Why HBO Chose 'House of the Dragon' Over Scrapped 'Game of Thrones' Spinoff Starring Naomi Watts

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Why HBO Chose ‘House of the Dragon’ Over Scrapped ‘Game of Thrones’ Spinoff Starring Naomi Watts

by Jennifer Maas | January 15, 2020 @ 2:00 PM

TCA 2020: And there are “no plans” to pick up more “GoT” spinoffs, HBO programming chief Casey Bloys tells TheWrap

HBO finally fully committed to one of the several “Game of Thrones” spinoffs it had in development when it gave “House of the Dragon” a straight-to-series order last October.

That pickup came on the same day that another potential spinoff — the one starring Naomi Watts that HBO had actually filmed a pilot for — was scrapped. That untitled prequel, referred to internally as “Bloodmoon,” was set thousands of years before the events of “Game of Thrones.”

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TheWrap sat down with HBO programming chief Casey Bloys at the Television Critics Association press tour Wednesday and asked him to break down the reasoning behind picking one project over the other.

Also Read: 'Game of Thrones' Prequel 'House of the Dragon' Doesn't Have a Premiere Date Yet, But Here Is Casey Bloys' 'Suspicion'

“In general for a pilot, and this is very much the case in this one, there’s not one thing that I would say, ‘Oh, this went terribly wrong,'” Bloys said. “Sometimes a pilot comes together, sometimes it doesn’t. Sometimes even the best aspects don’t totally gel, sometimes they do. That’s kind of the little bit of luck and magic in doing shows — and sometimes they come together and sometimes they don’t.”

“Bloodmoon,” co-created by George R.R. Martin and “Kingsman” screenwriter Jane Goldman, was ordered to pilot at HBO in 2018. That project, one of the five “GoT” spinoffs originally put into development a few years ago, was set thousands of years before the events of the original “Game of Thrones” series, which ended its eight-season run last year, in the era known as the Age of Heroes.

“One thing I will say though is, one of the big challenges that Jane took on beautifully, I thought, is there was a lot of invention,” Bloys told us. “It was set 8,000 years before the original, so it required a lot of worldbuilding, which is a big challenge, it was a big swing.”

Also Read: 45 Most Shocking TV Character Deaths of 2019, From 'Game of Thrones' to 'Stranger Things' (Photos)

Co-created by Martin and “Colony” co-creator Ryan Condal, “House of the Dragon” is set in the early days of Westeros and focused on House Targaryen, the family that Emila Clarke’s Daenerys belonged to, along with her brother Viserys (Harry Lloyd) and nephew Aegon Targaryen a.k.a. Jon Snow (Kit Harington). The spinoff series is based on Martin’s “Fire & Blood” book, which details the Targaryen family lineage, and takes place 300 years before the events of “GoT.”

Miguel Sapochnik — who directed several fan-favorite episodes of “GoT,” such as “The Long Night,” “Battle of the Bastards” and “Hardhome” — and Condal will serve as co-showrunners on the series and executive produce alongside Martin and Vince Gerardis. Sapochnik will direct the pilot and additional episodes.

“One of the advantages of ‘House of the Dragon’ is you’ve got history and text from George in terms of the history of the Targaryens. So you had a little bit more of a roadmap,” Bloys told us. “So that made it easier to say go straight to series on that. Also, in general with ‘Game of Thrones,’ one of the things going into it we knew — that we know from the development in general — is very few things you get right the first time. And so that’s why we did multiple scripts. And we would have been very fortunate had the one pilot worked and gone straight to series and that would have been that. But you also had to make plans for if that didn’t happen. So we wanted to have a lot of options, so that’s why we went in very deliberately trying to go at it a number of different ways.”

Also Read: Subreddit That Hates on 'Game of Thrones' Is the Most Popular TV Subreddit of 2019

When we asked Bloys if there was a chance that any other “GoT” spinoffs could move forward at HBO — since last summer he told us there were one or two more scripts it was “possibly” considering ordering to pilot, though obviously we now know one of those was “House of the Dragon”– he said there are “no plans” for that to happen.

