouds, pools of water, and flames.

Freddie Fox as Ser Gwayne Hightower

Freddie Fox is an English film and stage actor, known for his role as James “Spider” Webb in the Apple TV+ series Slow Horses. He has also starred in the movie The Three Musketeers (2011), Victor Frankenstein (2015) and King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017). He plays Ser Gwayne Hightower, a knight from House Hightower and an officer of the City Watch of King’s Landing. He is also the brother of Dowager Queen Alicent Hightower.

Simon Russell Beale as Ser Simon Strong

Simon Russel Beale is an English actor who has appeared in the movie Hamlet (1996), Mary Queen of Scots (2018) and Dunkirk (2004). He plays Ser Simon Strong, the great-uncle of Lord Larys Strong and the castellan of Harrenhal.

Tom Taylor as Lord Cregan Stark

Tom Taylor is an English actor known for his performance in The Dark Tower (2017) and the BBC One hit drama Doctor Foster (2015). He plays Lord Cregan Stark, the Lord Of Winterfell who allies with Prince Jacaerys Velaryon to fight on the side of the Blacks and support Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen.

Clinton Liberty as Addam of Hull

Clinton Liberty is an Irish actor and dancer known for his role in the ITV series Holding. He will play Addam of Hull, a dragonseed who will ride the dragon Seasmoke and fight for Queen Rhaenyra and the Blacks.

Jamie Kenna as Ser Alfred Broome

Jamie Kenna is a British actor and former semi-professional footballer who has appeared in the movies Green Street (2005), Stormbreaker (2006), The Bank Job (2008) and The Last Enemy (2008). He will portray Ser Alfred Broome, a knight from House Broome which is sworn to House Targaryen. He is the senior most knight at the castle of Dragonstone.

Kieran Bew as Hugh

Kieran Bew is an English actor known for playing ‘Big’ Bill O’Hara in the Hbo Max series Warrior (2023). He has also appeared in the TV series The Street (200) and Da Vinci’s Demons (2013). He plays Hugh, also known as Hard Hugh or Hugh Hammer. Hugh is a dragonseed who rides the dragon Vermithor and fights for the Blacks and Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen.

Tom Bennett as Ulf

Tom Bennett is a British actor who has appeared in many British television shows, includi9ng My Hero (2000), The Booze Cruise II (2003), Midsomer Murders (1997) and EastEnders (1985). He will play Ulf, also known as Ulf White, who rides the dragon Silverwing and is a dragonseed who fights for Queen Rhaenyra and the Blacks.

Vincent Regan as Ser Rickard Thorne

Vincent Regan is a Welsh film and television actor, best known for his roles in the films 300 (2006), Troy (2004), Clash of the Titans (2010) and the Netflix live-action series One Piece (2023). He plays Ser Rickard Thorne, a knight of King Aegon II’s kingsguard who fights for the Greens and carries out an important mission for the king.

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