Fans of “House of the Dragon,” get ready—the popular prequel to “Game of Thrones” will debut its second season on HBO on June 16. Two opposing teasers that were made public last month promise even more treachery, violence, and dragons. This is our guide to landing a role in the next HBO fantasy series seasons.
What’s the story of “House of the Dragon”?
“House of the Dragon,” a prequel to “Game of Thrones,” was co-created by Ryan J. Condal and George R.R. Martin. It is set 200 years before the events of the first season. The drama is based on George R. R. Martin’s 2018 book “Fire & Blood,” which chronicles the long and illustrious history of the Targaryen family, who for hundreds of years dominated the realm of Westeros.
Following the deterioration and passing of King Viserys I Targaryen (Paddy Considine), the first season concentrated on the widening divide within the family. The Iron Throne eventually passed to her younger half-brother Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney), despite the fact that he designated his firstborn daughter, Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy), as his heir.
As the season came to a close, it was evident who was leading which side: the Blacks, represented by Rhaenyra and her uncle and husband Daemon (Matt Smith); or the Greens, represented by Aegon’s mother, Queen Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke), and her father, Otto (Rhys Ifans), who was both Viserys and Aegon’s Hand of the King. The Dance of Dragons, the internal conflict of House Targaryen, will be explored in the second season.
However, “House of the Dragon” is merely the beginning. Numerous other “Game of Thrones” spinoffs are in the works, such as “10,000 Ships,” which is set a millennium before the original series, “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight,” which is based on Martin’s “Tales of Dunk and Egg,” and two animated series called “Nine Voyages” and “The Golden Empire.” (An earlier-announced “Game of Thrones” sequel with Kit Harington as Jon Snow will not proceed.)
Who makes up “House of the Dragon”‘s cast?
The Season 2 ensemble consists of:
- Rhaenyra Targaryen, Princess Emma D’Arcy
- As Prince Daemon Targaryen, Matt Smith
- As Queen Alicent Hightower, Olivia Cooke
- Being Otto Hightower, Rhys Ifans
- Lord Corlys Velaryon, played by Steve Toussaint
- Rhaenys Velaryon, Princess Eve Best
- Targaryen King Aegon II, played by Tom Glynn-Carney
- As Prince Aemond Targaryen, Ewan Mitchell
- Lady Baela Targaryen played by Bethany Antonia.
- As Prince Jacaerys Velaryon, Harry Collett
- Mysaria, played by Sonoya Mizuno
- Lady Rhaena Targaryen, played by Phoebe Campbell.
- Queen Helaena Targaryen, played by Phia Saban
- Ser Steffon Darklyn, played by Anthony Flanagan
- Ser. Harrold Westerling, played by Graham McTavish
- Regarding Ser Criston Cole, Fabien Frankel
- Larys Strong, played by Matthew Needham
- Elinda Massey, played by Jordan Stevens
- As Lord Jasper “Ironrod” Wylde, Paul Kennedy
- Jefferson Hall in the roles of Lord Jason and Ser Tyland Lannister
- Grand Maester Mellos, played by David Horovitch
- Gavin Speaks and Lyonel Strong, Lord
- Ser. Simon Russell Beale Simone Strong
- As Ser Gwayne Hightower, Freddie Fox
- Rankin Gayle as Alys Rivers
- Abubakar Salim portraying Hull’s Alyn
- Clinton Liberty as Hull’s Addam
- Jamie Kenna as Sergeant Broome, Alfred
- Hugh, played by Kieran Bew
- Tom Bennett in the role of Ulf
- As Lord Cregan Stark, Tom Taylor
- Vincent Regan in the role of Ser Richard Thorne
Who is in charge of casting “House of the Dragon”?
Rhodes, Kate James serves as the show’s CD. James, who is mostly located in the United Kingdom, has assembled the ensembles of popular television series including “Bodyguard,” “Sherlock,” and “Raised by Wolves,” in addition to motion pictures like “House of Gucci” and “The Last Duel.”
James remarked to Backstage that she “just said yes to everything” when she first started her profession in an attempt to grow her network and knowledge. Her ability to concentrate more on her passion project, which is searching for new and emerging talent by going outside the typical Hollywood actor pool, has improved in recent years.