“For me, for right now, I think going to series on this one is all I’m looking to take on at the moment,” he said. “As I said, we developed a bunch. But for right now, this is our focus. I don’t see– there’s not anything close to being picked up, there’s no plans to pick up anything else. So right now, this is our focus, ‘House of the Dragon.’ And we’re excited about Ryan and Miguel doing this together.”

Bloys told TheWrap he expects “House of the Dragon” to premiere in 2022 on HBO.

Winter TV 2020: Premiere Dates for New and Returning Shows (Photos)

Winter is well underway and with it, naturally, comes the Winter TV season. In honor of the colder months and their small-screen offerings, TheWrap has rounded up the premiere dates for not just the new and returning shows on Fox, ABC, NBC, CBS and The CW, but also the ones for the eagerly anticipated series hitting cable channels and streaming services this winter. Click through our gallery to find out when your favorite winter shows will be back and when your possible new favorites will debut.

Also Read: Why Netflix Is Betting You’ll Want ‘The Witcher’ Season 2 – Before You’ve Seen Season 1
ABC/AMC/NBC/Netflix
Series: "Dracula" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Saturday, Jan. 4 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Say Yes to the Dress: America" Net: TLC Premiere Date: Saturday, Jan. 4 Time: 8 p.m.
TLC
Series: "Sister Wives" Net: TLC Premiere Date: Sunday, Jan. 5 Time: 8 p.m.
TLC
Series: "Naked and Afraid: Alone" Net: Discovery Channel Premiere Date: Sunday, Jan. 5 Time: 10 p.m.
Discovery Channel
Series: "America's Got Talent: The Champions" Net: NBC Premiere Date: Monday, Jan. 6 Time: 8 p.m.
NBC
Series: "The Bachelor" Net: ABC Premiere Date: Monday, Jan. 6 Time: 8 p.m.
ABC
Series: "Love & Hip Hop: Miami" Net: VH1 Premiere Date: Monday, Jan. 6 Time: 9 p.m.
VH1
Series: "Manifest" Net: NBC Premiere Date: Monday, Jan. 6 Time: 10 p.m.
NBC
Series: "Ellen's Game of Games" Net: NBC Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 7 Time: 8 p.m.
NBC
Series: "Jeopardy: The Greatest of All Time" Net: ABC Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 7 Time: 8 p.m.
ABC
Series: "Nick Cannon Presents: Wild N' Out" Net: VH1 Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 7 Time: 8 p.m.
VH1
Series: "Gordon Ramsay's 24 Hours to Hell and Back" Net: Fox Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 7 Time: 9 p.m.
Fox
Series: "The Haves and the Have Nots" Net: OWN Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 7 Time: 9 p.m.
OWN
Series: "Schitt's Creek" Net: Pop TV Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 7 Time: 9 p.m.
Pop TV
Series: "Vanderpump Rules" Net: Bravo Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 7 Time: 9 p.m.
Bravo
Series: "FBI: Most Wanted" Net: CBS Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 7 Time: 10 p.m.
CBS
Series: "Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist" Net: NBC Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 7 Time: 10 p.m.
NBC
Series: "Cheer" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 8 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Undercover Boss" Net: CBS Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 8 Time: 8 p.m.
CBS
Series: "Catfish: The TV Show" Net: MTV Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 8 Time: 8 p.m.
MTV
Series: "Criminal Minds" Net: CBS Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 8 Time: 9 p.m.
CBS
Series: "America's Top Dog" Net: A&E Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 8 Time: 9 p.m.
A&E
Series: "Party of Five" Net: Freeform Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 8 Time: 9 p.m.
Freeform
Series: "Medical Police" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 10 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "AJ & The Queen" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 10 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector" Net: NBC Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 10 Time: 8 p.m.
