As part of theGame of Thronesuniverse,House of the Dragonhas always been expected to feature more than its share of sex and violence. However, the showrunners behindHouse of the Dragonare promising the prequel series will not follow that same path.
Last month, showrunners Ryan Condal and Miguel Sapochnik made comments that went viral. Condal and Sapochnik indicated they would “pull back” from the number of sex scenes, but will still depict sexual violence inHouse of the Dragon.The comments courted controversy, with some pointing out that displaying consensual sexual content would be less harmful or triggering than depicting sexual assault.
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Condal and Sapochnik have now clarified their comments during a roundtable with Pop Sugar, claiming that the comments were misconstrued. Though Condal concedes, “It’sGame of Thrones,” and that the universe inherently features many expressions of sexuality and violence, he acknowledges thatHouse of the Dragonwill feature sex or violenceonly if there is a compelling reason to depict it on-screen. He reiterated that the show would not feature scenes of sex and violence gratuitously, nor would the scenes be present merely to titillate the audience.
Condal indicated that the showrunners were aware that the world is a different place now thatHouse of the Dragonis premieringcompared to whenGame of Thronesfirst aired, and that the show would be mindful of societal progress. For instance, intimacy coordinators were on scene for every scene with sexual content in it, and the actors rehearsed every scene extensively knowing what would occur beforehand. Sapochnik stated that it was important for the showrunners to be “responsible partners.” He said, “It’s really important to us that we be part of the solution there and not part of the problem. So that’s how we’ve been approaching it. I don’t even think we have any sexual violence in our season.”
The fact that the showrunners appear to be taking this issue seriously bodes well for those who think thatGame of Throneswas sometimes gratuitous in its depictions of sex and violence. Condal and Sapochnik both look to be on the same page and want to keep their actors safe and comfortable when performing such intensely vulnerable scenes for the audiences. ThoughtheGame of Thronesuniverseis known for morally gray characters, it doesn’t necessarily have to depict sexual violence in a glib manner.
For now, it looks as though Condal and Sapochnik intend to honor this view. Some have argued that such violence is an inherent part of a medieval-inspired society, particularlya patriarchal one such as Westeros. However, the topic does not necessarily have to be depicted merely to shock audiences in a meaningless way.
House of the Dragonpremieres this Sunday, August 21, on HBO and HBO Max.
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