House of the Dragon Could Have Started Much Earlier

The show begins with King Jaehaerys naming his grandson Viserys, the son of his second son Baelon, as his heir instead of Rhaenys, the oldest daughter of his first son. It took 26 years from that moment until the end of the 10th episode, thanks to not one, not two, but three time jumps.

In a lengthy new video interview with his publisher, Martin said there was a lot of discussion in the writer's room about where the show should begin, with one possibility being Viserys' death, which happened at the end of the eighth episode. Martin wanted to start the show before the leads were born.

I would have started it with a show called "The Heir and the Spare" in which the two sons of Jaehaerys are still alive. There is a friendship between the two sides of the house. Aemon dies when a Myrish crossbowman accidentally shoots him on Tarth, and then Jaehaerys has to decide who will become the new heir. Is it the daughter of the older son who just died or is it the second son who has sons of his own and is a man?

Martin admits that he was the only one who was excited about the idea and that it would have required more timejumps and more multiple castings. It worked out for the best for people who were used to seeing Milly Alcock grow into Emma D'Arcy and her kids go from adolescents to teens in between episodes.

I understand. The backdrop for A Song of Ice and Fire was created by him. He wouldn't want to see it all in person. For the purpose of the show, covering 20 years in 10 episodes was all we needed to know about the war for the Iron Throne.

Uproxx is where I found it.

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