NBC
Series: "The Outsider" Net: HBO Premiere Date: Sunday, Jan. 12 Time: 9 p.m.
HBO
Series: "The New Pope" Net: HBO Premiere Date: Monday, Jan. 13 Time: 9 p.m.
HBO
Series: "Grace & Frankie" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 15 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "The Magicians" Net: Syfy Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 15 Time: 10 p.m.
Syfy
Series: "68 Whiskey" Net: Paramount Network Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 15 Time: 10 p.m.
Paramount Network
Series: "Listing Impossible" Net: CNBC Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 15 Time: 10 p.m.
CNBC
Series: "Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 15 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Grown-ish" Net: Freeform Premiere Date: Thursday, Jan. 16 Time: 8 p.m.
Freeform
Series: "Everything's Gonna Be Okay" Net: Freeform Premiere Date: Thursday, Jan. 16 Time: 8:30 p.m.
Freeform
Series: "Little America" Net: Apple TV+ Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 17 Time: N/A
Apple TV+
Series: "Diary of a Future President" Net: Disney+ Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 17 Time: N/A
Disney+
Series: "Sex Education" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 17 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Seven Worlds, One Planet" Net: BBC America Premiere Date: Saturday, Jan. 18 Time: 9 p.m.
BBC America
Series: "Avenue 5" Net: HBO Premiere Date: Sunday, Jan. 19 Time: 10 p.m.
HBO
Series: "9-1-1: Lone Star" Net: Fox Premiere Date: Sunday, Jan. 19 Time: 10 p.m.
Fox
Series: "Curb Your Enthusiasm" Net: HBO Premiere Date: Sunday, Jan. 19 Time: 10:30 p.m.
HBO
Series: "Brain Games" Net: Nat Geo Premiere Date: Monday, Jan. 20 Time: 9 p.m.
Nat Geo
Series: "Home Town" Net: HGTV Premiere Date: Monday, Jan. 20 Time: 9 p.m.
HGTV
Series: "DC's Legends of Tomorrow" Net: The CW Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 21 Time: 9 p.m.
The CW
Series: "Project Blue Book" Net: History Channel Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 21 Time: 10 p.m.
History
Series: "Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens" Net: Comedy Central Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 22 Time: 10:30 p.m.
Comedy Central
Series: "Star Trek: Picard" Net: CBS All Access Premiere Date: Thursday, Jan. 23 Time: N/A
CBS All Access
Series: "Station 19" Net: ABC Premiere Date: Thursday, Jan. 23 Time: 8 p.m.
ABC
Series: "Outmatched" Net: Fox Premiere Date: Thursday, Jan. 23 Time: 8:30 p.m.
Fox
Series: "The Bold Type" Net: Freeform Premiere Date: Thursday, Jan. 23 Time: 9 p.m.
Freeform
Series: "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 24 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "The Ranch" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 24 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Shrill" Net: Hulu Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 24 Time: N/A
Hulu
Series: "Goop Lab with Gwyneth Paltrow" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 24 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "The Circus" Net: Showtime Premiere Date: Sunday, Jan. 26 Time: 8 p.m.
Showtime
Series: "Our Cartoon President" Net: Showtime Premiere Date: Sunday, Jan. 26 Time: 8:30 p.m.
Showtime
Series: "Justin Bieber: Seasons" Net: YouTube Premiere Date: Monday, Jan. 27 Time: N/A
YouTube
Series: "Biggest Loser" Net: USA Network Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 28 Time: 9 p.m.
USA Network
Series: "Miracle Workers: Dark Ages" Net: TBS Premiere Date: Tuesday, Jan. 28 Time: 10:30 p.m.
TBS
Series: "Next in Fashion" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 29 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Miz & Mrs." Net: USA Network Premiere Date: Wednesday, Jan. 29 Time: 10 p.m.
USA Network
