Author George R.R. Martin has provided an update on the Game of Thrones prequel series, House of the Dragon. Writing on his "Not a Blog", Martin started off by confirming that Season 1 has wrapped.

　　All 10 episodes in Season 1 have now finished filming, and Martin said he's seen rough cuts of them and he's "loving" what he's seen so far. "Of course, a lot more work needs to be done. Special effects, color timing, score, all the post production work," Martin said.

　　Martin added: "But the writing, the directing, the acting all look terrific. I hope you will like them as much as I do. My hat is off to [showrunners Ryan Condal and Miguel Sapochnik] and their team, and to our amazing cast."

　　House of the Dragon is coming to HBO this year, but the network has yet to announce a specific release date. Martin reiterated that there is still "lots of work" to do to finish the episodes, going on to note that COVID has made planning difficult. "This spring? Unlikely. Maybe summer? Could be. Fall? Who knows?" Martin said.

　　Set hundreds of years before Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon follows the drama involving the House Targaryen. "As King Viserys (Paddy Considine) reaches the end of his reign, a brutal battle for succession kicks off between his beloved daughter Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy) and his second wife Queen Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke), who wants the throne for her sons," reads a line from the show's description.

　　Doctor Who's Matt Smith and Harry Potter actor Rhys Ifans also star in the series.

　　In other HBO news, the network's programming boss, Casey Bloys, recently confirmed that its The Last of Us series won't be released until 2023 at the soonest.