Blood and Cheese is coming. House of the Dragon season 2 is swiftly approaching, and it's bringing with it one of Game of Thrones' most brutal moments – though, showrunner Ryan Condal doesn't think it's comparable to the most heartbreaking moment the series has ever seen.
Now, if you don't know what Blood and Cheese actually is, we won't spoil it here. But, rest assured it's a truly nightmarish moment in the history of Westeros.
We sat down with Condal to talk all about season 2 of the hit HBO fantasy show, and naturally we asked about the pressure of bringing Blood and Cheese to the screen when it stands in the shadow of those shocking Game of Thrones moments such as the Red Wedding, which saw the Starks slaughtered.
"It was just about telling the story and telling the character story," Condal tells us. "And I do dispute [the comparison] a bit. It is certainly a shocking moment. But the reason the Red Wedding was great was because it was shocking, but it also eliminated these two people you saw as – and certainly once Ned Stark died – you saw Cat and Robb as the stars of the show. They were the Stark family, and to eliminate them both in such a shocking way, at a wedding of all things: you can never top that, particularly because that's already happened.
"So that's one of the challenges making the show, is everybody's like, 'Well, where's your Red Wedding and who's your Cersei,'" he continues. "And so you're constantly in the shadow of that great original series. So no, we just set out and try to tell our story as it happens. And that particular event has its own place in the narrative, and certainly, it's shocking and awful. But it's really more of a way of dramatizing how terrible war is and how quickly things can get out of control, particularly in medieval time periods such as this. So we're less interested in the shock value of it and more interested in the character experience through it, and then what happens to the characters as a result of it afterwards."
House of the Dragon season 2 launches on Sky and NOW on Monday 17 June in the UK, and HBO and Max on Sunday 16 June in the US. In the meantime, check out our guide to all the upcoming new TV shows to get excited about.
For more from Condal, check out our pieces on:
- House of the Dragon season 2 showrunner doesn't feel the pressure of following the controversial Game of Thrones season 8: "Our challenge comes from within"
- House of the Dragon showrunner teases season 3: "You don't want to end up in that place where you're doing the same thing again and again"
- House of the Dragon season 2 showrunner breaks down the complicated relationship between Daemon and Rhaenyra: "Conflict is the order of the day"
- House of the Dragon season 2 showrunner says Rhaenyra and Alicent's bond is still the heart of the show: "We understand that these two women are connected"