Series: "The Stranger" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Thursday, Jan. 30 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "BoJack Horseman" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 31 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Ted Bundy: Falling for a Killer" Net: Amazon Prime Video Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 31 Time: N/A
Amazon Prime Video
Series: "Ragnorak" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Friday, Jan. 31 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "The Masked Singer" Net: Fox Premiere Date: Sunday, Feb. 2 Time: 10:30 p.m.
Fox
Series: "Manhunt: Deadly Games" Net: Spectrum Premiere Date: Monday, Feb. 3 Time: N/A
Spectrum
Series: "McMillions" Net: HBO Premiere Date: Monday, Feb. 3 Time: 10 p.m.
HBO
Series: "Desus & Mero" Net: Showtime Premiere Date: Monday, Feb. 3 Time: 11 p.m.
Showtime
Series: "Lego Masters" Net: Fox Premiere Date: Wednesday, Feb. 5 Time: 9 p.m.
Getty
Series: "Interrogation" Net: CBS All Access Premiere Date: Thursday, Feb. 6 Time: N/A
CBS All Access
Series: "Katy Keene" Net: The CW Premiere Date: Thursday, Feb. 6 Time: 8 p.m.
The CW
Series: "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" Net: NBC Premiere Date: Thursday, Feb. 6 Time: 8 p.m.
NBC
Series: "The Sinner" Net: USA Network Premiere Date: Thursday, Feb. 6 Time: 9 p.m.
USA Network
Series: "Indebted" Net: NBC Premiere Date: Thursday, Feb. 6 Time: 9:30 p.m.
NBC
Series: "Tommy" Net: CBS Premiere Date: Thursday, Feb. 6 Time: 10 p.m.
CBS
Series: "Briarpatch" Net: USA Network Premiere Date: Thursday, Feb. 6 Time: 10 p.m.
USA Network
Series: "Mythic Quest: Raven's Banquet" Net: Apple TV+ Premiere Date: Friday, Feb. 7 Time: N/A
Apple TV+
Series: "Locke & Key" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Friday, Feb. 7 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "MacGyver" Net: CBS Premiere Date: Friday, Feb. 7 Time: 8 p.m.
CBS
Series: "High Maintenance" Net: HBO Premiere Date: Friday, Feb. 7 Time: 11 p.m.
HBO
Series: "Homeland" Net: Showtime Premiere Date: Sunday, Feb. 9 Time: 9 p.m.
Showtime
Series: "Kidding" Net: Showtime Premiere Date: Sunday, Feb. 9 Time: 10 p.m.
Showtime
Series: "Cherish the Day" Net: OWN Premiere Date: Tuesday, Feb. 11 Time: 10 p.m.
OWN
Series: "For Life" Net: ABC Premiere Date: Tuesday, Feb. 11 Time: 10 p.m.
ABC
Series: "Survivor" Net: CBS Premiere Date: Wednesday, Feb. 12 Time: 8 p.m.
CBS
Series: "The Soup" Net: E! Premiere Date: Wednesday, Feb. 12 Time: 10 p.m.
E!
Series: "Narcos: Mexico" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Thursday, Feb. 13 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Love Is Blind" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Thursday, Feb. 13 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "High Fidelity" Net: Hulu Premiere Date: Friday, Feb. 14 Time: N/A
Hulu
Series: "Utopia Falls" Net: Hulu Premiere Date: Friday, Feb. 14 Time: n/A
Hulu
Series: "Visible: Out on Television" Net: Apple TV+ Premiere Date: Friday, Feb. 14 Time: N/A
Apple TV+
Series: "Outlander" Net: Starz Premiere Date: Sunday, Feb. 16 Time: 8 p.m.
Starz
Series: "American Idol" Net: ABC Premiere Date: Sunday, Feb. 16 Time: 8 p.m.
ABC
Series: "Duncanville" Net: Fox Premiere Date: Sunday, Feb. 16 Time: 8:30 p.m.
Fox
Series: "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" Net: HGTV Premiere Date: Sunday, Feb. 16 Time: 9 p.m.
HGTV
Series: "Good Girls" Net: NBC Premiere Date: Sunday, Feb. 16 Time: 10 p.m.
NBC
Series: "Last Week Tonight With John Oliver" Net: HBO Premiere Date: Sunday, Feb. 16 Time: 11 p.m.
HBO
Series: "Sacred Lies" Net: Facebook Watch Premiere Date: Thursday, Feb. 20 Time: N/A
Facebook Watch
Series: "The Chef Show" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Wednesday, Feb. 19 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Gentefied" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Friday, Feb. 21 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Hunters" Net: Amazon Prime Video Premiere Date: Friday, Feb. 21 Time: N/A