She remarked, “I know that when it’s something that I would want to watch, I want to do [a project].” “It seems like a tremendous error to cast something that I don’t want to watch. It’s kind of meaningless. Casting directors continue to inspire great creativity in me. We approach screenplays with the same mindset that actors use: what can I do to bring this to life? How can I make it better, or how can I use my skills and experience to help these folks and this work become something that everyone wants to watch?
Even if a performer hasn’t applied for one of James’s films, she is constantly on the lookout for fresh talent. “We’re always searching for the person we don’t know. We don’t want to examine the individuals we already know,” she remarked.
She advises prospective candidates that CDs are on your side. I tell actors all the time, ‘We are your warriors.’ The actors are unaware of the extent to which we advocate for them. We truly do,” she clarified. “I believe this is the reason why a lot of casting directors become a little unhappy the longer they work with us—we’re passed over so frequently. You may be thinking, “Wow, how hard did I have to work to cast that actor in that role who is now a huge success based on this casting decision, and you’re not recognized later on?”
What is the procedure for casting “House of the Dragon”?
Cooke described the “extensive” nature of the tryouts for “House of the Dragon” in an interview with “Good Morning America.” “I don’t know how many auditions I did; I did loads,” she went on. After six weeks of waiting, I was sworn to secret, told I had it, then again swore to secrecy before the press release was out. My closest pals would say things like, “What? How come you didn’t inform us? I was terrified that someone would kidnap me and turn me into a ghost.
In the early days of the pandemic, D’Arcy told the Hollywood Reporter, she and her crew started a months-long audition process. Self-tapes required a lot of commitment and several haircut adjustments.
“My partner and I literally taped a bag of hair in my color to my head every time I self-taped, which took about two hours,” D’Arcy remarked. After that, I had a four-hour in-person audition, after which I received no word.
They went on, “I feel like I taped every scene in the show by the end of three months—because they took a punt on me, I guess, in that I couldn’t bring an audience.” All I can recall is that it was horrible for a while after it got better. They then added, “Great, you can go home and get drunk; we’ll be in touch,” a few hours later. Then Miguel [Sapochnik], the co-showrunner for Season 1 of the show, approached me from behind, put his hands on my shoulders, and asked if we could do one more.
Where are casting calls and auditions for “House of the Dragon” held?
There isn’t a cast for the series yet. However, if you’re interested in working on a project like this, have a look at these dream jobs that are hiring. Additionally, you should bookmark our guide to HBO auditioning as well as this compilation of Showtime and HBO casting notifications.
Getting background work is a simple way to get involved in a big production. See our background acting guide for additional details on how to get extra work.
Read Also: How to Be Cast in “The Sympathizer” Type of Show
What are the most effective strategies for getting a part in “House of the Dragon”?
According to James, “people rarely lose their jobs because they did something wrong nine times out of ten.” “Usually, it’s not exactly what the director had in mind, or they’ve met someone else they believe would be a better fit.” These are the main dos and don’ts for the CD.
- Do not forget that each role has a part in the larger picture: James advises performers to think about what they can add to the project overall, even though some of the roles are tiny. It will be valuable once you read it with objectivity, recognize that it’s an excellent essay, and consider how you may contribute. Since everyone may be replaced, including me, the decision is whether to work or not to work.
- Do not hesitate to be who you truly are at your audition. “I adore performers that are authentic. They don’t want to win my approval; they have an inner voice. They bring into the room anything they wish to bring. Those are the kind of people I can consistently bring in, and once they start landing gigs, things only get bigger.
- Keep your own dramas out of the room. Actors, according to James, “shouldn’t complain about their kids keeping them up all night or complain about how they got stuck on a trip,” as this diminishes the energy in the room and takes away from the actors’ opportunities to perform.
The actors that say, “Can we just do it?” are my favorites. Since the scene and the part are the only things that matter. While having a pleasant conversation and all that is good, the real work is in the preparation. We want to know how you plan to proceed with [your audition]. Regardless of how exhausted you are, my usual advice is to just zip it. You should not be aware of our level of fatigue.
- Make a commitment to your decisions. “Make a choice regarding the persona. Errors don’t matter in this case.because you bring that into the room when you enter, and the director will then step forward and say, “Okay, great.” I adore that. “Let’s do it again,” they say, and then they turn to face them quite differently and with great grace.
“A director doesn’t have time to answer questions, so don’t enter a room expecting them to. Make the decision that [your character] was either abandoned or extremely pampered as a child, depending on the situation. We don’t need you to tell us. Simply decide what you want to do. It’s always evident.
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