HBO has officially confirmed that the fantasy drama House of the Dragon will end with its fourth season in 2028, bringing the Targaryen civil war to a close.
The Game of Thrones prequel wrapped its third season in August 2026. The network renewed the series in late 2025, six months before the third season premiered, with creators confirming a two year wait for the final episodes.
Olivia Cooke, who plays Alicent Hightower, told Screenrant in autumn 2026 that filming had not yet started but was planned for spring 2027. Production on the third season began in late March 2025 and took about six months, followed by an extensive preparation stage, complex post production and visual effects work, before its release on June 21, 2026. While the exact release date remains unknown, a similar 14 month schedule would put the final season on track for a summer 2028 launch.
The final season will consist of eight episodes, matching the lengths of the second and third seasons. It will feature a bloody battle between the forces of Rhaenyra and Aegon, concluding the conflict known as the Dance of the Dragons.
Final season plot and story changes
The series is based on chapters from George R. R. Martin's book Fire and Blood. Showrunner Ryan Condal told Business Insider that the team would not comment on exactly how they plan to end the story. He noted the source material covers decades, and suggested the series might lower the curtain earlier than the book does, potentially leaving some character arcs open. The final season must resolve the fates of a multitude of main and secondary heroes.
Condal said the main storyline of the fourth season will focus on the final fall of Rhaenyra. After capturing the capital of Westeros, King's Landing, she transitions from a claimant to a reigning queen, but begins losing her mind due to constant betrayals and a thirst for power. As her subjects grow to fear rather than love her, a rebellion ferments.
Meanwhile, Condal noted that Aegon undergoes a surprising evolution while far from the throne that makes him a more sympathetic figure and potentially a more suitable ruler. In contrast, he observed that Rhaenyra is being corrupted by power as she nears the throne. Aegon will not abandon his attempts to turn the tide of the war for his supporters.
Expected battles and betrayals
If the show follows the book's events, the final season could include three major battles. The Battle Above the Gods Eye would feature a legendary aerial fight between Daemon and Aemond determining the fate of both. The Second Battle of Tumbleton would see the green faction attempt a bloody revenge. Finally, the Storming of the Dragonpit would show an angry mob attacking the dragons, sparking their extinction as the war ends.
The climax will also address ongoing betrayals. Ulf the White, an illegitimate Targaryen and half brother to Viserys and Daemon, defected from the black faction in the third season. Hugh Hammer, another illegitimate cousin to Viserys, is expected to betray Rhaenyra next. Daemon will face a choice between following his tyrannical wife or finding his own path.
The ultimate fate of Rhaenyra was previously revealed in an episode of Game of Thrones, produced before HBO planned the prequel. In that scene, Joffrey Baratheon conducts a tour of the castle dungeons and recounts how Rhaenyra, her son and her dragon died.
The story so far
Set roughly 200 years before Game of Thrones, the 18+ rated series follows the Targaryen dynasty from the ancient state of Valyria, the only family to survive a global cataclysm on the continent. Using their ability to control dragons, they conquered Westeros. The first three seasons, comprising 26 episodes of 60 minutes each, chart the fracturing of the family into the rival black and green factions.
The first season, which debuted in 2022, saw King Viserys I lose his wife and newborn son. Lacking other sons, he broke tradition by naming his daughter Rhaenyra as his heir, and exiled his brother Daemon. Viserys then married Rhaenyra's former friend Alicent. Following the king's death, Alicent's eldest son Aegon II was crowned, prompting Rhaenyra, now married to Daemon, to defend her claim.
The conflict escalated into open warfare in the second season following the death of Rhaenyra's son Lucerys, and an attack organized by Daemon on Aemond that resulted in mercenaries mistakenly killing Aegon's young son. This destroyed any chance of reconciliation. The great houses were forced to take sides and gather their armies and dragons.
The third season opened with the Battle of the Gullet, where Rhaenyra's heir Jacaerys Velaryon was killed. A hardened Rhaenyra, using cold calculation, captured King's Landing with support from Daemon and the northerners. She found the throne a heavy burden, with an empty treasury and a starving, unhappy populace. Following the destruction of the green stronghold of Tumbleton, which forced an assault commanded by Daemon to retreat, Rhaenyra delivered a coronation speech and declared herself the Prince That Was Promised to save Westeros. Helaena, Aegon's wife and own sister, took her own life, leaving behind a prophetic embroidery of a bloodied Rhaenyra on the Iron Throne that the queen chose to ignore. Aegon, on the run for most of the season, reunited with his brother Aemond and found his dragon was still alive.
Returning cast members
Several characters died in the third season, but a large ensemble cast is expected to return for the finale.
Emma D'Arcy will reprise their role as Rhaenyra Targaryen, fighting for the Iron Throne against her father's sons born after she was named heir. They are joined by Slow Horses actor Cooke as Viserys's second wife Alicent Hightower, and The Crown and Doctor Who star Matt Smith as the king's loyal but cruel and impulsive younger brother Daemon Targaryen. Dunkirk actor Tom Glynn-Carney returns as King Aegon II, Alicent's eldest son and Rhaenyra's main opponent, with Wuthering Heights actor Ewan Mitchell as his younger brother Aemond.
Skins actor Steve Toussaint will return as the wealthy legendary sailor Corlys Velaryon, head of his house and a supporter of Rhaenyra. Doctor Who actor Bethany Antonia plays Baela Targaryen, Daemon's eldest daughter who also supports the queen, alongside Phoebe Campbell as her twin sister Rhaena. Raised by Wolves actor Abubakar Salim and Normal People actor Clinton Liberty play Corlys's illegitimate twin sons Alyn and Addam of Hull. La La Land and Maniac actor Sonoya Mizuno continues as Rhaenyra's head of intelligence and master of whisperers, Mysaria. Warrior and Green Street actor Kieran Bew, alongside Brassic actor Tom Bennett, play Hugh Hammer, a blacksmith, and Ulf the White, a heavy drinker from King's Landing. Both are illegitimate men with Targaryen blood, with Ulf playing a major role in the third season.
The returning cast also includes Freddie Fox and Kurt Egyiawan from Slow Horses, Vikings actor Jefferson Hall, The Greatest Showman actor Gayle Rankin, and Andor actor Chuk Sibtain, as well as Archie Barnes, Annie Shapero, Dan Fogler, and Amanda Collin.
Game of Thrones spinoff plans
Condal promised the fourth season will be the biggest in the show's history. He said it will show not only fierce battles but the tragic consequences of the civil war that led to the decline of the entire family. He noted the final season will be worthy, featuring new characters, dragons, and locations. Writing the scripts for a season typically takes the team between six months and a year.
Condal previously described House of the Dragon as a Greek tragedy about a single family, requiring writers Condal, Martin, Sara Hess and others to invent many details not covered in the fictional history book. The series, blending fantasy, drama and action, has already won Golden Globe and Emmy awards. It holds an 8.1 rating on Kinopoisk and an 8.3 on IMDb.
In Russia, Amediateka officially shows the series but currently only has the first two seasons in its library. It is unknown if the third and fourth will be added. The show is also accessible on Kinopoisk, Wink, Ivi, Okko, and Kion through an extended Amediateka subscription.
Although House of the Dragon will end with the upcoming season, HBO has no plans to abandon the franchise. The network is planning a second season of the intimate series A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, the franchise's first feature film Aegon's Conquest, and an animated series titled Nine Voyages.