Amazon Prime Video
Series: "Better Call Saul" Net: AMC Premiere Date: Sunday, Feb. 23 Time: 10 p.m.
AMC
Series: "The Voice" Net: NBC Premiere Date: Monday, Feb. 24 Time: 8 p.m.
NBC
Series: "Little Big Shots" Net: NBC Premiere Date: Monday, Feb. 24 Time: 10 p.m.
NBC
Series: "I Am Not Okay With This" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Wednesday, Feb. 26 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Altered Carbon" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Thursday, Feb. 27 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Jersey Shore: Family Vacation" Net: MTV Premiere Date: Thursday, Feb. 27 Time: 8 p.m.
MTV
Series: "RuPaul's Drag Race" Net: Vh1 Premiere Date: Friday, Feb. 28 Time: 8 p.m.
Vh1
Series: "Dispatches From Elsewhere" Net: AMC Premiere Date: Sunday, March 1 Time: 10 p.m.
AMC
Series: "Breeders" Net: FX Premiere Date: Monday, March 2 Time: 10 p.m.
FX
Series: "Twenties" Net: BET Premiere Date: Wednesday, March 4 Time: 10 p.m.
BET
Series: "The Deed: Chicago" Net: CNBC Premiere Date: Wednesday, March 4 Time: 10 p.m.
CNBC
Series: "Dave" Net: FXX Premiere Date: Wednesday, March 4 Time: 10 p.m.
FXX
Series: "Castlevania" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Thursday, March 5 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Devs" Net: FX on Hulu Premiere Date: Thursday, March 5 Time: N/A
FX
Series: "Better Things" Net: FX Premiere Date: Thursday, March 5 Time: 10 p.m.
FX
Series: "Cake" Net: FXX Premiere Date: Thursday, March 5 Time: 10 p.m.
FXX
Series: "Amazing Stories" Net: Apple TV+ Premiere Date: Friday, March 6 Time: N/A
Apple TV+
Series: "Hillary" Net: Hulu Premiere Date: Friday, March 6 Time: N/A
Hulu
Series: "The Most Dangerous Animal of All" Net: FX Premiere Date: Friday, March 6 Time: 10 p.m.
FX
Series: "Ride With Norman Reedus" Net: AMC Premiere Date: Sunday, March 8 Time: 11 p.m.
AMC
Series: "Cosmos: Possible Worlds" Net: Nat Geo Premiere Date: Monday, March 9 Time: 9 p.m.
Nat Geo
Series: "Council of Dads" Net: NBC Premiere Date: Tuesday, March 10 Time: 10 p.m.
NBC
Series: "On My Block" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Wednesday, March 11 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Elite" Net: Netflix Premiere Date: Friday, March 13 Time: N/A
Netflix
Series: "Flack" Net: Pop TV Premiere Date: Friday, March 13 Time: 10 p.m.
Pop TV
Series: "The Wall" Net: NBC Premiere Date: Sunday, March 15 Time: 7 p.m.
NBC
Series: "Westworld" Net: HBO Premiere Date: Sunday, March 15 Time: 9 p.m.
HBO
Series: "Black Monday" Net: Showtime Premiere Date: Sunday, March 15 Time: 10 p.m.
Showtime
Series: "Roswell, New Mexico" Net: The CW Premiere Date: Monday, March 16 Time: 9 p.m.
The CW
Series: "The Plot Against America" Net: HBO Premiere Date: Monday, March 16 Time: 9 p.m.
HBO
Series: "My Brilliant Friend" Net: HBO Premiere Date: Monday, March 16 Time: 10 p.m.
HBO
Series: "Motherland: Fort Salem" Net: Freeform Premiere Date: Wednesday, March 18 Time: 9 p.m.
Freeform
Series: "Little Fires Everywhere" Net: Hulu Premiere Date: Wednesday, March 18 Time: N/A
Hulu
Series: "Brockmire" Net: IFC Premiere Date: Wednesday, March 18 Time: 10 p.m.
IFC

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Here’s when 137 broadcast, cable and streaming series debut and come back

Winter is well underway and with it, naturally, comes the Winter TV season. In honor of the colder months and their small-screen offerings, TheWrap has rounded up the premiere dates for not just the new and returning shows on Fox, ABC, NBC, CBS and The CW, but also the ones for the eagerly anticipated series hitting cable channels and streaming services this winter. Click through our gallery to find out when your favorite winter shows will be back and when your possible new favorites will debut.

Also Read: Why Netflix Is Betting You’ll Want ‘The Witcher’ Season 2 – Before You’ve Seen Season 1

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