As the second season of House of the Dragon wrapped in August, widespread opinion over the creative direction of the fantasy spin-off was decidedly mixed. The most vocal of those critiquing the season, which ran for a shortened eight episodes from ten, and wrapped on an unresolved cliffhanger, was the author of the series, George R.R. Martin.
The 75-year-old has been outspoken on significant creative choices throughout the season and warned of greater “toxic” changes to come in the future. A matter of days following Martin’s online tirade, HBO praised showrunner Ryan Condal and the wider production team for their “extraordinary job” on the spin-off, in direct response to Martin.
Now, in a conversation with The Hollywood Reporter, Martin switched gears and shone a positive light on filming for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, as he visited a set in Northern Ireland in July.
Writing of his experience, Martin said he “loved” what he had seen, highlighting the “great cast” that he felt “walked out of the pages” of his book.
The cast he refers to are characters from his story, Dunk and Egg, two characters with significant ties to the world of Westeros. “My readers are going to love them. I certainly do. [Showrunner Ira Parker] is doing a great job,” Martin adds.
House of the Dragon stars Matt Smith, Emma D’Arcy, Olivia Cooke, Ewan Mitchell, Eve Best, Harry Collett, Steve Toussaint, Phil Saban, Savannah Steyn, Sonoya Mizuno, Ty Tennant, Rhys Ifans, Fabien Frankel, Freddie Fox, Matthew Needham, Gayle Rankin, and Jefferson Hall.
