In both the literary and film worlds, author George R.R. Martin is a household name. Some of his literary works have been adapted into visual projects throughout the years, the most recent being HBO’s famed fantasy drama “Game Of Thrones.”
The show ended in 2019 after eight seasons and 73 episodes, and several awards but would continue to live on through the spin-off prequel series called “House of the Dragon,” which is also based on one of Martin’s writings.
With “House of the Dragon,” scheduled to premiere around the same time as Amazon’s “Lord of the Rings” prequel series “The Rings of Power,” Martin recently shared his hopes for his the upcoming project, claiming that he wishes his own work will outperform Amazon’s in terms of gaining critical acclaim.
‘I Hope We Succeed More’
At the recently concluded Santa Fe Literary Festival, Martin spoke to The Independent (Via Insider) about the looming struggle for viewer ratings between HBO’s “House of the Dragon” and Amazon’s “Lord of the Rings” prequel series, pondering aloud why the media was keen on pitting the shows against each other.
“I know a lot of articles, the minute the dates were announced, it’s: ‘Oh, the battle for fantasy supremacy. It’s ‘Rings of Power’ versus ‘House of Dragon,’ who will win?’ I don’t know why they always have to do that,” the author said.
Although he hoped that both shows perform well on the small screen, Martin showed an understandable bias toward his own film amid declaring his love for fantasy works.
He continued: “I hope both shows succeed. I’m competitive enough. I hope we succeed more. If they win six Emmys, and I hope they do, I hope we win seven. But nonetheless, it’s good for fantasy. I love fantasy. I love science fiction. I want more shows on television.”
Martin On ‘The Rings of Power’
Still in the chat, Martin speculated that “The Rings of Power” will not backdrop on a number of J.R.R. Tolkien’s renowned Middle Earth elements but would instead take inspiration from the appendices in Tolkien’s books.
“It’s kind of a weird deal, as you know. Amazon bought Tolkien, but they didn’t actually get any of the books,” said Martin. “I don’t think they got ‘Farmer Giles of Ham’ or ‘Leaf by Niggle,’ but they got the appendices, I guess, and they’re constructing a Second Age story about that. There’s a lot of myth about that, so it’ll be interesting to see what they did.”
According to the IMDB page for “The Rings of Power,” will backdrop thousands of years before the “The Hobbit” and “The Lord of the Rings” and will chronicle the lives of diverse characters as they play their parts in battling the dark forces that threaten to destroy the peace of Middle-earth.
Martins Shared A Teaser About ‘House of The Dragon’
While fantasy fans prepare to binge-watch the upcoming shows, Martin had earlier teased viewers on what to expect from “House of the Dragon,” describing how he loved the “rough cut” of the first episode, which he got to see at the time.
“It’s dark, it’s powerful, it’s visceral… just the way I like my epic fantasy,” the writer wrote in his blog back in December.
HBO has also released a trailer for the next series, whetting viewers’ appetites as the premiere date approaches. The trailer highlighted that the showrunners made significant adjustments from what was seen in the “Game Of Thrones” series while also leaving some recognizable elements for fans.
For instance, a new Iron Throne was adapted in the upcoming series, with the new one having more swords melted into its makeup than the previous one. Also, the brooch that identified a person as the King’s Hand was spotted on one of the cast members, retaining its former power symbol.
‘House Of The Dragon’
The show’s first season will consist of ten episodes and will follow the House Targaryen 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones.
Ruler Viserys I Targaryen, the fifth king of the Seven Kingdoms, is played by Paddy Considine, while Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, King Viserys’ eldest child, is portrayed by Emma D’Arcy. Rhaenyra dreams of becoming the Seven Kingdoms’ first queen regnant, thanks to her dragon-riding abilities.
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Prince Daemon Targaryen is played by Matt Smith, a great fighter and seasoned dragon-rider who is also the heir apparent to the Iron Throne. The cast is rounded up by Fabien Frankel, Olivia Cooke, Emily Carey, Steve Toussaint, Eve Best, Sonoya Mizuno, and Rhys Ifans.
The majority of the series was shot in the United Kingdom, with other scenes shot in Spain and California. The show’s production was completed in February of this year, and it will premiere on HBO on August 21.
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