Almost 10 million people (9.99 million, to be exact) tuned in to witness the beginning of the end of House Targaryen last week, officially making the first episode of House of the Dragon the network's most-watched series premiere of all time.
According to Variety, the second installment, "The Rogue Princess," aired last night, and actually drew in more viewers with 10.2 million!
The prequel series has a long way to go before it does Game of Thrones season 8 numbers (a 17.9 million premiere and 10.3 million second episode), but this massive turnout was enough to earn the show an early season 2 renewal.
The episode was a less bloody affair than the premiere, but it wasn't without its share of controversy, and ended with the introduction of a mysterious new villain known only as the "Crab Feeder."
"The prequel series finds the Targaryen dynasty at the absolute apex of its power, with more than 15 dragons under their yoke. Most empires—real and imagined—crumble from such heights. In the case of the Targaryens, their slow fall begins almost 193 years before the events of Game of Thrones, when King Viserys Targaryen breaks with a century of tradition by naming his daughter Rhaenyra heir to the Iron Throne. But when Viserys later fathers a son, the court is shocked when Rhaenyra retains her status as his heir, and seeds of division sow friction across the realm."
House of the Dragon stars Paddy Considine (Peaky Blinders) as King Viserys Targaryen, Olivia Cooke (Ready Player One) as Alicent Hightower, Emma D’Arcy (Wanderlust) as Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen and Matt Smith (Doctor Who) as Prince Daemon Targaryen. The show is set to premiere on August 21.