Olivia Cooke addresses showrunner Miguel Sapochnik’s surprise exit from House of the Dragon and what impact it will have on the upcoming season 2.
House of the Dragon star Olivia Cooke comments on showrunner Miguel Sapochnik’s shocking exit from the HBO series and how it has affected work on season 2. House of the Dragon season 1 premiered last year, telling a story set many years before the events of its mothership show, Game of Thrones. The series, which is once again based on source material from author George R.R. Martin, experienced a creative shakeup last summer shortly after its premiere, with co-creator Sapochnik, who had been serving as co-showrunner with Ryan Condal, announced he was leaving the series.
Now, as the wait for House of the Dragon season 2 continues, Cooke, who plays Alicent Hightower in the series, discusses the impact of Sapochnik’s exit in a recent interview on The Wrap’s Unwrapped podcast (via Collider). While Sapochnik was a key creative figure in bringing season 1 to life, the actor expresses optimism about the impact that new talent will have on the series moving forward. Check out Cooke’s full comment below:
“We all love Miguel, he’s a brilliant director and an incredible collaborator. He had just really radical ideas when it came to making this show. And I guess there’s been a collective effort to fill his shoes with other amazing directors. We’ve got some really cool directors that we’re working with this year and Geeta Patel and Clare Kilner are back, I mean his shoes won’t be replaced entirely because he is his own entity, but there’s still that proportion to make this season as good, if not, better.”
What To Expect From House Of The Dragon Season 2
While most US-based productions have shut down due to the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, House of the Dragon season 2 has not been affected since it is filmed mostly in the UK with actors from the Equity union. The show’s sophomore outing is expected to premiere at some point in the late spring or early summer of 2024.
While Sapochnik has not been involved in season 2, Condal remains onboard as the sole showrunner and Martin remains an executive producer. One major change that audiences can expect with the new season, however, is fewer episodes. House of the Dragon season 2’s episode count has been reduced from the usual 10 to only eight. This decision was apparently a purely story-driven one, with Condal reshuffling things as part of a larger three or four season plan for the series.
As far as story goes, season 2 is expected to pick up after the shocking events of House of the Dragon’s season 1 finale, with Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) and Alicent’s relationship now well past the breaking point. After season 1’s many jarring time jumps, season 2 will remain mostly set during one time period, which means Milly Alock and Emily Carey will not be returning as young Rhaenyra and young Alicent, respectively. While Sapochnik’s exit may have come as a shock last year, Cooke’s latest comment suggests that House of the Dragon season 2 is still in very good hands.
