House Of The Dragon Release Schedule: When Does Episode 7 Come Out?
Warning! SPOILERS ahead for House of the Dragon season 1, episode 6, « The Princess and the Queen. »Here’s the House of the Dragon release date and time for episode 7, « Driftmark. » The much-anticipated prequel show follows Game of Thrones’ footsteps in its approach to episode structure. House of the Dragon is the first official Game of Thrones spinoff, serving as a prequel series beginning 179 years before the original show’s timeline. There isn’t a significant focus on House Stark or any of the original characters, but a surprise twist includes the threat of the White Walkers in House of the Dragon’s story. However, the most exciting part of House of the Dragon season 1 is that it depicts the height of House Targaryen’s dynasty and dragon power in Westeros.
House of the Dragon season 1, episode 6, « The Princess and the Queen, » begins after a 10-year time jump, revealing that Rhaenyra has had three sons and Alicent’s children have grown up alongside them. The feud between Alicent and Rhaenyra has grown substantially since House of the Dragon episode 5, with Alicent and Ser Criston desperately trying to destroy the Princess’s reputation. Their best opportunity is through the parentage of Rhaenyra’s sons, who are not-so-secretly fathered by Ser Harwin Strong rather than her husband Laenor Velaryon. Due to the political strife, Daemon Targaryen has been living in Pentos with his wife Laena Velaryon and their daughters for the past decade. The tides shift further in House of the Dragon episode 6’s ending when Larys Strong has his family members Harwin and Lyonel Strong killed for Alicent, Rhaenyra leaves with her family for Dragonstone, and Laena Velaryon commands Vhagar to kill her.
« The Princess and the Queen » is the first House of the Dragon season 1 episode starring Emma D’Arcy as Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen and Olivia Cooke as Queen Alicent Hightower. House of the Dragon episode 6 also now establishes the series as a multi-generational conflict, as Rhaenyra and Alicent’s children are brought into the tensions over King Viserys’ succession. Considering House of the Dragon season 1 is averaging more than 29 million viewers per episode (via Variety) and increasingly impressive reviews, the prequel’s early success is rivaling Game of Thrones at its peak. As the anticipation climbs for the climactic Dance of the Dragons, here’s the release date for House of the Dragon episode 7, as well as the HBO Max streaming times of all remaining episodes in House of the Dragon’s first season.
House of the Dragon episode 7, « Driftmark, » releases on Sunday, October 2 at 6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. EST on HBO and HBO Max. This was the same primetime release slot that Game of Thrones’ eight seasons held on HBO during its original run. In the UK, House of the Dragon’s season 1 episodes are released on Mondays at 2 a.m. through Sky Atlantic and NOW.
Much like its predecessor, House of the Dragon season 1 has a total of 10 episodes. The episode runtimes for House of the Dragon season 1 average about one hour each, with the heavily-recast HOTD episode 6 being the longest yet at 67 minutes. Game of Thrones seasons 1 through 6 each boasted 10 episodes, but season 7 had only seven episodes, while season 8 featured a total of six episodes with longer runtimes. If repeating the formula of Game of Thrones’ early seasons, the show is set to provide a heady climax and ample twists in House of the Dragon season 1’s penultimate outing.
House of the Dragon season 1’s remaining episodes will be released weekly on HBO and HBO Max. Following House of the Dragon season 1, episode 7, the series will feature its last major time jump, which is expected to be around 6 years. House of the Dragon season 1, episode 6, « The Princess and the Queen, » marked the debuts of Emma D’Arcy as Rhaenyra Targaryen and Olivia Cooke as Alicent Hightower, who will play the characters for the remainder of the series. However, a few major characters will be recast for the last time in House of the Dragon episode 8, which includes Rhaenyra, Alicent, and Daemon’s children.
Following House of the Dragon season 1, episode 6, the four remaining episodes will release in weekly installments. As such, House of the Dragon’s season 1 finale is set to release on Sunday, October 23 at 9 p.m. ET. HBO has already officially renewed House of the Dragon for a second season, with solo showrunner Ryan Condal already planning for another long-running series.
